Went to my 4 week PP check and got back on birth control. Once I left I forgot to ask how many days until the birth control is effective without back up method? I think I remeber 7 days, but was unsure for after pregnancy. I am taking the combination pill.
So Ive been having Braxton hicks for months where my stomach will feel tight. For the past 3 days I've had irregular mild period cramps In my lower abdomen and some lower back aches. Are those contractions?
I definitely had a lot of nights where I lay back in a chair and just let him cluster feed. At around 4 weeks we started supplementing with formula for one meal at night so that DH could take over for one night time feeding. It was amazing! My son was a terrible sleeper in the beginning, wanting to eat or suck the whole time. The pacifier really helped the first couple of weeks but once my husband was able to take over one night time feed with formula, oh man, he actually slept.
Can babes move during a contraction or BH? I'm a FTM and lately I've been feeling what I *thought* were some pretty powerful BH - take my breath away powerful - but during them I can also feel LO moving. I'm having a hard time deciphering if what I'm feeling are actually BH or just her rolling around in there.
Yeah, me too. The movement really starts to hurt after a while, doesn't it? And my abdomen looks and feels like a volcano is going to erupt! I wish I knew the answer. I'm totally lost when it comes to BH/contractions/just regular discomfort.
It's all a little blurry even though I only 3 days ago, but I think I remember LO moving during contractions, or maybe it was that his movement was triggering off contractions- it was pretty uncomfortable!
Can your membranes be swept at only 1 cm? Or do they need more room to ... get their finger in there? Sounds awful now that I wrote it out.
Also, I know we're told to lay down and rest to help contractions, but I find that I get more contractions when laying down rather than moving around. Anyone else with the same experience?
I had mine swept today at only 1cm dilated also, so it's possible.
Pacifiers... Who is going to use them? Why or why not?
I don't really like them and never planned on using them but I got a bunch at the shower and I'm now last minute questioning my decision. Would love to get other perspectives!
I got some to have just in case. My sister didn't use them with my niece and nephew so I thought I would try not to first. Also wanted to avoid them at the beginning of breastfeeding. The first night home LO was fussy and my hubs and I were sleep deprived from the hospital. I was not smart and did not put anything together before hand, such as the rock and play, so we we're attempting to put that together at 3 am on no sleep. That did not work too well so we broke out the pacifiers. They actually really help sooth so I am more okay with them.
We are adding LO to our insurances .... Is there any reason to add her to dental, or should we just wait until open enrollment in December? I know there are no teeth to take care of, but wasn't sure if there are other oral issues that might behoove us to get her on dental insurance now versus later.
@hoodoll82 We waited until open enrollment to put our twins on our dental insurance. We might have even waited an additional year. DH and I have great teeth and our pediatrician was never concerned about their teeth (he would check)
@mvargas12 It's the great debate..... Nipple confusion from pacifiers...... I don't believe in it, but there are always going to be people who do. To each their own. If your doing breast only and never introducing a bottle then it's real hard for ppl to not use a paci during the period where your milk is not in. I've seen patients do it and they just constantly latch their LO like every hour during that period when their milk isn't in.
I used a pacifier with DS. And breast fed. And he got pumped breast milk from a bottle when I was at work. He was never confused by any of it.
I did this too. There may have been some nipple confusion but my boys adjusted pretty quickly. I think the whole nipple confusion thing might be a myth.
@hoodoll82 We waited with DS. 1. They may not even have teeth before 6 months. If they do, it's only 2-4, so there's really nothing to worry about. 2. If you have any major issues when they're older, the work will most likely be done at a children's hospital if they have to be sedated. Medical insurance will help cover anything that extreme. Our dentist said they typically don't see kids until they're 3-4.
We may not be so luvky. DS fell on his face a few weeks ago and one of his front teeth is starting to change colors like it's dead. Poor kiddo. A pediatric dentist might be in his near future.
Pacifiers... Who is going to use them? Why or why not?
I don't really like them and never planned on using them but I got a bunch at the shower and I'm now last minute questioning my decision. Would love to get other perspectives!
FTM - will consider using one at one month, to ensure LO has something to suck on when we fly when he is
It sounds like the women here who have used pacifiers haven't had trouble with breastfeeding so far. That's great to hear and eases my worries a little. I'll keep a couple handy and play it by ear.
I'm half hoping she picks up thumb sucking cause it's adorable and then totally hoping she doesn't cause it's a terrible habit for her
Thanks ladies for the dental advice! My company will reimburse $1000 a year out of pocket so I think we will wait on DHs insurance and just rely on my job's plan in the case she needed anything done.
I have more than one question and will most likely be calling my health insurance provider tomorrow morning.
