The Pregnant Womans Moan Thread.

madeinamerica

Sweet Jesus the leg cramps! Woke up last night with the worst one yet, whole lower leg in awful spasm and couldn't stretch it out myself. Gave my other half a bad fright when I woke him up just saying 'help me!' He thought junior was arriving!

Synyster Shadow

^ I did this so many times in my first pregnancy and poor hubby wasn't the better of it for days.. Kinda like the boy who cried wolf..
My second pregnancy had less of them but when I got them I couldn't walk after them the muscles killed me.. Drink a glass of soda water before bed my granny swears by it and I found it helped

madeinamerica

Synyster Shadow wrote: »

^ I did this so many times in my first pregnancy and poor hubby wasn't the better of it for days.. Kinda like the boy who cried wolf..
My second pregnancy had less of them but when I got them I couldn't walk after them the muscles killed me.. Drink a glass of soda water before bed my granny swears by it and I found it helped

I'll try that soda water, thanks synyster.

Ocean Blue

Synyster Shadow wrote: »

^ I did this so many times in my first pregnancy and poor hubby wasn't the better of it for days.. Kinda like the boy who cried wolf..
My second pregnancy had less of them but when I got them I couldn't walk after them the muscles killed me.. Drink a glass of soda water before bed my granny swears by it and I found it helped

It's usually tonic water that's taken for cramps - it contains quinine. Soda water usually for an upset stomach.

madeinamerica

Ocean Blue wrote: »

It's usually tonic water that's taken for cramps - it contains quinine. Soda water usually for an upset stomach.

Its a pity I can't put some vodka in as well!

Penny Dreadful

Reached 27 weeks and the start of my 3rd trimester on Wednesday which I'm delighted with.
3rd trimest moans have been coming thick and fast since then though:eek::)

The pressure on my groin came out of no where. It felt like I'd either had a weekend of wild constant sex (which I hadn't:P) or had fallen asleep with my legs akimbo for 24 hour straight. The pressure and discomfort was unreal. Thankfully that has lessened over the last 24 hours.
In that time though it would appear that the baby has decided to explore my rib cage and seems to quite like poking around up there. My ribs feel like an accordian that needs to be stretched out for relief. Also my stomach is getting quite hard at times and sitting down at my desk for ages at work is proving very uncomfortable and quite the endurance test.
To add insult to injury last night I was visited with the gift of leg cramps at 3am!.

Then the baby kicks lots to say hello and I melt and it makes it all ok and worthwhile.
Hope you're all doing well this Friday.

Jerrica

Penny the third trimester is quite a challenge The pressure in your groin could well be the baby dropping down a little bit, you can ask about that at your next antenatal visit. The hardness in your tummy is Braxton Hicks, they can be extremely uncomfortable. Get up and walk around and that'll usually help to relieve it. Getting up at least once every half an hour for a quick stroll is a good idea anyway to keep all that extra blood we have moving around properly.

Penny Dreadful

Jerrica wrote: »

Penny the third trimester is quite a challenge The pressure in your groin could well be the baby dropping down a little bit, you can ask about that at your next antenatal visit. The hardness in your tummy is Braxton Hicks, they can be extremely uncomfortable. Get up and walk around and that'll usually help to relieve it. Getting up at least once every half an hour for a quick stroll is a good idea anyway to keep all that extra blood we have moving around properly.

Thanks Jerrica. I remember my sister (who has 3 kids) saying the 2nd trimester is brilliant, you're full of energy, the extreme tiredness passes as does your nausea and your bump is there but not in the way and you can feel the baby move and still sleep properly and TO ENJOY IT! She then said the 3rd is more than awkward and you get to the stage where moving at night when you're in bed requires a master plan.
She wasn't kidding.
I just didn't think it would all kick in on day 2 of Trimest 3!:D:D
I am very lucky in that I have (for too complicated a reason to explain now) 2 office spaces at work. One is open plan where I sit most of the time and the other is a private office with a door on it and its also cooler. On Wednesday I didn't know if I was coming or going by 12:30pm as I was so hot, uncomfortable, ribs were in bits, stomach was rock hard, even my clothes felt annoying to have near my skin.
So I retreated to my private office, locked the door, pulled down the blinds and pulled my top up, shoes off, draped across my desk in a weird but oddly comfortable position and had a 20 minute nap. :oFelt brand new after it though.
When I woke up I did a few of the moves I've learned at yoga (one brilliant one where you get on all fours and wiggle your hips around - it gives the baby more room and releases any kinks in your body) and went back to my other desk.
Everyone asked if I'd been out for lunch and did I enjoy it:D

Cameoette

Penny Dreadful wrote: »

Reached 27 weeks and the start of my 3rd trimester on Wednesday which I'm delighted with.
3rd trimest moans have been coming thick and fast since then though:eek::)

The pressure on my groin came out of no where. It felt like I'd either had a weekend of wild constant sex (which I hadn't:P) or had fallen asleep with my legs akimbo for 24 hour straight. The pressure and discomfort was unreal. Thankfully that has lessened over the last 24 hours.

