Seewalds 33: Schroedinger’s Uterus

[VelociRapture]

3 hours ago, Iamtheway said:

That must have been awful, especially so soon after birth with all the hormones. 

Do the parents always have to leave? My friends had a very premature baby that had to spend months in NICU and I’m sure one of them was pretty much always there with him. I know they took turns to stay the night because they had another child at home. They moved hospital a couple of times and I remember we talked about the different sleeping arrangements. I think one hospital had a small room with a bed for parents just behind every place in NICU. I might be remembering this wrong though. Thankfully it is all a bit blury since he is a big and relatively healthy boy now. 

It depends on the Hospital. At the time (December 2016), my Hospital didn’t have room for the parents to stay overnight because it was an older unit (last renovated in the 90s I believe.) They were cramped for space as it was and it was a chaotic environment, though the staff were phenomenal. They actually started renovating it a few weeks after my daughter came home and they had a ribbon cutting ceremony a few months ago - the NICU is now top of the line, is much bigger, offers much more privacy and peace, and does have space for parents to stay over (though I think that’s really only for parents of very ill or premature babies, so we thankfully wouldn’t have been able to use it - our daughter was a fairly healthy 34 weeker with a one week stay.)

I’m not gonna lie, I’m jealous and sad that it wasn’t like that when my baby was born. We had little to no privacy, there were constantly noises that would startle me, I found it extremely difficult to try to nurse her there, and it just wasn’t an easy place for us to really feel relaxed in. Not to mention that being separated from her for even that short period of time was excruciating. I’m still not over it and even thinking about possibly going through that again if we’re luck enough to have another kid is horrifying... but I am very relieved other families have had a better environment to care for their babies now and it’s comforting to know that calmer environment is available should we eventually need it.

[Chewing Gum]

4 hours ago, Satan'sFortress said:

Hell, I can't even poo in a public bathroom! 

 

You reminded me of this gem of a video that explains “failure to progress” in a funny way: 

 

[Evangeline]

Hey, can some kind sis or bro message me when the conversation moves on from torn vaginas to ...... literally anything else? Please and thank you. 

Sis Evangeline (whose severely torn vagina still haunts her dreams) 

[NotQuiteMotY]

On 5/18/2018 at 7:00 PM, Iamtheway said:

That must have been awful, especially so soon after birth with all the hormones. 

Do the parents always have to leave? My friends had a very premature baby that had to spend months in NICU and I’m sure one of them was pretty much always there with him. I know they took turns to stay the night because they had another child at home. They moved hospital a couple of times and I remember we talked about the different sleeping arrangements. I think one hospital had a small room with a bed for parents just behind every place in NICU. I might be remembering this wrong though. Thankfully it is all a bit blury since he is a big and relatively healthy boy now. 

It really depends, as @VelociRapture said. The hospital I was at was newer, built within the last ten years, and their policy was to have a small room available for parents whose child was staying in the NICU after the mother's discharge. If there was more than one family, they'd be willing to put us up in any spare recovery rooms, albeit without hospital services like meals and medications. This depended on them having spare rooms, though; if Little NQ had needed to stay past my discharge, we wouldn't have had that option, because there were no spare rooms. (Seriously. I lucked out in giving birth early in the day. Over a dozen babies were born at the hospital that particular day, and there were more women than recovery rooms by that night. It was crazy.)

[mango_fandango]

I don’t know if I’ve mentioned this before on this thread, but I have a gigantic head... let’s just say that an episiotomy was not enough for my poor mother. 

I had to wear an XL graduation cap when I graduated from university last summer. Most normal women’s hats don’t really fit my head. Thankfully there aren’t many occasions when I need to wear one. 

[AliceInFundyland]

1 hour ago, mango_fandango said:

I don’t know if I’ve mentioned this before on this thread, but I have a gigantic head... let’s just say that an episiotomy was not enough for my poor mother. 

I had to wear an XL graduation cap when I graduated from university last summer. Most normal women’s hats don’t really fit my head. Thankfully there aren’t many occasions when I need to wear one. 

I have the same problem. I like wearing hats though.

...I was a ten pounder and two weeks overdue. I have deduced from fj that this could have been quite an ordeal. I think it went fairly smoothly though, or she would have told me by now.  

[melon]

My sons have and had large heads,also.So does Mr Melon.