OK, so I am reading online that I have up to 30 days to add baby to my health insurance plan. I am not sure whether we will use my health insurance or DH's yet.
In the meantime, when I go to pediatric appointments and stuff, what insurance do you write down before those 30 days? Do I just not write any and then inform the doctor's offices once we have filed? And what about the hospital? Is that all under my insurance?
I have more than one question and will most likely be calling my health insurance provider tomorrow morning.
OK, so I am reading online that I have up to 30 days to add baby to my health insurance plan. I am not sure whether we will use my health insurance or DH's yet.
In the meantime, when I go to pediatric appointments and stuff, what insurance do you write down before those 30 days? Do I just not write any and then inform the doctor's offices once we have filed? And what about the hospital? Is that all under my insurance?
I'm not sure about the pediatrician, but the hospital stuff will all be under you. I'm pretty sure as long as you get them covered in the 30 days, the insurance companies will figure it out. I would try to get that figured out soon, though.
I have more than one question and will most likely be calling my health insurance provider tomorrow morning.
OK, so I am reading online that I have up to 30 days to add baby to my health insurance plan. I am not sure whether we will use my health insurance or DH's yet.
In the meantime, when I go to pediatric appointments and stuff, what insurance do you write down before those 30 days? Do I just not write any and then inform the doctor's offices once we have filed? And what about the hospital? Is that all under my insurance?
@elizab14, I work with benefits administration (not in an insurance company though), but from my knowledge/experience, the labor/delivery is under you, but once the baby is born, they are treated as their own person as far as coverage/charges go (to allow you time to add the baby to a coverage plan, usually your insurance automatically accepts claims for baby during the first 30 days, assuming the baby will be added to that plan...but if not added, they won't want to pay those claims). So as far as listing what insurance your LO will have at first, you should be able to just list either yours or your DHs (maybe easier just to put yours down at first just because the hospital will already have your information). I'm sure the hospital will want an insurance company listed, but your pediatrician office might be more lenient to allow you more time before listing something and wait to submit claims (just depends on the doctor).
Then, once you know for sure which he/she will be under, and if it turns out to be different from what you had listed already, just contact the hospital/doctor to let them know the correct information to use. If they already submitted claims to the original plan and LO will be on the other, then it can all be sorted out (if no claims were paid yet by insurance, that should be very easy for them to figure out...and if a claim was already paid out, that can be sorted out too, just may take more time).
**Just a general note too for anyone, at least in the US the timeline to make mid-year changes (qualified change in status) to benefits can vary by employer (for those of us with employer coverage), so just don't make any assumptions with how long you have.**
It sounds like you've double checked the timing for your plan, which is great. If you haven't yet, make sure to also check the timing for DHs plan. Also, kudos for preparing to call your provider to verify...always a good idea to confirm. I know there can be so much to think about as far as deciding which plan...networks, premium cost, cost at the doctor/hospital, etc.
I used to work for a health insurance company in the benefits dept and we would place claims on hold until LO was officially added to the policy. Like what PP said, the baby will have their own charges for their services (nursery, medicine, tests run etc).
Ok, i've got two and they are both probably really dumb so i'm glad this is FF!
1. I am 17 days pp. I am still bleeding. It is not as heavy as a period but not as light as spotting. My doula said that bleeding continues for 4 - 6 weeks. However, searching around online I read you should call your ob if by week 3 if the lochia is still bright red. I won't be at week three till Thursday, but it is definitely bright red and i'm getting a little concerned. I don't want to have to call the ob because I I can just imagine them thinking, "duh, your still bleeding because a child just came out your virginia." ; ) I would just feel stupid.
2. I am producing about 20 - 25 ounces of breast milk per day and my LO is probably just about 6.5 pounds by now. My questio is this... do you just keep producing more and more milk as they get older? Will I need to produce 40 ounces when he is a few months old, for example? Also, as he starts sleeping longer through the night do I have to wake him up to feed or get up in the middle of the night to pump so my boobs don't explode?
Thanks ladies. To who(m?) else could I ask questions like these?
@mcknzzee I've found book The Womanly Art of Breastfeeding to be absolutely priceless for this kind of question. The book says in the beginning you tend to have an oversupply then your body regulates to what the baby actually needs. Pumping can signal to your body that you need more, but if you exclusively breastfeed, after about two months it may actually feel like you are producing less milk. It is still enough, but is basically the custom amount your baby needs.
That's just what I read, so others may have actual experience to share.
@mcknzzee I've found book The Womanly Art of Breastfeeding to be absolutely priceless for this kind of question. The book says in the beginning you tend to have an oversupply then your body regulates to what the baby actually needs. Pumping can signal to your body that you need more, but if you exclusively breastfeed, after about two months it may actually feel like you are producing less milk. It is still enough, but is basically the custom amount your baby needs.
