Weekly Chat for June 4th... !! « Back to Group Discussions

[ithappened]

It's just about midnight over here on this side of the world..

and so, here we are.. JUNE!!!!

How is everyone hanging on this week? Any good/bad/ugly/funny updates or news? Any plans for this month? Upcoming appointments.. you know the drill

[pennywhistle]

I just hit 28 weeks today, so I guess I'm officially in the third trimester!

I'm doing the glucose test on Friday, but I'm hoping it won't be bad - it's with my midwife, so I just have to drink an Odwalla Superfood.  It's scheduled for 11am so I just have to fast from 2am-10am, then drink Odwalla, then get pricked an hour later.  I think I can manage that, although I'm sure I'll be pretty cranky by the time it's done from lack of food!

[LeAnn A Doula]

Good luck with your test, Penny! The smoothie option is so much better than the glucola. Welcome to the third trimester!

My MW wants me to monitor my blood sugar for a few weeks in lieu of the 3hr. I'm fine w that, at least it will give a true picture of what's going on day to day. She also agreed to try to confirm sex for me at my next visit (June 21). It'll be great to check the position at that point, too. So I'm feeling pretty good about that as well.

I think I over did it a bit on Saturday. I swam for about an hour and a half (1600m) then took a 45 min walk. It was my first opportunity to swim since the first trimester. Apparently I can't just jump back in where I left off like I typically would, even though I was careful to keep the intensity down and drank lots of water/had a post-swim snack. I had some serious RL pain, BH and pelvic pressure all night Saturday (= zero sleep) and most of Sunday. I did some yoga and took a little walk yesterday which helped and this morning I'm feeling a bit better. But it made me really nervous. Its my first real pain since the first trimester and the first identifiable BH that I have experienced. It doesn't help that they are all symptoms of preterm labor. :P I'm still trying to decide if I should call L&D about it, although it does seem to be improving and I haven't had any spotting or change in that way. I think that I may have just strained one of my RL and its causing a lot of the pain. Maybe the third tri is just coming on w a vengeance. Any thoughts?

I hope everyone had a great weekend! Happy June and congrats to Intime0 on the safe birth of her LO!!

[Lizbiz]

Hi Everyone! 

Leann - sounds like you just overdid it to me... I know the feeling.  It really sets me back if I push too hard, and I still try anyway sometimes.  I tried to run two days in a row this weekend and the second day I had to slow down to a brisk walk because my body was fatigued from the previous day's run.  I'm going to try again tomorrow and see how it goes - I may be nearing the end of my running days altogether, but I'm not quite ready to give up yet.  The third trimester for me is generally good, but I really do have to slow it down in many areas - I have greater sleep needs, food needs, etc.  

An embarrassing prego moment - I was brushing my teeth while talking to my husband and bossing my kids around all at once, when suddenly the urge to sneeze overtook me this weekend.  I couldn't hold it in so I just sneezed and in the midst of all that chaos, I peed in my pants :).  Time to do more kegels?  My husband had a pretty good laugh.  

Otherwise, life is pretty much same same - busy work, don't know where we'll be for the birth yet, oh - and both of my kids are now in consensus that they believe I'm having another girl :).  We'll see!

[Sol_y_Paz]

LeAnn, if I were you I would just contact my midwife for peace of mind.  Not a big deal, that is why she is there.  But it does sound like you over did it.  I have had those moments.  But sometimes they are accompanied by spotting.  At any rate, it never hurts just to touch base with your midwife.  Nothing bad comes out of that.  

Ithappened, plans for this month?  EVERYTHING!  That about sums it up.  Feeling the pressure to complete the endless to do lists by this month.  What about you?   

Baby turned head down finally!  Feeling pretty good overall.  GD test and anemia came back fine.  Have a serious count down going and serious nesting kicking in.  Still waiting on others assistance to complete some of said nesting projects but overall feeling OK about the progress made.  This is a big week for all things baby, hospital tours/registration, baby classes, baby shower, doctor appointments, and other baby related things.  I am pretty excited but somewhat exhausted.  I have been extra super sleepy lately.  But still fighting through it with the nesting instinct and excitement of it all.  

