Post Partum Weekly Thread May 8-15 - Page 3

[Peppermint Poppies]

Things are still going well here. I'm still in shock over how placid Darcy is, and how different this newborn experience is from with my son. She's a very keen breastfeeder, and very efficient - sometimes she only needs 5 mins on each breast. Other times she likes to savour the 'meal' and will stay gently suckling for an hour. Apart from a small scab on one nipple that I got while in hospital, I'm not having any nipple pain or cracks. The child health nurse visited yesterday - Darcy is putting on weight nicely and everything else was fine too. So far none of the hospital or early childhood staff have cared that we declined the Hep B vax at birth, so we haven't had to defend our decision at all. I had the same experience with my son too - our non-vaxing was a non-issue.

The only problem I'm experiencing at the moment is severe shoulder pain in both shoulders. I'm not sure if it's because I'm breastfeeding football style, or because my ligaments are still loose from the relaxin hormone, but I've had to start taking anti-inflammatories to deal with the pain. I'm going to call the hospital physio's today to see if they can give my any advice on stretches or exercises to strengthen my shoulder girdle.

[CookAMH]

Originally Posted by Peppermint Poppies

Things are still going well here. I'm still in shock over how placid Darcy is, and how different this newborn experience is from with my son. She's a very keen breastfeeder, and very efficient - sometimes she only needs 5 mins on each breast. Other times she likes to savour the 'meal' and will stay gently suckling for an hour. Apart from a small scab on one nipple that I got while in hospital, I'm not having any nipple pain or cracks. The child health nurse visited yesterday - Darcy is putting on weight nicely and everything else was fine too. So far none of the hospital or early childhood staff have cared that we declined the Hep B vax at birth, so we haven't had to defend our decision at all. I had the same experience with my son too - our non-vaxing was a non-issue.

The only problem I'm experiencing at the moment is severe shoulder pain in both shoulders. I'm not sure if it's because I'm breastfeeding football style, or because my ligaments are still loose from the relaxin hormone, but I've had to start taking anti-inflammatories to deal with the pain. I'm going to call the hospital physio's today to see if they can give my any advice on stretches or exercises to strengthen my shoulder girdle.

I had pretty sore shoulders when I first started bfing...is it muscle pain from having them tensed and flexed? Mine have gotten better in the last few days.

I think non vaxing, at least at this point, will go over fine with Ezra's pedi. It was one reason we chose them. They may not support complete non vax but do support delayed and alternate schedules.

Oh and our parents reacted fine to no circ...we explained what we researched and they seemed fine with it.

[RasJane]

My shoulders are pretty sore too. It is from bfing. I get sore shoulders every time. It gets better, and then worse again as baby gets lots heavier.
I'm going to try to take a bath tonight with Miriam. It sounds like a great way to relax. She seems pretty fussy tonight, but then she caught her brothers' cold and is pretty ticked about having a stuffy nose. Poor thing. She's not too bad, I think the bfing is making a huge difference.

My biggest struggle is definitely just trying to figure out how to manage an extremely active 20 bmonth old and a newborn!

[surprisedmama]

I just had my own hot bath and it was perfect!!!!! I advise others to treat themselves to one as well.

[Auraji]

Is anyone else hungry all the time? I dont know what's going on. Im SO hungry, I want to eat a million different things a day.

dss was here again tonight. He came to have dinner with us. Im not sure how he's taking on the new baby, he never wants to come near her. He keeps asking me where my belly go and I've tried explaining that the baby was in there, but now she's out here with us. Today he asked me if the baby was gonna go home to the hospital? I just think he's confused. Im letting him be, I guess they'll bond eventually.

[Peppermint Poppies]

Originally Posted by CookAMH

I had pretty sore shoulders when I first started bfing...is it muscle pain from having them tensed and flexed? Mine have gotten better in the last few days.

