Chat Thread - June 29 - July 5th!

[serenekitten]

Oh, goodness sakes, it's nearly July. :

~*~

I'll be 37 weeks tomorrow.

Today didn't quite go the way I'd pictured it.

I had a midwife appointment at 2:00, and arrived on time/slightly before, despite traffic and construction. At 2:40 I finally saw her come out, but to fetch another couple, saying a nurse would be with me in a minute. It was about 3:00 when I was finally taken to a room. I was getting rather pissed -- the cats had been home alone for four days and I needed to get groceries and do stuff. I was also hungry (again). And I hadn't had enough to drink all day.

So, perhaps unsurprisingly, my blood pressure was a lot higher than they wanted it to be.

They checked it again at the end of my appointment, and it hadn't come down enough for their satisfaction. I got to have the full she-bang: blood work, an ultrasound, and a non-stress test in the maternity ward. Of course, being told I needed to have all this done probably didn't help matters, either -- when I got to the maternity ward, my blood pressure was the highest they'd ever measured it at 150 over 102.

Long story short, I'm okay. The baby's okay. They gave me signs to watch out for, if my blood pressure spikes again. I'm on modified bed rest. I'll go back in on Wednesday to get the blood pressure checked again.

For anyone who is curious, I'm 2 centimeters dilated and 50% effaced. I was having some very shallow contraction wave formations on the non-stress test. So that's all well and good, but doesn't tell us anything about when he'll actually get here.

[Angelorum]

Oy, talk about ways to stress you out before a non stress test!

[GoldmanBaby09]

Ugh, Serenkitten! Sitting and waiting all that time hungry would have made my blood pressure spike, too! Is that a CNM at an OB's office you are seeing? I was getting concurrent care with one (in addition to my hb mw) for a while, but their office policies were terrible. I constantly had to wait 45-60 mins before being called back and then often had to wait another 30 in the exam room before the CNM finally came in. The CNM was sweet and I don't think the scheduling was her fault, but I ended my care with her just because I was tired of waiting on her all the time.

Glad to here that your babe is ok and you are plugging along

[Avani]

That sounds horrible! I'm glad my midwife appointments are at her nice quaint lil cottage surrounded by flowers. So peaceful! I will be 40 weeks on Wednesday. The final countdown will commence, a baby will have to come sometime in July for sure! My midwife isn't super strict on the 42 weeks mark but i am very confident baby will be coming soon. I am super crampy today and last night i had some strong contractions. Even if it's another week at least i am progressing!

[tracymom1]

That is just so annoying! I mean, I understand their concern about an elevation in BP, but really - all that testing just stresses you out even more and does nothing to rectify the situation. And, IMO, NSTs are a complete waste of time. I worked OB for years and had to hook up mamas daily to these things and "read" them for the docs - what a joke.

But anyways... I am very happy to hear everything is okay. Maybe you should just monitor your BP at home where (hopefully) your stress level is not as high? Just a thought...

[learnlovebe]

Ugh, I hate it when you have to wait! You do them the favor of getting there early, and they make you wait forerver. It's happened to me too, but I've never had to wait THAT long, that's just crazy. And if you ever showed up that late, you'd totally have to reschedule!

I was 50% effaced and a finegertip dialated at my appt 2 weeks ago, so I'm curious if I've made any progress.

The only thing that has really changed is the the need to go to the bathroom every 15 minutes and then peeing a thimble-ful. Grrrr.

Found out today that we have a couple bats in our attic. Fantastic. Just what I want to deal with when I'm trying to get ready for a new baby. I suppose it could be worse, it could be a whole colony of 100s of them.

Mostly though, I'm ready for this little one. I still don't feel like she's coming anytime soon though. But I'm ready when she does!

[christibale]

I am 40 weeks tomorrow. My dd was 1 day late, and I was going crazy totally nuts about having to go into labor now.

HOWEVER, I finally accepted that if I had 2 more weeks I could come up with some fun things to do and I was going to take my mind off the birth. No less than 5 hours later my water broke. That was yesterday morning, and here I sit typing with few contractions and no real oncoming signs of labor besides the fact that I'm soaking an infant prefold every hour.

I'm wondering if this is a very punctual baby because if I were to get things going now, he would be born on his due date I know it is possible to go even another week with broken water, but I'm really hoping that is not the case. I can't really head out to do anything fun because I'm pulling soaked prefolds out of my underwear constantly, so I'm stuck at home with my husband watching everything I do like he needs to run to the car this moment and drive like a madman with an ambulance escort to the birth center.

I KNOW I should have had him read more birth books. He freaked out when my water broke, and when I got back from the shower, he all but had dd in the car ready to go to the birth center

[Mama_Michelle]

Serenekitten, I am glad your babe is doing well. That seems like a lot of tests!

Christibale, I hope things get going for you soon!!

I am 38w5d and finally starting to get ready for baby to come. I think I need at least a few more days to get prepared and would really prefer to go into labor next Monday, so let's see if baby agrees with my tentative schedule.

