Born Oct/Nov 2015

All I can say is keep your options open, when you suddenly in the scenario things can change, my birth plan was not followed once lol. This time round I told my hubby straight, the epidural is happening sooner if need be. If I think about it I was 3cm dilated at 1pm in the afternoon by 5pm the contractions were strong, opted for pethidine at 7pm only had the epidural at 11pm baby was born at 1am. Push yourself if you can but just be sure that you are aware of the rules on calling the anethatist I had to make the call at 8pm as I said before, I'm not sure if it's because I was so far dilated or they have a specific set time that they state no calls after such and such a time.

Morning Ladies,

@cakes when I had flu to help my sinuses I used illiadin Nasal spray, gynae said it is ok to use just don't go too mad. Also try tissue salts no 5 for mucus decongestant and 8 for headaches I live on those and you can take up to 3 at one go if your headaches are really bad! Also but I found my headaches both sinus and normal was due to not going to the toilet, as soon as I went passed day 2 and hadn't gone for a no2 Id be suffering so maybe check what you eating and see if it is also because of that.

@pillpusher, lol I had both pethidene and semi epidural (I was able to wiggle my toes and move my legs outwards) unfortunately I was told that gas doesn't work in jhb because of the altitude don't know how true it is.

The peth didn't take the pain away, made me very sleepy and after about 2 hours I was feeling the contractions again. According to the nurses that day they do not administer peth more that once every 4-6 hours thus the reason I opted for an epidural. My contractions were all in my back and were very strong I can't explain what it feels like.

I really wanted to go natural right through purely because I have a skew spine and didn't want to have problems later on but I'm glad I chose the epidural. He had to put the epidural in three times to get the right spot and the relief I got straight afterwards was amazing. I could actually focus on what was going on and rest before the whole pushing needed to happen.

Lol! You're welcome

I honestly hope it helps... It worked like a charm for me. It's got something to do with the paracetamol and the caffeine combination.

If the espresso it too strong, maybe just drink a regular cup of coffee, but with 2 teaspoons of coffee instead of one?

Hope your headache sorts itself out, Cakes. I see that Aden also had some advice for you. Oral decongestants are a no-go, but the nasal spray variety are safe (the ones I mentioned earlier).

@LouiseMarie, any of those sprays should only be used for up to seven days (although Otrivin says it can be for 14 days). The reason it becomes ineffective is because your body naturally compensates for the dryness of the nasal passages (causing cell death due to a lack of oxygen as blood flow is reduced) by increasing blood flow there which makes you feel congested again. It's called rebound congestion.

I would double check with your own doctor before using Flomist (Fluticasone – a cortisone). I've seen many people advised that it is safe, so maybe just drop your doctor a line if you decide to use it because it's most effective if used everyday to prevent inflammation of the sinuses.

Since we're all into second trimester, you might appreciate my latest pregnancy blog here

I'm starting to think more seriously about labour pain relief. At this point I'm leaning more towards gas since I can use it as needed and not be dosed with pethidine or have an infusion via epidural. @Lauz.meyer – any thoughts? I don't want to be one of those moms that's too proud to admit that she might need some help, but I'm not too keen on an epidural or pethidine.

ladies, thank you thank you thank you for your all your reply's. LM i'm trying the panado's and expresso asap. I'm not a coffee person but hell I'm just gonna close my eyes. once this headache subsides then I will tackle Toy's r us wrt my vouchers!!

Haha. I see we responded at the same time, LouiseMarie. It was probably Buscopan Co that your doctor gave you. There's also Scopex Co. There have been stock problems for both of them for a while, not sure if they're resolved. Unfortunately it probably won't help for a headache because it relaxes smooth muscle (that's why you usually use it for tummy cramps or bladder spasms).

My doctor told me to not take any decongestants, as they are not safe for baby. So basically 2 panado is the only thing that is safe. She also said I should use Flomist Nasal Spray twice a day for at least a week. I had terrible sinusitis last week, and that cleared it up.

I received my discovery bag and the R100 voucher as well as the car seat vouchers, without a problem.