That's just what I read, so others may have actual experience to share.
I have this same book and it comes in pretty handy. I'm breastfeeding my 2nd and I still use the book whenever I have any breastfeeding questions.
OK, I know it's not Friday anymore, but I just had a random thought pop into my head while getting ready for work. When do you fill out/sign the birth certificate? DH has to leave not even 24 hours after c section to go back to work training and won't be back till Thursday. (C section Monday, he'll leave early Tuesday morning, and won't be back till Thursday afternoon depending on what time instructors dismiss). I may or may not have been discharged by that point and am just wondering if we should ask to do it the day baby is born to make sure it's taken care of.
I have more than one question and will most likely be calling my health insurance provider tomorrow morning.
OK, so I am reading online that I have up to 30 days to add baby to my health insurance plan. I am not sure whether we will use my health insurance or DH's yet.
In the meantime, when I go to pediatric appointments and stuff, what insurance do you write down before those 30 days? Do I just not write any and then inform the doctor's offices once we have filed? And what about the hospital? Is that all under my insurance?
I don't know if this is a national policy, but I know that at least in my state baby is automatically covered under mom's insurance for the first 30 days. The exception to this is if you're a dependent on someone else's insurance, then it's up to the insurance company. This was a possible issue for me because I'm on my mom's insurance since I don't have my own because I'm a full-time student and DH's doesn't cover me. Thankfully my mom's insurance is awesome and covered LO anyway.
What state do you live in? I'm in the same boat being dependent on my father's insurance and trying to see if LO can be covered under his.
I had the same situation, LO will be covered under my dads Blue Cross for the first 30 days. Unfortunately you cannot permanently add LO to a grandparent's insurance policy without them being the legal guardian so we had to purchase a separate insurance plan for our son.
What state do you live in? I'm in the same boat being dependent on my father's insurance and trying to see if LO can be covered under his.
I'm in Pennsylvania and we have Highmark BCBS. For us having LO on my mom's (her grandma's) insurance was possible and we have had no problems arise with it so far. After 30 days she will be added to her dad's policy.
@KarasTwin you can fill it out immediately after birth. We fill ours out at a "first steps" appointment that we have when we register. So ours is filled out and we just sign a spot for social security card permission and fill in babies name after birth.
@KarasTwin you can fill it out immediately after birth. We fill ours out at a "first steps" appointment that we have when we register. So ours is filled out and we just sign a spot for social security card permission and fill in babies name after birth.
Yay! If they don't say anything, I'll be sure to ask, but I just want to make sure it's taken care of! I keep thinking of random stuff and just being like, "oh shit, there's something else to worry about"
@KarasTwin you can fill it out immediately after birth.
We fill ours out at a "first steps" appointment that we have when we register. So ours is filled out and we just sign a spot for social security card permission and fill in babies name after birth.
Yay! If they don't say anything, I'll be sure to ask, but I just want to make sure it's taken care of! I keep thinking of random stuff and just being like, "oh shit, there's something else to worry about"
At our hospital the agent comes to your post-partum room within 24 hours.
@KarasTwin you can fill it out immediately after birth. We fill ours out at a "first steps" appointment that we have when we register. So ours is filled out and we just sign a spot for social security card permission and fill in babies name after birth.
Yay! If they don't say anything, I'll be sure to ask, but I just want to make sure it's taken care of! I keep thinking of random stuff and just being like, "oh shit, there's something else to worry about"
At our hospital the agent comes to your post-partum room within 24 hours.
I need them in less than that. C section is scheduled for 10 and DH will have to leave at 5:15 the next morning.
Ok, i've got two and they are both probably really dumb so i'm glad this is FF!
1. I am 17 days pp. I am still bleeding. It is not as heavy as a period but not as light as spotting. My doula said that bleeding continues for 4 - 6 weeks. However, searching around online I read you should call your ob if by week 3 if the lochia is still bright red. I won't be at week three till Thursday, but it is definitely bright red and i'm getting a little concerned. I don't want to have to call the ob because I I can just imagine them thinking, "duh, your still bleeding because a child just came out your virginia."
; ) I would just feel stupid.
2. I am producing about 20 - 25 ounces of breast milk per day and my LO is probably just about 6.5 pounds by now. My questio is this... do you just keep producing more and more milk as they get older? Will I need to produce 40 ounces when he is a few months old, for example? Also, as he starts sleeping longer through the night do I have to wake him up to feed or get up in the middle of the night to pump so my boobs don't explode?
