Randoms - Week of December 5th

dragonfaerie

Have any thoughts, questions, feelings, fears, etc.? Spill them here!

This is a good place to ask questions to a broader audience than the weekly check-ins, so ladies in other trimesters with experience may chime in and help you out!

AandDM2014

Some days, when your baby furnace seems to be working overtime, it is perfectly acceptable to sit on the couch in just your undies with the door open, even though it's 60 degrees outside.

ale9687

@aanddm2014 agree! I had family over on Saturday and my sister who's 9 months pregnant and I were sitting by the open window trying to cool down. Ps I live in NJ where it was low 40's Saturday night. 

ultratomato

@ale9687 I also live in jersey I'm always freezing but it's because my iron level was low so I had to take a supplement. Are you in north or south jersey? 

Tulips29

@AandDM2014 haha, completely agree! I'm always cold, but at night I get so hot under the covers so I sleep in shorts and t-shirt and would love to crack the window open if DH didn't complain that it's freezing cold. 

Totally random - but I just noticed my fruit ticker this week is a durian. Anyone ever tried it? If not, don't lol...it's the stinkiest thing I've ever come across in my life. I hope I don't offend any durian lovers, but even those that do like it have told me it's a very acquired taste and not many people can get past the smell alone. All my other apps have different fruits, so I thought it was funny that the bump has a durian on the list. 

ale9687

@ultratomato I'm a cold person too but when I get a heat flash it's bad haha. I'm in central, Monmouth county. If you ask dh he'll say it's north lol, you?

nellin-2

Sorry reposting this as I accidentally posted in last week's chat:

Question - has anyone else been told they won't let you go over term with an IVF singleton? 
I'm only 9 weeks but my nurse-midwife will refer me to a specialist at week 20 as standard practice for IVF pregnancies and apparently they won't let IVF babies go over term because they are higher risk. I really want a natural birth if possible and I'd like to avoid being induced if possible as it increases the chance of extra medical intervention including emergency c-section. 

I know this is all in the very distant future for me but has anyone else heard of this? I was aware of slightly higher chances of chromosomal abnormalities with IVF but do people know what the issue with going over term would be? 

ultratomato

@ale9687 I'm in ocean county but in the south part of it so I consider myself south jersey. 

chicandbubbly

@Nellin I have not been told this, actually the opposite. They want me to go as close to my due date as possible and have treated my IVF pregnancy as normal. I have a two vessel cord so there is a chance I could have to go early depending on if his growth is on track or not towards the end of pregnancy. I have no idea why they would say there is a high risk just because of IVF unless you have some sort of complication which it doesn't sound like you do. Especially saying this at 9 weeks. Maybe get a second opinion?

clt2pwm11

You guys. I work in a public school and I had the most embarrassing thing happen yesterday. A group of students was absolutely terrible and disrespectful to me yesterday. They weren't listening to me at all, and they all but lit a fire in the trashcan. When they left, I got another group of kiddos. Because of my hormones, I could not keep myself from crying. It was the most embarrassing moment of my career. They must think I'm some kind of lunatic. Ughhhh.

dragonfaerie

wifeinraleigh28

AandDM2014 said:

Some days, when your baby furnace seems to be working overtime, it is perfectly acceptable to sit on the couch in just your undies with the door open, even though it's 60 degrees outside.

I have the opposite problem right now. I'm so cold all the time that I can't get enough layers on. Just the thought of being in undies with the door open makes me shiver!

@Nellin I have not heard this either, but I do know that all pregnancies can have complications if you go too long. I'll be induced at 39 weeks but this is due to my autoimmune disorder and has nothing to do with IVF. I was told that I can still have a vaginal delivery if there are no complications though. The only higher risk issue I've heard about with IVF is heart complications.

Tulips29

@Nellin I haven't heard of that either. My doctor has been treating me as a normal pregnancy overall. Like others said, there are complications with going over term with any pregnancy, so IVF should not play a role there. Are they thinking you're high risk for other reasons maybe? Especially at 9 weeks, I would think it's still early to determine high risk and talk about early induction. Are you still seeing your RE or is this an OB telling you this? I'd also maybe get a second opinion if you don't feel comfortable with this one. 

