Pregnancy- July 2011

I have a question, should I stay at my recommended calories when I get pregnant or should I increase them? I take in more now than most because I'm taller.
Also, is it healthy to try to actively lose weight while you're pregnant?

Maureen- I am sorry about your appointment. I know it isn’t how you planned but at the latest you can have your sweet baby this weekend. Your picture is so nice, I love it!

Elle- Welcome! You will have to ask your dr. about trying to lose when pregnant, I think it depends on if you are overweight or not when starting. You don’t need any extra calories in your first trimester… you need about 300 extra after the first trimester.

Julie- Sounds like a fine choice to me! I don’t think there is any harm in waiting… usually when a baby goes overdue it is for good reason. My SIL had her baby 14 days late with no problems! I think it will happen for you this weekend too But if not early next week is a great time for a LO!

Caperfae- glad your apt. went well.

Mel- You make me laugh about your DH.

Melissa- Well for me a good eating day is one where I can keep more than 1 meal down But generally if I wasn’t having this issue I would say a good day for me is one where I keep portion sizes in control and get in mostly nutritional foods (I love my snacks so I wouldn’t say all). Stupid men and there comments, you look great!

Thanks everyone, I think it is a fitting way to remember Jill.

Headed off to dinner with some girls Going to eat there because I know they have a private RR I can puke in

Ok awesome! Thanks, AnneElise! My first pregnancy I just ate whatever I wanted with total disregard for my weight gain becuase, "it's what the baby wants". That's no longer my excuse :-P No more massive bowls of Count Chocula at midnight or stuffed crust Pizza Hut pizza for me!

Melissa - Good eating days for me are when I get within about 300 cal of my goal and most of the food is nutritious (fruits, veggies, proteins, etc) ... of course, I've been having a hard time eating the recommended amount of calories and I'm sitting at 28 weeks with a 7-8 lb total gain, so I may not be the best one to look at either :laugh: I do have MFP track my calcium and iron and trying to get them both as close to 100% as possible. I also found that if I start craving meaty things I'm probably low on my protein (and baby definitely needs the protein).

Maureen - I love your new pic!

Elle - I think, in general, unless you are quite overweight, the recommendation is to either gain less or to maintain weight when pregnant. I was 20 lbs overweight when I got pregnant and didn't gain anything until about 20 weeks (well, gained some and then lost it again). Doctor was okay with it, but the WIC nutritionist was acting worried ... I specifically asked doctor again, and he said it's fine. I have my calories set to be gaining 1 lb a week, and it gives me 2250 cal (but I'm only 5' tall). I still have a hard time eating all those calories.

Welcome!
Elle - I think most of us set our calories to maintenance for the first trimester rather than any sort of loss goal. My midwife encourage me to NOT add the 300 cals in 2nd & 3rd tri because I started out overweight. She also wants me to only gain 20lbs max in total. She is monitoring me and as long as baby is growing nicely and I am feeling good we'll stick to that plan. Now, that said, I probably go over at least 3 days per week just because I'm more hungry.

Welcome!
Many - you've come to the right place for healthy weight support during pregnancy.

Welcome!
Caper - sounds like a huge pain doing all those tests

Welcome!
Melissa #2 - we might need a nickname for you!!

Welcome !
Cori - where are you from? not the US if you're using kgs

Melissa - I consider it a healthy day when I've stuck to my calorie goal and eaten enough calcium, a good amt of protein and several servings of veggies/fruits.

Maureen - cute picture ! Hope your LO makes an appearance soon :flowerforyou:

Anne - good for you and your friends setting up that donation

Julz - yay - 90% rocks!

Brittony - what a cutie - he's got an "up to no good" look already !! Sorry about the nipples, it sounds awful

Maria - maybe you, Julie, Rachael and Maureen will all get full moon fever

Collins - you NEED to take it easy. Seriously your older kids will like if they miss a class or two and your hubby needs to step it up big time !!! But taking care of yourself is priority #1 right now. I'm all for teaching kids some responsibility but hubby is the other adult here. Your post is making me very mad at HIM !!!!

Rachel - thanks for the link to your blog I did read it and do think I'll be getting a Doula - now just the matter of finding the right Doula.

Elizabeth - if you are reading at all - hope everything goes to plan tomorrow and CONGRATULATIONS !!!!!!

Jen, Danielle -hope you are both well !

