One Stuffy Nose, One Vomiting Baby October 23, 2008
Posted by pjpajamas in family life.Tags: baby, stuffy nose, vomit
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Is two kids too much? Especially so close in age? 18 months apart to be exact. I wonder how my parents did it. My sister and I are 2 years apart. It’s almost like going one on one, parents to kids, but not quite. It really is more like the kids over power us.
My newborn baby boy has a chronic stuffy nose. It started about 3 weeks of age. Then it went away for a week and now it’s back. Most of the time is just sounds nasty, and he feeds okay and as long as you prop him up, he sleeps okay too. Other times, it’s very frustrating. It’s a lot of bulb suctioning and nasal drips. And those vaporizers. I made an appointment to see one of my professors and for some OMT and I can’t wait.
My older one recently has been very pukey. Three times today she’s puked up formula. Yes she’s still on it. She was down to one bottle a day. But today, she was calling for it, and not too long after she has it, she pukes.
It’s stressful. What’s more stressful for me, is the other adults in the room freaking out. Gotta maintain control. And not scare the kids.
I guess it’s from my ER rotation I get this from, but I ask right away to myself – “Sick or healthy?” She’s well-hydrated, not feverish –> she’s healthy. Okay, let’s not go to the ER. What would one of my preceptors say if they saw a patient like this. “Keep her hydrated, it’s okay if she doesn’t eat for a couple of days. Use a syringe to feed little bits of gatorade at a time if you have to.” So maybe a trip to the clinic is not necessary as well?
But I’ve decided a long time ago that I don’t want to be the doctor of the family – too much responsibility mixed in one. I just want to be mom.
So we’ll still call the doctor tomorrow just to be safe.
Of course, just to be safe, I threw away the newly opened formula can, just in case there’s preformed toxin sitting in there. And we opened another can. It would really suck though is those cans were packaged together.
Why not to feed zoo animals October 7, 2008
Posted by pjpajamas in family life.Tags: bears, beijing, feeding animals, zoo
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This was taken while at Beijing Zoo. What you can’t see is the loads of people top left just throwing water, crackers, etc at the bears.
But for kicks – maybe instead – we should throw bits of food at zoo animals? Aren’t they so much more interactive than any zoo you’ve ever been to?
I’m just kidding – don’t feed the the zoo animals – bad habits like these form.
Breastfeeding and it’s full glory October 6, 2008
Posted by pjpajamas in family life.Tags: breastfeeding, lack of sleep, sleep deprived
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Breastfeeding is definitely making it’s comeback.
I kind of feel like it’s a ”damned if you do and damned if you don’t” kind of situation. I honestly do believe breast milk is the best nutrition on Earth for your babies, however, formula is also the next best thing. Meaning, if you don’t end up breastfeeding, you’re baby will do just fine on formula.
With my first baby, everything was going great, we were doing bottle and breast because I was still in school. And then about 5 weeks in I had block exams (a whole week of tests). Because I really really needed to study, I just pumped the whole week and bottle fed the baby. I guess I shouldn’t be shock that my baby lost her latch. So for the next 6 months I pumped. And everyday I saw my milk dwindling to the point where I was pumping all day just for barely a meal’s worth of breast milk for her.
I hate pumping. All you ever hear about pumping is what a great invention for women who need to go back to work. I think – what a terrible invention made by men to force women to go back to work. I seriously hate it.
Anyways, back to breastfeeding. So for this baby – I really wanted to take time off from school to get it down right for at least 7 months.
There are just so many opinions and pressures surrounding breastfeeding. My own mother really believes in in formula feeding, and would love to just see me bulldoze my way through medical school and become a doctor faster. My mother-in-law definitely believes in breast milk and would have me take all the time off that I need. In fact she would have me take more time off for more babies if that was a possibility (I have toyed with the idea). Either way both supports me in whatever decision I make.
I personally wanted to breastfeed, because I felt it was one of the few things that a mother can really do for their baby that’s truly special. Nobody else can do the same. I also feel that if I’m signing up to be away for the next 4-5 years of my babies lives (residency), at least I can do this for my babies.
