Question Thread

CecilB93

Hope no one minds me starting a question thread! I figure we can ask any sort of question, whether it's pregnancy/baby relates or not.

CecilB93

I started this because I didn't want to clog up any other thread with a question and answers, and my previous BMB did a general question thread and it worked well!

So when I'm pregnant, I become a ditz...can't think of words, gloss over things I do every single day (like today, forgot to grab my lunch!)...pregnancy brain is real here. I'm thinking about telling my supervisor soon so she knows I'm not just slacking on my job, how soon do you think is too soon? I don't want to tell everyone yet, just her since she back checks my work.

runrinserepeat

CecilB93 said:

I started this because I didn't want to clog up any other thread with a question and answers, and my precious BMB did a general question thread and it worked well!

So when I'm pregnant, I become a ditz...can't think of words, gloss over things I do every single day (like today, forgot to grab my lunch!)...pregnancy brain is real here. I'm thinking about telling my supervisor soon so she knows I'm not just slacking on my job, how soon do you think is too soon? I don't want to tell everyone yet, just her since she back checks my work.

I’m planning to wait as long as possible before telling my boss. I don’t want him to be looking for slipping performance or anticipating my leave when he’s calculating my raise this summer. I’m just going to keep doing my best here and hope I kill it over the summer so that hopefully I see a big pay bump, then I’ll let him know I’m going to be out for three months. 

kristah2

I work in a secondary office and my manager is generally in our head office 98% of the time. In my office it's only myself and one other lady who I've become close with. It it hard to have not told her yet! I think I'm going to tell her when I start showing (STM) or if symptoms take over and I can't hide it or 12 weeks. Whichever comes first.
She is also great and helps cover me for apts etc so I'm fine with her knowing.
As for my manager. I am planning to wait as long as possible. He is a very cranky man and can be really hard to work with/for. I think I'm going to wait until I'm noticeably showing and when we actually cross paths one day and say "hey, by the way. I'm finishing up end of November". But I'm actually terrified to tell him so we will see how that goes. 

AGK2015

I think how long you wait depends on your relationship with your manager and your own confidence in sharing. I told mine pretty much instantaneously, but I knew she'd be supportive (she's... not always great about a lot of things, but she's always been very family-friendly, and my entire department has been joking for a while about when I'd take my next maternity leave) and it was easier than making excuses about why I'll be late to work on days when I have an appointment or whatever. If I were more anxious about the end result of this pregnancy, or less confident in her reaction, I'd have waited longer.

mckcak23

I work in an office with 3 other people, and we are all friends outside of work. I cant see myself waiting 12 weeks but we will see what happens. If my MS is anywhere near where it was last time they will know. I also have the added problem that at times my job can be rather confrontational. I work with abused children and while our policy is that offenders are not allowed at our center we do not always have control and I am the first person they interact with. So depending on what we know about different situations I may have to tell my boss sooner rather than later because I will be far less confrontational while pregnant. 

CecilB93

@AGK2015 I use the word supervisor, but idk if she's truly considered that by the bank? Idk, positions are weird here. We don't truly have a department head at the moment because ours just quit a couple weeks ago, so we have three ladies who split up her work load. The one I'm thinking of telling (she is one of the three), I'd have no problem telling her because she doesn't gossip, she would respect my need for privacy and not go blabbing to anyone else. Plus the whole taking time off for appointments thing, I've already had to put time in for 2 appointments, and I never go to the doctor, so not sure at what point people will be suspicious anyways lol. Maybe I'll at least wait until next Monday, my nurse appointment is this Friday to confirm pregnancy, and I'm not sure what all that will entail. Maybe, I may give in sooner, lol.

mckcak23

Is anyone else being recommended to take a baby aspirin daily due to a history of Pre-E? I have my apt tomorrow night where I will get my rx for lovenox injections and where they will recommend the baby aspirin (they had brought it up at our preconception apt). 

