Weekly Chat Thread - Feb 24th to March (!) 2nd - Page 5 « Back to Group Discussions

[chocolatechip]

Melany, you are so sweet to think of me. Here's hoping for the best in the month ahead. 

Writermama, glad the red wine and toilet paper date did it for you. 

Chapsie, your date sounds great too! I've put "babymoon" on our pre-baby list, in this case meaning needing to take a special day/night just for my husband and me, before the baby gets here. Maybe we'll go spend a night somewhere else, maybe we'll just figure out something special to do around home. But I think it will be good for us. And while my husband can be good about planning things, he's not good about being spontaneous about it, so it has to be planned or to occur around an event (anniversary, holiday, etc.). So we'll see. But your story made me realize how good this would really be for us!

To everyone who's at term and who's ready for their baby to come, I hope those babies come soon. 

[GranolaMama09]

Chapsie that sounds heavenly!! 

[cabbitdancer]

Ha! I finally got around to scrubbing the kitchen floors, and I realized that the walls and the drawers and the appliances... yeah, big time nesting, I guess. My daughter was home sick again, but she felt well enough to insist on helping and then we went out into the front yard to make a great big snowman! I may have overdone things a bit, today, but it was totally worth it!

[eternalw]

Oh cabbitdancer... I did the same exact thing today- minus the snowman, lol

[Tear78]

My GBS test came back positive. Is this something that can be retested after a couple weeks or am I definitely looking at dragging an IV pole around with me during labor? I'm still feeling thankful not to be showing signs of preeclampsia. But I'm a little grouchy like...really? I really want a low risk low intervention birth if possible this time, please! Ok...back to focusing on healthy baby, healthy mama.

[buko]

Originally Posted by Tear78 

My GBS test came back positive. Is this something that can be retested after a couple weeks or am I definitely looking at dragging an IV pole around with me during labor? I'm still feeling thankful not to be showing signs of preeclampsia. But I'm a little grouchy like...really? I really want a low risk low intervention birth if possible this time, please! Ok...back to focusing on healthy baby, healthy mama.

It depends on your care provider (in terms of retesting), but (also depending on your HCP), you SHOULD be able to get a couple of doses... I think they take 30 minutes each?... and not have to drag the IV pole around when not getting the doses (just have a hep lock).

[spughy]

Tear78 I don't think you need continuous abx during labour - I think you can do oral or intermittent IV.

My computer is fixed!  Yay.  Had a pretty good day even without it.  Swim this morning (which I can't recommend enough - feels SO GOOD) and coffee with a friend this aft. 

37 weeks today officially!!! Baby can come out ANY TIME.  Except not really, because my doula is unavailable for most of March 15-17 and my MIL just told me today that they're going to Las Vegas March 10-14 and they're our child care for DD.  So the baby can come out in the next 10 days, or it can stay in until pretty much the due date (March 20).  Because, you know, I totally have the last word on that.  Right?  RIGHT??????  Actually I would like the baby to be born on March 8.  Then MIL and FIL get to see it before they go (they're going to meet MIL's sister there, otherwise they wouldn't be taking off at a time like this - her sister lives in Australia and they only get to see each other like once every 10 years so it would be extremely churlish of me to pout about it) and it's right before DD's school spring break so we would have 2 weeks of not having to drive DD anywhere immediately afterwards.  So yeah, that's my plan.  It'll happen.

[scruffy too]

Originally Posted by Tear78 

My GBS test came back positive. Is this something that can be retested after a couple weeks or am I definitely looking at dragging an IV pole around with me during labor? I'm still feeling thankful not to be showing signs of preeclampsia. But I'm a little grouchy like...really? I really want a low risk low intervention birth if possible this time, please! Ok...back to focusing on healthy baby, healthy mama.

I agree with Buko and Spughy - you should be able to get a hep-lock (where they leave the needle in and only hook you up to the bag of antibiotics when you're actually receiving them, leaving you free for the majority of the time.)  But I think we're all in Canada where it might be different.

