Stella Violet is here!!!

Mrs.Zip · May 2009

I had my little girl, Stella Violet, this past Monday. She's perfect and gorgeous!

We went in for our regular OB and specialist appointments Friday, and the two of them talked and decided that because of my GD, and because baby was measuring 9.5 pounds on the scan Friday, that we'd need to do a c-section. OB said that despite the fact that I'm plus-size, my pelvis is very very small (who'd of thought that??) and there was no way I could deliver a baby that big. We set our c-section for 5:30 a.m. Monday morning. Then DH and I went home and tried to tie up a ton of loose ends.

Monday morning came and WOW! I was so glad to have gone through childbirth education stuff and toured the L&D area and met so many nurses during my NSTs, because that definitely made things easier. I had to be catheterized (eek!) and that wasn't nearly as bad as I thought it would be. I also had IV drips put in, and then they had me walk back into the operating room and get up on the table to get my spinal. This, too, was not nearly as bad as I thought it might be, even though they had to do it to me TWICE since the first one didn't get enough of the stuff in my right side. Next thing I knew, I was laying on the table and DH was brought in -- I WAS ALREADY CUT OPEN AND DIDN'T KNOW IT!

About 10 minutes later, Stella was here -- they had to use the vacuum to get her to drop down so they could deliver her, which was a first for my doctor. Stella was 7 pounds 2 ounces and 20 inches long. Perfect in every way. A little bit of dark hair to boot!

She's getting ready to go under the Bili Blanket right now since her levels have been going up all week. She's also having trouble latching on, and I'm sore as heck, but I'm not giving up -- if anyone has advice for me, I'm ready and willing to listen!!!! Please! My nipples are so freaking sore I can't stand it.

Also, I'm thrilled -- I get to use my girly diapers now!! Well, as soon as I can heal enough to go up and down the stairs to the laundry room. Til then, it's 'sposies for us. Boo.

Here's Stella!!!

Hippinski · May 2009

She's beautiful! And what a little peanut!

CABunny · May 2009

Oh congrats! ?She is gorgeous! ?As a veteran 2x c-sectioner, I say please please please rest and don't try to do too much!

triumphantreturnofplanningbug · May 2009

She is beautiful! Many congrats, and I hope that nursing gets better (easier?) soon!

smurfetteinred · May 2009

What an absolutely precious face! Congratulations!

Not sure if this will help but we had latch issues after my milk came in and the best advice I got from the lc was to make my boob like a sandwich. Basically squish the front end of your breast with your hand so that it fits like a sandwich in your little ones mouth (parallel with her lips). The second we started doing that our latch issues were gone and we had no further problems (and I didn't have to do the sandwich thing forever Wink .

Also if your hospital has an lc I would highly recommend seeing her as many times as you can.

JAWMIN · May 2009

She is beautiful.

Lady Galadriel · May 2009

Purdy baby girl

marisah · May 2009

Congratulations! She's beautiful. For the sore nipples ... have you tried using nipple shields? They sell them at babies r us. They were a lifesaver for me. I only had to use them on/off for a week or so to give my nipples a break and to get DD to latch on better. Also have you tried varying the position you hold her in? Sometimes a football hold works well and is especially forgiving to the C-section area. One last thing ... if you are engorged it will make latching on difficult. Sometimes I pump a little bit first, this gets the milk flowing, gets the breast a bit softer by getting out extra milk and will also help if you have a problem with flat/inverted nipples (I did). Hope this helps! Good for you for not giving up!

Tarta · May 2009

Oh congrats! She's beautiful! I dont' have advice for BFing since I couldn't do it, but you're doing great! Stay positive and stay off your feet!

JAWMIN · May 2009

Ok, I just read your birth story. They cut me open before DH was in the OR too. Except they told me they were starting!!! I was freaking out because he wasn't there!!!!

And my best BFing advice is nurse, nurse, nurse. Try you hardest not to supplement. Use some Lanolin. It'll get better. DS had long nails at birth and would dig them into my chest, and it helped take away (or distract) me from the nursing pain.

