Trodding the Well-Worn Path
So I’m relieved to find that my experiences are, once again, ones that about a million women have had before me. My mom says I was just like Robin at that age, fussy all the time; Dawn mentioned in the comments to my last post that her little boy was the same way; and the doctor told me today that babies are typically very crabby from about 6 to 10 weeks—something to do with their developing gastrointestinal system. Robin has been pretty farty lately, so maybe that’s it!
After keeping me up all night last night he’s been sweet today; my concern is keeping him awake so we don’t have a repeat. He did have to go in the sling for today’s check-in with the doc, which again sent him straight to sleep.
It was nice to see Dr. Berger again; she’s the one who delivered Robin, so her face may have actually been the first thing he ever saw. (He did not particularly seem to recognize her.) She complimented me on my weight loss and said my c-section scar looks good and that my ladyparts are pretty much back to normal. “Next time you can have a vaginal birth if you want,” she volunteered. “Oh no,” I said, “after 24 hours of labor I’m all about the c-section.”
She leaned in and dropped her voice. “I’m scheduling a c-section for my next one too. I’m not a fan of drama.”
“I’m not a fan of pain,” I said, and we shared a knowing chuckle. Then we talked about some girl stuff like S-E-X, and she sent me on my way. So I guess I’m officially all convalesced!
September 25th, 2007 at 5:55 pm
I don’t have any fool-proof advice for crankiness, either. My only real strategies were nursing and babywearing, but you’ve got those down already. I do remember things getting better around 10 or 12 weeks. Four- and five-month-old babies are particularly delightful–not yet mobile, but smiling and laughing a lot, and cute as heck. Life certainly changes a lot (again) once they become mobile.
I had (and still have) the same experience with not having enough leftover attention for our cats, too. They seem to be coping pretty well, though.
I’m with you and Dr. Berger on the c-section! Mine should be in about 10 or 11 weeks.
September 25th, 2007 at 7:39 pm
Wow, you’re getting close! I hope the last trimester isn’t too uncomfortable for you!
September 25th, 2007 at 8:56 pm
If it’s any consolation, age 6-12 weeks were pretty terrible for us too. Wyatt did pretty well during the day, but from about 6 pm to 1 am he would scream and scream and scream. The digestion thing was a factor for him too. Someone showed us this little maneuver where you lay the baby on his back and then bring his knees up to his chest and kind of do a bicycle motion with his legs. It made him fart about half the time which almost always improved his mood, so you might want to try that one.
September 26th, 2007 at 5:19 pm
i just remembered something from my babysitting days! one mother i worked for would sit down with her nursing baby from 7:00 PM and put in a movie to watch and nurse them all evening until 10:00 [or as long as she could]. from that, the baby would sleep the whole night through, and she had a relaxed evening and a good nights sleep.
i have no idea if that will work for you, but it might be worth a shot! keep in mind this woman had 12 biological children, so she was like, scarily good at that stuff.
September 26th, 2007 at 6:46 pm
Twelve kids, wow! Nursing actually tends to put Robin to sleep, and he’ll nod off after about fifteen minutes (unless he’s not hungry, in which case he’ll spit out the nipple and fuss). So I don’t think a three-hour nursing session would be possible for us…
September 27th, 2007 at 10:16 am
Hey there. I just got a note from Sean and had to say hello, congrats, and more importantly keep your head up it gets WAY better. X was fussy too, but that was because he was always hungry because mommy couldn’t produce enough milk.
We should reconnect. I’d love to meet Robin (love the nick name) and X (Xavier) loves babies and I’d love for you to meet him. figure you didn’t get a proper intro when we went to Aunt Charlies when he was still in the belly.
September 30th, 2007 at 1:12 pm
Hey Cassandra! Congratulations on your little one. I’d love to see you sometime!