Penny I have had that since 26 weeks! Oh the pain! Midwife says the baby's head has been right down for ages so that's why. Still have it now if I stand or walk for longer than 10 minutes, so was just advised to stop standing and walking around much and stick to swimming. Sometimes it feels someone has walked up and kicked me right in the hoo-ha, or that I've had a ton of sex (lolol...nooo).

cbyrd

Penny, I feel your pain!! With my first she used to park her butt just under my rib cage, to the point 2 of my ribs bent a bit and the other 3 decided this was a great place to park also..!!

If you can get a large tub of epsom salts, the pharmacy can order you a 4kg bucket, put a few large handfuls in a good warm bath.. when you have loads in it you float.. it makes it like sea water (think the egg experiment) its also brilliant for aches and pains in general and I know from gym aches over the years it does work!!

My only moan is i seem to be bursting out of everything i own clothes wise.. I'm only 21 weeks !! My best friend said 'you were so skinny this time of course your bump is bigger' .. I didn't know if it was a compliment or not :pac: also the use of the word WERE ..does that mean i'm not anymore?? :eek: I was craving dairy which i can't eat normally and i did give in a few times but the pain after was just horrific, that and not being able to take any painkillers i learned my lesson the hard way..

comongethappy

Just over 8 weeks left to go, and everyone tells me how massive I am and asks if I'm having twins! I know I'm big, but it does get annoying after a while. 3rd trimester I'm definitely more fatigued, and the swelling in my feet and ankles is causing a good bit on pain in my left ankle. I don't know if I've had braxton hicks like you ladies have, but I've felt the odd tightness. No ribs issues thankfully either, maybe because I have a long torso. My friend had her baby's foot get stuck between her ribs, took two days to work itself out 😮

Karmella

I just cannot get comfortable today. I've an ache in my lower back, and couldn't sit comfortably at all at work. Spent most of the day going to the bathroom, tea room, anything rather than sit at my desk. And now I can't sit comfortably at home.

28+5 so I thought I'd have another couple weeks before the real discomfort set in. Oh well.

Merkin

37 + 2 and absolutely floored with tiredness today. I normally have an afternoon nap, didn't today as got up late, but my body succumbed anyway and had to crawl into bed at 4pm for a power sleep....cream crackered!!

Whispered

Will you sleep tonight after a nap later in the day?

I napped from 3.30 until 4.30 then lazed in bed until 6 and I'm dying to go back for the night now. I haven't been this knackered in weeks.

Dolbert

Feel like absolute shít today, sick, headachey the works. Can add stressed to the mix now too, bleh

Merkin

Whispered wrote: »

Will you sleep tonight after a nap later in the day?

I napped from 3.30 until 4.30 then lazed in bed until 6 and I'm dying to go back for the night now. I haven't been this knackered in weeks.

Oh I'll sleep alright! My pattern is a little broken but I'm sleeping well. Normally have a nap from 3pm-4.30pm, then go to bed about 11.30am, sleep from about 1am-4am, 5-7am and normally 7.30am to about 8.30 or 9am. So getting what I need but in strange blocks as opposed to prolonged sleep. Was just overwhelmed with it today, am like a baby myself without sleep so the nap really restored me. I'm off the opinion now that I will sleep when I can even if it means keeping slightly odd hours xx

SmokeyEyes

Merkin wrote: »

Oh I'll sleep alright! My pattern is a little broken but I'm sleeping well. Normally have a nap from 3pm-4.30pm, then go to bed about 11.30am, sleep from about 1am-4am, 5-7am and normally 7.30am to about 8.30 or 9am. So getting what I need but in strange blocks as opposed to prolonged sleep. Was just overwhelmed with it today, am like a baby myself without sleep so the nap really restored me. I'm off the opinion now that I will sleep when I can even if it means keeping slightly odd hours xx

Just to say girls we're 11 days into new parenthood and the tiredness of it coupled with how busy youll be is just enormous so try stock up on the naps now if you can to feel mentally healthy. I was two nights in ward with baba and got 3 hours max each night and by the time I left hospital I felt ill with fatigue

Merkin

SmokeyEyes wrote: »

Just to say girls we're 11 days into new parenthood and the tiredness of it coupled with how busy youll be is just enormous so try stock up on the naps now if you can to feel mentally healthy. I was two nights in ward with baba and got 3 hours max each night and by the time I left hospital I felt ill with fatigue

That's exactly what my midwife has been saying! She said to rest and sleep at every opportunity and to save energy! She also said yesterday that if the first stage of labour is quite straightforward and in the evening she said take two paracetamol and get to bed rather than running around in high excitement, easier said than done I'd say although it makes sense. She also recommended a banana or toast during labour to keep energy up. Did you have anything to eat Smokey?

