Not really a birth story, but...

I've worked on Anton Edward's birth story off and on since we came home
from the hospital, but honestly, it's a bit depressing (though all is well
now), and I've abandoned it for now...so, here's the short version.

He was born Monday, September 8, at 8:09am, weighing 7lbs, 4oz, 21 inches
long.

Suffice it to say that it was a fairly difficult birth, and I had just
about every intervention in the book, save internal monitoring or c-section
(and *that* was a very close thing, too)...after my water broke, my labor
wouldn't start on its own, and I ended up with a difficult induction that
it seemed my body just wouldn't go along with. After about 18 hours of
contractions and no dialation at all, I had the unbearable irresistable
urge to push (I really couldn't stop myself, it was overwhelming), got an
epidural, and 2 hours later was completely dialated. At this point they
were pushing the pitocin so hard that the baby was in some distress, but I
was able to have a vaginal birth anyway--just by the skin of my teeth,
apparently. They told me when to push, I pushed, and had the baby out in a
little less than 40 minutes.

Anton had to be in NICU for 2 days, and had a CPAP for the first night.
Then, they 'let' me nurse him, though the nurses gave him some formula
(against my wishes, and the orders of the pediatrician, and despite the
fact that he was still on IV fluids).

They sent me home after 2 days with loads of formula, the nurses giving me
strict instructions that I was to give him formula after offering the
breast, since my milk hadn't come in yet, that otherwise he'd become
dehydrated, and I'd have to bring him back in. (Meanwhile, the pediatrician
told me just to keep nursing him, and he should be fine.) Fortunately my
milk started to come in that night, so the question was moot.

We're both doing pretty well now. I just got back from the pediatrician's
office, and Anton's now 8lbs, 13oz, and 22 inches long at 17 days old. I'm
very happy about the weight gain, but he's very gassy, and I've been
working with a LC to keep track of what I'm eating to see if we can
alleviate it.

The trouble is that I'm not eating much--I have little appetite, and no
help at home, and I've had a hard time feeding myself. I'm pretty
depressed, and have been seaching around for a psychiatrist who will work
with me. (My regular psychiatrist won't--he thinks I should stop
breastfeeding and go back on a drug I was taking before, and I don't want
to do that. I want to try something else first, and I'm not having the same
set of symptoms that made the other drug necessary anyway.) I'm playing
phone tag with a couple of doctors, which is very frustrating.

But all in all, things are good. My LC remarked that given the
circumstances of his birth, we're having a comparatively easy time
establishing our nursing relationship. He really didn't like to open his
mouth at first, she said she thinks it's because he was suctioned so much
right after birth. But this is getting better. Now, if I could only get him
to give me a couple of 3-hour stretches of sleep at night, I'd be a happy
camper. )

--
z e l d a b e e @ p a n i x . c o m http://NewsReader.Com/

"zeldabee" wrote in message
...
He was born Monday, September 8, at 8:09am, weighing 7lbs, 4oz, 21 inches
long.

Congratulations! I have to tell you, I was so pleased to see your post. I've
been a bit worried about you since it's been so long since you posted that
your water broke.

Sorry that the birth wound up being so much more difficult than you hoped,
but you done good!

Anton had to be in NICU for 2 days, and had a CPAP for the first night.
Then, they 'let' me nurse him, though the nurses gave him some formula
(against my wishes, and the orders of the pediatrician, and despite the
fact that he was still on IV fluids).

Argh! How frustrating. I'm glad it doesn't seem to have interfered with your
breastfeeding relationship.

I'm
very happy about the weight gain, but he's very gassy, and I've been
working with a LC to keep track of what I'm eating to see if we can
alleviate it.

Some babies are just gassy and there's not a whole lot *to* do as far as
diet's concerned. For windy babies, the most important things IME are good
burping technique (and mine was never that good) and quelling any tendencies
the baby has to gulp when the milk first lets down (this was a big issue
with my daughter).

The trouble is that I'm not eating much--I have little appetite, and no
help at home, and I've had a hard time feeding myself. I'm pretty
depressed, and have been seaching around for a psychiatrist who will work
with me. (My regular psychiatrist won't--he thinks I should stop
breastfeeding and go back on a drug I was taking before, and I don't want
to do that. I want to try something else first, and I'm not having the
same
set of symptoms that made the other drug necessary anyway.) I'm playing
phone tag with a couple of doctors, which is very frustrating.

