Ask a STM- May Edition

SmashJam

@lindsayleigh1989 great idea actually, along those same lines I have a million recieving blankets I got as hand me downs from a friend as well as the cloth diapers and I bet some of the thicker ones of those would work too!

bearmomma1

anyone have any good book recommendations/websites on breastfeeding? I haven't taken any classes and not planning on it, but was wanting to read up on it that covers the basics and pumping and all that jazz. 

SmashJam

@rachelsogo I am curious about this too, but I'll throw out what I have but am not in love with...I have "The Womanly Art of Breastfeeding" which I kind of dislike as they are majorly judgemental about medical interventions and hospital births and talk a lot about how "if your baby is still groggy from drugs then this might take longer" and stuff like that. They also have a huge section in the front about how there are studies that show that breastfed babies are better off in the long run which I am pretty sure we've debunked by now but maybe I'm wrong. 

Also for websites I've used kellymom.com and I'm sure La Leche League's website, llli.com, has a lot of info. I go to a La Leche League meeting every month run by a friend and its not for everyone but being around women who have really committed to breast feeding and having that community I know I can go to for support is great, especially knowing that I have no friends or family that have been successful breastfeeders (at least that I am close with!). 

flockofmoosen3

@rachelsogo I think kellymom.com is the go-to website for breastfeeding information. I would start there.

morethanamama

@rachelsogo my hospital offers a 1 hour free class online, I'm sure it's basic but you could check to see what resources they offer, and +1 for kellymom!

bearmomma1

Thanks @flockofmoosen3 @SmashJam I will look up kellymom.com @kissableviv My hospital has a 2 hour in person class for $50. After birth they have nurses and a lactation specialist on hand to help get you started as well. I just wanted to get a little more knowledge about it first and didn't want to spend $50 on a class.

morethanamama

@rachelsogo makes sense! Ours was $30 for 3 hours , still annoying that it was not free, haha

ckmb_1250

@rachelsogo not a STM but I've read some articles by Nancy Mohrbacher and been recommended her YouTube videos which I thought were super informative. I actually liked The Womanly Art of Breastfeeding which is a La Leche League book but @smashjam is right they definitely have a "breast is best" perspective. I thought it had good info about getting the right latch, and a lot of info about weaning as well. It also has one-pagers/charts/reminders in the back that you can rip out. It didn't have much advice for transitioning from breastfeeding to pumping when going back to work, but Nancy Mohrbacher has some good articles on that.

zombiehoohaa

How do you know which way baby is positioned? I feel movement and kicks/jabs all over the place. I haven't had an ultrasound since 18 weeks, so I have NO clue which way she is. Any helpful ways to find out besides getting an ultrasound?

ckmb_1250

@zombiehoohaa sorry for being so talkative today  but you could look into belly mapping, there's a website and a workbook. I got a fetoscope which only allows you to hear the heartbeat very close to the heart so it helps you determine head vs butt. It took a week or so but I was able to figure out the position. Your dr should also be able to feel your belly and tell you the position.

comealongponds

@zombiehoohaa your OB should be able to tell which way baby is by palpating you abdomen. If there’s any question, they’ll usually send you for an US to double check. 

wildtot

@zombiehoohaa have you felt hiccups? That’s how i can tell where his head is. I always feel them towards the bottom.

SmashJam

@zombiehoohaa there is some stuff on belly mapping on the spinning babies website but I haven't clicked on it yet so I don't know what it entails. I have been trying to guess based on where I feel hiccups, but when baby is transverse (i think) I can feel most of the body across my abdomen and its really hard there and nowhere else above or below. Beyond that, like breech or head down, I rely on hiccups, and I feel like someone mentioned that was an old wives tale which I didn't know! I hope its not. So I guess my super long, non helpful answer is to ask the midwife like the others say to be sure, haha. 

acunamatada

@zombiehoohaa your doctor can usually tell by feeling around- I can tell this baby’s head is wedged in my ribs and the MW confirmed she’s breech the other day. If you can feel what you think is the head and when you wiggle it the rest of the body doesn’t move, that’s probably where the head is. If the whole body moves, you’re probably on the butt. 
Weirdly, I’ve been getting hiccups where her butt is, my MW said as they get bigger the hiccup method gets less reliable because you can feel their whole body move. 

stillziggysmom

@rachelsogo It sounds ridiculous, but I feel like comparing and contrasting pins on Pinterest has been most helpful for me. I took a class with number 1 and I still felt blindsided when it came to breastfeeding. I saw lactation specialists in the hospital and I felt like I gained zero actual, practical information from them. For me, personally, things like looking at and comparing real moms' nursing/ pumping schedule and their trial and errors in getting there, or their accounts of what those first weeks actually felt like and their ways of coping, helps me feel much more prepared than the theory books (full disclosure, I didn't read many because the tones of the authors on the topic drove me batty)... medical aspects of BF I obviously would run past a doc. 

