I won't intrude past this post and any answers I might receive! :)
(I am not a nurse)
I have a 15 month old son, and I am expecting my 2nd son around March 1st.
Not once have I ever thought of having a birth plan. I don't really want one.
My husband joked, saying that we should get a piece of paper and (with a crayon) write "Get baby out safely" with a check box next to it. We are very easy going people... When I had my first son, I admit that I was very on-guard with nurses. Having never in my life been in the hospital before, or really dealt with nurses.. I had only (very false) preconceived notions of nurses and their abilities. I only found out after I left the hospital and did a lot of research (including getting my medical records and emailing the nurses that signed the "Congrats" card that was sent to my house) that the nurses were my guardians. My champions. They were the ones who stood up to the doctor for me when they realized she was taking unnecessary medical procedures and applying them to me as freely as a band-aid. To this day I love my nurses and on a side note, I would like to thank each and every one of you from the bottom of my heart for doing what you do every single day.
Now before I get any more off topic!
I guess my situation is this:
I have a new OB/Gyn, a new hospital and a new city. Even though my previous OB performed many unnecessary procedures during my labor, I have not become soured to all doctors. I really like my new OB and her entire staff (especially the NP). They are a "teaching office" so sometimes during regular visits, they ask if a student can come in and observe. (Fine by me!)
As I said, I don't really care to have a "birth plan" - I just want my baby to come out safe and sound.
I am going to be having an elective BTL then as well.. When they asked about my birthing plan I said "All I ask is that I am not sent in for a Cesarean Section unless it is absolutely medically necessary." After several days (and 2 days before my appointment this coming Tuesday) I am now realizing that I should have been more thorough. Or does it matter? I plan to exclusively breast feed my son, as I did with my first son. Do I need to tell the doctor's office that, so that they note it? Will I be able to nurse him if I am having a BTL? Will they tell me he has to be formula fed? I guess I am just looking for some outside guidance here, without having to call my Hospital's L&D and harass the poor nurses there lol
If it makes a difference to the replies/general procedures, I live in South Carolina.
I know my post just jumped all over the place.. Sorry for that. I feel like I am just starting to get my head back on straight after this pregnancy lol
Again, thank you to every last one of you. You make the world go 'round.:heartbeat
LMAO!! Sorry you got hurt but I'm just picturing that happening!! They'll definitely remember you, lol. Well, I hope it gets better soon.
Yeah the card is a great idea because I've noticed that some nurses are pretty artificial nipple happy. The night I had my daughter this one nurse was really rude after bringing my baby back to me and said "she just wants to suck and it doesn't always have to be you" Yes....I'm trying to get my milk to come in, so yes it has to be me! It was that and another stupid thing she said about something else...I wanted to call my husband that night to come get us, I was crying and everything! Oh and now that I know you're not circumcising, you could make a card for that too. I gave my sister the idea when she had her son. The card said "I'm intact so don't retract". Unfortunately it's not common knowledge to leave the foreskin alone and you don't want the nurses/doctor messing with it (unfortunately it happens). And that same nurse that gave me crap the year before about me not wanting to give my baby a pacifier comes into my sisters room and told her she needs to retract the foreskin. Luckily my sister knew better! She argued a bit and the nurse told her to talk with the Dr. Talked with the Dr. the following day and luckily he knew not to retract. Even the info packet they give out to new moms states don't retract the foreskin. It's crazy how ignorant healthcare workers are on topics they should be educated on! I wrote a nice little letter to them a few months later since I was there when my sister had him and heard what she had told her. ANYWAY....good luck and hope your butt feels better!
Oh don't worry.. I laughed my butt off (no pun intended lol)
The funniest part, IMO, was watching all the nurses at the desk try to look straight forward at their computer screens... They tried so hard to be professional.. But you could see a couple faces turning red with the effort not to laugh..
There was an OB standing there putting patient notes in for someone else, and her head ROCKETED forward to face her laptop screen.. Her bottom lip must be really swollen considering how hard she was biting it lol
As for the retraction...
I always thought, was always told and read in several places that you aren't supposed to force the foreskin to retract, that it happens naturally around age 4 or 5..
My husband rarely changes a poopy diaper.. But twice when he did, he was trying to make it retract (he is uncir'd as well).. He stopped and looked at me like I was nuts (again, no pun intended) because immediately both hands went over my face and I groaned really loud "OHMYGODPLEASESTOP.. Please please please stop. Just stop. Please. AHHH!! I can't take it STOP!!!" haha
If you are not supposed to do something because it can have any negative effects, the forbidden action turns into nails on a chalkboard for me. He got all smart with me and was like "Well he poops all over the place. Are you going to try to tell me that when he poops inside there, I am supposed to just leave it there?!"