AFM:
I had my first preggo related hormonal reaction yesterday, soooo ridiculous. I wanted to get on a bus, he had just barely pulled away from the curb and was just sitting in stopped traffic at a red light. Knocked on the door but the *kitten* driver smiled and waved and would NOT let me on. So I promptly bust into tears :sad: WTH ????? I could hardly believe I was crying but couldn't stop either. Now I finally understand what some of you have gone through.:laugh: Oh and I'm usually a tough cookie - maybe I'll cry over something once a year if that.

In other news, we toured the hospital last night and I liked it. That's a relief because I didn't want to have to change my midwife if I hated it.

I had my first prenatal appointment tuesday! Nothing too special..she couldn't find the heartbeat yet and we didn't do labwork because my veins move around and have a tendency to "bend" so she's going to wait until I have more volumes of blood at my next appointment when I'm 14 weeks. Filled out all the paper work which was pretty easy since she had my chart from last birth so I just copied it all over again :P I haven't gained any weight yet so that's a plus. My goal is to only gain around <25-30lbs. Taking off that 40 I gained last time was rough.


About the BFing:
I had a tough couple of weeks in the beginning learning how to breastfeed. I remember when my son was born, my husband caught him and the midwife handed him to me and told me to start feeding him. I was like...uh...okay?! Never done this before! So, I pretty much how to learn from my mom over the phone! hehe and of course my midwife showed me a little more about it later on. I never was infected, but I had such huge amounts of milk that I'm pretty sure I could have fed a small village! If I took my pads off I would literally have milk shooting across the room or all over my baby's face! It wasn't always like that though. It took a while for it to come in and I got so discouraged waiting on it but knowing it's what I wanted for my baby I kept going. I couldn't get him to latch on properly, and I didn't want to feed him from a bottle at all in case he were to get confused and never want me again so I would pump out what I could into a cup and feed him with a syringe! Oh I cringed when ate. Literally crying the first 10 minutes of feedings. I cracked, bled, bruised, etc. But still, I kept going. The point of my ramblings is what helped. Like someone mentioned..lanolin helps a lot. Making sure you keep them clean and dried off but don't use soap too much as it may irritate or cause more dryness. But I think the best things that helped (and it sounds crazy) were shredded carrots in my breast pads and cabbage leaves through out the day. They have special healing properties and enzymes in them that help with almost everything BFing ! And because they are cold...it's really soothing! Just a suggestion for those who might like to try! Have a great evening everyone!

Maria – I hope you have a good appointment tomorrow and baby gets here soon!

Kacy – miss you!! :flowerforyou:

Brittony – Emma is absolutely gorgeous!!!! I’m sorry you’re having such a hard time with breastfeeding. Hopefully since she’s latching on the right way now you’ll heal fast and feel better.

Julie – for as much as I keep saying that I don’t want to be induced, I’m pretty sure I’d be in the hospital right now begging they break my water if I were in the same place you are. And really, how much work do you think you’d be getting done if you went into your office now?

Caperfae – sorry about the GD test.

Julz – yea for good midterm grades!

Anne – that’s such an awesome thing you’re doing for your friend!!!

Maureen – sorry you had such a bad appointment, but I love you new picture!

Ellemenerva – welcome! I set my calories to maintain my pre-pregnancy weight when I found out I was pregnant, once you reach the second trimester you’ll need 300 more a day. Lots of women, some on this thread, lost weight in the beginning because of morning sickness but I don’t think they were actively trying. My co-worker lost 30 pounds while pregnant, but she was considered morbidly obese so her doctor was OK with that since her baby was growing on track.

Mel – I had to laugh at your hubbys “short cut” to the hospital, I have a feeling I’m going to have the same problem. :laugh:

Melissa – I consider a “good” eating day when I can stay away from the chocolate. I’m really not logging my food anymore, just trying to make healthy choices. However, the past two days have been an epic fail. Don’t listen to your ex, remember he’s your ex for a reason!

Victoria – glad you liked the hospital. Sorry about the bus, I probably would have cried too.

Ellemenerva – welcome! I set my calories to maintain my pre-pregnancy weight when I found out I was pregnant, once you reach the second trimmest you’ll need 300 more a day. Lost of women, some on this thread, lost weight in the beginning before of morning sickness but I don’t think they were actively trying. My co-worker lost 30 pounds while pregnant, but she was considered morbidly obese so her doctor was OK with that since her baby was growing on track.

ron 2282 - I'll just have to do what can now to get rid of the extra and when it happens, I'll just do what I can to maintain. Adding the extra 300 calories sounds so scary now, but I know they're for the baby

I know every baby is different each time, but I'm hoping the new one is like his/her brother and goes swimmingly I didn't have morning sickness or anything like that, but I gained like a beast and had the high blood pressure.