@clt2pwm11 oh no, I'm sorry you had to go through that at work. I can only imagine the amount of stress school kids put teachers though. We all have those moments, and it helps to let it all out. Don't feel embarrassed, it happens. I had a similar situation at work a few months back where this girl threw me under the bus and made me look bad when I tried to help her. It was the first time I cried at work and felt terrible that someone got under my skin like that. I hope your week gets better and your students stop giving you a hard time! 

nellin-2

Thanks for the responses, it's good to know it's not just me that thinks it sounds odd!
As I said I haven't actually met the specialist but when I do I'll be questioning the reasons behind this advice. 

AandDM2014

@wifeinraleigh28 to be fully honest, I had been drinking a cup of tea, which definitely helped warm me up, but even when I don't have a hot drink, I'm still usually much warmer than I was pre pregnancy.

BlueEyedDreamer

@Nellin Yes, with DS (who was the result of IVF #1 for us) I was induced one week before my due date b/c my OB told us that IVF pregnancies have increased complications if you go past full term. My body was ready to go at that time anyway (I was already a couple inches dilated and fully effaced). I had a perfectly normal vaginal delivery and was very happy with the whole experience. My OB says that the recent push to let babies stay in a as long as possible has actually led to higher loss rates and that for most pregnancies 39 weeks is a normal and safe time to delivery - for mom and baby. And he says these concerns apply even more strongly to IVF pregnancies. For us the decision came down to this: After all we'd been through to have this baby, would we really want to risk something going wrong at the very end? For us the answer was no, and I'm very happy with that decision.

If you are worried, I'd ask your specialist some questions, and they may be able to point you to some studies and resources, as my OB did. But this is something that I have heard in my own experience as well as that of others on TheBump boards.

MelD17011

anyone have any good book recommendations for first time dad? I want to get my husband a little something baby related for Christmas.

dragonfaerie

@MelD17011 I bought my DH The Caveman's Pregnancy  Guide. He said it's funny,  but it does assume a complete lack of knowledge. I think that What to Expect has a dads version.

rmarble23

@dragonfaerie i looked at that one and decided on "dude you're gunna be a dad"  i skimmed through and it seemed to have a lot of good stuff in man humor, DH wasn't too impressed he wanted an audiobook version as he isn't a sit down and read kind of guy.  we will see if he reads it at any point but i did find it amusing myself.

cato99

Hi all, I've been hit by the heartburn hammer and am super uncomfortable. I sometimes feel like there's a giant unswallowed pill stuck right under my throat. 

Does anyone have any tips on alleviating this? Whether seriously medical or home remedy? What I've found online is so broad as to be useless--"avoid your triggers" (okay but does "everything" count as a trigger), "eat smaller meals" (already do but this doesn't happen just after eating, more like every waking moment), "don't eat right before bed" (so not helpful at, like, 2 pm). Thanks Internet you may as well advise to go back in time and tell yourself not to get pregnant. Or to pull your esophagus clean out of your chest. 

AandDM2014

@cato99 Oh I know your struggle! The only to actually for reals help me has been taking a Zantac 75. It's been amazing the last few days since I started taking it! 

dragonfaerie

@cato99 I think my doc told me to take omeprazole. Zantac works as well. Good luck!! 

ARB425

Did anyone else's thyroid go totally crazy after  they found out they were pregnant? I have Hashimotos Thyroiditis(under control for about 6years). Before I got pregnant my TSH was 1.5. 6 weeks into my pregnancy and it jumped to 9.4. I knew that pregnancy would throw it off but didn't realize how much! My endocrinologist has already changed my meds 2x and now I will be going in for bloodwork every 2 weeks. I'm hoping it will even itself out over time.  It would nice for it to go back to semi normal so I could have some energy back. 

wifeinraleigh28

@MelD17011 My DH has been reading the what to expect book for expectant fathers and he's enjoying it. It breaks the pregnancy down by months so he's always well-versed in the upcoming month and has been educating ME

Beemoore90

@ARB425 I also have hashimotos and my Dr told me when I finally do become pregnant that we will need to closely track my thyroid levels. I don't think people with a healthy thyroid gland have that issue because it gives out the hormone the way their brain asks for it. Ours however does not, our brain says it needs more hormone and the gland does nothing, thats why we take synthetic thyroid hormone. 

ARB425

@beemoore90 I knew I would need additional medication when I did become pregnant. It has been a constant discussion between myself and my endocrinologist . I just thought oh my TSH will probably double or so! Luckily between my RE and my regular endocrinologist they are on top of things. I'm not looking forward to tons of blood draws because I'm already a difficult draw so I'm hoping it evens out quickly! 

