Premature babies support group

wow, ur weekend very eventful leh!
try to catch bit of rest whenever can lor...

my weekend is quite the usual... running a few errands, grocery shopping & brought son for a dip in the pool which knocked him out
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so i managed to get pretty good straight hours of sleep that nite.

how's yr boy boy doing?
 


yvonne,

yah, man...dem eventful and vy shagged leh..

tonite still got lessons fm 7 pm to 8 pm..

did your boy like swimming? did doctors give go ahead...my kiddo got this chronic lung disease thingy..so i oso worry abt his lungs next time...

my boy is learning bottle feeding but needs pacing and let him rest becuz he cant just drink so much at one shot...the mee see asked me to come down when free to feed him more..so see how lah tonite..if i still awake after the course...
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Hi Costa,

Have u tried to asked the nurse if he can take cup feeding or SNS? Coz if introduce bottle too early, the baby can get nipple confusion and refuse nursing at your breast. This is what happen to me. I have become a pumping mommy (which is very leh cheh).
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yr boy's drinking is improving, no worries lah. if can, try to practice. at least there's mi si to guide if need to.

welcome to the club!
my boy also has chronic lung disease. bbs will be given the title when they need to be on oxygen for more than 28 days.

i hate the term cos it sounds like a terminal illness & make things lay chay, eg. so many questions when buying insurance, ask for doctor's letters & hospital records... in the end still not approve! hv to wait till 2 years old to buy.

basically, try not to let him zhao liang lor.
it's very normal for premmie be more prone to cold & flu thingy. my boy get the runny nose like most kiddos do. so far, only 1 serious bout & was hospitalised for mild bronchitis early tis year.

i just try to help clear/suck the mucus, give medication to dry up or thin down the thick mucus, etc to prevent build up of liquid in his lungs.
then again, tis is wat all parents will do for "runny" kiddos... so don't worry too much now.

i din consult doc abt the swimming leh. just felt that it wud be a good & fun experience for him, so started him ard 6-7 mths corrected.
he din like it at first. after 3rd try, he "sock dio" & loves splashing ard very much.
 
hi costa and yvonne,

1. costa, i hated the CPR lessons. it made me realise how vulnerable my daughter is.

2. yvonne, my daughter is recovering from her second bout of flu leh. she's 7.5 months (real age). sigh. my SIL told me to see specialists for her cough but i am very reluctant cos i feel that specialists and paediatricians often over-medicate. i think i will wait for my daughter's next appt with her KK neonatologist to ask her opinion about this.

3. yvonne, u also send your baby for swimming? where did you go? i want to send my daughter also lah. cos she's soooooa ctive and always kicking around.

4. any of you got insurance for your kid? what kind of insurance did you get? do you have to pay higher premiums?

5. i'm actually quite lost in this thread. shall we have an excel table or something which shows when our babies were born, his/her weight, how long s/he spent in the hospital, complications our child faced etc etc?
 
hi telly,

hv not "seen" u for awhile...

i din send my boy for any lesson, just go soak soak only.
if u want proper lessons, think can check out aquaduck or something like that.
actually, swimming is very recommended for premmies cos can help strengthen their weaker lungs.

i learnt recently that most insurance co will only accept/approve policy for premmies after 2 year old, basically when they hv normalise.

i'm fine with yr idea but not sure how to go abt setting up. any expert to lead?
 
oh telly,

don't worry, yr daughter will hv lesser flu bouts as she grows stronger.
my boy still gets the runny nose every now & then but nothing serious like before.

his neo-doc says a little bronchitis is quite expected. but more important to monitor for whizzing, asthma-like symptoms. so i hv the puffer thingy on standby (so far no need to use it).

actually, my boy was given the puff during his KK stay & early weeks at home. it was to help strengthen his lungs.

totally agreed that we shud try not to medicate too quickly too much.
u might want to try let her sleep on higher head position or dab bit of vicky's rub on her chest or aromatherapy. i still burn eucalyptus oil every now & then (very good for blocked nose). actually wat i find most effective is to suck out the mucus.
 