About the BFing:
I had a tough couple of weeks in the beginning learning how to breastfeed. I remember when my son was born, my husband caught him and the midwife handed him to me and told me to start feeding him. I was like...uh...okay?! Never done this before! So, I pretty much how to learn from my mom over the phone! hehe and of course my midwife showed me a little more about it later on. I never was infected, but I had such huge amounts of milk that I'm pretty sure I could have fed a small village! If I took my pads off I would literally have milk shooting across the room or all over my baby's face! It wasn't always like that though. It took a while for it to come in and I got so discouraged waiting on it but knowing it's what I wanted for my baby I kept going. I couldn't get him to latch on properly, and I didn't want to feed him from a bottle at all in case he were to get confused and never want me again so I would pump out what I could into a cup and feed him with a syringe! Oh I cringed when ate. Literally crying the first 10 minutes of feedings. I cracked, bled, bruised, etc. But still, I kept going. The point of my ramblings is what helped. Like someone mentioned..lanolin helps a lot. Making sure you keep them clean and dried off but don't use soap too much as it may irritate or cause more dryness. But I think the best things that helped (and it sounds crazy) were shredded carrots in my breast pads and cabbage leaves through out the day. They have special healing properties and enzymes in them that help with almost everything BFing ! And because they are cold...it's really soothing! Just a suggestion for those who might like to try! Have a great evening everyone!

Carrots and cabbage??? interesting! I have 2 kids already and have never EVER had a good experience breast feeding. My son was probably 3 or 4 months old before things started going smooth and I completely gave up with my daughter after 3 weeks because my nipples were sucked off.... seriously!! ( I did however still feed her at night till she was 3 months old). With this one, I am bound and determined to get it right. I'm going to have to try the carrots and cabbage though if I start having the same problems.

Anne- what's your brothers name? Did he make it on to tv? Saw them playing poker on espn tonight...

I'm really starting to think that my body is playing games on me all of a sudden I'll feel like okay these contractions are getting stronger, then they fade I'm up w them again but I can already tell they're fading again soon.

Maria-- hi there! I'm up with the stupid teasing contractions, too. About an hour ago they were 5-6 minutes apart and super crampy but they're now back to 10 minutes apart which is my standard o er the last couple of weeks. Still a bit crampier than usual though. On the plus side, I have taught myself how to crochet while having contractions tonight and have now crocheted ridiculous coordinating mom and baby beanies. :laugh:

We're definitely gonna need photos of that one down the road!

30 Weeks today :noway: 70 days till 40 weeks.... that's a little scary! But we're so excited! I don't know where summer went and disappeared to but it's moving fast which means Avery will be here before we know it

Well yesterday was a very scary day for me. I had the day off and was doing a lot of running around. DS and I were out in the yard and I was pulling weeds and what not. I didn't really eat much and was feeling "off". So I put DS down for his nap and went to lay down. My heart was beating really hard, I was sweating and shaking. So I ate something. I had had about 70 oz of water so I knew it wasn't that. I just felt "off". Then I went to the rest room and when I wiped I had a HUGE glob (sorry about the TMI) of brown blood. I freaked out. I called the nurse and they wanted to see me right away. The blood then turned pink. Now I was pretty much bawling. I called my husband to come get me to take me in. I went in for a heart tones test on the baby. The baby was moving a ton and the heart rate was strong. (Praise the Lord!) I was not cramping or leaking. She said that some blood can be normal and maybe it was a fluke. They want me to watch it and if it happens again I'm to go into the ER. On a good note, my blood pressure was very low 106/60 which I was kinda shocked by because I was so stressed. I'm also up 3 pounds since my 6/23 visit which is right on track with the 1 pound a week thing (although I really want that to slow down, I'm hoping not to gain next week). So, long story short baby and mommy are fine. Super freaked out, but fine.

So this isn’t pregnancy related but I’m so excited that I have to share. I mentioned before that my brother has visitation with my nephew 3 times a week and they’ll go back to court mid-August to determined more of a shared custody. When he picked him up yesterday she told my brother that she got a job but it’s only one day a week and she wants to know if he could have him all day Wednesday 8am to 7pm while she works. His normal visitation on Wednesday is from 4pm to 7pm and he always has off that day. Of course he said yes and I’m so happy for him. I think it’s a good sign that she asked him instead of having to go back to court work it out.