[poppylove]

LOL. Lizbiz, ahh the joys of carrying a babe. I have too much experience with sneeze/laugh/cough and pee. Glad your hubby was a good sport about it.

LeAnn, seems to me that you worked out really good and hard, and your body just gave you feedback. A swim sounds delightful. We don't have access to a pool around here.  I haven't really been following along, but why are you finding out the sex this late?

Pennywhistle what an awesome way to do your glucose test. and a yummy way too. I live in the Bay also!

Well, I hate to be a whiner but I have had the most intense weekend. On Saturday we found out that our cousin (well DH's, but someone I consider a good friend) passed away unexpectedly. She was in her late 20's. My heart is just broken for her parents, and our grandma.  

Then, I found out that my mom's best friend is transferring her care (she has cancer) to hospice. She is in so much pain at this point. 

To add to all of this, a friend from high school took her life on Saturday night. I am so overwhelmed with emotions right now. 

I feel like life is so short. Sorry if this is just too much info to put on here. I know it is just the way life is, but I can't wrap my mind around losing 3 people from my life. None of which I keep in contact with on a daily basis, but love.  It has really shaken me. I could barely sleep last night.

Added to all this is the financial stress of our upcoming homebirth. It is costing so much more money then we have, and I am stressed stressed. I have thought a hundred times about canceling, but I am so close and I like my midwives so much. 

Maybe I need to wait for this time to pass before making any decisions, I don't know.

Oh ya, and the baby. That perfect soul that I can't wait to meet, is getting bigger every day. I can feel it so much now, as if my skin is almost translucent and holding it in with a thin layer. 

[Sol_y_Paz]

Poppy, sorry for your losses.  You are right - it is short.  Really.  Life taught me those lessons too.  That is why I cherish every good day with those I love and try to keep a certain perspective, this doesn't last forever, nothing does.  It can all be gone in less than the blink of an eye.  We don't have any guarantee we or the ones we love so much will be here tomorrow.  It is surreal when you really think about it but it does help me remember what is important and what things are petty vs. what really matters to me.  

[poppylove]

Sol y Paz, thank you so much.  I really love hearing perspective. Blessings to you. 

[ithappened]

Penny- congrats on hitting the 3rd trimester! woot!

LeAnn- I actually have pretty much the same thing happen if I over do it, I think its normal. I found if I can take a day (or sometime 2) off after, that really helps. . its esp bad if I have a long workout then am on my feet for the rest of the day- it sort of seems I can do one or the other now but not a workout then standing for 6-10 hours after/before etc.. I always pay for it. If you are worried it might be worth calling L&D however..

Liz- ha! I have done that before, luckily no one was around to see it :)

Sol- everything about sums it up for me too.. :) I am working on getting the most important things done on my to-do list then working down from there.. but I am a bit nervous that even those will get done some days-- mostly because Im just so tired but then can't sleep most of the night.

poppy- I'm sorry, death and financial stress is a horrible combination of things to have to deal with.. it really makes me feel like a mess when they hit all at once. i hope you are able to take some time away from it for a bit to regenerate...

AFM-

I am really super exhausted lately and not sleeping much or at all at night.. so strange. I am starting to try to look at my to-do list and figure out what really needs to get done and what is more or less just fluff. I also finally started nesting the last week or so- - and my new doctor has me coming in for weekly check ups until birth just to monitor everything since he seems convinced I will pop much earlier then I think I will ..

[lakeruby]

ithappened-- I hear you about the to-do list!  I am seriously starting to re-think mine.

LeAnn-- hope you feel better today.  I really overdid it yesterday too (long walk at 6 AM and then on my feet for the rest of the day) and am really achy today. Plus some *new* sensations in my feet :)

Liz-- that has totally happened to me too!

Poppy-- my heart goes out to you right now.  Sounds like you have a lot of emotionally trying things happening around you right now. I hope you're still able to relax and take care of yourself among all you are doing for/ focusing on others.

AFM- my blood work (mostly checking on iron i think) came back normal, yay!  Does it still count if i "cheated" and ate a big serving of red meat the night before the test??

[pennywhistle]

Oh Poppy, so sorry to hear about your losses.  I hope you're able to take care of yourself, and be supported.