Spughy - your plan sounds great!! I'd stick to it if I were you!!!  &

[GranolaMama09]

Spughy your plan sounds brilliant. GL with that!!

Tear, my girlfriend was GBS positive and was able to go to her birth center, take the antibiotic, and then go back home for her homebirth. I see no reason you cant get a hep lock so you aren't strapped to an IV. Perhaps discuss it with your provider at your next appointment?

[hikingfortruth]

I have never been tested for gbs. Not even in my first pregnancy. Are there some sort of warning signs they look for? Or what's it all about?

[buko]

I am in the US FWIW-- though being taken for Canadian is quite a compliment! 

hikingfortruth, there are no symptoms (in the mom).  It's a bacteria that basically lives in all (or most?) of our colons and does us basically no harm.  But when it gets into the vagina and comes into contact with a neonate, it can cause major problems and occasionally even death.  The exact way in which we screen for (speaking of the US, at least) and overtreat it is problematic, BUT it can definitely be serious.  The only thing they can "monitor" is the baby after birth, and that should usually be enough, but... not always.  Depends on how vigilant and such. 

There's some good info in this thread:

http://www.mothering.com/community/t/891490/group-b-strep-iv-during-labor

Personally, I would have gotten the IV abx in labor had I tested positive, and I am pretty low-intervention by nature.  It does help that I have pretty low-intervention MWs, so I KNOW they would actually prefer me to get a short dose, then take me off the IV, put me back on for my second dose later, etc.  Some care providers try to push a continuous IV-- not that they would give abx that whole time, but "just in case."  And I wouldn't want anyone putting anything (including fluids I didn't need) in that "just in case" IV.  

I would get the abx for two reasons-- 1) to actually help prevent GBS disease in my baby-- the risk is small, but serious IMO and not non-existent and 2) in case of hospital transfer, because they will freak if you are not treated (and around here, even if you have just not been tested, they will possibly freak out more than if you were known to be positive).

JMHO

[Carlyle]

Originally Posted by Tear78 

My GBS test came back positive. Is this something that can be retested after a couple weeks or am I definitely looking at dragging an IV pole around with me during labor? I'm still feeling thankful not to be showing signs of preeclampsia. But I'm a little grouchy like...really? I really want a low risk low intervention birth if possible this time, please! Ok...back to focusing on healthy baby, healthy mama.

Argh!   I don't know anything about GBS.  Check out this thread and discuss with your mw's: http://www.mothering.com/community/t/1364899/if-you-are-gbs-consider-this-protocol/0_50  Maybe some of the suggestions are good??  If there's any way to avoid antibiotics, it seems worth a try since abx can increase your risk of thrush and other gut related problems.  In my opinion, we just don't take abx seriously enough in this country (although, when you need them, they are truly a Godsend!).  Just wondering if you might be able to get retested if some of the suggestions in the other thread work (as long as your midwives think they're okay--can you email your midwives to ask about these suggestions and start them right away if they approve)???  I'm so sorry you're having to deal with this!  And I'm also feeling so grateful that you are not showing signs of preeclampsia!!!

Edited by Carlyle - 2/28/13 at 5:05am

[Chapsie]

I was a doula at my friend's homebirth in November.  She was GBS + (even in her urine), and they just set up a quick IV infusion with the abx... it only took about 5 or 10 minutes and then they removed the canula all together.  I know in hospital, it is usually two doses of PCN or Ancef 4 hours apart (right?), but for my friend, they decided that that one dose was enough.  

If you aren't treated, any sign of neonatal sepsis will be taken very seriously-- this includes temperature instability (not being able to maintain a normal temperature), sleepiness, poor feeding, mild respiratory distress (grunting/flaring), etc. Of course, sometimes healthy babies get sleepy, have transient respiratory distress in transition from birth, and don't eat well!  But, if neonatal sepsis is a possibility (mom was GBS+, not treated with abx in labor, if the membranes were ruptured for a while before delivery, and/or prolonged second stage) and baby is showing symptoms, it is likely that the baby could be treated with amp and gent in a NICU to rule out sepsis.  This would mean an IV for the baby and several extra days in hospital.  