While it truly is glorious and a wonderful thing, it’s not that amazing in practice. I’ve haven’t had a full night’s sleep, not even a 3 hour sleep, in who knows how long. I wake up every 1 to 2 hour to breastfeed my baby. When I breastfeed, my baby gets sweaty where his skin is touching mine. I have this constant sleep deprived headache that I can keep at bay, but not get rid of. I have no idea how much my baby is getting down. I keep second-guessing myself and my supply of breast milk just to remind myself that he’s growing well. I can’t help but keep feeling his fontanel to see if he’s dehydrated. When I am breastfeeding, it’s like a 30-45 minute ordeal where I can’t help but get bored so I’m becoming a TV junkie. I couldn’t help but feel like I had already failed when we had gone back into the hospital for jaundice and the doctor ordered the baby to be given supplemental formula for those few days.
And that is breastfeeding and it’s full glory…
… I am enjoying every minute of it.
New Baby Boy – Story of My Labor October 1, 2008
Posted by pjpajamas in family life.Tags: delivery, fast labor, new baby boy
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As I try to write about my labor, I can’t help but be pissed about the whole situation. But if I write in a pissed off mood – I’ll just make it out as if the nurses were incompetent. They really weren’t, they were great at their jobs. BUT – I felt that AS a patient, I was ignored. They really didn’t believe I was in labor.
9/14 was Chinese Mood Festival Day – a day where families gather together in celebration to recognize the change of seasons.
That morning I woke up at 4:50 am (I have a projection clock so I always know the time). I was feeling a lot of pressure in my tummy (that’s the best I can describe it). It was completely different from contractions from my first labor. I waited, the sensation passed, then it came back again about 4-5 minutes later and then again.
Just like that, I was having regular contractions and they were progressing in pain fairly quickly. I woke up my husband and told him it was time to go to the hospital I’ve been told many times before by many doctors and nurses that based on my first labor, I should go to the hospital right away for my subsequent labors.
We arrived at the hospital at about 5:30 am. We had to go through ER and then up to LDR on the 2nd floor. I walked into labor and delivery with a smile on my face and I tell the nurses “I think it’s time”. I can’t really blame them for not believing me I guess. Not many women labor with a smile on their face. One nurse even admitted to me afterwards that she hadn’t believed me. I should have been more melodramatic, holding my tummy and screaming all the way in – then they probably would have believed me.
7 am was also shift change – just my luck. I’m pretty sure that had something to do with why they couldn’t get a hold of the anesthesiologist or why he didn’t show up until a little after 7.
As the anesthesiologist is trying to give me an epidural shot and I’m lying on my side trying not to move too much – my contractions accelerate. I feel as if my contractions are constant and I’m not getting a break anymore. I feel a lot of pressure down there and I tell the nurses that the baby is coming. And this really made me upset – my nurse chuckled and said “that’s not your baby.” Another nurse was better and asked when was the last time I was checked – which was when I had come in and had been 4 cm. So they decide it might be a good idea to check me again – I was fully dilated and baby was definitely coming.
They call the OB, but not in time. The nurse ended delivering my baby at 7:28 am, right after I got one shot of epidural in. The OB made it in time to deliver my placenta.
I loved the SOFT program at this hospital. Pretty much from when my baby was delivered, he was skin to skin with me for the next 3-4 hours. I loved it. They did all the shots and assessments with him right on me.
I really don’t mind that the epidural didn’t come in time. I really don’t mind that the OB didn’t make it to deliver my baby, even though I switched hospitals and everything just to be closer to home. And it was a big switch took, because I was leaving not only a wonderful OB, but my preceptor and a whole labor and delivery team that I had rotated 6 weeks with.
What is really frustrating is that I felt like I did everything right on my part. I even told the nurses repeatedly that I would be a fast labor when I had arrived. So it really hurts me that I felt like I was completely ignored as a patient. I’m sure plenty of people feel this way all the time. I guess in the end I’m just grateful my son came out healthy and well.
