Tuesday, January 20, 2009

How to Make This Baby Stuff Work

So I have been thinking about what was difficult when AJ and Owen were babies and what I want to do differently with #3. I had a hard time nursing both of them. I had troubles with plugged ducts, latch and then I had to stop with Owen because he had some rare issue with choking on thin liquids (we had a swallow study done) and so I had to stop or they said he would get pneumonia from aspirating on it.

They were both reflux babies too which was horrible, so I have been trying to think of what would help this time around. With both of them I had a sling but it was too big for me and didn't really help me very much.

I remember that when I was in the hospital with both babies I wanted to have skin to skin with him while I tried to figure out nursing properly. It was a bit embarassing to be naked from the waste up and I could tell from the reactions of the constant interupters" coming to check vitals every hour, that they weren't really used to that.

So now it has been a few years since my last baby and I have seen many different slings around that look like I could make work. So last night I looked up slings online and found this one

http://theslingstation.com/inst-wraps.html

I was thinking that since it is kind of stretchy and wrap around and good for newborns, that I could just wear that in the hospital and have the baby next to me pretty much all the time. If it seems realistic I could even sleep that way with DH kind of keeping watch. I'll feel it out. But also, if this is another reflux baby, which I am sure it will be, then this is a way I can keep it upright and against me after feedings and have a hand free. So much of my time with AJ and Owen was taken up trying to keep them comfortable after their feedings as their reflux was so bad.


One other thing I plan on doing is cutting dairy out of my diet starting two weeks before my due date, as it takes two weeks to get out of your system. I am hoping this will cut down on colic and perhaps the reflux. My friend Tina swears by it and her baby is 10 months now. I am hoping we have a better chance though of no reflux since I did not take but one zoloft pill this whole pregnancy and I took it regularly with AJ and 50mg every 3 days with Owen. Another friend told me that a study has been done showing that zoloft increases the chance of GERD in babies.

I don't know how this is going to turn out. I might have a child with autism, even severe autism. I might have a child with Downs, I have no idea since I did no testing, not even an ultrasound. So I will take whatever comes and deal as best as I can. I know it will be hard no matter what and I am not expecting a "normal" baby...whatever that is. I am ready for it to be tough and I will get through it and hopefully have a lovely happy family at the other side of all the hard work of the first 6 months.

All I can do is hope really.
me.






http://theslingstation.com/moby.html

http://theslingstation.com/inst-wraps.html

2 comments:

Kate said...

On the recommendation of my sister in law, I gave one of those wraps to my neighbor after she had no success with a sling. Her baby absolutely loved being in the wrap and mom loved it too. Her baby is now 5 months old and she has found new ways to use the wrap to pack her older baby around.

me said...

I hope that will be my experience too!!