@maggiemadeit I'm sorry your first two birth experiences did not go as planned! What is your pain management preference this time around? My first was a c-section with an epidural. I'm looking forward to meeting my OB after graduating from my RE in a couple of weeks and starting that discussion!
@aukeev I hope you and your OB come up with a plan that makes you feel confident about the big day!
I’ll be doing the c section with the epidural/spinal too, but I will have “no morphine” in big red letters on my chart, and make do with whatever else they give you (Percocet maybe?) until I can tolerate just Tylenol/Advil. I really don’t like pain meds, but I remember the incision being painful enough that I needed them for at least a week.
@aukeev and @maggiemadeit I also had a c section with my first and have been wondering about vbac vs c section. Mine came after 36 hours of labor and 3 hours of trying to push her into position. Instead she was angled into my hip and her little head came out all bruised from my pushing. My c section technically went well and I recovered fine, but the actual experience of the surgery kind of terrified me. I’m nervous thinking about all of it again even though it’s so early. I’m happy to hear a planned c section is calmer.
@maggiemadeit I didn't realize morphine was common with c-sections! I was given percocet and 800 mg ibuprofen to rotate following mine. It definitely warrants some good meds for a while afterward!
@buffythevampireslayer That's very similar to my labor with DS1. Have you had a chance to talk to your OB about pros/cons of VBAC or RCS?
@maggiemadeit If you substitute a burger for steak, that sounds HEAVENLY!!😍 Blue cheese sounds even better when you can’t have it.😂
@kbtt2022 That's so cool! What are the chances!? Have a fantastic trip to Maine!😊
@zzz2022 That’s cool! I hope you get to visit Alaska sometime! A lot of stuff I’ve seen in shows or documentaries about Alaska are a bit exaggerated, although life is way different for people off grid or in small villages accessible by plane. Although the space between some towns on the road system are an hour or so, most things are pretty readily available. When you visit makes a big difference too. Some days in the summer are cool and rainy. Often 50-60° F (10-15.5° C) but then 68-75° F (20-24° C) is pretty common on a nice day! I have seen it get up to 97° F (36° C) one summer-although it was a hard year with wildfires! And although it can get into the negative temperatures in the winter, it’s usually not a lot or constant where most people live. When you were getting snow, we had 45-49° F (7-9° C) and rain, which melted most of our snow in the town we live! 😂 And then it recently cooled down and snowed 6” overnight. The nature is one thing that can’t be exaggerated-it is beautiful, especially when sightseeing different locations!😍 Thank you! I’m sure I will share once we have gone!😊
Sending hope & prayers for a good experience and minimal pain to those who are especially anxious with this Labor & Delivery, whether VBAC, C-section, natural, or other.💕 For those who have done this before, remember every experience and birth is unique, and this may be your best experience yet.
@aukeev I had my first OB visit today and we did discuss. I actually wasn’t planning on asking because it is so early still, but he brought it up and wanted me to know that there’s no pressure to decide, but that their practice is very pro VBAC and that since my first c section was due to positioning he thinks I am a good candidate, because the next baby could be positioned just fine. The main thing he said was that they never induce for a VBAC, so I will need to go into labor naturally if I want to try. So basically if I go past my due date too long my guess is I’ll be having a c section. It’s nice to know I have the option and I’ll start thinking about it. I do think I may want a third so I’m thinking at least trying for a VBAC would be good, but I am nervous about the decision.
Upcoming Appointments: first ultra sound February 1
How are you feeling?: exhausted, overwhelmed, excited and anxious
Rants/Raves: last week I had covid and I feel like it made me so much more tired, luckily I got over it pretty quickly. I’m in my last semester of school and I am trying to stay motivated but I’m just so tired and stressed. Thankfully I have an amazing support system who keeps pushing me when I feel overwhelmed. This is my first pregnancy and all I have ever wanted was to be a mom, but I am so anxious about everything and I feel like I’m not allowing myself to be excited because I’m so anxious.
Questions: any advice for a first pregnancy/ first time mom? My husband and I are both 25 and the first of our friends to get pregnant
GTKY- What is your favorite food? I love Cajun food and seafood. Crab legs are my favorite. My favorite pregnancy foods are pancakes, burgers, and apple slices.
I may not have a lot of advice based on experience yet, but I feel like I can relate to you in some ways already! I also have Covid at the moment. I hope you regain your strength and energy quickly! My husband and I are 23 and we were planning this baby too. Despite 4 couple friends getting married last summer in state, We have only one in state couple friend our age with kids, so we are one of the early couples to have a baby as well.