I am in agreement with Buko-- even though the risk is small, it is existent.  Even though abx can alter gut flora and increase risk of thrush... I am pretty sure I would get the abx if I tested positive (I will find out in a few days when my culture comes back!).  I already drink a ton of kefir and eat yogurt like crazy and occasionally take my probiotics... so hopefully I have some healthy gut flora to start with.  :)  

Edited by Chapsie - 2/28/13 at 6:30am

[SamSarah]

Hello all,

I so enjoy lurking here; thank you for sharing.

For me, it is my last day of work before my maternity leave.  Work is such a gigantic part of my community and life, it is kind'a overwhelming to think of not seeing everyone daily.  I've been in a real focus to get all the last threads done, which has been distracting me from my body and babe. 

I've noticed that i was going a real nice consistent pace around birth prep, and there are only two real big things on the list: pack hospital bag, figure out the birth pool (oh, and get some more food in the house), but my pace as slowed.  The focus of work is part of it, but I'm thinking that perhaps I'm wanting to get some space from the birth itself and the back of my brain is pretending it is possible to procrastinate the event by not doing the prep work.  This weekend I'm going to need to challenge the back of my brain.  Is anyone else feeling like dragging their feet?

[buko]

Oh, I should add that my MWs' usual recommendation if you are positive is to sort of wait and see... That is, if your water breaks well in advance of a longish labor, then abx. On the other extreme, if you're in the tub and your water doesnt break until well into labor or pushing, then maybe not. In the hospital, though, they'd pretty much not "let" you wait and see... And I'd be okay with that, personally, as far as things go.

[cabbitdancer]

SamSarah, if you need additional motivation, just check out the "to do" list thread. It hasn't helped me any, besides make me feel even more like a lazy bum, but it might help you. XD

[scarletsmiles]

Another perspective on the GBS.

When I was 8 my youngest sister was born and contracted GBS from my mother. Screening was not routine at this time. Shortly after she was born she was panting and sobbing a little after every breath. Her various organ systems started shutting down within a few hours after birth and she had to be flown to Philadelphia children's hospital. She was on full life support for a week, ventilator and everything.* I remember seeing her in the NICU and I was so heartbroken I couldn't go in to see my baby sister (young siblings weren't allow in the NICU). Eventually, she made it off life support, but was in the NICU for a few weeks and has since grown up to be one of my best buddies. If my mother knew she was GBS+, I'm sure my mother would've taken some antibiotics rather than go through the hell of seeing one of her children almost die. It was a very scary time.

I don't mean to tell this story to use scare tactics, just to say that GBS is real and it can have very serious affects on newborns. That said, there is a balance with the antibiotic regimine to minimize the adverse affects of that too. It's an important conversation to have with your care provider if you test positive!

*Side story that is just cool:

My mom had a very strong spiritual impression that my sister needed to hear me and my siblings talk to her while she was in the NICU. She woke us up in the middle of the night and said "I know how you can talk to your sister!" My mom had us record a cassette tape were we sang songs, told her we loved her and wanted to meet her, and asked her to be strong. When my mom brought the tape by her incubator, her ventilator showed that my sister would start to breath more on her own. When the tape stopped, the ventilator had to breathe %100 for her again. The NICU nurses were like "get some more tapes of your kids!" I really believe there is something very powerful to love. Even little babies can feel that power.

[hikingfortruth]

Great info everyone! Thank you! I really appreciate it! Buko, I think you have a good perspective on this.
Scarlet- thanks for sharing! That last part is really heartwarming!

[buko]

So, I don't consider myself a "hippie," though I definitely have a lot of "hippie" ideals.  But my MWs did something really mean to us at our group appointment just now, and I totally loved it.  We were ending our meeting and they led a round of this song:

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=819aLI1fkBg

Making pregnant women cry is like shooting fish in a barrel.

[scruffy too]

Originally Posted by buko 

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=819aLI1fkBg

Making pregnant women cry is like shooting fish in a barrel.

Yup. Shot.