Post your Story

Sweetarts from a Friend

Mine is not so much a story as it is advice for those unfortunate mothers-to-be who are experiencing nausea and/or morning sickness. A few months ago my very pregnant friend said she was still battling with nausea. One of her friends told her to try sucking on sweetarts. As crazy as it sounded she tried it, and it worked. As we all know we will do almost anything to rellieve that terrible nauseaous feeling. I never had actual morning sickness but did have periods of nausea. I also tried the sweetart trick, and again it worked. So, try it. You may just be surprised.

Dawn

I lost my angel

I had a miscariage at 19 weeks, 3 weeks ago. I went to the A&E and I was told that I was being kept in for overnight observation. When the doctors came to see me the following morning I was told that I wasn't going home because my cervix was dilated to 3cm. However the bottom of the bed was elevated and the top lowered in order to prevent my waters from breaking. My waters did break simply by me coughing and I lost the baby girl I so badly wanted. After delivering the baby, (4 1/2) hours later I was taken to the operating theatre to have my placenta removed. It was a very traumatic experience for me and my husband who has never cried, he wept.

The doctors think that my miscarriage may have been caused by a UTI. I had a UTI since last November. I complained to my doctor that they have been treating me blindly with antbiotics for several months and the UTI wasn't getting treated properly. He then suggested that he would send me for a MSU if the last course of antibiotics didn't work. It didn't and I wasn't sent for the MSU. I am gutted. My husband is taking comfort in the fact that our baby is gone to a better place, the fact that we have two boys and that we can try again. I just keep cleaning the house, looking at the stuff I had bought for the baby.

I lie awake at nights with my thoughts and I am forgetting everything, the small and big stuff. I just pray to God that I will get stronger sooner rather than later, for the sake of myself and my family. Please pray for me and I will pray for all you mothers out there who have had a similar experience. I have milk in my breast but no baby to feed and I gave birth to a baby that I was not allowed to take home and I am thinking I am a good girl, I don't party, I'm devoted to my husband and kids and I love my fellowman. Why? God knows why. It was his will and I accept that. I just wish I was mentally prepared.

Gillian

A Time of Contentment

Daniel and I had been looking forward to having a baby for more than five years. When we finally got pregnant, we were both so excited and felt as if we had finally been blessed by something that was greater than both of us. Together, we told our families and prepared to embark on an experience that was quite exciting and a little scary at the same time. I couldn’t wait for all the pregnancy changes to start, but was also a little worried about what the changes might look like or feel like.

My first trimester with Lydia (my daughter, who is now almost two) was quite manageable, at least compared with some of my other friends’ pregnancies. I had morning sickness throughout, but it wasn’t so bad. Crackers seemed to do the job, and work kept my mind off of it. I work as an advertising consultant and my job keeps me pretty busy, but I found it to be a real blessing during the first months of my pregnancy. It especially kept my mind off of the risks of miscarriage – I had already lost one child, a few years ago, and I never want to relive that experience.

Even though I enjoyed my first trimester of pregnancy, I found the second trimester to be the most memorable part of my pregnancy. I entered into my second trimester in June, and it felt as if the sun was shining almost everyday. My morning sickness had passed and so had my worries of miscarriage. I felt a sense of safety and security, and believed that all was right with the world.

The best part of my second trimester was feeling my baby move for the first time. I remember that I was lying down in bed, waiting to fall asleep when it first happened. It began almost as a little gurgling in my stomach. Then I felt a small, but definite kick just to the right of my belly button. I almost fainted out of shock! I placed my hand over my belly and I could feel small movements inside! My baby was moving around! I woke up Daniel, who was snoring contentedly beside me, and told him what had just happened. He put his hand on my belly, but didn’t feel anything right away. After a few minutes of patient waiting, baby started up again! It was at that moment that the pregnancy really began to feel real to both of us. I felt as if I had a real bond with the baby that was inside of me!

From that moment on, I began to talk to my baby every chance I got. I don’t know if Lydia heard me, or if she even recognized my voice, but something deep inside of me felt that she did. I even bought a set of headphones, so that I could play gentle music to her throughout the day! As my belly grew larger and larger, I felt even more of a need to chat with her. I told her about everything, from the weather, to the color of the paint on the walls, to my hopes and dreams for her future.

My second trimester was not all fun and games though. I did begin to feel the strain of pregnancy a little bit, particularly when it came to working 10-hour days! My back started to ache and I suffered from leg cramps almost every day! I also had my fair share of nosebleeds! I remember that I was in a meeting with a client when one started suddenly! Needless to say, that meeting didn’t go very well!

As I reached the end of my second trimester, I really began to notice that my belly was starting to take shape. It looked as if a small watermelon has been inserted just under my skin! Daniel and I both wanted to remember what my belly looked and felt like, so we had a cast taken of it. The papier mache felt a bit gooey on my stomach, but the cast turned out pretty well. We booked another cast to be taken at the end of the third trimester. And I made a cast of Daniel’s stomach too, so we could remember what that looked like way back when!

My third trimester went well, butI was a bit more uncomfortable, especially as the weight began to come on. Lydia arrived healthy and glowing two weeks before my due date, and we were able to take her home a few days later. Our family was beginning! When I look back on my pregnancy, I see my second trimester as the being the most happy and satisfying time. It gave me a feeling of true excitement and contentment, and it was when that bond with my little girl really sank in. I am now pregnant again with my second child and I am eagerly awaiting the joys of another second trimester!

Mirabelle Clement