{{{{{{Hugs}}}}} I'm sorry you're feeling down, although I don't think it's
surprising. You had a very stressful birth experience and you're going
through all those post-partum hormonal changes as well. Have you talked at
all to your OB/midwife for a referral to someone who normally treats PPD?
You might have better luck finding someone whose willing to treat a
lactating mother if you find someone experienced in treating PPD.

Good luck, hope this helps, and thanks for letting us know what's happening.
--
Be well, Barbara
(Julian [6], Aurora [4], and Vernon's [18mo] mom)
See us at http://photos.yahoo.com/guavaln

This week's special at the English Language Butcher Shop:
"No parking passed this sign" -- hotel parking lot sign

All opinions expressed in this post are well-reasoned and insightful.
Needless to say, they are not those of my Internet Service Provider, its
other subscribers or lackeys. Anyone who says otherwise is itchin' for a
fight. -- with apologies to Michael Feldman

zeldabee wrote:
||Anton Edward's ... He was born Monday, September 8, at 8:09am, weighing
7lbs, 4oz, 21
|| inches long.||

Congrats and welcome Anton!!!! I am sorry the birth didn't go as planned
:-( I hope you work everything out!
~~~Cheers!~~~
Jenn-WAHM-DS11-DD6-TTC#3

Congratulations and welcome to little Anton. I am sorry to hear that labour
was so difficult. You were really brave.
I have depression and I am currently taking Paxil (it just works for me). I
know it is safe during pregnancy and I always assumed it was going to be
safe for breast feeding. I better talk to my psychiatrist.
I hope you find very soon a good psychiatrist and that you can sleep a few
hours at night.
Congratulations again.

Love

Nicky

I just found this website on Paxil.

http://www.storknet.com/news/paxil_breastfeeding.htm

I am sure there is more info on other antidepressants.

Good luck for the search of the new doc.

Love

Nicky

zeldabee wrote:
I've worked on Anton Edward's birth story off and on since we came home
from the hospital, but honestly, it's a bit depressing (though all is well
now), and I've abandoned it for now...so, here's the short version.

He was born Monday, September 8, at 8:09am, weighing 7lbs, 4oz, 21 inches
long.


I'm glad to hear you're doing ok now - I was wondering about what
happened after your water broke. Congratulations for Anton's birth - I
like the name!


Suffice it to say that it was a fairly difficult birth, and I had just
about every intervention in the book, save internal monitoring or c-section
(and *that* was a very close thing, too)...after my water broke, my labor
wouldn't start on its own, and I ended up with a difficult induction that
it seemed my body just wouldn't go along with. After about 18 hours of
contractions and no dialation at all, I had the unbearable irresistable
urge to push (I really couldn't stop myself, it was overwhelming), got an
epidural, and 2 hours later was completely dialated. At this point they
were pushing the pitocin so hard that the baby was in some distress, but I
was able to have a vaginal birth anyway--just by the skin of my teeth,
apparently. They told me when to push, I pushed, and had the baby out in a
little less than 40 minutes.


Sounds really rough! I've never been induced, but with #1, the only
contractions I had trouble dealing with were the ones "enhanced" by
Pitocin towards the end. I salute you for being able to take them for 18
hours, even if you weren't dilating! And I guess in this case the
epidural was warranted, if it got results. I don't blame you for being
disappointed, but after all that you went through, I'm glad that you got
to have a vaginal birth at least.


Anton had to be in NICU for 2 days, and had a CPAP for the first night.
Then, they 'let' me nurse him, though the nurses gave him some formula
(against my wishes, and the orders of the pediatrician, and despite the
fact that he was still on IV fluids).

They sent me home after 2 days with loads of formula, the nurses giving me
strict instructions that I was to give him formula after offering the
breast, since my milk hadn't come in yet, that otherwise he'd become
dehydrated, and I'd have to bring him back in. (Meanwhile, the pediatrician
told me just to keep nursing him, and he should be fine.) Fortunately my
milk started to come in that night, so the question was moot.


Good for you for being able to nurse successfully in spite of all that
ignorant crap! I got some of that at my hospital as well, unfortunately.
There was one pediatric nurse who gave me grief about Joel's blood sugar
(although it was over the limit and *not* hypoglycemic) and insisted on
weighing him before and after a feeding, even though I only had
colostrum at that point. Then, when his weight was unchanged after the