Planning ahead is good, but it’s also healthy to take it one day at a time. If you have a stressful day, focus on you and your mental health and clarity. Maybe do something special for you. If you are having a day or even hour of your excitement, you could buy something for the baby or a maternity top! In other words, feel your emotions, but don’t let them control you.💕
I highly recommend you read the book “Yes! You will be a good mom!” It’s especially geared for first time moms, and addresses everything from a positive perspective (ie the chances of everything being okay is much higher than something being wrong & don’t be afraid to shut down anybody telling you their scary experience about xyz..) On the topic of books, I’ve bought my husband a few as well and he loves reading them. “You’re going to be a dad” by Timothy Barnet” was one I liked. My husband also really likes an expecting father’s activity book I got him. I think it helps him feel more involved and most of the books encourage the hubby in ways they can be understanding and supportive. I feel like it catches any informative details I could forget to tell him.
In any moments of doubt, remember that you were chosen to be the parents (out of billions of people) for this little baby, and it’s made for your style of “momming.”
Best of luck on your last semester! Give yourself grace. You have a lot on your plate!
@buffythevampireslayer That’s great that you have a provider who is VBAC supportive! I’m glad you’ll be able to make that decision and not have it decided for you. You have plenty of time to research, but one thing I found helpful before my VBAC was to listen to and read birth stories about VBAC. Check out The Birth Hour Podcast if you’re interested. Every episode has a synopsis so you can find ones about VBAC or about repeat C section and also weed out stories you may not be interested in.
Upcoming Appointments: Blood draw midweek next week for NIPT. 2/23 for next appointment. Thinking I’m gonna ask if they can hold the results until then, if that’s feasible.
How are you feeling?: Heartbuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuurn. All the heartburn.
Rants/Raves: I have pretty well decided how we’re gonna tell the in-laws! Very excited.
Questions: is ice cream an acceptable heartburn treatment? 😂
GTKY- What is your favorite food? Breakfast carbohydrates all day. Biscuits and gravy are my JAM. Also biscuits and jam are good. Waffles are great. French toast. Pancakes. Now I want Waffle House...
Upcoming Appointments: Feb 2 “centering” appointment (virtual) with Kaiser midwife and other people with august due dates. My next US isn’t until 16 weeks bc COVID. I have a virtual with my OB at 12 weeks then I’ll do my NIPT test
How are you feeling?: very tired. This week for the first time on Wednesday I woke feeling somewhat OK- no nausea after feeling horrible everyday for the last month. I welcomed the relief! Nausea has returned but not as bad as last week. I wonder if I’m starting to come out of the worst of it? Still utterly exhausted and don’t have my energy back but I’m OK being super tired without the nausea 🤢
Rants/Raves: I decided not to go to a close friend’s wedding in Mexico in two weeks -per OB recommendation. Friend is mad at me that I started trying before her wedding 🤯 . Her reaction upset me but I’m trying ti give her the benefit of the doubt that wedding planning is super stressful rn.
Questions: how do you deal with food aversions? I’m worried I’m not eating enough bc nothing looks good to me. I dry heave over veggies. Im eating way too many carbs and cheese rn 😣 fruit is good too!
GTKY- What is your favorite food? Mac n cheese and pizza 🙈
Hey @knottie214460dff4071559 glad you're here! I love Mac n cheese so much. When I lived in Cali there was a place in Sacramento where they had lobster Mac n cheese with a fried egg on top. It was life changing for the better. Lol I'm sorry your friend reacted that way. Wedding planning is super stressful (I just got married last summer) and people were texting me during the ceremony "sorry I can't make it." I was like ummm ok, nothing I can do about it. At least you gave her advance notice. And you're following your OB's advice. You may want to try changing your username to something more personal so we can tag you a little easier. Sometimes you have to log out and log back in for the change to take effect. Either way, we are happy to share this journey with you!
Oh that Mac n cheese sounds delish!! And lol yeah after I posted I noticed my username 😆 just changed it, let’s see if it worked! And thank you! So happy to be part of this group!
Baby is the size of a(n): they are almost the size of strawberries!
Team: finding out.. I wanted to be team green but when we found out we are having quadruplets we decided that's a big enough surprise 😂
Upcoming Appointments: meeting with the High risk team on Wednesday to discuss our plan and have an Arabian pessary placed.
How are you feeling?: For the most part pretty good! Just exhausted and nauseous 99% of the time my eyes are open
Rants/Raves: I'm getting on my own nerves because one second something sounds delicious and then (even if it's only an hour later) when I get it I barely eat because the thought and taste make me sick.
Questions:
GTKY- What is your favorite food? Depends on my mood. Usually it's sushi but as I typed that and thought about it I actually dry heeved 😂 so that was fun
Re: Weekly Check-in Aug 16-31
I’ll be doing the c section with the epidural/spinal too, but I will have “no morphine” in big red letters on my chart, and make do with whatever else they give you (Percocet maybe?) until I can tolerate just Tylenol/Advil. I really don’t like pain meds, but I remember the incision being painful enough that I needed them for at least a week.
@buffythevampireslayer That's very similar to my labor with DS1. Have you had a chance to talk to your OB about pros/cons of VBAC or RCS?