2legbaby

@Nellin I had asked my OB about this concern as some other ladies of similar age and conditions leading to IVF had posted about having planned inductions. My OB felt that, like any pregnancy, they would watch me closely near the end and make decisions to induce based on any medical indications, but basically is treating it as a "normal" pregnancy so a planned induction is not in my books either

Beemoore90

@ARB425 I totally get it, I feel like with the constant blood draws I'll look like a drug addict soon The nurse at my Dr office actually jokes that Im the most draws she has ever had with one patient! Good Luck!

janejane-2

Just told my boss I'm pregnant. I've been with the company for only a few months so it was scary. I don't work in the same office as my boss so I had to tell him over the phone.  His reaction was "oh ok". Then 2 minutes later "oh congratulations on that". Then we started talking about another topic. I'm trying not to freak out about his response. So far I've done a great job (or so I've been told) though the thought of having no job security has troubled me. I had opportunity during IUI/IVF to switch jobs so many times each time I said no in case I got pregnant and I would not have job security. It would be that once we'd been in the process for what felt like forever, I find a job I really like, make the jump and BOOM, IVF works. Sigh. Okay "rant" over. 

ADRIANAC1982

Good afternoon ladies! 

Baby Chadwell is still hanging in there! His heart beat is still in the 150's it was 156bpm today and finally after a few weeks we have some fluid. 

Dr said fluid when I started seeing them was 1/2cm, it went slightly up to 1cm and today is was 2.3cm! I nearly cried I was so happy! I know there are still so many mountains to climb but every little bit helps! My baby is fighting right along side my husband and I and I couldnt ask for more! 

We are truly blessed he has held on! and I truly believe he moves his little arms during our u/s visits to let us know he's a fighter

Tulips29

@JaneJane Will you be with the company for 12 months when you go out on leave to qualify for FMLA and get job security? I hope your boss' reaction was just unexpected shock and not anything else. If you're doing great, I'm sure you have nothing to worry about. 

AandDM2014

@ADRIANAC1982 Yay! I'm so happy to hear your update! I hope your babe keeps making progress!

dragonfaerie

@Janejane Definitely not a positive response, I'm sorry to hear that.  If you plan on coming back after your LO comes,  maybe have another conversation with your boss about your commitment, or at least what you hope to accomplish before you go. 
@ADRIANAC1982 So so glad to hear your updates! You and your babe are so amazing and inspiring! Continued prayers!

tvh1982

Awesome news @adrianac1982! Such a strong fighting family you are. Way to go!
Keep going and we'll keep sending you good strong thoughts!

Not the reaction one excepts from a boss @janejane, but maybe that's how he is.
One of my 3 bosses (I know...so many!) reacted the same...he's slightly socially awkward. He did congratulate me proper later on. I guess he needed to process the fact I would leave for a year and find out the proper way to react on such news.
Hope this counts for you too!

Tulips29

@ADRIANAC1982 that's amazing! Keep on fighting little one! 

AandDM2014

So I got this little cutie in the mail today...



I found this on Etsy and asked if she could make it custom (it normally comes all one color of green, pink or blue) and she said yes, so I just had to order it! (We collect Christmas tree ornaments) I love it so much! If it's a bit hard to read it says "Due March 2017". Now I can look back every year a remember how special it was to be pregnant with three littles for the holidays.

Tulips29

@AandDM2014 i love that! 

JWatt5

@JaneJane - Don't worry too much about the response. I got the same one from my General Manager and Manager and they knew it was coming as I've been in IF treatments. I'm the HR Manager and every time that's the response from senior management, which is all men - the guys don't really know how to respond, I think they get almost shocked first before they realize I should have said something nice haha. Not to mention, when you have a performer as a Manager and then you find out that they may not be there anymore, it's not great news regardless of why - hence the delayed positive response!
Don't worry - maybe next you see him or talk to him just remind him that you aren't going anywhere yet...you're totally onboard with ensuring any transitions are smooth and are committed to your work. 

ultratomato

@ADRIANAC1982 glad to hear you got good news keep us updated on ur babies progress 

2legbaby

@ADRIANAC1982 such great news! So glad to hear the updates on your little fighter, just so good to hear!!!!!

ale9687

@adrianac1982 what a great update! How many weeks are you now?