feeding (duh) she said: "THAT'S NOT ENOUGH! HIS BLOOD SUGAR WON'T GO
UP!" She wanted me to supplement; I asked for donated breastmilk in a
cup and let Joel dribble that down his chin.

Still, I was freaked out because she said the ped wouldn't let us go
home in the morning if she was unhappy with the blood sugar. I was
afraid to sleep at night, in case Joel went too long between feedings.
As a result, I was a wreck in the morning. But the doctor just looked at
Joel's blood sugar readings and said: "But these are all normal!" She
didn't even want to do another test, just told us to go home. I'm glad
that you too had a well-informed pediatrician! I wonder how many
women's bf nurses like that have sabotaged, however unintentionally..



We're both doing pretty well now. I just got back from the pediatrician's
office, and Anton's now 8lbs, 13oz, and 22 inches long at 17 days old. I'm
very happy about the weight gain, but he's very gassy, and I've been
working with a LC to keep track of what I'm eating to see if we can
alleviate it.

The trouble is that I'm not eating much--I have little appetite, and no
help at home, and I've had a hard time feeding myself. I'm pretty
depressed, and have been seaching around for a psychiatrist who will work
with me. (My regular psychiatrist won't--he thinks I should stop
breastfeeding and go back on a drug I was taking before, and I don't want
to do that. I want to try something else first, and I'm not having the same
set of symptoms that made the other drug necessary anyway.) I'm playing
phone tag with a couple of doctors, which is very frustrating.

But all in all, things are good. My LC remarked that given the
circumstances of his birth, we're having a comparatively easy time
establishing our nursing relationship. He really didn't like to open his
mouth at first, she said she thinks it's because he was suctioned so much
right after birth. But this is getting better. Now, if I could only get him
to give me a couple of 3-hour stretches of sleep at night, I'd be a happy
camper. )

Zoloft is the PPD med that's generally considered the safest while bf. I
had a prescription and actually went and got them just in case - so far,
I've only had normal hormonal fluctuations and postpartum moodiness, but
I'm not leaving anything to chance! I had some PPD with #1.

Not having any help is hard, especially with a gassy baby. (Joel is a
bit like that as well.) Congrats on the weight gain, and I hope you get
your three hours soon! :-)

Take care of yourself,

Tiina
SAHM to Emilia,4
and Joel, b. 09/06/03

"zeldabee" wrote in message
...
I've worked on Anton Edward's birth story off and on since we came home
from the hospital, but honestly, it's a bit depressing (though all is well
now), and I've abandoned it for now...so, here's the short version.

He was born Monday, September 8, at 8:09am, weighing 7lbs, 4oz, 21 inches
long.

Suffice it to say that it was a fairly difficult birth, and I had just
about every intervention in the book, save internal monitoring or
c-section
(and *that* was a very close thing, too)...after my water broke, my labor
wouldn't start on its own, and I ended up with a difficult induction that
it seemed my body just wouldn't go along with. After about 18 hours of
contractions and no dialation at all, I had the unbearable irresistable
urge to push (I really couldn't stop myself, it was overwhelming), got an
epidural, and 2 hours later was completely dialated. At this point they
were pushing the pitocin so hard that the baby was in some distress, but I
was able to have a vaginal birth anyway--just by the skin of my teeth,
apparently. They told me when to push, I pushed, and had the baby out in a
little less than 40 minutes.

Anton had to be in NICU for 2 days, and had a CPAP for the first night.
Then, they 'let' me nurse him, though the nurses gave him some formula
(against my wishes, and the orders of the pediatrician, and despite the
fact that he was still on IV fluids).

They sent me home after 2 days with loads of formula, the nurses giving me
strict instructions that I was to give him formula after offering the
breast, since my milk hadn't come in yet, that otherwise he'd become
dehydrated, and I'd have to bring him back in. (Meanwhile, the
pediatrician
told me just to keep nursing him, and he should be fine.) Fortunately my
milk started to come in that night, so the question was moot.

We're both doing pretty well now. I just got back from the pediatrician's
office, and Anton's now 8lbs, 13oz, and 22 inches long at 17 days old. I'm
very happy about the weight gain, but he's very gassy, and I've been
working with a LC to keep track of what I'm eating to see if we can
alleviate it.

The trouble is that I'm not eating much--I have little appetite, and no