@kbtt2022 That's so cool! What are the chances!? Have a fantastic trip to Maine!😊
@zzz2022 That’s cool! I hope you get to visit Alaska sometime! A lot of stuff I’ve seen in shows or documentaries about Alaska are a bit exaggerated, although life is way different for people off grid or in small villages accessible by plane. Although the space between some towns on the road system are an hour or so, most things are pretty readily available. When you visit makes a big difference too. Some days in the summer are cool and rainy. Often 50-60° F (10-15.5° C) but then 68-75° F (20-24° C) is pretty common on a nice day! I have seen it get up to 97° F (36° C) one summer-although it was a hard year with wildfires! And although it can get into the negative temperatures in the winter, it’s usually not a lot or constant where most people live. When you were getting snow, we had 45-49° F (7-9° C) and rain, which melted most of our snow in the town we live! 😂 And then it recently cooled down and snowed 6” overnight. The nature is one thing that can’t be exaggerated-it is beautiful, especially when sightseeing different locations!😍 Thank you! I’m sure I will share once we have gone!😊
EDD / Weeks + Days: August 23 / 10w3d
Baby is the size of a(n): strawberry
Team: finding out
Upcoming Appointments: first ultra sound February 1
How are you feeling?: exhausted, overwhelmed, excited and anxious
Rants/Raves: last week I had covid and I feel like it made me so much more tired, luckily I got over it pretty quickly. I’m in my last semester of school and I am trying to stay motivated but I’m just so tired and stressed. Thankfully I have an amazing support system who keeps pushing me when I feel overwhelmed. This is my first pregnancy and all I have ever wanted was to be a mom, but I am so anxious about everything and I feel like I’m not allowing myself to be excited because I’m so anxious.
Questions: any advice for a first pregnancy/ first time mom? My husband and I are both 25 and the first of our friends to get pregnant
GTKY- What is your favorite food? I love Cajun food and seafood. Crab legs are my favorite. My favorite pregnancy foods are pancakes, burgers, and apple slices.
I may not have a lot of advice based on experience yet, but I feel like I can relate to you in some ways already! I also have Covid at the moment. I hope you regain your strength and energy quickly! My husband and I are 23 and we were planning this baby too. Despite 4 couple friends getting married last summer in state, We have only one in state couple friend our age with kids, so we are one of the early couples to have a baby as well.
I highly recommend you read the book “Yes! You will be a good mom!” It’s especially geared for first time moms, and addresses everything from a positive perspective (ie the chances of everything being okay is much higher than something being wrong & don’t be afraid to shut down anybody telling you their scary experience about xyz..) On the topic of books, I’ve bought my husband a few as well and he loves reading them. “You’re going to be a dad” by Timothy Barnet” was one I liked. My husband also really likes an expecting father’s activity book I got him. I think it helps him feel more involved and most of the books encourage the hubby in ways they can be understanding and supportive. I feel like it catches any informative details I could forget to tell him.
EDD / Weeks + Days: 8/30 - 9w3d
Baby is the size of a(n): pop top!
Team: finding out!
Upcoming Appointments: Blood draw midweek next week for NIPT. 2/23 for next appointment. Thinking I’m gonna ask if they can hold the results until then, if that’s feasible.
How are you feeling?: Heartbuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuurn. All the heartburn.
Rants/Raves: I have pretty well decided how we’re gonna tell the in-laws! Very excited.
Questions: is ice cream an acceptable heartburn treatment? 😂
GTKY- What is your favorite food? Breakfast carbohydrates all day. Biscuits and gravy are my JAM. Also biscuits and jam are good. Waffles are great. French toast. Pancakes. Now I want Waffle House...
EDD / Weeks + Days: 9 weeks 6 days
Baby is the size of a(n): cherry
Team: finding out!
Upcoming Appointments: Feb 2 “centering” appointment (virtual) with Kaiser midwife and other people with august due dates. My next US isn’t until 16 weeks bc COVID. I have a virtual with my OB at 12 weeks then I’ll do my NIPT test
How are you feeling?: very tired. This week for the first time on Wednesday I woke feeling somewhat OK- no nausea after feeling horrible everyday for the last month. I welcomed the relief! Nausea has returned but not as bad as last week. I wonder if I’m starting to come out of the worst of it? Still utterly exhausted and don’t have my energy back but I’m OK being super tired without the nausea 🤢
Rants/Raves: I decided not to go to a close friend’s wedding in Mexico in two weeks -per OB recommendation. Friend is mad at me that I started trying before her wedding 🤯 . Her reaction upset me but I’m trying ti give her the benefit of the doubt that wedding planning is super stressful rn.
Questions: how do you deal with food aversions? I’m worried I’m not eating enough bc nothing looks good to me. I dry heave over veggies. Im eating way too many carbs and cheese rn 😣 fruit is good too!
GTKY- What is your favorite food? Mac n cheese and pizza 🙈
Baby is the size of a(n): they are almost the size of strawberries!