Hypothalamic Amenorrhea Vets - Part Three! (PREG, M/C, CHILDREN MENT'D)

[KendraSue]

Ladyanne - I had some painful plugged ducts. What worked best for me was massaging it while Addy nursed and I also did a LOT of heating pad. I thought that helped a lot. And do massaging after the heating pad as well. Good luck!

[Ruby08]

Millie/Nico - I will be trying with you ladies too! Though my schedule is a little bit behind both of you as I am currently waiting for AF. Then will wait to ovulate (anywhere between 21 and 30 days) and then we will be trying again. Exciting but nerve wracking at the same time!! I dont think I am going to temp as I haven't been so I think it will just drive me crazy interpreting. Just going to do opks.

[BC-Nico]

Ruby, hopefully we'll make it a trifecta! I had my hysteroscopy today, and while it wasn't that great, the doc had some problems with the camera, it did seem like everything was fine - at least if there's something wrong it's not severe scarring such that my uterus is closed at any part. She encouraged us to try this month, as the flushing out with saline can have a good effect on pg rates, so I think we're going to. I had been thinking that we'd wait until next month so that the baby and Timmy's bdays aren't too close together, but as I think about it, my bday and my sis are 6 days apart, and we never had a problem with that. (chances are it won't happen anyway...). I posted the question on the vets2 and vets boards, and the consensus seems to be that we should try... I'd love any opinions from this board too, either pro or con.

[BellaD]

Hello Ladies! Sorry for barging in--I normally post on the Vets 4 Board. Late Friday night, DH and I had our baby--a little girl named Madeleine. So far, it is going great, though very tiring! I actually have a couple of BF'ing questions I'm hoping someone might be able to help me with. My milk came in yesterday and I am VERY engorged. Before we left the hospital, a lactation consultant mentioned incorporating pumping to relieve some of the engorgement. Now that I'm home and trying to get a routine down, I'm a little confused about how to do it. I've read that if you still feel full after feeding you can pump, but I always feel full since I'm so engorged right now. My breasts literally feel like two rocks sitting on my chest. Also, if I pump, how long would I do it for (I'm just doing it for pain relief only, not going to be using bottles)? Finally, I've been trying to nurse on both sides during each feeding, but she often will take from only one and then get tuckered out and fall asleep. Should I pump from the other breast when this happens and if so, for how long? Or, is it better to just start with the other breast during the next feeding? Sorry for the mini-novel here. Any advice would be much appreciated Thanks!

[Ruby08]

Bella - firstly congratulations, I love her name! I was EXACTLY the same way - I was so enorged that my boobs were like rocks and I leaked continuously in the early days. The only thing you need to be careful with pumping is that breastfeeding works on a demand and supply system. Therefore the more you pump the more the breastmilk replenishes itself and therefore you are forever engorged! What I used to do is hand express a bit to relieve the fullness (in shower or over sink just squeeze the base of your nipples gently and the milk should start coming out). This way it was enough to relieve the engorgement but not enough to make my breasts fill right up with milk again! The other thing to focus on is getting your baby to take a full feed. Unwrap her (the coolness keeps them more alert), tickle her feet or under her chin to stop her from falling asleep. If you hear gulping noises or see her jaw and neck moving in a rhythmic way you know she is truly swallowing not just comfort sucking. You will feel a lot of relief if she empties the breast (but it does take a while for the two of you to figure it out so dont worry!). If she only takes one breast during a feed then I would only pump a tiny bit on the other breast to help you feel comfortable then use that breast for the next nursing session. Your breasts will calm down after a while but just remember you are making plenty of milk to feel this way and thats a good thing! Hope that helps a bit

[BC-Nico]

bella, congrats from me too Only thing I'd add to what Ruby said is that my boys also used to fall asleep on the breast, I'd change their diaper at that point which would wake them up and then they'd take the other side. Also, I got a Medela hand pump, and would pump ~.5 to 1 oz to relieve fullness. It will settle down, but you'll probably make extra milk (and leak a lot - at least I did) for about the first 12 weeks or so. After that you'll feel a lot less full, but still be making enough milk, there's a big change in your hormones that happens then (your hair will start falling out too just so you know). xo

[attygirl]

Nico- glad to hear everything looks good and I do think I would try...if the kiddos are meant to have birthdays close, then it will be! And I'm sure it will be just fine:-)

Amy- thanks for sharing the birth story, soooo glad everything is going great at home!

Robin- Yes, yes, hydration is soooooo important, especially on walks- keep that water bottle handy! My friend had a couple experiences during pregnancy where she felt like she was going to faint/black spots and I think it was related to blood sugar. She was close to having gestational diabetes but didn't. Not saying you do, just saying maybe you didn't drink enough/eat enough when that happened. Definitely talk to your doc about it as a precaution.

LadyAnne- I had plugged ducts quite often, like the others said, I just had to keep massaging and pushing the lump out while pumping (or bfing if you don't pump). After a couple pumping sessions I would finally get out. Sorry, it stinks.

Millie- sounds like the Clomid is really effective with you so I would definitely give it another try! Here's to a January BFP!!

Ruby- Good luck!!! So exciting that you will be trying soon!!!

