Postpartum Mamas: How is everyone? - Page 5

[Mamato3wild ponnie]

I'm doing ok today...midwife is coming to check on babe today...i love when she comes..she is awesome. I was feeling a little blue yesterday, hopefully today will be better...my DS#3 who is still nursing has decided to start nursing more at night...when the baby wakes he wakes wanting to nurse too. So i'm nursing 2 lo at night...which makes it so hard to get up in the morning. I weighed myself yesterday for the first time after delivery of my ten pounder babe and i was 205 at delivery and 2 weeks later i am 177....wow i almost lost 30 pounds....i love it...what else can some one do in that short of time to loose that much weight....have a baby of course...lol. Still cant fit into my pre-pregnancy clothes though...have about 25 more pounds to loose..but nursing 2 lo..may help me get this extra weight of sooner than later.....

Midwife weighed babe and in one week he's gained 1pound 2 oz..so he's 11+7 today...wow what a big boy to be 2 weeks old.

[HinesMaMa]

I totally agree!! its so refreshing to come to this thread, especially in these first weeks when its easy to feel detached from the rest of the world. Well we are two weeks post-partum now and baby is a joy. She is so gentle, dainty, and mild-mannered....I am in awe. She is starting to stay awake longer in the day now and still only wakes up twice at night for feedings. She feeds heavily throughout the day though, and its mind-boggling to watch my 2 week old down a 4 oz bottle in 15 min!! well she knows what she needs and I have no problem giving her what she needs. We have a ped appt. on Friday and I am going to ask her anyway if she should be eating this much throughout the day. As for me, I feel good...bleeding has stopped for two days now so I hope that is it.

Now I have to deal with the stressors of getting going back to work in Nov. I work for Wamu, and I'm sure you all know from the news that we were taken over by Chase. I know that I am in an office that will get closed just due to the proximity to a brand new Chase branch. I am so sick of the banking world especially now, but our benefits are tied to my job. I am praying everything works out for the best for our family.

Originally Posted by joshs_girl

Can I say this thread makes me cry every time I visit it? I know we all have different views and ways we'd do anything, but it's so nice to come here and only receive support.

Charlotte - what an adorable picture!!

[lwuertz]

Jillian is a week old today.

I wanted to talk about our cosleeping issues here yesterday, but MDC was down all day!

Anyway, so up until yesterday Jillian wouldn't sleep anywhere besides next to one of us in bed or in our arms. Which was fine because I'm on bed rest until tomorrow (although I have been kind of breaking that one).

Well, Monday night I was reminded that DH is an unusually heavy sleeper and that he is totally unaware of his movements in sleep. In the past he's even rolled over me a couple times. That night I got an arm flopped down over me and baby and also a knee to my thigh. Ouch!

So I freaked out and tried to get her to sleep in the bassinet/pack n play at the end of the bed. That didn't work so DH scooped her up and they went to sleep. He said he sleeps different if he's got some one in his arms. There were no more issues the rest of the night.

Well then I started to realize that I'll never get anything done if she has to always be in my arms to sleep. She's a pretty light sleeper too so I don't even know if carrying her around in a sling would work.

So I decided to actively try and get her to sleep at least sometimes in the bassinet. The first attempt She cried for what seemed like an hour (I'm pretty sure it was less than that) before I couldn't take it anymore, scooped her up and nursed her back to sleep. Second try she didn't freak out just stayed awake and chatty until she was hungry and frustrated. Then the third time she totally zonked out and did every time after that.

I definitely still want to take naps with her during the day when I'm not worried about DH's body movements, but I'm so glad that she'll be OK if I need to put her down to sleep by herself too.

[VeganCupcake]

HinesMaMa, I hope your job situation works out.

Charlotte, what paci does Silas like? I've tried Soothie and Nuk with Baby S and she hates them both. I suppose there are many more out there that I could try--she seems to have an insatiable desire to suck, too. She loves her hands, but her muscle control doesn't allow her to get to them very often. I guess I could just wait for a few weeks until she can control them better.

