FFFQ- 4/24 Flame free questions!

MrsWiggleWaggle

feeling pretty basic? Measuring ahead? Feet swollen? Maybe lost a mucus plug? Belly too hard? Too soft? Ask the stupid here! No flames, we might even only tell you to ask your doctor once!!

My question: What the hell is effacement? Why should I care? What does it have to do with dilation? Is this like worrying about my fundal height?

Mommaswizz

Effacement is your cervix thinning ( not dilating). The leader of my childbirth class equated it with a lifesaver getting thinner as you suck on it. Creepy now that I typed that out lol

Mommaswizz

I was gonna ask about my belly being harder. Why is this? I'm not contracting, just noticing that it's more often firm and not as squishy. I had another good FFFQ I thought of this morning and now I can't remember. Poor squishy brain

lovethatcolosun

I would guess the belly would be harder based on baby's position or your uterus flexing/contracting.

Mommaswizz

Which brings me to my next question, people always say "uh my baby's foot is in my rib" or "my baby is head butting my cervix" lol how on earth can everyone tell where their kid is? I keep assuming it's my anterior placenta keeping me from knowing what position this girl is in but I legit have no idea if she's face up, face down or doing barrel rolls. I haven't had an ultrasound since week 20 and won't be having anymore. My doc tells me they'll be able to feel around to figure out what position she's in but I can't make heads or tails of it at this point (zingggggggg ya see what I did there?? Heads or tails hahaha )

KaLikeAWind

Mommaswizz said:

Which brings me to my next question, people always say "uh my baby's foot is in my rib" or "my baby is head butting my cervix" lol how on earth can everyone tell where their kid is? I keep assuming it's my anterior placenta keeping me from knowing what position this girl is in but I legit have no idea if she's face up, face down or doing barrel rolls. I haven't had an ultrasound since week 20 and won't be having anymore. My doc tells me they'll be able to feel around to figure out what position she's in but I can't make heads or tails of it at this point (zingggggggg ya see what I did there?? Heads or tails hahaha )

I also have no idea which what / way is up in there. I get poked different places, I get rolls, I get Nessie's. But I have no idea what is moving when any of these happen

MrsWiggleWaggle

OOOK the cervix thinning makes sense I guess? but why is it measured in percentages? its a ratio of what? if the lifesaver is thinner isnt it automatically dilating then? The cervix has to get wider right? does my cervix ever thicken again after i give birth!!! how thick was it before I was pregnant? 

@mellymar @mommaswizz i still have no idea what a baby hiccup is or feels like! totally dont get it, sometimes i get smacked and it hurts sometimes I get smacked and it just feels funny!

Apologies for the wacky tone! There is just so much I didn't realize I didn't know,

KaLikeAWind

@MrsWiggleWaggle I don't know that I have felt hiccups, either. I'm sure they have happened, I am just unable to identify them happening

MrsWiggleWaggle

ooh geez now i know why i never googled this question. the diagrams are freaking me out and I still don't understand the differences!

Mommaswizz

I thiiiiiiiiink I figured out the hiccups when I was hooked up to the fetal monitor when I had my L&D run. I'm pretty sure she was hiccuping because I heard rhythmic thumping over her heartbeat at times and I wasn't being kicked (or punched for that matter, damnit baby what position are you in!!!??!). So I assumed that must have been hiccups. I feel better knowing you guys are confused too. I was beginning to think everyone's kids were giving them the heads up (zing, I did it again) about where they were at.

aliciac2008

My girl has been having hiccups like crazy. To me it pretty much just feels like a twitch in the same spot and at pretty consistent intervals, just like when we get the hiccups. I find it really annoying actually. It was cute the first couple of times, but now it's just annoying, to me at least.

KarasTwin

Mommaswizz said:

I thiiiiiiiiink I figured out the hiccups when I was hooked up to the fetal monitor when I had my L&D run. I'm pretty sure she was hiccuping because I heard rhythmic thumping over her heartbeat at times and I wasn't being kicked (or punched for that matter, damnit baby what position are you in!!!??!). So I assumed that must have been hiccups. I feel better knowing you guys are confused too. I was beginning to think everyone's kids were giving them the heads up (zing, I did it again) about where they were at.

I thought I knew were mine was until my l&d visit this morning. Apparently I was partially correct in thinking he was on my right side and under my ribs but according to the nurse he's head down on my left side and it's possibly his feet/legs I'm feeling curved up. Also I'm thinking I felt hiccups this afternoon but I'm not 100% sure. Everyone keeps telling me I'll know, but I'm skeptical. Glad I'm not the only one

lovethatcolosun

As far as the position you can usually feel a hard spot on a side of your belly and the belly will usually be a little firmer when the baby is facing your back because you can feel lo's butt and back. I generally can tell based on where I feel my kicks or tickles how baby is positioned. If my belly moves from a good kick or jab baby is facing forward or anterior (I also have an anterior placenta). Once you reach 34-36 weeks your baby usually doesn't change from head down or breech. Your doc or midwife will usually feel for baby's head down by your cervix at your appointments from here on out.

