Baby/postpartum survey

[sdlaura]

For the ladies who have had their babies:

1. How is baby sleeping?

2. How is baby eating?

3. How are you feeling?

Plus anything else you want to add!

ETA - how old is baby?

[danib]

Sleeping is pretty fantastic. He's sleeping better than either of his brothers did! He wakes up, diaper change, nurse, burp, then sleep for 2-3 hours. Once or twice a day he will have a wakeful period or cluster feed a bit, but then he'll have a longer sleep following it so it balances out.

Feeding is great as well. He took to nursing immediately. Usually nurses on one side for an average of 20 minutes. I have tons of milk (I did with the older boys also) and have a nice little freezer stash started just from using the Haakaa once or twice a day.

I'm feeling pretty good. More rested than expected. Super hungry all the time, I eat more nursing than pregnant. My pubic bone still feels bruised and my tear isn't fully healed yet, so I'm still uncomfortable. But overall my body is making progress. And I only have about 16lbs left to get back to PP so hopefully by fall Ill fit comfortably in my jeans again.

[txaggie08]

LO is 2 days old.

1. How is baby sleeping?
He's doing pretty good, but definitely prefers to sleep while being held. We haven't had more than 20 minutes of him being in the bassinet sleeping, so that's pretty exhausting.

2. How is baby eating?
Pretty well. My milk just came in this morning, so I'm hoping that helps his sleep situation soon.

3. How are you feeling?
Things are pretty swollen and painful right now because of my tear. Also, all of my arm and back muscles are still sore. Hopefully I'll start feeling better in the next few days.

Plus anything else you want to add!

[magaroni]

C is 2 weeks old.

1. How is baby sleeping?

Sleep isn’t too bad. We had one really bad night last weekend because she was gagging/choking/spitting up all night but I think I ate something that didn’t agree with her so I’ve been watching my diet closely. Last night she went down at 8 and I woke her at 1:45 because she was still sleeping and we have another weight check on Tuesday. Usually she’s up every 2-3 hours to nurse.

2. How is baby eating?

Nursing every 2-3 hours usually but she spits up a lot. She wasn’t back to her birth weight at her appointment last Tuesday so we have to go back this week.

3. How are you feeling?

I’m feeling great. If it wasn’t for the postpartum bleeding I would be back to normal. I had a small tear but that is healed. I was so miserable at the end of pregnancy that I find myself overdoing it because I feel so much better than I did pregnant.

[danib]

magaroni G wasn't back to birthweight either so we are going back for another appointment this week as well. Doctor isn't worried as he's grown a full cm and having lots of diapers and all that, but just wants to have another check to keep track. I forgot to mention G has a hernia so we gotta keep a watch on that as well.
Also, you don't have to watch your diet. Unless baby has a protein allergy, your food doesn't effect baby. Your milk is made from your bloodstream and there's very little that actually passes through.

[aries]

magaroni are you still bleeding? I’m just wondering because mine will taper away to almost nothing and then I’ll get a good amount of bleeding again. I’m 10 days pp but don’t remember it lasting this long last time.

I hear you on doing too much though! I was basically useless for the last ten weeks and I am enjoying doing everything and am doing too much I’m sure. So maybe that’s contributing.

[danib]

Jun 5, 2020 14:18:17 GMT -6 aries said:

magaroni are you still bleeding? I’m just wondering because mine will taper away to almost nothing and then I’ll get a good amount of bleeding again. I’m 10 days pp but don’t remember it lasting this long last time.

I hear you on doing too much though! I was basically useless for the last ten weeks and I am enjoying doing everything and am doing too much I’m sure. So maybe that’s contributing.

I'm at 2 weeks and still bleeding. Basically spotting most of the day now, but then randomly it'll get heavier briefly then back to spotting. This has been there last 3-4 days.

[magaroni]

Jun 5, 2020 14:18:17 GMT -6 aries said:

magaroni are you still bleeding? I’m just wondering because mine will taper away to almost nothing and then I’ll get a good amount of bleeding again. I’m 10 days pp but don’t remember it lasting this long last time.

I hear you on doing too much though! I was basically useless for the last ten weeks and I am enjoying doing everything and am doing too much I’m sure. So maybe that’s contributing.