maureenmce

@CecilB93 I'm going to tell my immediate supervisor after my first ultrasound at 7 weeks 4 days (assuming all goes well and we hear a heartbeat) because I will be having a bunch of doctor appointments after that, between my OB and my endocrinologist, and I don't want to have to keep making excuses for why (I've already have three blood draws and an endocrinologist's appointment!) But I work freelance and I doubt anyone cares because other than dr appointments (I make up the time for those) it won't impact my work really and it won't change my out date at all (I'm done with this job end of June.) 

maureenmce

Ugh, my post cut off! Anyway, has anyone ever had a sinus infection while pregnant? Do you know what the protocol is? I am hoping this isn't a sinus infection, but I'm having a lot of congestion and pain in my left nostril/left side of my head. It came on really suddenly so I'm going to wait a day or two and see if it passes or is just a normal cold, but I'm wondering when pregnant, do they still give you antibiotics? And should I call my OB first and let her know, or just go to urgent care or my normal doctor but tell them I'm pregnant (obviously) and that I need pregnancy safe medication, if I need any medication at all?

CecilB93

@maureenmce I thought about waiting because at this point I need a dating scan, so I know I'll have an early US (I didn't with DS, just one at 19-20 weeks). But at the same time she and I talk about everything and I just want to tell everybody but our families that I'm pregnant lol. We have things planned for telling our families, but those things aren't possible until May.

CecilB93

And, continuing off my previous post, **TW hypothetical loss** if I were to lose this baby I know I'd be a wreck and would probably tell her why anyways. Not necessarily the whole office, but definitely her. **End TW**

maureenmce

@CecilB93 Totally get it. The first person I told about **TW my MMC was my boss on a previous show and she was AMAZING about it. end TW*** So, if she's that kind of awesome work friend, she'd be supportive if things went wrong, and you guys already talk about everything, why not?

mckcak23

@maureenmce I had to take a ton of antibiotics my last pregnancy. What I normally do it go to the clinic and have the prescribe me something then I call my nurses line of MFM to tell them what I have been prescribed to see if they are ok with it. They always have been but I am crazy! Have you used a sinus rinse at all? I am highly prone to sinus infections and my last pregnancy I used a sinus rinse everyday to try to combat sinus infections and it really worked. Do you have allergies? I also take zyrtec which is a class b for pregnancy. 

CecilB93

@maureenmce starting to think about spilling the beans today honestly, I've made so many mistakes in the last couple days!! I don't want to use my pregnancy as an excuse, but I want her to understand I'm not slacking off, lol. And my last pregnancy I had a job interview and spent 5 minutes thinking of an answer for "what are three words your boss would use to describe you" She just went to lunch, so maybe when she gets back or after everyone else has left if we're pretty busy this afternoon. 

Thanks ladies for the advice! 

maureenmce

@mckcak23 I've only ever had one sinus infection in my life, which I got like a year ago? So, I'm not prone to them and am hoping this isn't/doesn't turn into one! No allergies either! Just pain in my left nostril, left side of my head and lots of congestion. Hoping it's just a cold that needs to drain, but if not, I'll look into the sinus rinse! (And then call my dr if that doesn't work.) Thanks!

runrinserepeat

Does anyone have a good resource for nutrition needs during pregnancy? I track my food pretty closely but I have no idea if I'm getting enough protein, for example. 

littlewhitecottage

I told my boss and two coworkers.  We are a small office and it's hard to hide, with being tired, peeing all the time, and missing work for betas.  And they would know if I had a loss.  It was actually fun telling a couple people my little secret.

amfasse

@mckcak23 I had pre-e with my first and then totally normally pregnancy with my 2nd.. and was never told to take anything for it.. I googled like crazy at the beginning of my pregnancy with DD because I was worried I'd get it again but all the stats indicated that I only had a slightly higher chance than someone who hadn't had it.. my OB didn't seem worried either. Do you have other risks factors other than previous pre-e? That might be why they're recommending it.. 

nerdeebird

Not sure if it's better to put this here or the symptoms thread but I need someone to talk me off the ledge!