LizBiz - that's hilarious.  I can totally see that happening to me at some point!

Sol - so glad the baby is head-down!

LeAnn - sounds like an overdone workout to me, too.  I think as long as you take it easy and the symptoms don't come back, you're probably fine.  But I understand the worry!

[Sol_y_Paz]

Penny, good luck on your test!  Glad you get to drink something yummy.  Sorry they aren't letting you eat a normal breakfast though, that is a long time to go without eating.  I don't know about you but I keep snacks on me at all times, sounds like you will not only need a snack but also a nice lunch right after. 

Boots, how were the results from your three hour?  That test sounded so bad and I felt so bad for you.  Hope all is well! 

[iixivboots]

Thanks for thinking of me, Sol, you're so sweet. I am going to the doc in about an hour to get the results. I will post when I get home. Either way, I will be glad to know and take the next steps forward, the stress of not knowing is getting to me.

I will be back with personals and an update later.

Can I also just say I can't believe "We" had our first baby, and he's so gorgeous. Congrats again to mama Intime0.  I feel lucky to have such a cool DDC. One of my friends who is due a bit before me was saying she sometimes lurks here because we just have a very chill, friendly vibe compared to her DDC. :) We're the cool kids.

[ithappened]

I feel lucky to have such a cool DDC. One of my friends who is due a bit before me was saying she sometimes lurks here because we just have a very chill, friendly vibe compared to her DDC. :) We're the cool kids.

wait.  . . so we have groupies? :)
 

[LilyTiger]

Originally Posted by ithappened 

wait.  . . so we have groupies? :)
 

LOL.  Boots, I was thinking the same thing recently when I was looking through some posts on the Baby Bump app I downloaded when I was first pregnant.  The catty, uneducated, and generally really judgmental tone of the posts made me appreciate our little group here all the more.  What a great group of mommas-to-be.  I really hope we all keep in touch, especially now that the babies have actually started coming!

[pennywhistle]

Originally Posted by bootsvalentine 

Can I also just say I can't believe "We" had our first baby, and he's so gorgeous. Congrats again to mama Intime0.  I feel lucky to have such a cool DDC. One of my friends who is due a bit before me was saying she sometimes lurks here because we just have a very chill, friendly vibe compared to her DDC. :) We're the cool kids.

Ha ha I was thinking the same thing!  We had a baby!  Shit is getting REAL, y'all.

Can I just vent for a second about Kaiser?  Or my OB, more specifically?  She's been my gynocologist for a few years, and has always been nice & friendly.  But when I first visited her for the pregnancy (January), she was really aloof, and gave me a half-hearted "oh...congratulations, by the way" as I was leaving the appointment.  I saw her again in February, and she was generally unenthusiastic.  After my March ultrasound, I never heard from her again.  Nothing!  I had a blood test done around the same time (early March), and never heard back, so a few days ago I emailed her to ask if she knew what happened to my results.  She wrote back "they were normal" - no other details.  Then said "it looks like you're due for an appointment"...oh, really?!  Anyway, I went ahead and asked her who I should contact to schedule it, and she gave me a phone number and then said "I'm relocating to Atlanta, and this is my last week, so you may end up seeing a different practioner."  Good lord.  If I wasn't sure of my decision to go with the midwives before, I am EXTRA positive now.

Also, she informed me that she was ordering the glucose test for me.  NO THANK YOU.  I can just refuse it, right?  Ugh.

But still!  We have a baby!  He is so adorable!  Intime, if you're reading this, we need more details!!!

[iixivboots]

Ahhh, I passed the 3-hour glucose test! YAY! I feel like I can now officially be a "normal" pregnant lady. Not that I mean to imply that women with complications are abnormal, but because of my starting weight, the first OB's office that I ended up leaving treated me like I was going to definitely get Pre-E and GD from the get go. That was so stressful. My OB now is so chill and she says everything is great.