It seems to be muscle AND joint pain. I spoke with the hospital physio this afternoon and have an appointment on Monday morning. Hopefully I can survive the weekend without going insane. Good to know that yours has gotten better with time.

Hmm ... a hot bath sounds wonderful. How do you all handle the post-partum bleeding in the bath? (sorry if TMI)

[RomanGoddess]

Joshua is almost three weeks old and he just wants to suck all. the. time. I am seriously thinking about buying a pacifier because there is no way I can have him on the breast 24/7. There is simply no milk left in them and yes, I know that the breast is constantly producing milk but if he is nursing all the time they do not produce at the volume that he wants when he really IS hungry.

What are others doing? Is mine the only one like this? Not even wearing him will satisfy his sucking need. In fact he rejects the baby carrier because I can't manage to nurse him in one.

[major_mama11]

Originally Posted by RomanGoddess

Joshua is almost three weeks old and he just wants to suck all. the. time. I am seriously thinking about buying a pacifier because there is no way I can have him on the breast 24/7. There is simply no milk left in them and yes, I know that the breast is constantly producing milk but if he is nursing all the time they do not produce at the volume that he wants when he really IS hungry.

What are others doing? Is mine the only one like this? Not even wearing him will satisfy his sucking need. In fact he rejects the baby carrier because I can't manage to nurse him in one.

Oh my gosh, my little guy is just like this. He nursed so nonstop the first night that my milk came in after only 36 hours (as opposed to 3 days w/ my daughter).

DH has been trying to talk me into starting a pacifier, but I'm paranoid about it since I've read that a pacifier may make them wean sooner. DD never seemed to need this much sucking, so this is totally new for me. Luckily he will suck on my little finger so that is saving my nipples at the moment...

Any advice from moms whose older kids were like this? Did pacifiers mess up or shorten the breastfeeding relationship?

[jeliphish]

DD1 took a passy right away and still nursed like a champ. Maggie will gag if I even try to put a passy in her mouth. I am going to continue to try though I think because I will go back to work in July and she HAS to get used to an artificial nipple. I am going to start pumping her in the next week or two.
Maggie has days where all she wants to do is suck, suck, suck and I have just sucked it up (hehe) and sat around with her and let her eat. If She wanted to eat all of the time then I would have to consider the passy more right now.

I swear the answer to fuller babies is more hindmilk. That's why I feed off the same breast 2-3 times in a row and then switch sides. On her non-growth spurt days Maggie almost never eats sooner than every 3-4 hours. However I have a super supply....when i went back to work it wasn't out of the ordinary for me to pump out 15 ounces in 10 minutes.

[Auraji]

Sophia is like that, she wants to nurse ALL the time. She will suck on anything near her, a finger, a thigh, a cheek, a knee. They gave her a pacifier in the hospital, I try not to give it to her much. I got her a caterpillar from sassy, she loves that thing, sucks on it like there's no tomorrow haha

[lotus.blossom]

Alicia- just curious, did Ezra get the eye "goop" after birth? I'm just collecting my own personal data about it. Neither of mine had blocked tear ducts and it seems that several people I know who didn't wave the goop had that problem. Hope it clears up soon! That, and the diaper rash.

My nipples have been cringingly sore too. I feel like bf'ing is so much harder with this little guy. I had no problems with ds1. I just remembered about my lansinoh and it makes SUCH a big difference!! My guy likes to slide my nip in and out of his mouth and with the lanolin it makes that much less painful. I too have been doing the same breast several times in a row because I felt like with his short nursing sessions he wasn't filling up enough on the hindmilk.

I have been introducing the pacifier. ds1 NEVER took to one and I completely wore myself out nursing him whenever her needed food or comfort. I am taking a much more laid back approach to this one. I just don't have the "luxury" of nursing all day long anymore. Plus I ds1 was a car screamer and I spent many rides perched in the backseat nursing while we were on the move and I refuse to do it this time. I need this little guy to take a paci in the car!!