I remember taking my middle son to the dr, when he was a toddler.I was expecting my 3rd,too.The dr kept asking if anyone wore a large hat.I told her yes,Mr Melon had to wear an XL helmet when he used to ride a motorcycle.My middle son was a clingy toddler..he did not like going to the dr...well she,the dr,claimed he was behind in his development.He had recurrent  ear infections,he was talking but at not even two,was sometimes hard for others to understand,except my grandmother..lol.My son loved fast food...it was like a wonderful treat...so as we drove by he'd name off the fast food chains...Burber King(BurgerKing) Fried Shicken (KFC) Tonals (McDonalds) Enwee (Wendys)..my grandmother understood everyone,and laughed and Melon,there's nothing wrong with him.The dr had me take him for a CT scan.I could not go in with him because I was pregnant,but I could hear him crying down the hall.His CT scan was normal.

My husband is a golfer,this pediatrician's now ex husband also played golf.They happened to meet at the Golf Course ,one day.Mr Melon told me,and her ex told her.But my sons large heads are more than likely hereditary.

[candygirl200413]

Omg you guys make me feel better about having a larger head! My mom when I was younger made jokes about it and I'd get annoyed but just last year when I rode on my friend's scooter in Taiwan, I shared a helmet with our other two friends while she was picking one up and taking us back to her place and I always had to have the helmet on the loosest setting. Made me feel very self conscious but now reading about some of you I'm feeling better :).

[AtlanticTug]

My son has a very large head, he had to be vacuumed out of my pelvis during a c-section, so that gives you a sense of how big it is. He was diagnosed with benign external hydrocephalus around 9 months old, basically it's extra fluid between the brain and the skull, it has not affected him developmentally (and usually does not) but he still sees a neurologist every 6 months or so, mostly because the doctor is interested in the condition and there aren't that many kids around with it. 

At 2.5 years old he outgrew the Carter's/OshKosh hats made for 4-7 year olds.

[Gillyweed]

My entire paternal family has big heads. When I was 2, the doctor ordered a CT Scan for me because my head was so big. Luckily, everything was normal. I just can't wear those hats that are one-size-fits-all 

[Jellybean]

Gutted for all of you with heads too big for hats - I love to wear hats of all kinds, from the warm and dependable beanie to the fanciest of wedding hats. I think kids in hats are too cute, and am surprised that there isn’t better provision for children with large heads (I’m just going on what you’ve said about it - I don’t have kids). Hats are a great way to protect children from the sun in summer and keep them warm in winter, and it’s not as if children with large heads are a total rarity, is it?

[melon]

10 hours ago, Gillyweed said:

My entire paternal family has big heads. When I was 2, the doctor ordered a CT Scan for me because my head was so big. Luckily, everything was normal. I just can't wear those hats that are one-size-fits-all 

Just like my husband's family!And my middle son had a CT scan,too!He bought some hats recently,still XL.

[SilverBeach]

On 5/18/2018 at 6:49 PM, Satan'sFortress said:

Also, if anyone is interested in positive birth stories, particularly alternatives to standard, medicated hospital births

Hospital doesn't necessarily mean medicated, mine wasn't.

[VelociRapture]

8 hours ago, Jellybean said:

Gutted for all of you with heads too big for hats - I love to wear hats of all kinds, from the warm and dependable beanie to the fanciest of wedding hats. I think kids in hats are too cute, and am surprised that there isn’t better provision for children with large heads (I’m just going on what you’ve said about it - I don’t have kids). Hats are a great way to protect children from the sun in summer and keep them warm in winter, and it’s not as if children with large heads are a total rarity, is it?

My daughter has macrocephaly (fancy term for a head measuring over the 98th percentile) and has since she was only a few months old. We get by using hooded coats and sweatshirts in cold weather because those usually fit better than hats. Summer should be fun this year though because she likes pulling hats off and tossing them on the ground. At least she has a ton of hair, so simply moving her part around should help cut down on sunburn (I hope.)

[SassyPants]

Did Big Ben have a birthday?

[VelociRapture]

8 minutes ago, SassyPants said:

Did Big Ben have a birthday?

He did. He turned 23 on Saturday.

ETA: I haven’t seen any posts by Jessa or anyone else celebrating his birthday. Not even on his parents’ instagram. 

[Alisamer]

I recently printed a brochure for a local charity that raises money to help improve the NICU at the children's hospital... they have apparently helped fund the addition of some rooms for parents to stay in, AND have added webcams to all the incubators so even parents not staying with the baby can keep an eye on them at all times. I thought that was probably really reassuring for many parents, especially any that need to continue working. 

[SassyPants]

All my nieces and nephews use those webcams on their kids at home. I'm in the camp that this creeps me out. 

[DillyDally]

1 hour ago, VelociRapture said:

He did. He turned 23 on Saturday.

ETA: I haven’t seen any posts by Jessa or anyone else celebrating his birthday. Not even on his parents’ instagram

Ben turned 23, which reminded me how young these two still are for having two little ones already... But this is the Duggars, so why am I still surprised? 