I told him "He doesn't poop IN there. He may poop on his foreskin and at the tip.. But NEVER have I found poop in there. Just wipe it gently until everything looks clean.. But PLEASE don't retract his foreskin again."
Yikes..
Just thinking about it makes me cringe lol
As for being nipple happy.. My milk came in 2 days before I even had my first son.. I was engorged at 41 weeks.. I was induced with him, I didn't pop him out until over 48 hours after I checked into the hospital. Once I had him, I fed him about 10 times...
Then I had to have some breathing treatments (I had pneumonia as well).. I was so exhausted and sleepy that when the nurses came in for me to feed him, I couldn't keep my eyes open at all. The nurse said "It is ok to rest, honey. If you think you are too tired to safely breastfeed your son, I can hold him to you while you sleep." She did, and he just wasn't having it. So she said "If you don't mind, I will feed him formula one time, just so you can get the rest you really need. I can promise that it will only be one time, and it will be me that feeds him, nobody else. But if that makes you uncomfortable at all, I won't do it. We are here for you. Tell me what you want."
I let her feed him just that once, and I can't tell you how much of a difference that made for my state of exhaustion and also for my illness. Getting more than 2 hours of sleep in a row did WONDERS, and I was able to feed him normally after that.
Still laughing, lol. I'm really sorry...that had to hurt and must've been so embarrassing, lol! At least everything with the baby is ok.
You're right, the foreskin doesn't retract until between 3-5 years but I've heard it can take until puberty. So it just depends. LOL...at your husband. Glad he didn't hurt him! This is what can cause problems, forcibly retracting is what can lead to infections since you're tearing the skin. The foreskin is fused to the glans, so nothing can get up under there. Unfortunately that's why you have to watch doctors and nurses (and apparently dads, lol) like hawks at their appointments. It would be like pulling your nail off, ouch!!
It probably sounds stupid, but I would LOVE to know how to do this...
How can I ensure that whatever nurses/doctors whomever is in the room doesn't stand next to my ear going "PUSHPUSHPUSHPUSHPUSHPUSHPUSHPUSHPUSH!!!"?
When I was in labor with my son, there were two nurses doing that.. And it drove me absolutely INSANE. I can't stand it when people repeat themselves.. And apparently my level of irritation with it goes WAY up during labor. I vaguely remember cussing at the nurse and saying something along the lines of "I KNOW!!! If you don't stop telling me to pushpushpush I am going to get up and kick your a$$! ONE time is ENOUGH!"
I know I pulled her aside afterwards and apologized profusely.. She said she is used to it..
I'd like to avoid that this time if at all possible lol
Maybe you can have someone who's with you (a support person - your husband, your friend, your mom, whoever) pull the nurse aside at a noncritical time and gently clue her in to the fact that you don't want a lot of noise and commotion or yelling when it comes time to push.
If you feel comfortable and assertive enough to say so yourself, by all means, feel free. Maybe you could phrase it like this: "I have a small request for when it's pushing time. I really don't do well with people yelling at me to pushpushpushpushpush. I'd really prefer some other way of communicating the need" , and perhaps between the two of you you can develop another plan.
Every L&D nurse is different, and I can promise you they are not all 'yellers'. :)
.thumb.jpg.95579fecd0c06f764e0cfdf4eb6f58b0.jpg){kind=small}
CrunchyMama, ASN, RN
1,068 Posts
LMAO!! Sorry you got hurt but I'm just picturing that happening!! They'll definitely remember you, lol. Well, I hope it gets better soon.
Yeah the card is a great idea because I've noticed that some nurses are pretty artificial nipple happy. The night I had my daughter this one nurse was really rude after bringing my baby back to me and said "she just wants to suck and it doesn't always have to be you" Yes....I'm trying to get my milk to come in, so yes it has to be me! It was that and another stupid thing she said about something else...I wanted to call my husband that night to come get us, I was crying and everything! Oh and now that I know you're not circumcising, you could make a card for that too. I gave my sister the idea when she had her son. The card said "I'm intact so don't retract". Unfortunately it's not common knowledge to leave the foreskin alone and you don't want the nurses/doctor messing with it (unfortunately it happens). And that same nurse that gave me crap the year before about me not wanting to give my baby a pacifier comes into my sisters room and told her she needs to retract the foreskin. Luckily my sister knew better! She argued a bit and the nurse told her to talk with the Dr. Talked with the Dr. the following day and luckily he knew not to retract. Even the info packet they give out to new moms states don't retract the foreskin. It's crazy how ignorant healthcare workers are on topics they should be educated on! I wrote a nice little letter to them a few months later since I was there when my sister had him and heard what she had told her. ANYWAY....good luck and hope your butt feels better!