Whispered

SmokeyEyes wrote: »

Just to say girls we're 11 days into new parenthood and the tiredness of it coupled with how busy youll be is just enormous so try stock up on the naps now if you can to feel mentally healthy. I was two nights in ward with baba and got 3 hours max each night and by the time I left hospital I felt ill with fatigue

This terrifies me. I don't do well with little sleep at all. Did you get to catch up when you got home or is it all go from there?

SmokeyEyes

Whispered wrote: »

This terrifies me. I don't do well with little sleep at all. Did you get to catch up when you got home or is it all go from there?

To be honest girls I was so obsessed with the labour part I didnt think about there being any tough times after! You'll be on a complete high when the baby arrives but after 2 days in hosp I was exhausted. At home with my partner looking after us it was 100 times easier but I never anticipated the fact Id be bleeding a lot, my stitches would be sore, Id feel exhausted and then of course theres the baby blues to contend with which knocked me a bit. Again my other half was (and is) an enormous support so if you have someone you can rely on...it's worth having a chat about the fact you may feel all over the shop for a little while afterwards and will need that extra support. Breastfeeding is also incredibly tough, well is for me, and in 11 days theres been many times Ive been crying while our baby is crying and we're both wrecked and Ive felt like he doesnt like me and even that I dont like him. Sounds very horrible but your hormones and exhaustion can make you lose the plot a bit and Ive felt panicky and down some days and then completely normal and upbeat other days. You girlies may have to contend with none of this I just wish someone had prepared my fiance and I a bit more about how the first bit of parenthood was going to be. It's magical in all other respects and youll be crazily in love and feel so close and in love with your partner and new baby as a family...just make sure you have as much support as you can for the first bit as youre recovering physically and mentally from something huge.

I hope that doesnt sound scary and Im sure other girls sail through it! Overall it's amazing:-)

And merkin I had some toast around 10am and gave birth at 6...to be honest food was the last thing on my mind and other half fed me cups of water during pushing stage once epidural was in and my body was relaxed!

Merkin

Smokey, that is such an honest and open account of your experience, thank you so so much. All Mummys-to-be (especially first timers) are so focussed on labour and then actually getting to meet our little ones that it's all too easy to just think the first while will be spent in an idealistic haze of glorious post natal mush when it really isn't a lot of the time!

I've got some great women in my life who've been really open about life after birth and how tough those first few weeks can be. Mum said nothing prepares you for the fatigue. I remember sitting and holding my sister in laws hand as she wept a week after birth because my little nephew was cluster feeding for hours on end and she was too tired to sleep. One of my closest friends said when she left Holles Street with her little fellow she felt that she was actually stealing the baby she was so out of it between hormones and exhaustion. Another friend just felt overwhelmed by panic. It sounds bloody tough but at least it seems to pass thank goodness.

We are based in the UK and have very little on the ground support here. My family are in Ireland, his are 200 miles away but would be of no use anyway and our close friends, although we've a lot, are spread out all over the place. We've got a full battalion lined up for after Baby Merkin comes though thank goodness. Hubby is taking an entire month off work from the day baby is born and my lovely Mum and Dad are coming over for a fortnight with Mum saying she can stay longer if needed, I'm so grateful for the help. Cleft babies have to be fed in a very time consuming way through specially adapted bottles so feeds can take a LONG time (an hour or more) so it's great to know that there will be a few of us on hand to support one another.

I hope you're feeling better as the days go on and thanks for the forewarning. What you're going through is perfectly normal and natural after such a massive life event and once again, thanks for the heads up xx

Chattastrophe!

Yeah I remember after a couple of nights in hospital, being up at 4am with a baby who wouldn't stop screaming. And the thing is, he's a really quiet placid baby who hardly ever cries. But he did that night. I couldn't stay on the ward and keep all the others awake. So I was pacing the corridors with him. In hindsight I'd have handed him over to the nurses and I'm sure they'd have taken him - do it while you can, you won't have this option a week or two weeks or six months later! I was sore and exhausted myself. There's so much that "they" don't tell you in advance about the days after giving birth. Example - the nurses keep asking you if you've pooed yet. Because you don't, not for a few days after. And when you do, it's the scariest thing in the world - not even painful, just terrifying, because everything is different down there!

Whispered

Thanks for such honest posts. When you're in hospital how do you get a chance to go to the toilet or shower? Do you just leave baby there?

Chattastrophe!