Thanks ladies. To who(m?) else could I ask questions like these?
Are you soaking through a pad? Are you still having clots come out sometimes? If so, call your doc (which maybe you want to for piece of mind anyway).
I was still bleeding 10 days pp and then started to pass clots that were heavier, randomly. I called the doc and it turns out that I had a partially retained placenta - essentially when your placenta comes out, sometimes there can be a bit of tissue that sticks to the uterine wall and your body will continue to collect blood there and you'll bleed until they remedy it. In my case, the fix was a 30 minute dilation and extraction of the tissue back at the hospital.
My DH is pissed because my primary OB didn't catch this - I complained about a large clot on day 4 and he said I was fine. Not until day 10 when I had a series of more clots and talked to another doc at the practice did I get seen. Not to scare you since I ended up fine, but the risk is hemorrhage and needing a blood transfusion. I never got lightheaded or dizzy, which they said was a symptom, so don't assume that just because you otherwise feel fine that you are.
It also impacted my ability to breastfeed - my body was not making milk since it still thought I was pregnant.
At any rate, I'd say call your doc just to get their take on if you should still be bleeding. After my procedure on the 9th, my bleeding has slowed to a trickle, for reference. My energy levels also got much better - I hadn't recognized that the blood loss was part of the tiredness I was experiencing.
I just want to say that I LOVE this thread. You can even post questions here when it's not Friday. Why? Because we're not complete monsters. We're reasonable people. If you have to post something, I can assure you there is probably already a thread for it. It just takes some looking around. :-)
Re: FFFQ - Flame Free Friday Questions! No question too silly, ask 'em all!
It's all a little blurry even though I only 3 days ago, but I think I remember LO moving during contractions, or maybe it was that his movement was triggering off contractions- it was pretty uncomfortable!
It's the great debate..... Nipple confusion from pacifiers......
I don't believe in it, but there are always going to be people who do.
To each their own.
If your doing breast only and never introducing a bottle then it's real hard for ppl to not use a paci during the period where your milk is not in.
I've seen patients do it and they just constantly latch their LO like every hour during that period when their milk isn't in.
We may not be so luvky. DS fell on his face a few weeks ago and one of his front teeth is starting to change colors like it's dead. Poor kiddo. A pediatric dentist might be in his near future.
I'm half hoping she picks up thumb sucking cause it's adorable and then totally hoping she doesn't cause it's a terrible habit for her
1. I am 17 days pp. I am still bleeding. It is not as heavy as a period but not as light as spotting. My doula said that bleeding continues for 4 - 6 weeks. However, searching around online I read you should call your ob if by week 3 if the lochia is still bright red. I won't be at week three till Thursday, but it is definitely bright red and i'm getting a little concerned. I don't want to have to call the ob because I I can just imagine them thinking, "duh, your still bleeding because a child just came out your virginia."
; ) I would just feel stupid.
2. I am producing about 20 - 25 ounces of breast milk per day and my LO is probably just about 6.5 pounds by now. My questio is this... do you just keep producing more and more milk as they get older? Will I need to produce 40 ounces when he is a few months old, for example? Also, as he starts sleeping longer through the night do I have to wake him up to feed or get up in the middle of the night to pump so my boobs don't explode?
Thanks ladies. To who(m?) else could I ask questions like these?
That's just what I read, so others may have actual experience to share.
We fill ours out at a "first steps" appointment that we have when we register. So ours is filled out and we just sign a spot for social security card permission and fill in babies name after birth.
I need them in less than that. C section is scheduled for 10 and DH will have to leave at 5:15 the next morning.
I was still bleeding 10 days pp and then started to pass clots that were heavier, randomly. I called the doc and it turns out that I had a partially retained placenta - essentially when your placenta comes out, sometimes there can be a bit of tissue that sticks to the uterine wall and your body will continue to collect blood there and you'll bleed until they remedy it. In my case, the fix was a 30 minute dilation and extraction of the tissue back at the hospital.
My DH is pissed because my primary OB didn't catch this - I complained about a large clot on day 4 and he said I was fine. Not until day 10 when I had a series of more clots and talked to another doc at the practice did I get seen. Not to scare you since I ended up fine, but the risk is hemorrhage and needing a blood transfusion. I never got lightheaded or dizzy, which they said was a symptom, so don't assume that just because you otherwise feel fine that you are.
It also impacted my ability to breastfeed - my body was not making milk since it still thought I was pregnant.
At any rate, I'd say call your doc just to get their take on if you should still be bleeding. After my procedure on the 9th, my bleeding has slowed to a trickle, for reference. My energy levels also got much better - I hadn't recognized that the blood loss was part of the tiredness I was experiencing.