Yes I’m still bleeding. It will be minimal for most of the day with 1 or 2 episodes per day of heavier bleeding. I bled until 4 or 5 weeks pp with my last one. I was afraid I was going to still be bleeding for my 6 week check up that time. I’m hoping it doesn’t last as long this time.

[sdlaura]

I haven’t answered my own survey yet - but magaroni and danib my babies definitely react to my breast milk and what I eat. To the point of losing weight even when I know they’re getting enough milk - and being really uncomfortable/fussy/not sleeping well.

With DD it happened between 2 and 3 months and I cut milk and soy and pumped for weeks and she kept getting sick whenever we reintroduced breast milk, so we switched to formula long-term.

With DS1 I cut milk, soy, and wheat (wheat at the advice of a lactation consultant) and was able to breastfeed him longer term.

With DS2 around 3 months he started getting really fussy and losing weight and I cut every single allergen I could think of and it didn’t help. So he also got formula starting around 3 months.

I’ve never had any testing for an actual allergy but I think it’s more of an intolerance situation. We used alimentum ready to feed hypoallergenic formula. They have all grown out of it and don’t have any sensitivities now. But I know that for me there’s a definite connection between my diet and how my babies react. Given our track record, I wouldn’t be surprised if it’s an issue for DS3 so I have already cut milk, soy, and wheat this time.

[danib]

sdlaura sorry I was more refering to the "don't eat broccoli or baby will have gas" etc that was common years ago and people still tell new moms today. Milk/soy/wheat are among the few exceptions, usually being a protein allergy. DS2 is allergic to dairy (which we didn't find out until he was over a year old) and he didn't sleep longer than 45 minutes at a time until we cut it out.

[sdlaura]

danib that makes sense!

[sdlaura]

Ben is 3 weeks old today!

1. He’s sleeping ok. We had two bad nights this past week but last night was better. I’m ready for a few longer stretches soon

2. He has a good latch and nurses frequently. At his 2-week appt he was 4 oz above birth weight. See above about my concerns around food intolerances.

3. Labor related stuff feels fine - I didn’t have any tearing or issues there, and my bleeding has gotten really light now. But I still have the herniated disc situation. It’s improving week to week at least. First week was excruciating pain, second I started being able to move around the house better and could walk short distances, this week it’s less painful to walk and stand for a short time. I have a referral to physical therapy but I’m going to wait another couple weeks before deciding whether to go.

Like danib I have about 15 lbs left to go. Which isn’t bad since I gained over 40 lbs. But ideally I’d like to lose 20 lbs and be a little lower than pre pregnancy. I can’t wait to feel well enough to take longer walks and it would be great to start some jogging again at 6 weeks postpartum.

[hangry]

6 weeks old!

1. How is baby sleeping? Really good. Best of all my kids so far. He’ll get a good stretch first thing at night, 5 ish hours. And then the rest of the night sleeping in 3 hr stretches in the bassinet. He naps in my arms, in the car seat if were outside on a walk, or his his little rocker chair, occasionally in the bassinet. It’s bern taking a little longer the last few nights to get him to sleep initially but I’m hoping thats related to his antibiotics (see below). I held my daughter at night for months and months so overall his sleep feels amazing.

2. How is baby eating? Again, doing really well. Nursing every 3 hours. No spit up. Gaining weight. He’s up 2.5 lbs since birth. My son had trouble feeding and gaining wt for more than a month and my daughter spit up every feed and ultimately had reflux. So again, little T is my dream baby here.

3. How are you feeling? I am feeling mostly back to normal. By 6 weeks my bleeding is long gone, no residual pains, and weight is coming off. I don’t have a scale so am not really tracking that. I wouldn’t dream of trying on any jeans or fitted clothes right now though. I definitely still have a lovely pouch and my hips are still wide. Also, I hate having bigger boobs. Just don’t feel like they fit right. And my regular shirts are all small, regardless of my stomach, because my boobs are much bigger. Can’t wait for them to shrink down to nothing 😂

So unfortunately, we had to make a visit to the children’s ER the other day. T had a fever of 101, and no other symptoms. So we called the health care line and basically the nurse said any fever over 100.4 in a baby less than 3 months should be evaluated at the hospital. So I went in at 11pm. They did a urine test, blood test, and Covid test. Preliminary results showed a UTI so they discharged us and sent us with antibiotics. UTI was confirmed with cultures today and Covid test was negative. The fever never got super high so it wasn’t too scary. I had a similar experience with my daughter at just over a month old and her fever was super high and they had to do a lumbar puncture and admitted us to hospital for 5 days. So this experience was a breeze comparatively.