Ang- Forgot to say, that is awesome that you think your SIL will be able to take the baby too, that would work out nicely as it seems like everything has been going well lately with her:-)

AFM- What a CRAZY day yesterday! Started off with the scare of my life....my husband fell down the stairs while holding Auden at 5:30am (woke up to the loudest THUD). He fell on his back on the last three steps, luckily Auden's body never left my husband's torso, but Auden's forehead that was peeking over my husband's shoulder made contact with the step (darn hardwood steps). He had a red mark so we took to doctors but doc said he is fine and the mark is actually gone today. My husband is extremely sore but will be fine besides feeling completely horrible about Auden hitting his head. But then, yesterday afternoon Auden started officially crawling! The nanny called me downstairs to watch...definitely a benefit to working from home!! So now the joke is Auden just needed a bump on the head to finally figure it out, ha.

[allisonr]

Amy - Exciting birth story! Congrats again! I love birth stories. I can't wait to see pictures of Avery! I wouldn't worry about letting her stay at the breast too long. At this stage of the game, it's important to get LOTS of nursing time in, for your supply's sake. And it gives you a chance to rest too.

Robin - I sometimes got dizzy/nauseous while exercising when pregnant. I would usually exercise first thing in the morning, after just a glass of skim milk spiked with coffee/sugar. After the first couple of dizzy spells, I added in a granola bar with my milk beforehand and it made ALL the difference. Thought I would share in case that might help you.

[mrspick]

Thanks Allison! I felt really sick when I got to work this morning and I either have to learn my lesson or stop complaining about it. The problem is our dog sleeps in the kitchen during the night so I need to keep food in the bedroom so I don't wake her up, but that's an easy fix.

Atty, I'm apparently high risk for GD and I'm actually doing my 3 hour glucose test in three weeks since I missed failing the one hour test by 1 point when I was only 12 weeks. Ironic considering my weight/health habits but my doctors think it's PCOS related. That's actually one of the reasons my doctor wants me to keep walking.

I had an ultrasound yesterday and I'm 23 weeks, she's moving around and growing well, so my doctor is not worried. I will see the peri in three weeks, where I'm sure he will scare the crap out of me, but until then I'm going to enjoy the holidays and enjoy being pregant!

Bella, I already congratulated you on the Vets 4 board too but I looooove the name you picked, so perfect!

Ruby, very exciting you are going to be trying again! I'll be rooting for you, Nico, and Millie to get matching bfps.

[JessK]

Millie/Nico/Ruby - I hope January is the lucky month for you girls! (It was a great month for me!)

Bella - Congratulations!! Great advice from everyone so far. I didn't pump until week 3... until then I did what Ruby said and just hand expressed in the shower or over the sink. And that rock hard engorgement only lasted 2-3 days. As far as eating on both sides, more great advice... just make sure you start on the side she finished with when you do your next feeding. At week 3, Sophia would sleep from 10p-2a or 3a maybe... so I was SUPER full when I did the night time feed. She would eat from one side and then fall asleep. I would then go downstairs and pump the entire other side and freeze it. If I tried to make her eat from both sides, she would puke it all back up... it was just too much milk. On the other hand, one of my friends said she fed her boys on both sides... if she was waking up in the middle of the night to feed them, by gosh, they were going to eat! Trial and error I guess!

Atty - so glad DH and Auden are OK! So scary!

Nothing really new with me... I've been getting waves of super huge gobs of CM about every week or week and a half. So while I keep wishing AF would get here, that's still a great sign. I'm trying not to stress about it and relax. If nothing happens by June, we'll go back to the clinic then.

Sophia has a pretty bad cold... really stuffy and also has her first cough. First it was really dry and almost sounded like a honk or a seal bark, but now its more phlemy..yuk! She does not have a temperature, so the dr said the only thing to give her is honey to coat her throat. Anyone else have any other suggestions?

And I am just beyond amazed at her level of comprehension... she will get the TV remote if you ask for it, go to her swing, or slide if you tell her to... if we make a "ring, ring" sound, she runs over to her little kitchen and answers the phone and says "Hello?!". This morning, I asked her to get her purple coat, and she ran right over and got it, brought it back to me, turned around and put her arms out so I could put it on her! DH wants to know when its time to teach her to get him a beer out of the fridge! (My answer of course was NEVER!)

And I don't know if anyone has any experience with this, but (and I'll try to keep it short)... my friend just had a miscarriage (ONE day after she called and told everyone she was pregnant!) and has now found out that she potenitally had a partial molar pregnancy. Its where 2 sperm fertilize one egg but it doesn't split into 2 babies. The embryo has 69 chromosomes -- 2 sets from dad and 1 from mom. This always requires the termination of the pregancy if you don't miscarry so it never would have been a viable baby. There is a 20% chance that after having a D&C, the cells come back and metastasize.... turn into cancer! Which means chemo/radiation. The first sign that this is happening is a rise in hcg... therefore, if it is confirmed that it is a partial molar, she has to be monitored every WEEK for 12 months and CANNOT try to conceive during this period.

I just feel so horrible for her. (more back story... she is the oldest of 3 girls... her youngest sister got pregnant when she was 16, the middle sister got married right out of high school (and then had twins) so she didn't get to have the first baby, or get married first, or even have the long shot at the first set of twins! She has a phenominal job, and waited to get married and start her family until they were able to support children living in Washington DC... and now she has to go through this.

Just one more reason to hug a little tighter and give a few more forehead kisses tonight...