Does anyone else's baby strain a lot when having a bowel movement, or seem to be straining even when nothing comes out? The BMs are very liquid-y and she produces large quantities 2 or 3 times a day, plus small ones many many more times a day, so I don't think she's really constipated. And at night, usually around midnight, when she's trying to fall asleep and is obviously very tired, she shrieks like she's in pain. Is this gas? Is it all the normal result of a tiny immature digestive system? It seems to help if I gently bicycle her legs, but I have to keep doing it for an hour to settle her down.

[nia82]

@ Vegancupcake: Sounds like my DS. I tried eating different foods, but no matter what I eat, he will get gassy. It is very frustrating... It is hard for him to fall asleep unless all the poop comes out, and usually that only happens when I change his diaper and hold his legs a little up against his belly (like a squat on his back)... Sometimes we give him some Mylicon before he goes to bed... But even once he is asleep, he is very chatty and makes noises all night long. I can barely ever sleep because I keep getting up checking on him what might be wrong...
Does anybody have any advice for the situation? Will it ever get better? Don't get me wrong, I love my baby, but I'd also like to sleep more than 30 minutes at a time and more than 4 hours per day... My sister's baby sleeps like a rock and she gets to sleep... I wish I could too, I would function so much better for him!!!

[Charmie981]

Catherine, I tried to find a picture of it at the gerber website, but I can't. It's a Gerber and it's NOT a NUK, but it has a "bull ring" like the nuk and the part they suck on is light-bulb shaped. I find that if they are soothed by your pinky with the pad to the roof of their mouth, they usually like this one. You might also try a MAM or a playtex Binky (not the nuk-shaped ones, though).

[Charmie981]

http://www.gerber.com/Products/First...Pacifiers.aspx

nak (ofcourse!)

[whalemilk]

Now I have hit the "sick of nursing" wall. Must be a growth spurt. We don't have another checkup until 2 months so I don't know for sure how much she has grown, but I think she might have gained close to a pound since her 2 week visit (10 days ago).

I look at my discharge instructions and laugh--wake her up every 3-4 hours to nurse, eh? Well alright, but she wakes me up every 45 minutes!

I can't complain too much though, as she is very mellow especially compared to my first. She actually slept not touching me and not nursing for 4 hours yesterday, and I started to worry that I had gotten the wrong baby at the hospital! My 2 year old still rarely does that, she needs a parent within arms reach most of the night otherwise she just gets up and wanders the halls whimpering sadly.

We have the playtex "breastfeeding friendly" binkies and she doesn't seem to like them much, they seem to frustrate her. I think I am going to go look for some of the other brands people here have mentioned today, because she does sometimes seem to want to just suck and not nurse and I'd appreciate the break.

[LegalScrapper]

vegan - same exact thing here. I'm glad you posted. i thought it was just me.

Benjamin likes the mam paci http://www.mambaby.com/articles/en/166/aW5kZXgucGhwPw== - he did not like the nuk or others we tried. He really doesn't like any much but will take it some.

He sleeps best ON me but last night slept in this cradle rocker seat thing that kind of swaddles him. Good cause mt arm is shot from holding him. I need to figure out my sling.

[Charmie981]

Silas has gotten to where he starts off the night in the pack-n-play and at about midnight (well, about the time I get wound down and ready to sleep, actually), he wakes to nurse and comes to bed with us for the rest of the night. He's really grunty, straining, and gassy, too. And I CANNOT figure out what it is that I might be eating that's causing it, so I guess it's just how he is. We use gas drops probably twice a day here. With DS1, who was colicky, he would take about an ounce of very, very weak chamomille tea each evening. I've thought of trying that with Silas, but I guess I'm not that desperate yet (it's amazing the things you'll do to prevent hours and hours of screaming!).

[joshs_girl]

Lisa - I just bought this today - that might help you?

[lwuertz]

Originally Posted by joshs_girl

Lisa - I just bought this today - that might help you?

It would make our bed really crowded. We only have a queen. I slept with a body pillow the last couple months of pregnancy and we both felt like we were constantly crowded off the bed.

[Alcyone]

DD will finally sleep somewhere other than on top of me but it took a while. She still wants to be right up next to me in bed, but she also sleeps well in the Amby Baby. We have a side-carred crib, but she's never in it. It does prevent me from being paranoid she'll fall off the bed though! I kinda figured we wouldn't use it, but there was no stopping the ILs from buying it, so….