Sunny1inTucson · May 2009

I love her name and she's so cute!

julielovestom · May 2009

Congratulations!! She is adorable. I second the breast shields. I'm convinced that's the only reason we were able to successfully breastfeed. My son had a very hard time latching, and on day 10, I got the nipple shield, and we never looked back. From what I've heard it does wonders for pain as well. Good luck and hang in there!

crackerjackprinter · May 2009

Congrats!

My daughter also had to be under the lights and was there for 5 days since my BM was preventing the levels from going down as fast as they normally would. We had terrible latch issues in the beginning and I was in pain for 2.5 months, but I stuck with it and eventually we figured it out and things got a ton better! She is still nursing!

My tips are:

Avoid bottles (cup feed if you have to supplement at any point). We supplemented DD for about a month, and ended up having to do bottles because she didn't get enough by cup to grow.

Avoid pacifiers as well, as they might cause her to not suck right at the breast. For a long time DD would get messed up for a week after getting the paci just a few times!

Don't be afraid to try new positions. The football hold was the reason that I was able to not be in pain anymore. For some reason she just wouldn't latch well any other way. The frustrating thing was that it looked like she was on perfect, but my pain told me otherwise!

Seek advice of an LC, LLL or both. LLL saved my nursing relationship! I plan on becoming a leader myself soon!

For the soreness, warm tea bags feel AWESOME. Just make sure you wear something that you don't mind staining. I used a sports bra to hold them next to my nipples. You could also use cool ones too. Something in the tea is what helps your nipples.

Really though, making sure the latch is as deep as possible, even if you have to relatch her multiple times, is your best bet. Having a baby on the lights can really make things difficult, and I totally understand! We were "restricted" in our BFing time because her levels were not coming down fast enough and they were trying to max her time.

Sorry for the novel! If you EVER want to talk about either issue, feel free to PM me, page me on here, or email me at crackerjackprinter at yahoo dot com. I've been there and remember it well! I would have LOVED someone to talk to that had gone through the same stuff!

You can do it!

MTOW · May 2009

Congratulations, she's just gorgeous!

Also, stay away -- you're making me want to do it all over again.

Mere7706 · May 2009

She's gorgeous! Congratulations. Don't give up. I had latching issues too- Tyler has a higher pallet they told me which caused him the trouble of latching. I had to use a nipple shield to get him to latch at all. Also- with the nipple shield, I never had a sore nipple the entire time I breastfed.

I hope that helps and I hope you heal quickly and smoothly.

HikerBride07 · May 2009

Congrats!

AmandaHearn · May 2009

She is absolutely beautiful! Congratulations

Summerly2 · May 2009

She is just beautiful. Congrats!

Dobie_Mama · May 2009

haha ... I also had no idea with my c/s that I was open when DH walked in. I remember screaming, "You mean you saw my uterus!?!" and feeling very embarassed, which is silly, right? It's just so surreal!

Anyway, congrats to you, mama! Stella is gorgeous and I LOVE her name. Utilize an LC as much as possible, get her to the breast as much as you can, and just hang in there!

luvlieK · May 2009

Aww Congrats

johnsoar · May 2009

congrats...she is a doll!

kmgourley · May 2009

She's adorable!!! Congratulations to you!

You've gotten some great breastfeeding advice so I won't give you any more except if you ever have some sort of question and want it answered quick, check out www.kellymom.com. I love that place

daisies916 · May 2009

Congratulations!! She beautiful!!

Lotte134 · May 2009

Congrats! Your LO is beautiful. I hope all the other BFing advice is helpful because I've got nothing else.

squeakytaco · May 2009

smurfetteinred:
What an absolutely precious face! Congratulations!
Not sure if this will help but we had latch issues after my milk came in and the best advice I got from the lc was to make my boob like a sandwich. Basically squish the front end of your breast with your hand so that it fits like a sandwich in your little ones mouth (parallel with her lips). The second we started doing that our latch issues were gone and we had no further problems (and I didn't have to do the sandwich thing forever .
Also if your hospital has an lc I would highly recommend seeing her as many times as you can.

The sandwich deal totally worked for us, too! Try it, it TRULY helped. Also, watching the Dr. Jack Newman videos online of him teaching others moms to latch etc. etc. really helped me, I guess I"m visual so I needed the visual. I'd watch while my lo was nursing!

Congrats!