Today I started having sharp stabbing pains in my right side around where my ovary is...they come and go. I've had these pains before when I've not been pregnant but I've never really thought anything of them. Some months I get them and some months I don't. They usually only last a couple days and then go away.  Has anyone else felt these pains and gone on to have a normal pregnancy?  

***TW loss*** last month I had an early loss at 5 weeks and I had felt similar pains throughout week 3-4 (right now I am 4w+5d) and my primary care doctor had told me not to worry unless pain was accompanied by bleeding, that it was too soon to tell if it was ectopic and it was most likely just a cyst. Then I ended up losing the pregnancy - I assumed it wasn't related but of course now I'm panicking since I'm having it again and thinking the worst *** End TW ***

kadeephd

@runrinserepeat I'm curious about a good guide too.  I am a vegetarian and have been for years.  My dr just said I had to really focus on protein after the first trimester.

AGK2015

@nerdeebird Cramping is pretty normal, even stabby cramping (I've definitely had some YEOUCH! moments last pregnancy, and everything was a-ok). My previous OB told me early on: Cramping by itself can be normal. Spotting by itself can be normal. Bleeding + cramping is more of a concern, but if something doesn't feel right, there's nothing wrong with calling. 

Hang in there!

runrinserepeat

@kadeephd but no numbers? I get by most days with 30-45g of protein, and that's purposefully adding things like tofu to dinner to up those numbers without that, I'd be at 20g/day and happy. That's probably not going to fly, but it would be nice to know what I'm shooting for. 

mckcak23

@amfasse prior to getting pregnant I was in the process for testing for autoimmune issues. I had a high amount of infections during my first pregnancy as well. I ended up with a picc line at one point. It could just be that he wants to do what he can to prevent as much as possible. With my first I lost vision in my left eye which is why they induced me.

amfasse

@runrinserepeat @kadeephd you could try choosemyplate.gov. They have an option for pregnant women. Its customized so you enter in your info and they create a daily checklist of what you should be eating. 
eta: this is the website for creating your personalized checklist: https://www.choosemyplate.gov/MyPlate-Daily-Checklist-input

kadeephd

@runrinserepeat I used to be much more concerned with getting more protein, but in the last few years I have stopped worrying about it so much.  I have no idea how much I eat on a typical day and expect it varies substantially.  I'm just trying to eat fruits and veggies, whole grains, and 2-3 protein rich foods per day right now (beans, yogurt, tofu, nuts, eggs mostly).  I'm also eating a fair amount of small things to keep nausea at bay that are less healthy (saltines, ginger cookies, etc.).  I do wish I had a little more guidance on what I should be shooting for.

mittenlove86

mckcak23 said:

Is anyone else being recommended to take a baby aspirin daily due to a history of Pre-E? I have my apt tomorrow night where I will get my rx for lovenox injections and where they will recommend the baby aspirin (they had brought it up at our preconception apt). 

I had severe pre-e with my son. (That mag drip during labor was a bitch!) I haven’t had any appointments yet, but I guess we will see in 3 weeks. They put me on a baby aspirin during my 3rd trimester because I had high blood pressure previous to being pregnant but they didn’t have me do anything special before then. 

runrinserepeat

@amfasse I just tried that - thanks! I'm way under in grains and protein. And dairy. And fruits. Um... 

mckcak23

@mittenlove86 ugh mad was the WORST. my son is a summer baby so my husband had shorts and t-shirts but I was SOOO flipping hot. The dr. came in and was like you could hang meat in here and left and got a coat. I was sweating my ass off. I have my apt. tomorrow so I will see what they say. some research I did today suggested to start it after 12 weeks.

sterjacks21

Is anyone using a midwife in a more natural minded practice? I won’t be seen until about 10-11 weeks and I’m dying over here! I just want to know everything is okay! 

PensiveCrayon

@sterjacks21 I did for my first Here in AL midwives that don't practice at hospitals are illegal.

whitneyb89

CecilB93 said:

I started this because I didn't want to clog up any other thread with a question and answers, and my previous BMB did a general question thread and it worked well!

