u/amalia_8

I need some milk in order for my husband to take care of LO while I have some appointments. Now the issue is that this guy KNOWS when I'm pumping. That means my boobs are completely empty and I end up giving him the milk I just pumped lol. How do you manage to pump? What time is it best to do it? Any tips?

Did I f up something with my LO? I've been using this pillow for about a week or two :( I thought they are there to have the hands free

I'm 4 weeks PP and that smell down there is seriously one of the reasons I'm staying home lmao. When does it stop? It makes me so self conscious😭

Kann zur Zeit leider nicht einkaufen gehen und die Dinge aus gesundheitlichen Gründen nicht tragen. Fühle mich bei der absolut unerträglichen Hitze aber trotzdem schlecht jemanden extra für meinen Einkauf da meine Sachen rumschleppen zu lassen und mir vor die Tür zu bringen. Aber ohne Gurkerl würde ich wahrscheinlich verhungern! Oder viel zu viel Geld für mid Essensbestellungen ausgeben. Gebe immer Trinkgeld plus kalte Getränke raus. Bin wirklich unendlich dankbar, dass es das gibt. Falls Gurkerl Fahrer das hier lesen: ihr seid für diejenigen, die gerade keine andere Wahl haben, die MVPs❤️

Our LO (3 weeks) is constantly nursing due to the heatwave in Europe. It is insanely hot here. When I change him I can already see the blue line filling up while carrying him from changing table to living room because he is drinking SO much. He nurses more than usual since the newest heatwave.

I tried cloth diapering with a washloth-like insert to catch newborn poop and a booster insert. After about an hour to 1.5 hours I had to change it twice due to him crying as he feels the wetness. Is this normal? We are using the Hinzling system (German brand). I'm so sad because I REALLY wanted to cloth diaper but it seems to be impossible due to him wetting it constantly and waking up :( Am I doing something wrong? I have the washcloth like inserts, boosters and prefolds. I could use all 3 in there but it seems so big and bulky and it is already so hot here.

Unsere Kleine ist knapp 2.5 Wochen alt. Großes Glück haben wir, dass genau jetzt die schlimmen Hitzewellen losgehen und wir unsere Wohnung versuchen so weit wie möglich runterzukühlen. Wir haben zwar eine mobile Klima, die Räume werden aber tagsüber vielleicht auf 30 Grad gedrückt.

Mein Problem liegt bei der Nacht: das Thermometer im Zimmer zeigt 32 Grad an wenn wir reingehen. Sie ist sowieso nur in der Windel unterwegs und nachts auch. Es graust mich die Klima nachts laufen zu lassen, die Luft ist auch mittlerweile staubtrocken und generell ist das Teil auch super laut, aber dadurch erreichen wir immerhin Temperaturen von ca. 26-27 Grad nachts. Ich habe sehr große Angst von einer Überhitzung und plötzlichem Kindstod.

Wie schnell passiert sowas? Ist Windel + Klima okay oder könnte es da gesundheitliche Konsequenzen geben? Das Baby ist im Beistellbett auf der anderen Zimmerseite, dadurch bläst die kalte Luft immerhin nicht direkt drauf.

Edit: frage, da es früher auch keine Klimaanlagen gab und es auch Babies in tropischen Regionen gibt die unter diesen Bedingungen leben. Auf einer Seite hört man, dass es super riskant ist, auf der anderen, dass es doch nicht so schlimm ist? Bin einfach maximal verwirrt und verzweifelt, da sie manchmal schreit und schreit obwohl Windel frisch, gestillt, gekuschelt und wohl aus Erschöpfung oder wegen den Temperaturen einfach einschläft. Das bricht mir ehrlich gesagt das Herz.

I feel like this is a stupid question but as a FTM I didn't know they sleep THIS much. Usually it's following routine: diaper change, feeding till he falls asleep, lay him either in his little baby nest or bassinet, wait for 3-4 hours to wake up, repeat.

I kind of feel bad that he is just laying around? We do have contact naps but...are we doing this right? Lol. I don't want to feel like we are missing something or doing something wrong.

I'm also a bit worried about headshape? Will it look like we don't pick him up often? We love him a lot but when he is sleeping, he's just laying there. We rotate his head.

He's 2 weeks btw.