[LegalScrapper]

Ooh I'm going to go buy that "safe and secure" thing. Last night DH slept on the couch and Benjamin slept either on me or propped on his boppy next to me....well that is when he slept.....which was about 2 hours. He was really gassy and finally had a huge bm. I am wondering if the meds (colace) and food (fiber bars) I was taking for my constipation are bothering him? But my midwife has me continuing my iron supplements because I lost a lot of blood with birth and my iron was REALLY low after.

Charmie - we tried the gas drops last night too. What is the chamomile tea? What is the directions for that?

[amitymama]

Two weeks pp here and all is going really well. DS is a champion nurser and is still sleeping tons. He has a couple of awake periods during the day but sleeps like a rock otherwise. He is sleeping in the bed with me every night, I haven't even tried him in the moses basket. I love sleeping next to him and am totally comfortable co-sleeping but DH isn't so will sleep in the guest room for as long as he's in our bed. I don't think he minds for a few weeks/couple months but I know he will want his bed back once DS gets towards 3 months old as that's how long DD slept in the bed with me. I might try him in the moses basket tonight just to see how he does. I'm sure he'll be fine in it but I just hate that I can't co-sleep with both my son and my husband. The other thing is that my mom will be here in two weeks and will be in the guest room so DH will have to sleep in our bed again so I need to get DS used to sleeping in the basket before then. I guess I'll give it a go and see what happens.

[boobyfeeder]

Charlotte slept 4 hours straight last night! Of course, she was then awake for 2 hours in the middle of the night. But still, it's a start!

I think DD2 may be giving up naps. They are getting shorter, right when I need them the most. DD1 did that to me too. Little stinkers, I think they're in cahoots.

Originally Posted by amitymama

Two weeks pp here and all is going really well. DS is a champion nurser and is still sleeping tons. He has a couple of awake periods during the day but sleeps like a rock otherwise. He is sleeping in the bed with me every night, I haven't even tried him in the moses basket. I love sleeping next to him and am totally comfortable co-sleeping but DH isn't so will sleep in the guest room for as long as he's in our bed. I don't think he minds for a few weeks/couple months but I know he will want his bed back once DS gets towards 3 months old as that's how long DD slept in the bed with me. I might try him in the moses basket tonight just to see how he does. I'm sure he'll be fine in it but I just hate that I can't co-sleep with both my son and my husband. The other thing is that my mom will be here in two weeks and will be in the guest room so DH will have to sleep in our bed again so I need to get DS used to sleeping in the basket before then. I guess I'll give it a go and see what happens.

What if you put your DS on your other side, not in the middle? I assume that's where he is now, if your DH is so uncomfortable with it. Someone up thread linked to a safe cosleeper thing, or there's always a sidecar crib or pack n play next to you.

[amitymama]

Originally Posted by boobyfeeder

What if you put your DS on your other side, not in the middle? I assume that's where he is now, if your DH is so uncomfortable with it. Someone up thread linked to a safe cosleeper thing, or there's always a sidecar crib or pack n play next to you.

Yes, putting him on the outside might work but I'd have to get one of those mesh rail things. Might go pick one up this weekend...I think it's my only hope. Having said that, I am so enjoying co-sleeping that I might not feel bad if DH has to sleep on the futon or the sofa for a few months. He hasn't done any research into it, he just thinks it's unsafe and says he just knows he'll roll over on him.

I would sidecar the crib if it wasn't for the fact that our bed sits between two built-in wardrobes with shelves and our room is really small so if I put a crib on my side it would start halfway down the bed and run right into the door. There's just no room for it. Thanks for the suggestion though!

[GriffsKat]

Anyone dealing with baby blues? I had ppd with Nadia and am worried it will turn into that. Anyone else?

[VeganCupcake]

Originally Posted by GriffsKat

Anyone dealing with baby blues? I had ppd with Nadia and am worried it will turn into that. Anyone else?

Yeah, I was feeling really blue last week. I feel somewhat better this week. I'm worried about PPD too.

[lwuertz]

Originally Posted by joshs_girl

Can I say this thread makes me cry every time I visit it? I know we all have different views and ways we'd do anything, but it's so nice to come here and only receive support.

Amen to that! I wish everyone we came across in our lives would be this way with regard to our parenting decisions.