Hi All Sept MTB :
The respond rate here is ' piew ' , FAST !! Take me a while to browse through all of them and at the end , have to jot down what I have in mind .
On MC :
Two moms here are on MC basically due to early contraction and diarrhea . Hope both of you are getting better now (as worries ,health and medical bills most of the time weight more than the income).Upon reading the indication of possible early contraction as shared , it rings my alarm and I start to pay more attention , I do feel the stone - like tummy ( mostly after my meals and difficulty in breathing ) , menstrual pain (less than 30 seconds and it stops once I change my sleeping position ) . When I physically overstrain myself , backache is an early indication follow by abdominal pain . I belong to the low blood pressure group , if I stand up suddenly while squatting or get out from the bed suddenly , there will be temporary blackout and I have to stand still to gain my consciousness .
Travel :
Two moms here seems to travel a lot or probably based abroad . Make sure you get your clearance as pregnant women ( 28 weeks onwards ) are prohibited unless with proper documentation from your doctor. Do hope you enjoy your job nature as travel during pregnancy seems to be a little more challenging .
Glucose Test :
A couple of moms here went through the glucose test , I will be having similar test this weekend as diabetes is in my bloodstream (and I am referring to those serious case where you have to take injection to control). I did my Hepetitis B and Rubella tests around 22nd week .
Baby Scan :
It seems that the process varies by hospitals. I will be delivering in NUH and the gynae does the scan on several important dates . Some times my visit will be a short 10 minutes by asking me to lie on the bed and listen to the child's heartbeat , I don't have to pay for the printouts . The growth at different stages seems interesting , mine started with a damn big head with a curl ( like our big head ' tau geh ' ) , to log legs swimming like a frog during the scan . The latest stage ... manage to identify the face with eye socket , nose and he seems to dunno drink a lot or spit a lot coz each scan indicates a lot of mouth movements and he changes his position frequently even during the short 1-3 minutes scan ( until the gynae finds him a little difficult to ' catch ' for specific measurements ) . Nothing was done on fundal height from NUH as yet .
Weight gain / baby movements :
I think weight gain is related to the mother's existing size too . If your BMI b4 pregnancy is at the high end , your weight gain throughout the pregnancy could be lesser compare to mothers who are underweight before pregnancy . Seek your gynae's opinion .I gain 9.3 KG within 28 weeks , on average 1.5 KG every month .
Is always wonderful to feel the movements of your child . Yup , my tummy occasionally slanted towards one side and I try pressing / tapping / poking / squeezing / touching ..... umum .. still trying to figure out where is the head leh . There are constant movements at times with less than 20 minutes break in between and it lasts for 4 hours . GREAT !! Hope I don't have a boy who needs me to leash him like my dog when he knows how to run .
Sleepless nights :
This seems common among most of us . I am one of them too , having nightmares twice ( The first one , felt like being possessed and could not breath , could not wake up from my dreams even I wanted to pee , similar to fighting against my own conscious and unconscious mind . Second , being chased by spirits , of course I was running and questioned what was all these chasing about ?? The answer was scary , " I want your child " , I said " No " and was woke up by my hubby as he accidentally kicked my legs ) , frequent wee wee breaks ( I accidentally wee on my panty when I sneeze at times ) .
Putting lots of pillows around me provides me a better chance of deep sleep . Probably you gals want to try that . If I am facing right or left , I will hug one big pillow and another one placing comfortably on the other side . If I am facing the ceiling , there will be one big pillow underneath my legs . At least it works for me. Poor hubby left with 1/3 of our bed only , hi !! hi !!
Massage / Shopping Lists :
The contacts for massage , probably will get it later from you gals since we will be having our confinement eventually ( it will be damn boring and online chat could kill some time ) . Moreover , I am not too sure will my first preference , vaginal delivery ended up with a C section . Most of you have done your shopping and one mom was asking about the brand for bottles , I guess those established brands should be alright . I am not very good with shopping ( I don't really shop unless the needs pop up ) . I got most of my baby stuffs from two of our friends who kindly passed on . I am shopping for my own stuffs now ranging from bras to nursing clothes and probably those herbs / cooking essentials during confinement .
Employment Acts / Women's right :
If we remain in Asia Pacific , women's rights will always be a topic for discussion . Knowing that the employment act does not protect you , what can you do ? Just swallow it and hope it does not happen to you ... or move to another country . Anyway , no politicians in this section , so , it is unlikely that it will change within the near future . Just got to bare with it and hopefully we will get our daughters ready for it. To get to the same position as a man , woman has to put in a lot of efforts .
Nanny / Babysitter :
Those whom your mother or mother in law is willing to look after you child is a bless . Remember to show them some form of appreciation huh !!
Below is a link which might be helpful :
It has the contact ranges from Infant Care / Childcare / Kindergarten to Early Learning .
This magazine is great too , I read one before and I think is value for money .
http://www.motherhood.com.sg/Childcare_Centres/MHEListings.pdf
The comparison chart between the delivery fees among different hospitals is helpful too . Have a look .
There's a mom who left a MCYS URL which guided me with my childcare hunt a couple of days ago , sorry , can't remember the nickname , thank you .
There is some kind of subsidy for working parents who send their children to childcare , is around S$150 I think . Did not really drill into it as yet since my first preference is still a babysitter . ( Still hunting !! " Pant " " Pant " )