Seems as though my post partum bleeding is over! YAAAAY! I was getting a rash from those stupid pads. I have switched over to cloth for the rest of the little bit of spotting. It feels so much better. Soon the litle dude will be in cloth diapers and we'll all have a happy bottom!

[kdtmom2be]

Originally Posted by lotus.blossom

I have been introducing the pacifier. ds1 NEVER took to one and I completely wore myself out nursing him whenever her needed food or comfort. I am taking a much more laid back approach to this one. I just don't have the "luxury" of nursing all day long anymore. Plus I ds1 was a car screamer and I spent many rides perched in the backseat nursing while we were on the move and I refuse to do it this time. I need this little guy to take a paci in the car!!

: That was us to a T.
Funny how we do things differently the second time around

[CookAMH]

Originally Posted by lotus.blossom

Alicia- just curious, did Ezra get the eye "goop" after birth? I'm just collecting my own personal data about it. Neither of mine had blocked tear ducts and it seems that several people I know who didn't wave the goop had that problem. Hope it clears up soon! That, and the diaper rash.

No, he didn't have the eye goop. So I guess that skews your research. Interesting though. His eye looks a little better and is open wider today. I've been massaging it for about a day now.

His rash is improving being in sposies, water wipes, cream and daily butt baths. My moms is going on some errands for me and is going to buy some flannel for us to make our own wipes. I don't know yet what caused it. He also has what looks like flaky skin in the inner folds of his thighs on either side of his penis. My mom thought hat might be yeast...but no thrush in the mouth. Any idea?

Yay for your pp bleeding! My pp bleeding has tapered down quite a lot. My steri strips haven't budged...they say they'll fall off in 7-10 days but it's been 12. Is that why you took yours off yourself? I might call and ask about it. I went off the percicet as my mom thought maybe Ezra wasn't tolerating it, and I had been on half pills for a couple days before that, so I haven't noticed too much difference. Yesterday was 2 weeks pp. We took a short walk with Ezra in the mei tai yesterday and I didn't get a nap, so I was a little sore and tired but feel good today (he went 4 hours between each of three feedings last night, which he's done a lot before, and was nice!).

I can totally understand why you guys are bringing in the paci with your babies who aren't your first...I know I have the luxury now esp with the help I have to hold off longer but it makes a lot of sense for second or third babies!

My SIL had poor milk supply, nursed on a schedule, did CIO at 6 weeks with #1 and is pg with #2, wants to do CIO sooner, and thinks that because there is less stress with finances this time, her milk supply will be better. I have contemplated emailing back and saying, I encourage you to not nurse on a schedule at the beginning for your milk supply and for baby's best interest...but I don't think she would be receptive. Maybe a link to the AAP. I have a feeling I'll just need to wait to see if it might come up in conversation before baby comes in October. I'm sure stress could have played a roll, but not nearly to the extent that her scheduling him and making him CIO had.

[lotus.blossom]

CIO at 6 weeks? That should be against the law!! I would have a hard time keeping my mouth shut.

I was so ready to take my steri strips off. They were starting to pucker in the middle but still quite stuck on the ends. I think its safe to do. I enjoyed trimming up my girly parts the other day! Oh and I cancelled my 2 week check up. I am doing so well and since its my 2nd c/s I felt like I didn't need to take the 45 minute drive just to have them say yup, you're good!

Oh and my baby totally woke up after I got off the percoset. I was wondering if he was mellow because he was on drugs. Yup. I think that was it!

Don't really know much about diaper rashes. My son did have a yeasty one once but it was more red and pimply than what you describe.

Anyone elses baby riddled with baby acne? Mine has more pimples than a teenager!

[CookAMH]

Originally Posted by lotus.blossom

Anyone elses baby riddled with baby acne? Mine has more pimples than a teenager!

I think Ezra would be if I weren't putting coconut oil on every bump that pops up. I've found they go away pretty quickly. Scratches go away really quickly too. He had some acne starting on his head under his hair a few days ago, so I washed his head under the faucet with burts bees and next day, no bumps.