[aries]

1. How is baby sleeping? The last few nights way better! 4 hour stretch the first chunk then 2-3 the next two. The first week he was up every 40 mins in the night so dh was keeping him downstairs for a few hours so I could get a bit of sleep.

2. How is baby eating? Pretty good. Breastfeeding well. I love love love my Hakka! I’ve been able to get a good stash going from that alone.

3. How are you feeling? Feeling physically awesome! I didn’t tear and my recovery was pretty easy thanks to the fast labour and delivery. I hate taking Tylenol and was happy I didn’t even need pain meds. Still some heavier pp bleeding randomly so hoping that goes away soon! Still some weight to lose (10 lbs ish) and my tummy is always the last to go so I can’t wait until I can start working out a bit again. Have been doing short walks so far though and it’s amazing to not have any pain in my pelvis or hips anymore!

Mentally I’m starting to feel a little overwhelmed trying to take care of two kids (one of which is always wanting me to play with him), keeping the house clean and organized, give our dogs attention and just not having enough time in the day! Now that things are quieting down wrt Covid and restrictions are being lifted plus our number of cases are basically 0, I am going to see if I can get him into a daycare once or twice a week so that he can be around kids.

Plus anything else you want to add - does anyone baby wear? What’s your fav carrier for newborn stage? I just got the infant insert for my ergo and DS hates it so far. I had a cheap version of the mai tai but can’t find it and I can never seem to get the Moby tight enough!

ETA - how old is baby? 10 days old

[sdlaura]

hangry sorry about the fever. My DS1 had a fever right before 4 weeks old and we had to do the spinal tap and spend a night in the hospital and it was awful. While I was there I ate something that didn’t agree with me and spent the next night at home puking all night. It was terrible. So glad you go a diagnosis right away for your baby and got to go home!

aries heck yes on some help with your older one! That’s always my biggest advice to moms having their second - to keep the older one in daycare/preschool or have some help. It’s one thing if your older one is used to being home with you all day, but I think really hard for a kid that’s been in daycare/preschool for a long time to all of a sudden be home all day with mom and newborn. This afternoon I took all 4 kids to the playground and then picked up dinner and I was thinking about how much of an adjustment it was to go out when I had just had my second or my third. Now I think I just assume kids will be fighting or baby crying or whatever and don’t care anymore and just go about my day I love the k’tan carrier for the ‘fourth trimester’ but I haven’t been baby wearing this time because of my back issues.

[magaroni]

aries I have an ergo with the newborn insert and a k’tan. I prefer the k’tan for now because it keeps her snug and I don’t have to wrap it myself. I use it almost daily.

[danib]

aries I love my Moby for newborns and then I have a Lenny Woven wrap for when they get a tad bigger. I don't like structured carriers, I find them uncomfortable on me. With the Moby, are you tying it up before putting baby in it? I find that's the best way. Pull it tight at each pass, And just tie it tighter than you think you need to.

[willow]

Babies are 7.5 weeks old

1. Sleep - The SNOOs are magic. I can put both of them down completely awake and they will fall asleep with no fuss, maybe just some little squawks or cooing but that’s it. They do usually two 4-5 hour stretches at night, sometimes one is a 3 hour stretch. Pretty good for this age and with two of them. We are keeping them on the same sleep schedule. Since they have gotten more alert now, I have started an actual nap routine with them and they go down really well for 1-1.5 hour naps in the SNOOs as well.

2. They have been eating great since day 1. They gained 3 lbs each in the first month so I imagine they are both over 4 lbs since birth by now. G has a very mild tongue tie so his latch isn’t perfect and it makes him a messy eater, but it hasn’t affected his weight gain at all so the pedi isn’t concerned. They eat between 3.5-4 oz per meal (formula) and usually every 3 hours.