So when I'm pregnant, I become a ditz...can't think of words, gloss over things I do every single day (like today, forgot to grab my lunch!)...pregnancy brain is real here. I'm thinking about telling my supervisor soon so she knows I'm not just slacking on my job, how soon do you think is too soon? I don't want to tell everyone yet, just her since she back checks my work.

I actually went ahead and told my supervisor not too long after finding out. I know it sounds early, but I figured if anything bad happened, I would have told him the situation anyway as I would be asking for a few personal days.. The only reason I feel bad is because, he has been keeping the secret until I'm ready to tell my coworkers (which I plan on being after my first ultrasound).

kadeephd

I'm a FTM and my husband and I live in a 1 bedroom apartment.  How long do you think this will work after the baby arrives?   Six months?  Longer?  The longest we'd probably stay is 1.5 years.  We are in a very expensive city and can't afford a two bedroom here, but we might be able to find a 1 bedroom plus den (which is basically like a second small bedroom without a closet).  The soonest we could move is October due to our lease.  I think it would kinda suck to move 7 months pregnant, so I'd like to avoid that.

runrinserepeat

kadeephd said:

I'm a FTM and my husband and I live in a 1 bedroom apartment.  How long do you think this will work after the baby arrives?   Six months?  Longer?  The longest we'd probably stay is 1.5 years.  We are in a very expensive city and can't afford a two bedroom here, but we might be able to find a 1 bedroom plus den (which is basically like a second small bedroom without a closet).  The soonest we could move is October due to our lease.  I think it would kinda suck to move 7 months pregnant, so I'd like to avoid that.

I'd guess that by a year you'll be ready for you own space, but I think this varies a lot on the family and the setup. My cousin's 4 year old sleeps with them every night still. I'd go nuts. 

maureenmce

Not sure if this is a better fit in questions or symptoms, but has anyone else been getting headaches? I've never had them in the first tri with any of my other pregnancies, so I'm surprised. I don't get headaches normally either, so it's just odd! I think I've had one for all or part of the day for three days in a row!

CecilB93

@kadeephd my son was in our room until about 15 months and it wasn't too bad honestly! 

@sterjacks21 I used a MW with my first, but my Hospital doesn't have them anymore for some reason  they were great and didn't push for me to do anything I didn't want to as far as pain meds, but they also didn't resist when I decided to get the epidural. They were definitely all about me being comfortable with what was going on, and until I got meds I wasn't even hooked up to a monitor. They hooked me up when I got there just to check things, then unhooked so I could bounce on the peanut ball or walk around.

runrinserepeat

@maureenmce I've been getting headaches, yeah. It seems earlier than they started with either of my children. I've been using peppermint oil and it helps a bit, but I've had headaches every day since Sunday. 

maureenmce

@runrinserepeat Ah, glad I'm not alone! (Though, sorry you're dealing with them too!) I'll have to look into some of that peppermint oil.

rosebud332

@kadeephd I think space-wise you’ll be ok for a while. I live in a pretty small condo and although my one year old’s stuff is mostly in my living room, we make it work. We just put away stuff as we are done with it, after she’s outgrown it. As for sleeping space, you should be fine for at least 6 months. For me, that’s when dd seemed to start sleeping lighter and we had to move her to her own room so we could all get some sleep. 

maureenmce

@kadeephd As long as you don't mind sleeping in the same room as the baby, or setting up a mini nursery in the living room, you should be absolutely fine for the first six months, easy, and I'd say the first year for sure. We live in an apartment two (we have a kind of small two bedroom) and we're going to (fingers crossed) have two little ones in it and we won't be moving until this LO is a year old. 

temmetime

@CecilB93 I actually went ahead and told my boss this week (6w5d) because I live in a very small town and I'd rather tell him early than him ending up hearing it from someone else because people can't keep their mouths shut. (We already told family)

@maureenmce yaaaas on the headaches! For me, mid afternoon I have been getting unfathomably tired, pooped out and a total headache. I'm just glad it's not a migraine?