I wish someone had told me that......

I thought a topic like this would be handy for those expecting (either for the first time or second or whatever).....

I'll go first......

I wish someone had told me that:

1) In the first two or three days after giving birth, your baby will probably want to feed constantly so you not only have to prepare for the marathon of birth, you need to prepare for this. [I was breastfeeding and wasn't told and thought that my son wasn't getting enough milk - luckily a mw told me that I was actually doing it right and that this was how it was supposed to be otherwise I would have succumbed to formula).

2) As the baby approachs the 4000 gram mark (and/or the two week mark) they will likely have a growth spurt and may want to feed hourly for a day or so (up to 72 hours).

3) After birth, you need to empty your bladder very regularly. A full bladder can cause your uterus to relax and start bleeding again which could lead to even heavier bleeding (or haemorrage).

Who's next?

I wish someone had told me I was going to have a premature baby at 26 weeks!

I wish someone had told me that most women get baby blues or depression after child birth

I wish someone had told me to make lots of muffin or snacks and have in the freezer for when I was breast feeding! - pull one out before its needed and you have a snack while your feeding

monikah wrote: i wish someone had told me that even if you had a really easy 4 hour birth and no stitches it still really hurts to pee!

ditto! I kept a jar next to the loo and had to splash myself with cold water every time I went to the loo for the first 2 weeks after giving birth

I also wish someone had told me that even though you know someone who's baby slept through the night from 4 weeks, your baby won't necessarily do the same!

I wish someone had told me ......

that birth can be a wonderful experience. It was hard work but i enjoyed it Everyone told me horror stories (hello!! not that helpful when im already pregnant).

that once your pregnant your body is public property and its even worse once your baby is born - everyone is an expert on how to raise a child (even your 12year old brother)

that you will bleed after birth - FOR AGES!!!!! i was expecting a normal period - thats it lol

I just wish my DH knew how to cook! or that someone had cooked for us. We didnt have a deep freezer so i couldnt have prepared any meals prior. I found it incredibly hard to try and prepare dinner with a newborn, who would have to be fed sometimes in the middle of cooking tea. I had to switch everything off!

Oooh, and just because your baby is sleeping through, doesnt mean things wont change! Jackson slept through from 6 weeks but at 3 months he decided to wake every 2 hours, and it went on for about 2 months.

Ohh and i wish someone had told me that peeing in the shower, with your hands on the ground and your butt in the air, is a much better way of peeing after birth than sitting on the toilet splashing water. I used a jug of water straight after having jackson and OMG, it hurt sooo bad! Even with the water. so i held on and sat in bed worrying about how i would pee. Then I tried the "*ss in the air" thing and it made the pee go the opposite way. I even remember dancing on the way out and announcing to DH i finally went wees, lol.

I wish someone had told me that just because I managed to do something right or wrong with my first baby, that it doesnt neccessarily work that way with ALL your kids! (B slept through from day 3, whereas we are just starting to get a decent sleep at night now.)

Oh and that while Breastfeeding may be the 'natural' way of doing it, it feels far from natural, its a lot of hard work and takes perseverance to make it work

I wish someone had told me how having an emergency C-Secton would affect me emotionally.

I wish somebody had told me to demand to see my baby ASAP after he was born. His first AGPAR was 8 and they still kept him from me for 30 minutes,

I wish someone had told me that your body liquids increase so much... I dont even want to know how much I spent on panty liners!!! Ewwww.

I wish someone had told me that as wonderful as it is to be pregnant, overall its quite unpleasant on a day to day basis..

I wish someone had told me that to say goodbye to my bump, its amazing how much you miss something that gave you so much grief.

i wish someone had made me eat more when breastfeeding - and that someone had made me lunch too. ( i ate barely a thing and then wondered why i had milk issues)

I wish someone had told me that just cause i decided my child would do this or that, doesn't mean they actually will (actually i may remember a conversation with my midwife about this - i told her my child would be sleeping through the night by 3 weeks - i even counted it down)

i wish someone had told me that having two children doesn't mean you divide up the love - more like double it (i stressed majorly about not loving Jake as much once Taine came)

i wish someone had said that just cause you have two kids, by the same dad, doesn't mean they are the same kid. J and T are sooooo different - temperaments and likes/dislikes. i forget sometimes.

i wish someone had told me more about cloth nappies when i was with jake. i had visions of using flat ones when i was pregnant, but that's all they turned out to be.

Im gonna be different lol and say, I wish people hadnt told me so much about labour and birth, as it only scared the crap out of me more lol!!


Edited by Sheza

I wish someone had told me that even after the first 12 weeks that you keep worrying.

I wish someone had told me you might not get the 'glow' - just zits.

I wish someone had told me flying long haul while pregnant is bad. Really bad.