As a matter of interest, since we are discussing the humanity and the reliability of the glucose tests, my one hour draw was like 20 points over at about 200. That was when I started shaking and sweating. An hour later, it was down to 150, and then 140 at 3 hours. But it dropped 50 points in an hour or less, no WONDER I felt like crap. The other thing I learned while researching is that the ADA no longer recommends the 3-hour test for pregnant women, they recommend the two-hour. Has anyone here had that? (EricaF, i thought you said that was ordered for you?) The 2-hour test uses a 75 gram glucose drink and not a 100 gram. I think that would be easier to tolerate. It seems like the OBs/midwives have not changed their practice of 1 hour then 3 hour, though.

Sol, yay for baby being head down! At 27 weeks when we had our (finally!) gender reveal U/S, I was SO happy to hear he was head down. I think that eliminated all my hip pain, too, which was when he was transverse/breech. Enjoy your week of baby, I hope you post pics from your shower!

Leann, hugs for still not knowing your baby's sex! I firmly believe that you DO know, I was right. I remember saying to myself "my son" and I felt this emotional tug, and when I said "my daughter" it felt empty. But I am glad you will finally have confirmation. I'd love to know how your bG monitoring goes, I hope that everything is fine and I firmly believe it will be.

Ithappened, I hope you can get your to-do list down to what is manageable and realistic. I think we all need that lesson, I am trying to scale back instead of adding more. But ...i want a dimmer switch in the bedroom! haha.

Penny, UGH to that OB. I think that the way a lot of practices are set up makes the whole thing so impersonal. I feel lucky to have my doctor even if I'm still not sure of all her intervention philosophies, just because she is NICE. That is part of the reason I left my first OB.  Don't these people understand how much of a difference that makes? I hope your midwives are awesome. :)

Poppy, I can't imagine what it must be like to experience that much loss all at once. I know being pregnant makes me think about the big picture of life and death a lot more. My sympathies to you and your family and I hope you can all find the support you need.

Liz, ah yes, sneeze pee, but worse than that (TMI) I totally always get "vomit pee." Pregnancy is so glamorous!

Yeah, we totally have groupies!

[NewMumJoy]

Hello everyone!  First off, congrats and huge hugs to intime on the birth of her beautiful baby boy!!  Yes, our DDC's first baby - how exciting!!  (And I do agree that we have a fabulous group of Mama's here that I am so grateful to be sharing, learning and growing with...) 

Penny - welcome to your 3rd trimester!!  And you are very lucky to have your midwife - sounds like your OB really drove that home for you (sheeesh!!)...good luck w/your test this week!

LeAnn - hope you feel more recovered by now - definitely wouldn't hurt to check w/you MW if you're ever in doubt about those aches and pains though!

LizBiz - I've come close to almost peeing myself too on a couple of occasions very recently.  Am definitely making more frequent trips to the bathroom these days, too many in my opinion....

Sol - sounds like a lot of nesting going on there w/you!  I hope you're finding it to be more fun/exciting than tiring/exhausting!  Enjoy your baby shower!!! 

Poppy - wow, that's a lot of unfortunate news to be dealt in one weekend, I'm so sorry for your losses and stress.  Like Sol said, I hope that your reflections on these events can bring a peaceful perspective and understanding of the bigger picture in life...

LakeRuby  - glad to hear your test results were good!

Boots - Hooray for your good rest results!!! (I read about your awful experience in last week's thread - so sorry!)

ItHappened - (from last week's thread) good luck w/your new doctor and hospital, I hope you have a great experience there and yes, if you do end up w/a c-section I totally see some of the benefits that you'd reap....

AFM - just pondering this month of June (which I know will fly by) and how Baby be here next month (I'm convinced that I'll go early before my 7/30 dd)!!  I feel somewhat prepared for labor/birth (or at least very zen about whatever may happen), and about DH possibly being absent (since he is still traveling so frequently).  But still completely unprepared for the life adjustments after birth!!  My mom has just decided to visit me at the end of this month while DH is in Germany + MI for 10 days.  This is an unexpected huge deal as she never never never flies (doesn't even have her drivers license!) and was already planning a big-deal visit in August after the birth.  I guess my recent threats of flying home alone to MA must have worried her enough that she feels compelled to "save me" out here - so I won't be traveling now - and at least I'll have some company that I can look forward to!