As I wrote in another thread, I have had some anxiety about birthing this babe after DD2's quick labor. I spent today thinking about the birth I want and visualizing it. I already feel better. Its hard to believe we are nearing the homestretch with July beginning.

[Avani]

I've been having bouts of contractions all throughout today. I decided to run to the store and got hit by a strong contraction just as i was walking in. I'm back home and taking care of all the kids and i am still having them but not sure what the pattern is. I am wavering between giving the midwife a heads up or waiting until things are more steady. I feel really out of it and am going to try and rest for awhile. Maybe after some rest the contractions will pick back up. I'm so nervous going into labor but i also really want to meet this little one. I feel like i just want to get the labor over with and meet her! We shall see, i am manifesting a peaceful, easy and somewhat quick labor!

[haren.13]

Ugh, all that waiting would stress me out Sorry, Mama!

I'm 39 + 2 (almost 3!) and am READY! DD was 6 days late, and I was induced with her, so I'm kinda not sure what to expect. But, I did have some contractions this morning for about an hour and a half (they fizzled right as I was contemplating keeping DH home from work!). Today I've been extra mucusy and a little crampy. I'm really hoping that things get going soon, but I'm trying to prepare myself to go past my due date again...ugh :P I'm trying to get DD to nurse as much as possible to help things along She mostly happily obliges, though I think she doesn't like the milk much right now as she'll latch but not suck about half the time :P I've found that that doesn't bring on the contractions like real nursing!

[Ianthe]

I'm 40 weeks tomorrow too. I had an appt today and am 1cm dilated, 85% effaced. She is going to "stir things up" for me this Friday (if nothing happens until then). I had a bit of blood tinged mucus a while after my appt and got excited, but after I called her she said it was just from getting checked.

My baby is posterior though, so we need to get him moved around before I go into labor. I am going to try swimming tomorrow, followed by cat-cow yoga poses. Is there anything else to do?

[Angelorum]

Originally Posted by LizzyQ

My baby is posterior though, so we need to get him moved around before I go into labor. I am going to try swimming tomorrow, followed by cat-cow yoga poses. Is there anything else to do?

Avoid lounging around with your knees higher than your hips is what I've been told.

I'm 36+1 today, and physically feeling pretty good, except for some major stretching sensations in the belly this evening.

Emotionally, I'm feeling kind of uptight about my landlord barring my mil (and midwife) from staying with us for a couple of weeks for the birth. I was hoping it would get resolved soon, but I just found out that he is at a scout camp until mid July...so I really have no idea how or when this is going to get resolved. Can anyone tell me how much an extra adult showering and doing their laundry for a month would raise your water bill? Every apt I've lived in has included water in the rent, so I really have no idea how much a water bill for just me and dh would even be. We've offered to pay for the extra water, he's just mad at her for something totally unrelated and this is how he's decided to get back at her :

[Ianthe]

Originally Posted by Angelorum

Avoid lounging around with your knees higher than your hips is what I've been told.

I'm 36+1 today, and physically feeling pretty good, except for some major stretching sensations in the belly this evening.

Emotionally, I'm feeling kind of uptight about my landlord barring my mil (and midwife) from staying with us for a couple of weeks for the birth. I was hoping it would get resolved soon, but I just found out that he is at a scout camp until mid July...so I really have no idea how or when this is going to get resolved. Can anyone tell me how much an extra adult showering and doing their laundry for a month would raise your water bill? Every apt I've lived in has included water in the rent, so I really have no idea how much a water bill for just me and dh would even be. We've offered to pay for the extra water, he's just mad at her for something totally unrelated and this is how he's decided to get back at her :

He is worried about the water bill?

I just wouldn't tell your landlord, unless you are living close enough to him that he would notice. But... you are having a baby.. you're going to be using more water because of that too.. what is he thinking?

[GoodNamesGone]

I was up last night with contractions. They lasted about 12 hours before puttering out... seem to have started up again, about 24 hours after the first round.

I got 2 hours of sleep last night. I couldn't sleep, and my sense of time was WAY off.

The problem was the contractions were mild, and sporatic. One hour I would have 6 or more, another hour I'd have only 3. 3 to 4 would hurt, then the next few were nothing but muscles contracting. Back ached most the time.

NONE of them lasted longer than 45 seconds. I finally gave up on timing them after 3 hours of nothing making a pattern and decided that if they started to be more serious, then I'd be more serious too.

Suddenly felt EXHAUSTED and went to bed. Slept for 2 hours, then woke up with a TON of energy. Contractions were still mild, nothing. Couldn't fall back to sleep. Spent part of the night staring a hole in DH's head as he snored peacfully.

In the morning, I contacted my mother to warn her, then called my MW. She had me come in and checked my cervix. The evil contractions stopped as soon as I got off the phone with her. I only had a few here and there before I got to her office, and she said, "Oh, this is just false labor."

I was pissed. 12 hours, and it was nothing.

She checked my cervix, no effacement, no dialation, and the baby is still "floating."