help at home, and I've had a hard time feeding myself. I'm pretty
depressed, and have been seaching around for a psychiatrist who will work
with me. (My regular psychiatrist won't--he thinks I should stop
breastfeeding and go back on a drug I was taking before, and I don't want
to do that. I want to try something else first, and I'm not having the
same
set of symptoms that made the other drug necessary anyway.) I'm playing
phone tag with a couple of doctors, which is very frustrating.

But all in all, things are good. My LC remarked that given the
circumstances of his birth, we're having a comparatively easy time
establishing our nursing relationship. He really didn't like to open his
mouth at first, she said she thinks it's because he was suctioned so much
right after birth. But this is getting better. Now, if I could only get
him
to give me a couple of 3-hour stretches of sleep at night, I'd be a happy
camper. )

--
z e l d a b e e @ p a n i x . c o m http://NewsReader.Com/

So glad you posted, I was wondering how this turned out. Clearly you are
doing a great job under extremely difficult circumstances.

zeldabee wrote:

We're both doing pretty well now. I just got back from the pediatrician's
office, and Anton's now 8lbs, 13oz, and 22 inches long at 17 days old. I'm
very happy about the weight gain, but he's very gassy, and I've been
working with a LC to keep track of what I'm eating to see if we can
alleviate it.

Great going Zeldabee!! Its admirable that you are sticking up for
the BF-ing and that it's paying off must be a great feeling for you.
I hope you get your depression worked out. I just read a long article
in a very old magazine on how your diet can affect your moods and
how the right foods can help you overcome feelings of depression.
There are also a lot of herbal remedies, but be careful with those
while you BF. Maybe worth some looking into for you. It was one of
these Health and something magazines, didn't have a cover, but it
definitely was well over a year old.

--
-- I
mommy to DS (14m)
guardian of DH
EDD 05-17-2004
War doesn't decide who's right - only who's left

"zeldabee" wrote in message
...
I've worked on Anton Edward's birth story off and on since we came home
from the hospital, but honestly, it's a bit depressing (though all is well
now), and I've abandoned it for now...so, here's the short version.

He was born Monday, September 8, at 8:09am, weighing 7lbs, 4oz, 21 inches
long.

First of all, congrats on that baby boy! I'm sorry the birth wasn't what you
had hoped for, I can completely understand that. I'm glad he is doing well.

But all in all, things are good. My LC remarked that given the
circumstances of his birth, we're having a comparatively easy time
establishing our nursing relationship. He really didn't like to open his
mouth at first, she said she thinks it's because he was suctioned so much
right after birth. But this is getting better. Now, if I could only get
him
to give me a couple of 3-hour stretches of sleep at night, I'd be a happy
camper. )

Sounds like you've got yourself a good LC, there. Glad you are doing well
despite the rough start. Good luck with the meds issue. (((zeldabee)))
--
JennP.

mom to Matthew 10/11/00
remove "no........spam" to reply

zeldabee wrote in message ...
I've worked on Anton Edward's birth story off and on since we came home
from the hospital, but honestly, it's a bit depressing (though all is well
now), and I've abandoned it for now...so, here's the short version.

He was born Monday, September 8, at 8:09am, weighing 7lbs, 4oz, 21 inches
long.

Congratulations! I'm sorry things didn't go as expected, but I'm glad
to hear all is now well.

I agree with Barbara about burping the baby being the most important
thing if they tend toward having a lot of intestinal gas. WIth mine I
had good luck patting their front instead of their back. Sometimes
specific foods aren't the issue.


But all in all, things are good. My LC remarked that given the
circumstances of his birth, we're having a comparatively easy time
establishing our nursing relationship. He really didn't like to open his
mouth at first, she said she thinks it's because he was suctioned so much
right after birth. But this is getting better. Now, if I could only get him
to give me a couple of 3-hour stretches of sleep at night, I'd be a happy
camper. )

Oh! If you figure out how, post it -- I'd love to get my 2 year old
to do that!

Seriously -- I think things will improve a lot once you talk to a
Psychologist/Psychiatrist. Have you talked to a local LLL leader?
They don't as a rule recommend Dr.s, but if you get the phone number
of a nursing mom who's had similar issues, she might be willing to
share names.

Good Luck!

Tina.