3. I’m doing alright. Much better now that I’ve recovered from the c/s. I gained a lot of weight of course with twins so it’s going to be a rough road to get back to where I want to be. I love exercise but hate watching what I eat lol. But oh well, such is life. It’s tough managing two babies at once and I always feel like I’m never giving them each enough attention.

[sdlaura]

willow I’m still on the fence about the snoo - it hasn’t been quite as magical for me. But I think part of that might be breast milk sensitivities like I mentioned above. Baby still spends a lot of time grunting and gassy and wakes himself up. I think the snoo helps with that. I had DS2 sleep most nights in a swing and I think my babies like that better - but of course it’s not as safe.

[trtlcrzy]

Jun 5, 2020 21:24:30 GMT -6 aries said:

1. How is baby sleeping? The last few nights way better! 4 hour stretch the first chunk then 2-3 the next two. The first week he was up every 40 mins in the night so dh was keeping him downstairs for a few hours so I could get a bit of sleep.

2. How is baby eating? Pretty good. Breastfeeding well. I love love love my Hakka! I’ve been able to get a good stash going from that alone.

3. How are you feeling? Feeling physically awesome! I didn’t tear and my recovery was pretty easy thanks to the fast labour and delivery. I hate taking Tylenol and was happy I didn’t even need pain meds. Still some heavier pp bleeding randomly so hoping that goes away soon! Still some weight to lose (10 lbs ish) and my tummy is always the last to go so I can’t wait until I can start working out a bit again. Have been doing short walks so far though and it’s amazing to not have any pain in my pelvis or hips anymore!

Mentally I’m starting to feel a little overwhelmed trying to take care of two kids (one of which is always wanting me to play with him), keeping the house clean and organized, give our dogs attention and just not having enough time in the day! Now that things are quieting down wrt Covid and restrictions are being lifted plus our number of cases are basically 0, I am going to see if I can get him into a daycare once or twice a week so that he can be around kids.

Plus anything else you want to add - does anyone baby wear? What’s your fav carrier for newborn stage? I just got the infant insert for my ergo and DS hates it so far. I had a cheap version of the mai tai but can’t find it and I can never seem to get the Moby tight enough!

ETA - how old is baby? 10 days old

I babywore DD2 a lot, my favorite when she was tiny was the solly baby wrap. I got a ring sling when she was a little older but plan to try it much earlier with this one.

[trtlcrzy]

@megaroni do you think baby could have reflux? Maybe ask at your appt what the pedi thinks.

hangry I’m sorry baby isn’t feeling well. I hope he’s back to healthy ASAP .

[magaroni]

Jun 6, 2020 14:10:24 GMT -6 trtlcrzy said:

@megaroni do you think baby could have reflux? Maybe ask at your appt what the pedi thinks.

hangry I’m sorry baby isn’t feeling well. I hope he’s back to healthy ASAP .

She definitely has signs of reflux. I mentioned it at her weight check last week. They gave me some different things to try to reduce the spitting up (most of which I was already doing) and said they would see how she was doing this week and if she was gaining weight. She’s still spitting up a lot but doesn’t seem as uncomfortable with it as she did last weekend/earlier in the week.

[wasabi]

1. How is baby sleeping? He’s been sleeping pretty good, I can’t complain. Up about every 2-3 hours, occasionally a bit more, and goes back down easily. We’ve had a couple nights where he’s up for an hour+ But he’s just chillin and content, not fussy so it wasn’t too bad. I’m hoping he’s beginning to get his days and nights worked out.

2. How is baby eating? Nursing seems so much easier this time. I don’t know if it’s because I’ve been using a nipple shield or if my boobs just handle it better the second time around, but with Maya it was so painful for the first 6 weeks+, and I haven’t had any of that pain this time. I was super worried about that too so I’m very relieved. He nurses great too, except my flow is a bit much for him sometimes but overall he’s doing great.

3. How are you feeling? Not to sound overly chipper, lol, but besides the first few days of recovering from the c/s, I’m having a really easy experience so far. Just with Milo as an easygoing newborn and feeling good and not overly tired and everything just seems easier this time. Which I didn’t expect at all seeing as I’m nearly 10 years older. I’m kinda waiting for something to happen, but I shouldn’t think like that, lol. I do know Maya got a lot more difficult when she was a month or so, so I know I shouldn’t take this time for granted.