If my original due date was correct, I am at 41w0d. If the later one is correct I am at 39w3d. I'm done! Well, I want to be... I'm not put off by the idea of my LO needing more time, I'm just SO tired of this akward body and annoying symptoms. Lets move onto new challenges, like breast feeding and learning how to use a sling!

[Angelorum]

Originally Posted by LizzyQ

He is worried about the water bill?

I just wouldn't tell your landlord, unless you are living close enough to him that he would notice. But... you are having a baby.. you're going to be using more water because of that too.. what is he thinking?

The water bill is the "official" reason she's not allowed to stay. But oddly it only became a problem after he got angry at her for something else entirely . I would just not tell him, except his son is my BIL and he'd find out. Like I said, he's mad at her, and it feels like I'm the one getting punished. And yeah, I have wondered if he's planning on throwing a fit when I start having to wash diapers and baby clothes, but there's no telling when he's suddenly going to become unreasonable.

[Ianthe]

Originally Posted by Angelorum

The water bill is the "official" reason she's not allowed to stay. But oddly it only became a problem after he got angry at her for something else entirely . I would just not tell him, except his son is my BIL and he'd find out. Like I said, he's mad at her, and it feels like I'm the one getting punished. And yeah, I have wondered if he's planning on throwing a fit when I start having to wash diapers and baby clothes, but there's no telling when he's suddenly going to become unreasonable.

Ugh.. that sounds like a bad situation I'm sorry! I hope you can work through it.

[serenekitten]

Thanks, ladies.

Originally Posted by GoldmanBaby09

Ugh, Serenkitten! Sitting and waiting all that time hungry would have made my blood pressure spike, too! Is that a CNM at an OB's office you are seeing? I was getting concurrent care with one (in addition to my hb mw) for a while, but their office policies were terrible. I constantly had to wait 45-60 mins before being called back and then often had to wait another 30 in the exam room before the CNM finally came in. The CNM was sweet and I don't think the scheduling was her fault, but I ended my care with her just because I was tired of waiting on her all the time.

Glad to here that your babe is ok and you are plugging along

Yes, my midwife is one of two CNMs in an office with several OBs. There were a few factors that made yesterday bad for her. The other midwife is out of town, and has been for a while. Then my midwife was out of the office for nine days. Yesterday was her first day back, so she was overloaded with people to see. It doesn't help that there are a lot of mamas expecting in June/July/August.

And I hate that office, with a passion, as it is. I called to get a due date letter to send to housing authorities, and got a wonderful run-around while people tried to find someone who had time to help me. And then they transferred me to someone's voicemail. I called back the next day, and I think the first person I reached filled out the letter (leaving off a letter in my name, which I fixed) and sent it to me. I made my own gosh-darn copies and kept the original -- I would have hated to waste their precious time again.

*breathe*

But yeah. I love my midwife; her office can go fry eggs.

Originally Posted by Angelorum

We've offered to pay for the extra water, he's just mad at her for something totally unrelated and this is how he's decided to get back at her :

Oi. I wish I had some advice for you. I hope things work out in your favor.

[mags]

Hey ladies! I'm 36.5 wks and READY for this baby if he chooses to come anytime soon! I think you can all relate, lol. Anyway, the big bridal shower/party is OVER, it was this past wknd! It was stressful, but went smoothly, about 70 ppl showed up, and seriously I feel like if we made it through that, the wedding day will be, "easy," even if I have a newborn in tow. I also found shoes to go with the bridesmaid gown, so I feel like my big responsibilities are pretty much done at this pt regarding my friend's wedding, until the actual day of. I have no idea what the other bridesmaids are doing about the bachelorette party, they didn't help much with the shower, so I told them they had to do the bachelorette and I am not even sure if I can make it to that or not. At this point, I'm thinking I won't be making it. This is also my last day as a board member of our MOMS Club. I have to attend an event today, since no other board members can make it and then it is up to me whether or not I want to attend other events, b/c I have no responsibilities to be, "in charge" of anything after today! Woohoo! : I can focus on myself and this baby now!

Anyway, I haven't been getting any signs that labor is close. I'm getting a lot of, "pinchy" feelings down low that are annoying me and my bladder is driving me nuts. It hurts if I even have a drop of urine in it, ugh. I hope I don't have a UTI, next ob appt is Thurs, so I guess I will find out. I think it's just from all of the pressure. It's irritating that I have to run to the bathroom only to pee one oz of urine.

As for sleep, I've been sleeping horribly and just feeling all around exhausted and run down. I don't remember it being this bad with my previous two pregnancies at this point. Don't know if it is just b/c this pregnancy has been so different from my other two, or I'm just older this time and my body is falling apart...

[Ianthe]

40 weeks today!!! :

[Avani]

I had steady contractions for several hours last night and then at some point fell asleep and woke up realizing they were gone. They were around 8 minutes apart for 4-5 hours. Oh well, hopefully they are getting some of the dialating work done. I'm very crampy still this morning and getting some contractions here and there. Even i was debating calling the midwife, just goes to show that even after 5 kids i still need to be aware of when real labor hits.

Today is my court date determining custody and support for my kiddos if anyone has any spare energy to send our way!