They are quiet at the moment, one can only hope that they enjoy their time as a young family and that Ben is working towards any kind of credible career (i.e. anything other than a grifting ministry).

[karen77]

8 hours ago, VelociRapture said:

My daughter has macrocephaly (fancy term for a head measuring over the 98th percentile) and has since she was only a few months old. We get by using hooded coats and sweatshirts in cold weather because those usually fit better than hats. Summer should be fun this year though because she likes pulling hats off and tossing them on the ground. At least she has a ton of hair, so simply moving her part around should help cut down on sunburn (I hope.)

Just slap some sunscreen down her part, voila.

5 hours ago, DillyDally said:

Ben turned 23, which reminded me how young these two still are for having two little ones already... But this is the Duggars, so why am I still surprised? 

They are quiet at the moment, one can only hope that they enjoy their time as a young family and that Ben is working towards any kind of credible career (i.e. anything other than a grifting ministry).

Clearly if they are quiet, they must be pregnant again!! hahahahahahaha

[Satan'sFortress]

10 hours ago, SilverBeach said:

Hospital doesn't necessarily mean medicated, mine wasn't.

Very true--and the book I mentioned does indeed have positive hospital birth stories as well!  <3

[Someone Out There]

21 hours ago, VelociRapture said:

My daughter has macrocephaly (fancy term for a head measuring over the 98th percentile) and has since she was only a few months old. We get by using hooded coats and sweatshirts in cold weather because those usually fit better than hats. Summer should be fun this year though because she likes pulling hats off and tossing them on the ground. At least she has a ton of hair, so simply moving her part around should help cut down on sunburn (I hope.) 

If the hats are taken off because of the size of them you could make one for her via sewing, knitting or crochet (I would suggest that knitting may be a bit floppy for brims but crochet you could potentially get certain amount of stiffness in a brim though I don't crochet so I wouldn't guarantee it.  For sewing it would be a matter of the correct interfacing for a brim).

There is also potentially rocking the bandana pirate look?

Or otherwise as someone else suggested sunscreen on the part.

[Meggo]

On ‎5‎/‎21‎/‎2018 at 9:53 AM, VelociRapture said:

My daughter has macrocephaly (fancy term for a head measuring over the 98th percentile) and has since she was only a few months old. We get by using hooded coats and sweatshirts in cold weather because those usually fit better than hats. Summer should be fun this year though because she likes pulling hats off and tossing them on the ground. At least she has a ton of hair, so simply moving her part around should help cut down on sunburn (I hope.)

My son was NOT a fan of hats - but I found some sun hat (Dozer brand maybe? - it was Australian but I bought it on vacation in Florida) that actually stayed on his head. It had a chin strap - but it wasn't a strangle hazard. It was reversible and that thing lasted forever. I think we had each of them for about 2 years. He out grew them - they still are in GREAT condition. 
And from the time he was wee - there was a hat on his head when he went outside. He's really super fair and I cannot put enough screen on him - so I try to plunk a hat on him. 

Now that he's five - he wears it if I put it on him - but doesn't put it on himself at school. (and now it's just a plain old khaki bucket hat. I have almost the same one) 
I try to remind him that Bampa is missing part of his ear due to the sun (it's true - he is) and that's why Momma forces sunscreen on him every time she gets a chance.

 

[karen77]

On 5/22/2018 at 4:20 AM, Someone Out There said:

If the hats are taken off because of the size of them you could make one for her via sewing, knitting or crochet (I would suggest that knitting may be a bit floppy for brims but crochet you could potentially get certain amount of stiffness in a brim though I don't crochet so I wouldn't guarantee it.  For sewing it would be a matter of the correct interfacing for a brim).

There is also potentially rocking the bandana pirate look?

Or otherwise as someone else suggested sunscreen on the part.

I have an Etsy store, I do make custom orders....just sayin'   shorter hat that is wider around, totally doable (knitted or crocheted)

[Iamtheway]

On 5/21/2018 at 2:46 AM, AtlanticTug said:

My son has a very large head, he had to be vacuumed out of my pelvis during a c-section, so that gives you a sense of how big it is. He was diagnosed with benign external hydrocephalus around 9 months old, basically it's extra fluid between the brain and the skull, it has not affected him developmentally (and usually does not) but he still sees a neurologist every 6 months or so, mostly because the doctor is interested in the condition and there aren't that many kids around with it. 

At 2.5 years old he outgrew the Carter's/OshKosh hats made for 4-7 year olds.

We had to buy Miniway a helmet for adults this winter. He’s four.