I bought insurance (great eastern) for dd when she was ard 3 months. Had some problems with getting approval from the underwriter. He/she wanted copy of the appt section of her health booklet which I thought it was plan silly. That's because appts can be changed mah. So what if whoever wrote dates on the appt page. Doesn't mean anything.

Anyway, my insurance agent photocopy the entire health booklet and gave them. They approve finally but w/o the hospitalisatiion. Only after 1year then we can try to add in the hospitalisation.

I can't remember what plan we bought. Must ask my ah lau cos he paid for it mah.
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Harlo, good morning,

yvonne, you are right, i was sleeping yesterday in the office....really shagged out..

yterday went for lesson and came back at 9 plus becuz after lesson went to see my baby and then dily dally and vy late then went back

really hate the term chronic lung, sounds so terminal..remember the "giraffe" machine to take xrays of the lungs...when one of the younger doctors told me tis term in the early stage, i was so moody for the whole day...tink i only wanted to hear good news and not bad news
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but now, machiam tis term so common and i hear it so often...

dun say preemies prone to fall sick, my full term son always sick also last time..every mth fever...kena hospitalised twice and always pong chan the paedi.....every mth at least once, one..

stressed,
i think i did ask abt the cup feeling thingy...she said cant leh...

which insurance you got for yr baby? so troublesome and ngeow..who wants to claim this type of thingy man?

telly and yvonne,
anyone good in excel tables...?im totally rotten at computer skills (except posting on forums) ha ha.....it wld be good idea to compile a list....
 
<table border=1><tr><td>Nick</TD><TD>Baby's DOB</TD><TD>Gender</TD><TD>Baby's Birth Weight</TD><TD>Baby Delivered in Week</TD><TD>Complications </TD></TR><TR><TD>telly</TD><TD>16-Mar-06</TD><TD>Girl</TD><TD>1.136kg</TD><TD>34</TD><TD>Inguinal Hernia - Had surgery </TD></TR><TR><TD></td></tr></table>
 
morning ladies!

telly,
the instruction is quite cheem. got to test out 1st - don't want to mess up yr nice table.. kekeke

costa,
so hv u finished yr lessons liao?
yeah, it's really tiring. i remember losing alot of weight during the early months; lack of rest &amp; all the shuttling ard KK.
sadly, all PLUS extra weight has now come back for permanent visit.
 
yvonne,

good morning....
i finished all my lessons now on monday..
my kid's neighbour was discharged liao and the parents brot the bb back for lessons.....so cute....got "live" demo when questions were asked..ha ha.

the doc says can bring back but since they are going to take MRI (his ventricles dilated and they wanna check again) and oso got eye review so i m not too much in a hurry to bring him back...so maybe say two wks time...in the meantime will ask my maid and my mum to go there to learn abt tube feeding...

he has to be tube fed becuz of the darn chronic lung,he cannot really coordinate the lung breathing plus the drinking....

spoke to doc yterday who said that he may take anytime between two to four wks to learn..so hopefully within these two wks he wld completely learn......tis is the onli thing holding him back

my tummy has come back for a permanent visit as well...
 
continue to encourage yr little warrior, ya... don't be disheartened.
he may just surprise u tis 2 weeks.

but will the nurses still attempt bottle feeding?
 
Hi all,

i am a new mama (my boy was born at gestation age of 26 weeks on 12 Aug 06). he is now weight about 2.3kg and well went through all the premmies went through. he is coming to 3 mths stay at KKH. he is now in SCN and soon (the nurse is helping me to get ready) be going home :)

i always chat with costa over email.

to all mama, my salute to you :)
 
hi jane,

welcome to the thread! Salute to u too
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good to hear that your boy will be home soon.
my boy was also born in august... 2005. he's a 29 weeker and spent 2.5mths at KK.
 
hello yvonne,

yeah now i got a new fren (i make a couple of frens at SCN) - aka mother of premature baby ;-)

costa is the first i really chat a lot with.

there are a few mothers who is very kind and show me how to carry my baby etc (see i am really new until i don't even know how to carry my baby properly :p)

oh so your boy is also born in aug which day??...wow, one year has pass so fast for you.

can i ask you..when u brought your boy home, did you encounter any problem? like is there any special thing i should take note??
 