Plus anything else you want to add!

ETA - how old is baby? He’ll be 2 weeks on Monday.

[wasabi]

aries, I have the ergo aura wrap and I really like it. Although it might be similar to the moby so I’m not sure if you may have the same issues with it.

[aries]

wasabi I saw that one on amazon and wondered if you have to tie it similar to Moby. It’s a good price but if it’s basically the same as the Moby then good to know! And for everyone using the K’taan thanks for letting me know how it works for you - that one might be a good compromise. I’m going to see if I can find a used one or borrow one from a friend.

sdlaura hopefully by my 3rd (lol!) I’ll feel like that 🤣. I so wish things hadn’t gone south with my daycare lady because DS could have easily gone back there a few days a week. Friends have let me know they’ll take DS for play dates but I think I want something more structured like every T/Th or something (with play dates sprinkled in the week too lol).

Oh and I jinxed myself saying how DS2 is sleeping better. He was up, wide awake from 2-5 am last night. Today was rough and I’m going to bed early tonight!

[aries]

Jun 6, 2020 0:50:33 GMT -6 danib said:

aries I love my Moby for newborns and then I have a Lenny Woven wrap for when they get a tad bigger. I don't like structured carriers, I find them uncomfortable on me. With the Moby, are you tying it up before putting baby in it? I find that's the best way. Pull it tight at each pass, And just tie it tighter than you think you need to.

I think I need to practice more. I do put him in after I have it tied up and I think it’s tight but as I get wrapping and even get him in it, the front panel is not supportive of his neck and won’t stay up. I need to figure out how to keep that from loosening.

[trtlcrzy]

Jun 6, 2020 19:35:20 GMT -6 aries said:

Jun 6, 2020 0:50:33 GMT -6 danib said:

aries I love my Moby for newborns and then I have a Lenny Woven wrap for when they get a tad bigger. I don't like structured carriers, I find them uncomfortable on me. With the Moby, are you tying it up before putting baby in it? I find that's the best way. Pull it tight at each pass, And just tie it tighter than you think you need to.

I think I need to practice more. I do put him in after I have it tied up and I think it’s tight but as I get wrapping and even get him in it, the front panel is not supportive of his neck and won’t stay up. I need to figure out how to keep that from loosening.

It’s been a while since I’ve seen a moby wrap but from what I remember they’re kind of a thicker cotton. That’s what I like about my solly wrap, it’s super stretchy so it’s easier to get tight and doesn’t feel as hot. Also, try tucking his head under one of the x pieces and then pull the front panel up, that should help with the head/neck support.

[danib]

Jun 6, 2020 20:31:10 GMT -6 trtlcrzy said:

Jun 6, 2020 19:35:20 GMT -6 aries said:

I think I need to practice more. I do put him in after I have it tied up and I think it’s tight but as I get wrapping and even get him in it, the front panel is not supportive of his neck and won’t stay up. I need to figure out how to keep that from loosening.

It’s been a while since I’ve seen a moby wrap but from what I remember they’re kind of a thicker cotton. That’s what I like about my solly wrap, it’s super stretchy so it’s easier to get tight and doesn’t feel as hot. Also, try tucking his head under one of the x pieces and then pull the front panel up, that should help with the head/neck support.

This. If The front panel won't support their head, the X will.

[danib]

This kid has been cluster feeding in the evenings/first half of the night for the last few days. I will be shocked if he doesn't have a big gain on Wednesday. I am drained. literally.

[lucylou]

willow and sdlaura I rented a SNOO as well. Do you mind if I ask a couple questions? I joined the FB group, but I feel like it’s given me more questions than answers haha. Feel free to ignore.
1) do you do a double swaddle? If so, what kind do you use?
If you don’t double swaddle, what’s your setup like? Do you have them in the SNOO swaddle while you’re holding them and then clip it in? Or do you attempt to full-on swaddle them after you’ve laid them down? I know the goal is to lay them down awake, but I assume in the early days, I’ll be laying him down asleep and I don’t want to wake him up during transfer.

2) what setting do you have it on? I’ve heard of people in the group controlling it with the app but I thought the whole point was that is automatically responded when the baby cries.

3) Any other helpful tips?