The weather here has FINALLY turned decent and I went for a nice bike ride over the weekend.  First time on my bike since this pregnancy, and what a nice change from walking (much less pressure on my back!)... but I still went a little too far and lost steam on my way home - my butt bones were killing me!!!  In some pain today (won't be back on that bike soon unless I get a wiiiide padded seat for it).  Feeling really HUGE and cumbersome these days, everything is taking more effort... *pant* *pant*....

[sarahdb]

Hi everyone! I can't believe it's June already, and that the first baby has already been born! It makes what has felt like a far-off event suddenly feel much more real!

Penny--good luck with your test this week. Your story about your OB just reaffirms how valuable it is to get care from someone who is actually invested in your well-being. So glad that you have midwives who provide that for you--I feel the same way about my midwife!

LeAnn--I hope that your body and mind has settled down a bit. I was feeling some similar aches low down in my belly today too, and I agree that it is disconcerting. Mine seems to be better now--hope yours is too, but I wouldn't blame you for wanting to bring it up with your midwife.

Lizbiz--the peeing-pants feeling is oh-so-familiar to me! More often, I don't actually pee, but I feel dangerously close. Glad your DH could laugh about it!

Sol--glad things are looking so good with your tests and baby being head-down! Good luck and wishing you much energy for your big week ahead.

Poppy--I'm so sorry for your losses. It's hard to deal with the reality of losing people we love, but I think even more so when pregnant. Sometimes, it seems like the world just doesn't make sense, and it can feel scary knowing we're bringing another innocent person into it. At the same time, I agree that it's good in those times to think about what we do have, the people we love, and cherish them as much as possible. After all, is there anything greater or more worthwhile than love? It sounds totally sappy, but I think it's true.

ithappened--I wish you much strength and energy this week as you tackle your to-do lists. Isn't it nerve-wracking to think we're getting down to having to prioritize things? (or for people like me, who have hardly done anything, it's a huge kick in the pants to get going!) I hope your insomnia subsides in some way--do you think it's stress-related?

LakeRuby--good news about your test results--one less thing on the list to worry about before the birth!

Boots--that is such great news about your test! I still feel bad for you that you had to go through that awful experience with it, but at least the outcome is a positive one. It makes such a difference to have a caregiver who acts like s/he is rooting for you and has confidence in you.

NewMumJoy--eek! Next month sounds so soon! But it sounds like you're in a really good place right now. How wonderful that your mom is coming to visit--I hope you have a great time with her.

AFM--I am still feeling pretty good. I had a bit of an ache low down in my belly today--not like cramps, more like a muscle ache. Could be RL pain? I didn't really over-exert myself this weekend though, so I'm not sure what it's from. I was pretty disappointed yesterday when I found out the results of my 28-week anemia test. My previous test already indicated my iron was a bit low (11.0). And I was trying to be conscientious about eating iron-rich foods and taking Floradix and drinking alfalfa and nettle infusions. But the 28-week test came back with a level of 9.6, which was definitely disappointing. My midwife said they don't like to see levels lower than 10 for homebirth. It's so strange because I'm actually feeling great and energetic overall, so it's kind of hard for me to believe that I'm somewhat anemic. But I'm going to double up my efforts to get my levels up, and hope for the best.

Wishing everyone a wonderful week!

[poppylove]

Thank you everyone for your kind words. It was so helpful just to put it all out there and have someone send well wishes my way.

Boots: I am so sorry you were made to feel like you would have those complications from the beginning!  It is just not the case is it! Go you for proving the former Ob wrong.  And it just isn't fair that women are made to feel as though there body can't function while pregnant. Just not true. 

Newmumjoy I had similar feelings as you are having now with my first. Very zen is how I would have described it too. As a result, my labor was very manageable. (Not bragging, just letting you know that the good feelings can equal good birth)

sarah: sorry about your anemia. I would ask midwife to check again in a few weeks. I am not a midwife, but have read time and time again that our bodies go through an "anemic" type state between weeks 28-32 because of an increase in blood volume. My midwives even said that as a result you can have light headedness, exhaustion, a little nausea, etc. because of it. Just a thought. 

The good news is that you are feeling so wonderful! 

lakeruby: happy your blood work is looking good. 

Can you believe that are babies look so much like babies at this point! Eeeek! 10 weeks feels like forever! Intime, cannot wait to hear more about your little guy!