SmashJam

@d_marie_23 I never would have thought of pinterest for that stuff! I'll have to look that up!

tarheelgirl8

Regarding nursery lighting at night, I got a dimmer for the lamp from Amazon.  It was really cheap and great for middle of the night feeds and changes.  

https://www.amazon.com/gp/aw/d/B0000BYEF6/ref=mp_s_a_1_3?ie=UTF8&qid=1526951178&sr=8-3&pi=AC_SX236_SY340_QL65&keywords=lamp+dimmer&dpPl=1&dpID=41gCDoU%2BjoL&ref=plSrch

zombiehoohaa

Thank you everyone! I will ask my ob on Thursday. I THINK I feel hiccups near my bum, however I'm really not sure...although right now, it's as though she is kicking towards my vagina. 

morethanamama

I can't figure out where he is. He is constantly twirling in there...I've always felt hiccups low though, so hopefully even when transverse the head is *kinda* down?? Lol

zande2016

Hmm the issue I always had with the phone flashlight was it’s sooo bright. I’m going to look into the clip on breastfeeding light suggestion, thanks! 

TalesOfASocialIntrovert

Question for those that had 2 children in separate rooms but needed monitors in both - what do you recommend?

We have just an audio monitor for DD now but it's not compatible with a second transmitter. Thinking about switching to a video monitor since DD could possibly be in a toddler bed soon(ish). Don't want to spend a fortune but also wanting something quality, longer range, has audio, and can switch between rooms. Bonus if it can't be accessed by WiFi. Thanks!!

comealongponds

@TalesOfASocialIntrovert we initially had the SummerInfant Split screen. It can display up to four cameras at once (comes with two) or it can cycle between rooms every 8 seconds. I liked it, though the video quality wasn’t the best but the parent unit was so delicate. Our first one broke after it was dropped a few times (the volume button started sticking and would randomly turn all the way down). The company was super nice and replaced it, then one of my toddlers dropped that parent unit on the floor and the volume button and screen broke. So basically it’s a decent monitor that will do what you want but definitely keep the parent unit out of little hands! We switched to a Nest cam now and love it but I don’t know how it will do with two cameras.

https://www.summerinfant.com/video-monitors/panorama-duo

gingerbride26

@TalesOfASocialIntrovert we have a summer infant with 2 cameras - it was a BRU exclusive I think but I believe they have a similar model at Target.  It's RF not WiFi.  We already don't leave the sound on over night since she hit toddler stage, we can have dual video on and sound on 1 monitor at a time.  It expands up to 4 cameras but we only have the 2.

TalesOfASocialIntrovert

Thanks @comealongponds and @gingerbride26! I was looking at a few different ones, including the Summer Infant Wide View 2.0 but it got sub par reviews online. That one didn't pan around though which was a major complaint. Did either of you find it necessary or not to be able to pan the camera?

gingerbride26

@TalesOfASocialIntrovert we can pan the camera but don't that often - maybe if we used it in a play room or somewhere we need to search for baby/toddler? In the actual nursery we just set it on the shelf and forget it.  When we move DD into her big girl room I could see having to pan a bit if she's out of her toddler bed and wanting to see before barging in....

So i just looked on the target and summer infant websites and it seems they've completely redesigned them... so weird they would go backwards on that feature!!

michelle_bird

@TalesOfASocialIntrovert, we have the Infant Optix DXR8 and LOVE it.  Just bought an add on unit for the 2nd camera.  The customer service has been amazing too - I broke it once and they replaced the entire unit.

@rachelsogo - I have and loved the book "breastfeeding made simple".  I also watched a video that I purchased online but it was SUPER long and kind of boring - you could probably just YouTube different hold positions and be fine in combo with reading.  I also spent lots of time during late night feedings reading on Kelly's Mom.

@zombiehoohaa, I don't really feel hiccups but feel sharper jabs where the feet are and more often, but smaller movements where the head is.  I can also sometimes feel a "gurgling" type feeling where his head is at.  

wildtot

We just got the a Levana that you can get additional cameras for. I was really tired of our nest camera going offline and have a few seconds delay. At least this way my phone doesn’t ring with each movement at night.