Serenamarr

Agreed with @aliciac2008 if you haven't been feeling hiccups you're lucky. LO hiccups at least 4 times a day for at least 7 minutes each time. Always as I'm trying to fall asleep. It feels like a tiny muscle spasm in my lower belly.

OnWayto3

@MrsWiggleWaggle Hiccups are rhythmic and feel like a consistent twitch generally in one place. They usually last only a few minutes, but those few minutes can feel like a doozy! It was cute at first, but as PP said, get annoying pretty dang quick.

MaliKaela

Mommaswizz said:

I was gonna ask about my belly being harder. Why is this? I'm not contracting, just noticing that it's more often firm and not as squishy. I had another good FFFQ I thought of this morning and now I can't remember. Poor squishy brain

Mine feels all hard too. I have a twitchy uterus in general but i've started to notice my belly is super hard in the morning. I don't think its a braxton hicks contraction because I have plenty of those and they don't last very long. This lasts for like five minutes. It's super weird and i've been wondering about it although i'm not overly concerned.

fridaysdance

This may be a really odd one but I wondered if anybody had similar experiences. Anywho, in my very stupid freshman year of college, I got my belly button pierced. All was good until my dorm implemented a policy of showing our keys and id on entrance. Thus, most people got lanyards. I was running home one night and snagged mine on my piercing and managed to rip it enough to scar. It never gave me problems until recently in my pregnancy when my navel popped out. Now the scar is quite itchy and sore.

Does anyone else have a similar problem or scar from an injury or surgery on your abdomen that is now annoying? Is there anything you've found to help the itching and discomfort? I have used all kinds of lotion so I'm sure it's not drying out.

seesea

@fridaysdance how long ago did your piercing come out? I had belly button piercing YEARS ago and it didn't bother me much during pregnancy just the occasional itching.

@MrsWiggleWaggle Here's a diagram showing examples of dilation, effacement and station. Those three things were discussed by my doctors when I was in labor.

This is how one dr explained it:
-Dilation has to do with the opening of the cervix.
-Effacement is the thinning of the cervix. When it's at 100% it's completely thinned out.
-Station is the baby's position once he/she starts to drop. From -5 (baby is still up there) to +5 (baby is already crowning)

I hope this helps! I didn't know either but she kept referring to those terms. So I just asked not caring if I looked dumb or not.

rrcameron21

@fridaysdance I've had the same kind of thing happening with my piercing! Some days it's incredibly uncomfortable and itchy! I haven't found much that has helped. I used ice once but I think it just kind of numbed it and also bio oil has helped a little

iheartpancake

@fridaysdance I also have scarring from my belly button ring. My body was rejecting it and it slowly worked its way out of my skin. This was over ten years ago so I was young and stupid and instead of just taking it out, I tried to make it last as long as possible. So dumb. Anyways, I also have super itchy skin where it's being pulled. I didn't realize how bad the scarring was until my innie became an outie! I try and just lather it twice a day with my normal body lotion. I've found that a loose shirt rubbing on it also irritates it, so if it's really bad, I wear a tight tank top under my shirt. I've heard coconut oil can help as well, but I haven't needed to go that far just yet.

fridaysdance

Thanks ladies. I need to try to get some more coconut oil. The store is out everytime I go due to them only carrying like 4 cans at a time.

I haven't had this dumb piercing in coconsistently for several years since I normally work construction. That's a recipe for disaster so I gave up trying to deal with it. It doesn't look all that bad but the itching is driving me crazy with a need for full panel pants.

henrytviii

How long have you belly buttons been out? No piercing here but mine itched like crazy when it popped out. I think it lasted about a month. I have an umbilical hernia from my first so it popped out early, before I even looked pregnant. I am hoping to find some who will repair the hernia and do a cosmetic fix and still have it be covered by insurance. Unfortunately it seems to be medically unnecessary. I wear a bikini anyway buts its not the best looking belly button and I am sure this pregnancy is making it worse.

esampson1983

Ugh I feel stupid asking this but flame free, right? How many outfits/ onesies will I need for LO? I am organizing what I have so far and want to make sure I have enough. But I am also thinking the first few weeks we won't be going out that much so LO might just wear a diaper around the house, be swaddled in a light blanket/ or be on my chest (if needed)and be good? But I also know that if LO does wear an outfit there will be multiple changes in a day. I'm going in circles. Any advice is appreciated! TIA!

laurendutch

@esampson1983 it depends on how often you want to do laundry. Newborns can go through as many as 5/6 outfits a day with blowouts (mine never did). I have mostly onesies in newborn and sleepers. Probably a total of 15.

esampson1983

Thanks @laurendutch ! I think I am on the right track the then

HoosOnFirst

Dumb question - for newborns, should the onesies have short sleeves or long? (Will also be swaddled)...