Does this concern make sense to anybody?

This morning I woke up with SO MUCH PRESSURE in my right boob. I had to let my husband get my portable pump because I thought at every move that it is going to explode. I'm sorry if this is a stupid question but can something serious happen? The title is a bit of a joke of course but that's just what it felt like.

Any way to prevent this? I had a hard time getting him to sleep that night, he woke up and was up for almost 3 hours. So I caved and gave him some pre formular that we have for emergencies because my boobs and mental health just couldn't anymore. Which is why I believe this happened. Any way to prevent this in case I fall asleep for longer stretches? I'm kinda scared to go to sleep rn lol. LO is 2 weeks old BTW.

We put our LO down in the bassinet and he is just asleep? That never happened before, usually he is super fussy. He slept between us for a few days. He's just 2 weeks old. I was completely scooted to the side, didn't have any space to turn and basically spent the entire night on my side, which was painful in the morning lol.

But now we are panicking because he turns to his side and we can't see him because the lights are off. We only sometimes hear him breathe and it's just causing me anxiety.

I know that the bassinet is way safer than our bed, but what if he rolls over to his belly and suffocates?😭 we put him down on his back but he loves to sleep on the side. I'm honestly terrified and this is kind of way worse for me

I'm a week post-op and my legs and feet are still swooooollen. I'm wearing compression socks, move around a good bit and get my legs up whenever I can. When did it fade for you? Anything I can do to make it better?

Everything I prepped for: the teas, the dates, the acupuncture, the birth prep classes, the information about natural birth - thrown out the window lol.

I got induced at 38+3 due to measuring at 4.1 kg. I agreed to it, thinking this is going to be like a 2-3 day ordeal. They started me on the pills: multiple doses a day for 2 days: nothing. Tried to do a membrane sweep and the pain almost swept me off the table. Unsuccessful. Next up: prolactin band. Now I finally thought "Oh yea this is it!". Well, we're only one centimeter dialation in lol.

During this whole ordeal I had a CTG scan every 4 hours until the evening. On one of those I looked at the monitor: 130 drops to 120 drops to 100 drops all the way down to about 60. Suddenly 5 people and a doctor rush into my room, all of them looking at the monitor. "Can you please turn quickly so we can check from the other side". And I'm awfully aware of the "Emergency C-Section" button in that room and know what could happen next. I turn and while everybody is looking at the monitor, we all feel relieve as we realize he probably just turned away a bit while I'm just laying there, hysterically panicked and crying. That was without a doubt the absolute worst moment in my life.

On sunday they decided to pause and see what happens. Well, we waited and saw that nothing happened. We talk about the possibility of a balloon to finally get me dilated. I agreed for it to happen the next day.

Then monday comes: the doctor that day first gave me a brutal cervical exam. If I ever see that woman on the street it will activate my fight or flight. "We're gonna get this baby out today!" Alright. The doctors discuss my case and agree: start me on pitocin and break my waters. This is truly it then I guess.

I get to L&D, they get the pitocin hooked. Slowly starting to feel it. They wait and see. THE doctor comes in again. My husband is there and I already told him what happened. Pure panic takes over my body. "We're gonna check and break the waters". Unimaginable pain, probably a lot more than needed since she just did not care. But then finally I thought "THIS is it, right?". We wait and see. A bit of progress, but far from enough. "Now we will also hook you up on some pain meds that help dialate". I felt like I was drunk. It was actually kinda nice ngl. They check, barely any change.

I talk to the midwives, they are lovely. But I know that as more time passes where this is going.

"Would you try and epidural to see if we can get you to 10cm?". Who me? Me who never wanted to have an epidural? I just want a natural birth without any pain meds! Oh wait, I'm so far into the process of this that I realized that this has NOTHING to do with an unmedicated birth. I didn't even know epidurals do that? I agree, knowing that probably after this, there is nothing else left. Anesthesiologist explains the process and starts. Well, let me just say this: shoutout to epidural inventor, whoever you may be, you are THAT person. That felt amazing.

We try some positional things now, trying to move the baby down. I feel great, no pain or weird state of mind. But deep down I knew: this is going to exactly that place I never actually wanted. I'm talking to the midwives. "It's going there, right?" "Yea, seems like it".