I have been drinking a ton of OJ...I'm craving it! I never had cravings in pregnancy lol.

ETA: with SIL & CIO...I plan to bring it up at some point but know I have several months yet and may have an opportunity.

I have a firm spot on my incision that I am guessing is a scar staring? I'm anxious to have the strips off to see it. My 2 week is Tuesay (almost 3 weeks pp though) so I guess I'll just wait till then to see.

[Peppermint Poppies]

Originally Posted by CookAMH

I have been drinking a ton of OJ...I'm craving it! I never had cravings in pregnancy lol.

I had an OJ craving during my pregnancy with Darcy. Turns out I was anaemic, and since vitamin C helps the body absorb iron, I'm convinced this was the reasoning behind my OJ craving. As soon as I started taking iron supplements, I lost the desire for OJ completely.

Well, Darcy was up 4 times feeding last night. I've been a bit spoiled up until now, and she's only been waking every 3-4 hours, so last night nearly killed me.

Re: pacis, I've managed to hold off until now, even though Darcy is a really sucky baby. I had huge supply issues with my son, so I want her to suck on me for as much as possible in these early days. I've got IL's and my parents staying with us until Darcy will be 4 weeks old, and after they leave, I might have to introduce a paci, just to give me some time to attend to my toddler's needs. I'm already feeling guilty about the amount of time I spend sitting on the couch with Darcy and unable to attentively parent my son. He seems to be coping OK, but I'm feeling awful about it.

[jeliphish]

is anyone's baby stuffy?? Maggie is just a bit stuffy mostly at night. It's all clear but it just sounds like it's clogging her up and she gets frustrated. Can they have allergies this early?? It just seems too early for a cold.

[Peppermint Poppies]

Originally Posted by jeliphish

is anyone's baby stuffy?? Maggie is just a bit stuffy mostly at night. It's all clear but it just sounds like it's clogging her up and she gets frustrated. Can they have allergies this early?? It just seems too early for a cold.

The neonatal paediatrician at the hospital I birthed at said stuffiness was really common in breastfed newborns. Apparently while they're getting the hang of swallowing increasingly larger amounts of milk, they siphon some of it back into their nose. The nasal passages secrete extra mucous to protect their delicate lining from the milk. He said it's not a cold, it's not allergies, and it's nothing to worry about. HTH

[Kelly1101]

Originally Posted by Auraji

Today he asked me if the baby was gonna go home to the hospital? I just think he's confused. Im letting him be, I guess they'll bond eventually.

Hehehe, my mom was talking today about how when my little brother was born (five years younger than me), after four days I asked my mom when we can give him back to the hospital. I'm sure your dss will bond with the baby in his own time.

Originally Posted by lotus.blossom

Anyone elses baby riddled with baby acne? Mine has more pimples than a teenager!

She seriously broke out this week. Hopefully it will clear up quickly.

Originally Posted by jeliphish

is anyone's baby stuffy?? Maggie is just a bit stuffy mostly at night. It's all clear but it just sounds like it's clogging her up and she gets frustrated. Can they have allergies this early?? It just seems too early for a cold.

Emma's been having some stuffiness, too-- I don't think it's a cold or allergies, just some residue as PP said. She has been clearing it pretty well with occasional sneezes, but night before last it seemed to be bothering her and we used the aspirator, after which she felt a lot a better.

[jeliphish]

Originally Posted by Peppermint Poppies

The neonatal paediatrician at the hospital I birthed at said stuffiness was really common in breastfed newborns. Apparently while they're getting the hang of swallowing increasingly larger amounts of milk, they siphon some of it back into their nose. The nasal passages secrete extra mucous to protect their delicate lining from the milk. He said it's not a cold, it's not allergies, and it's nothing to worry about. HTH

awesome! makes me feel a lot better!