KaLikeAWind

hoodoll82 said:

Dumb question - for newborns, should the onesies have short sleeves or long? (Will also be swaddled)...

Ooh, good question. Was wondering this myself

kmama2013

Doesn't overly matter whether they are short or long. The rule of thumb mainly is they should wear as much as you are wearing plus one extra layer, at least i think it went something like that. I should remember since my daughter just turned 2...darn pregnancy brain! 

HoosOnFirst

Thanks @kmama2013 !

karaelaine1991

I know it's not Friday anymore but I have a potentially really dumb question. I live on the second floor of an apartment building and our laundry room is in the basement. My mom has been going on for months about how she's so worried about how I'm going to do laundry. I thought she was overreacting and then this weekend she said that for the first few weeks after LO arrives I can only go up and down stairs once a day or my uterus could fall out!! Apparently this is a big reason why we're supposed to take it easy after having babies? 1) EWWW 2) is this actually a thing or is my mom just crazy? And if it IS a thing, why is this the first time I'm hearing about it?! This has me more freaked out than childbirth!

MrsWiggleWaggle

Uuuum....I live in a 4 story townhome and millions of moms live in multi story walk ups in places like NYC and have managed to you know survive. Obviously ask your doctor, I'm sure the stairs are going to suck but this one may be an old wives tale. You should hear some of the ridiculous things I have heard.

I was at the pool yesterday to swim laps and a woman told me I shouldn't go past by pelvis in the water because any further would make my baby float up and turn and be breech....which is you know not true but I can see the psusoscience working in her mind and it scared me juuuust enough.

MrsWiggleWaggle

I also want to add that you should totally milk this and convince your mom to pay for laundry service for you if you can.
Seems like the right thing to do considering how she scared you. I don't think the uteruses just plop out on the stairs. And if you feel that happen just cross your less really tight. That will be my game plan should I be so wrong about this.

karaelaine1991

MrsWiggleWaggle said:

Uuuum....I live in a 4 story townhome and millions of moms live in multi story walk ups in places like NYC and have managed to you know survive. Obviously ask your doctor, I'm sure the stairs are going to suck but this one may be an old wives tale. You should hear some of the ridiculous things I have heard.

I was at the pool yesterday to swim laps and a woman told me I shouldn't go past by pelvis in the water because any further would make my baby float up and turn and be breech....which is you know not true but I can see the psusoscience working in her mind and it scared me juuuust enough.

Ok thank you! Haha yeah I was thinking that this probably was not true but it still had me freaked, especially since it was coming from my mom. Definitely talking to my doctor to see if there's any medical basis for it!

ETA oh, and on the topic of laundry service, she didn't offer to pay for one, but she did offer to send my 15 year old sister to stay with us for a while to do my chores so I can rest up on the couch! Lol

KarasTwin

karaelaine1991 said:

MrsWiggleWaggle said:

Uuuum....I live in a 4 story townhome and millions of moms live in multi story walk ups in places like NYC and have managed to you know survive. Obviously ask your doctor, I'm sure the stairs are going to suck but this one may be an old wives tale. You should hear some of the ridiculous things I have heard.

I was at the pool yesterday to swim laps and a woman told me I shouldn't go past by pelvis in the water because any further would make my baby float up and turn and be breech....which is you know not true but I can see the psusoscience working in her mind and it scared me juuuust enough.

Ok thank you! Haha yeah I was thinking that this probably was not true but it still had me freaked, especially since it was coming from my mom. Definitely talking to my doctor to see if there's any medical basis for it!

ETA oh, and on the topic of laundry service, she didn't offer to pay for one, but she did offer to send my 15 year old sister to stay with us for a while to do my chores so I can rest up on the couch! Lol

I don't think your uterus will fall out, but I think in the beginning stairs may be difficult. Our washer and dryer are in the basement and my sister mentioned that it may be difficult for me to go up and down them at first, especially carrying laundry. Her daughter is 20 months old so lots of things like that are still fresh in her mind. I remember she borrowed my mom's car to come home from the hospital in because she couldn't step up into her truck. She also slept in her guest room because she couldn't climb up into her bed which is higher off the floor. I don't know how long this lasted, but I'm definitely not planning to be climbing a bunch of stairs for the first couple of weeks. Hoping my mom can help DH with that sort of thing.