Shortly after the doctor comes in. Does a check, looks at me. "Miss, I believe that the next logical step would be a c-section. Labor has stalled for so long and we are out of any further options". Deep down I have buried my dream birth long ago.

I thought I would break down crying once it got to that point. The absolute certainty that it's going into the OR. But no, I just thought "I'm going to finally meet my baby now!". I tried everything for 5 days to give birth "naturally", it wasn't meant to be.

They roll the table in, I lay down, get me in there. I didn't know ORs were THAT busy. It felt so weird, strapped to the table and just being there completely naked. They pump the epidural up and I don't feel my legs anymore. They prop up the barrier and I realize it's about to go down. "You feeling this? Any sharp pain?" "Nope, I feel it but it's just some pressure" "Alright, let's start"

Nothing in my life ever could have prepared me for what goes down during a c-section. The anesthesia staff talks to me to calm me down as they start. "What do you do for work?" I chat with her while there are I believe 2 people all up in my guts getting my baby out? It felt like 10 hands are all up in there. I couldn't really focus because, that was the weirdest, strangest feeling. It felt like they were rearranging everything inside of me, which they were. No pain, just weird. How the fuck is this possible? I'm fully awake and talking about everyday stuff while multiple layers of me are being cut open. "We're at the uterus, we will push the baby out and you will feel a lot of pressure, that is normal". Omg wtf is happening.

And then there was a cry. Omg he's alive. They do the first examination of him so quickly but it felt like a million years. They get him to my cheek and I can't believe it. My baby? That's my baby? How is he so soft and warm? My husband is right next to me, the staff takes the first pictures. I was so overwhelmed but so happy. They give the baby to my husband and they get to stitching me up. "How long do we have left?" I believe I asked a million times. I just wanted to hold him. The staff was so lovely. And in the end, it actually was a lot less scary than I thought.

We finally get to the recovery room and I hold my baby. MY baby. 10 whole months I waited.

If anybody told me that THIS is how it was going to end up as, I honestly don't know how I would have reacted. Not a single second of that week was anything I ever expected to live through. But it really is how they say: if I had to do it again for my baby, without a single doubt, yes.

Recovery is brutal, oh my God. Pain, just pain. It took me MINUTES to get out of bed the first 2 days. Couldn't properly shower. Couldn't sleep properly. Every step took 4 times the energy. All that while having to take care of a child.

"C-section is the easy way out" they say. I will be honest, at one point in my life I thought so too. Get in, get the baby out in 15 minutes and done. Fuck you and my old self for ever having that thought for even one second. Eating my words the hard way. One week PP and only now I started to feel somewhat good. Managed to wash my hair finally. I changed my mindset long ago, but I believe it was just meant to happen like this. Learning lesson for life.

But that's not what matters now, I graduated!

I heard "You can decline them!" And that people opt out of them but didn't really understand why...THEY ARE SO PAINFUL??? The way they are portrayed on social media with the midwives showing with 2 fingers how far somebody is dialated is NOT what I thought it would be in reality. Like, they go IN, INNNNNN there. Like excuse me.

I just love how most of what pregnancy is is just thrown at us women out of nowhere. I'm getting induced so I thought "ok let's check never done this" but MAN

Edit: they tried a membrane sweep...Y'ALL-

Getting induced at 38+3 today. I took my 2nd dose and while there are contractions, it's not really painful or anything. How did it go for you?🤗

I'm currently 39 weeks and I'm trying to have everything ready for breastfeeding. I heart that oats increase milk supply and sunflower lethicin can improve milkflow and I will take those two. I eat oats in the morning almost daily anyway so it isn't really a supplement lol. I did buy a fenugreek supplement now but then I started wondering: is it actually good to take those? It's quiet expensive and I don't know if the body will start relying on it once I take it. It's probably still less expensive than formula, but I'm just curious! What supplements or what part of nutrition is important? Is it good to take those to get the milk going? Or should I wait and see?

Hey there! I just got my pump and I'm kind of confused about the sterilization. I know that all the more sturdy parts can be sterilized. The flange insert seems kind of thin and I can't find anything about it if it should just be washed or if it can be sterilized? Is it ok to be put in boiling water? I don't want it to melt🫠

It says all removable parts can be sterilized, but again, if my insert melts I will have a mental breakdown lol