Whispered wrote: »

Thanks for such honest posts. When you're in hospital how do you get a chance to go to the toilet or shower? Do you just leave baby there?

I was told to shower three times a day because I'd had an episiotomy. This wasn't possible, I showered once a day when there was someone else there to mind the baby.

I really hate to be scaremongering, but once when I went to the loo while my baby was asleep, and the curtains pulled around my cubicle, several vests and babygros were taken. I couldn't give a crap about the clothes. It was the idea of someone (I'm pretty sure the lady in the next cubicle) in poking around at my stuff, with the baby there alone for those few minutes.

I didn't want to be a nuisance asking the nurses to mind him every time I went to the loo, but I'd absolutely do that in future.

Sweet_pea

Whispered wrote: »

This terrifies me. I don't do well with little sleep at all. Did you get to catch up when you got home or is it all go from there?

I was worried before I had my boy what I would be like with no sleep as before I would very easily tear strips of anyone if my sleep was broken. But I have to say you (well I do anyway) deal with things a lot differently on the other side, having a baby has mellowed me out a lot though. You get up after having no sleep whatsoever and keep going because you have to.

The first couple of weeks are unbelievable and I do remember thinking at the time, why didn't anyone warn me, but really there's no point, I wouldn't have believed them anyway. I would not be someone who cries but for the two weeks after I cried hard nearly constantly. But then it stopped, for me the hormones went away and finally six months down the line I'm back to myself (or at least the new weirdly calm version of me)

I know some people like to be really prepared for exactly what's about to happen but I would not to worry to much. Set up support systems (that is the most important thing you'll do) and if you have a partner maybe have a talk about thiscrazy women who is about to move iin for a couple of weeks but other than that just let it happen, ride the rollercoaster and for most it ends.

As for the hospital, I didn't have anyone in with me after so I just said it to the nurse when j went to the toilet or had a shower and it was fine. I had two stitch but to be honest I didn't really have any problems going to the toilet, I did bleed a lot for me but again once I had that glorious first shower I felt grand

Merkin

Chattastrophe! wrote: »

once when I went to the loo while my baby was asleep, and the curtains pulled around my cubicle, several vests and babygros were taken. I couldn't give a crap about the clothes. It was the idea of someone (I'm pretty sure the lady in the next cubicle) in poking around at my stuff, with the baby there alone for those few minutes.

:eek: That is absolutely outrageous. What kind of thundering knacker would even think of doing something like that? And on a baby ward of all places?!!! How maddening!

Whispered

Merkin wrote: »

:eek: That is absolutely outrageous. What kind of thundering knacker would even think of doing something like that? And on a baby ward of all places?!!! How maddening!

It is crazy. Also a bit worrying that nobody noticed someone else going into your cubicle.

What's the average hospital stay after birth? Do you have to stay in overnight if it's uncomplicated?

Chattastrophe!

Merkin wrote: »

:eek: That is absolutely outrageous. What kind of thundering knacker would even think of doing something like that? And on a baby ward of all places?!!! How maddening!

Ah I know. You kind of think that you're all in it together. There was a girl I got close to on the other side of the ward, and after that, me and her would watch each other's babies (and leave the curtains open, I don't know why it seemed safer at first to have them closed, of course it's better to have them open when baby is alone!)

The lady in question who I think did it was from Africa originally, it must be tough giving birth so far from home. She was very upset the days we were in there, maybe pnd etc. Can't really judge her for her actions. But I'd be a lot more careful in future.

Sweet_pea

Whispered wrote: »

It is crazy. Also a bit worrying that nobody noticed someone else going into your cubicle.

What's the average hospital stay after birth? Do you have to stay in overnight if it's uncomplicated?

I would've been let out on the day as I was on the domino scheme but there was a complication at home and had to stay a night, o was up and ready to go before they even started morning rounds, could not get out fast enough tbh.

One tip if you're staying in, is get someone to bring in proper food, they served chips and rashers for the dinner which to me is gross so my mam brought me in some salads and quiche.

As Chatt pointed out, it's hard to know what anyone is going through in there(there was a woman going through a end of term misscarraige on the pre labor ward I was on) so people might not be themselves on the other side

Karmella

Whispered wrote: »

What's the average hospital stay after birth? Do you have to stay in overnight if it's uncomplicated?

It's probably dependent on where you are and how busy they are. On my last baby, I gave birth at 4 in the morning and was up in the ward by 8. Stayed there that night and they asked me the next morning if I wanted to go home. I'd had stitches and everything but I think that once they'd removed the catheter and the doc had checked the baby they are happy enough to let you go. As it happened, because it was my first baby I wasn't really ready to go and stayed a second night.

I'll see how it goes this time but probably won't stay as long if I get the chance to leave. It's so hot & stuffy in there!