TalesOfASocialIntrovert

@MichelleAG05 So funny, that's the other one I was looking at! I haven't had any major reservations on that one besides it's a bit higher prices. Thanks for the feedback!

zande2016

We just got the same one as @MichelleAG05 with an extra camera, haven’t taken it out of the box yet but I did a good amount of research and this one was really highly rated. We have a summer infant currently and the quality is so bad I didn’t want to get a second camera for it. 

elizabethrn87

@TalesOfASocialIntrovert we have Motorola . I like it now but switching from our single camera to this one took some time to get use to. I can do split screen ( but then no sound) or where t flips between the rooms.

comealongponds

@TalesOfASocialIntrovert if you can get it into a good position, I don’t think you’ll need the pan feature much. I used it only rarely. 

michelle_bird

I pan my camera all the time.  Now it's because when she stands I can't see her head, but sometimes it's to see if she dropped a stuffed animal.  There were several times when she was younger that we would pan it to see if the cat had gotten in the room with her (so we could avoid possibly going in and waking her if he wasn't).  More than once I found him sleeping on her changing table.    

I really do like the Infant Optix one - and we have friends who got it after seeing ours and changed over from the Motorola.  Obviously I haven't set up the 2nd camera yet, but I think I remember from research that it switches back and forth - not a split screen.  They own a vacation home in College Station - when we stay with them in the same house our receivers will sometimes interfere with each other if we get them within 4-5 feet of each other, but otherwise we've had zero problems.  There's really good range on it too.

morethanamama

Is it normal that my boobs stopped growing? I know they still have time! Grew to a DD during the second tri but now they leveled off. I've also had no leaking which I'm guessing it's normal for FTMs? I plan on asking my doc about it next week as well. 
I hate that I was stressing out about the weight in the beginning and now I'm stressing about not putting on enough (hovering around 20 lbs and 34 weeks this coming Saturday). 

wildtot

@kissableviv with DS my boobs didn’t grow or have leakage until my milk came in post delivery, so you got plenty of time. I didn’t have any supply issues. This time around they have grown and stopped since second tri. Leakage is random and can be very uncomfortable sometimes so consider yourself lucky. I haven’t bought any new nursing bras because idk if I’ll get big after delivery.

acunamatada

@kissableviv normal! There’s still time, mine have only gotten a little bigger, they filled out more than anything. I remember them getting huge with DS in the second tri- to the point of angry stretch marks, but this time not much. Plus they get bigger once your milk comes in.. I don’t remember leaking while pregnant with DS, but a little colostrum will come out if I squeeze. 

Anyone else have sore boobs? Just started recently, it’s not really painful but it’s enough to notice. I don’t remember having this in the 3rd tri. Why must everything be uncomfortable?

morethanamama

I knew I could count on you for reassurance:) thanks ladies. Sorry, I'm just a little anxious lately with the whole small baby/I look so tiny talk. Can't wait to see the LO tomorrow for our growth scan!

My boobs haven't been sore since week 15? But I'm sure it's pretty normal with all the hormones circulating in our bodies! I'm glad it's not painful @acunamatada!

wildtot

@acunamatada Yup sore boobs here and sometimes they ache/burn like if I’m engorged. 

stillziggysmom

@kissableviv Totally get how nerve wracking it is. DS I gained sooo much weight but my chest really never got sore the entire lregnancy, and no leaking whatsoever. This time I haven't been able to gain more than a few ounces each visit but I've been leaking colostrum. The point is, our bodies will do what they need to do for that specific baby, and most of the time what it is doing/ not doing is totally normal. I know it's so hard not to stress, about the lack of weight, especially.  But if baby is growing proportionately than what the scale says doesn't really matter, or so my OB reassures me. 

zande2016

@kissableviv I've only gained around 12-13 pounds at 33 weeks, some weeks I lose and some I gain, but no one has ever mentioned being concerned since growth scans and uterus measurements are normal. Re breast size, mine got smaller since I weaned my son during pregnancy, but with my first pregnancy they didn't grow much until my milk came in after he was born. I never leaked at all, and then within hours of giving birth I had to hand express because he wouldn't latch, and to my surprise, I was absolutely full of colostrum. The nurses were super impressed by how much I had. This time around, I have zero leakage but I am not concerned, I feel confident it's in there. I was also always told that if your mother/sister/grandmother could nurse and did not have supply issues, you likely won't either. Also, low supply is not all that common, it is much more common for issues with the baby/latching interfere with nursing than supply. I know it's hard but try to trust your body and not worry for now

SmashJam

@kissableviv my boobs also have stopped growing, and only went up like, half a size. I also didn't leak with either of my first two and am not with this one either.

@zande2016 you always have so much info! I didn't know that about low supply, and it makes me feel so much better about my nursing chances this time around, as long as I stick with it and use my resources!