Harlo,

Yvonne, hope my bb wld really surprise me...
the mee sees said that he can bottle but must pace ...but the speech and learning theraphists think otherwise and inserted the tube back
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really scared i cannot handle at home....and wun noe how to monitor whether he's ready for total bottling or not

Jane,
welcome here..heh heh....we can learn alot here fm the mommies of graduates.....
 
hi costa,

ya haha. i finally manage to learn how to log into this site :p (since becoming a mother i like become slower in learning things hehe - excuse many many).

oh...so the doc recommend tube feeding at home for your boy? hmm.... don't be discourage yet, there is still one or two weeks. have faith in your boy, he will suck, swallow and breath one...

it was the nurse manager who 'order' my boy to bottle feed... don't worry, the nurse will go all out to make it possible for your boy to bottle. they are the one who is always in the ward and know how to make things happen....

have faith and don't be stress up....
 
jane,

wat to do?there is always a "theory" method and a "practical" method when it comes to analysis of pblems..

its the insertion of tube, aspiration which im afraid of...
 
hi costa,

have strong faith (i know you are tired out...) remain positive. re you told me..you n your boy have come so far, what is that little extra mile? cheer up. nothing will be too difficult for you.

there is still 14 days... sing and encourage your boy, drink..suck swallow.. tell him, mama milk milk ler..very nice to drink...

try not to think too much yet about tube feeding. learning about it is ok... but continue to have faith that your boy will bottle.
 
jane,

he was born 24 aug (hee... telly, me still figuring out the table)

yeah, time flies esp with bb. me also a 1st time mummy. still hv much to learn too.

don't recall any major problem when my boy was home. it was the usual transition of settling into a daily routine.
i find that if u can anticipate bb's needs, u'll hear less cry &amp; hv a better day.
be more attentive to his "weakness". eg. my boy has slight reflux, so i had to feed slowly &amp; burp thoroughly.

can read more detail in my earlier postings (don't want to bore others... costa, u still there???)
 
costa,

aiyo, the speech therapists (SP) are always more careful while the mi si are more gungho.

SP also say my boy not ready to bottle but mi si still go ahead (thanks to the gutsy "old bird" nurse).
just try to get them to bottle feed at least once a day to let ur boy continue practice. when he's tired liao, finish up with tube feed.
 
Hi,stressed,

will look at the webbie you mentioned...

jolene,

welcome on board,

yvonne,

i hope i can noe how to anticipate his needs...at the moment,still catch no ball on why he is crying after i have checked everythg eg diapers etc

the mee sees are more hands on and more gung ho compared to the "by the book" SP......and oso the theraphists are so young compared to the mee sees, eat rice also not as much as the mee sees eat salt.....

lunch is 1230 onwards, so i disappeared for a while
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costa,

when bb's home &amp; u face him 24/7, u'll know how to anticipate liao.

my mum always say "bb will do the things they do when the time comes, no worry lah".
yr boy just reached EDD, so soon will bottle properly.

i had the similar worry when my boy failed his initial physiotherapy assessment, not doing wat he's supposed to be able to. i worked hard on supplementary exercises given by the therapist &amp; he ended up being frustrated most time. so i decided to not force him &amp; let him be... and now he's doing fine.
 
yvonne,

he reached edd last month liao leh..really worried and moody...

wat happens if you dun follow wat the theraphists ask you to do?i keep hearing that we gonna be religious and follow thru..so i really have tis question on my mind.....
 
I also very kan chiong. My dd is now 5 1/2mo and still cannot turn. Last time when she was younger, alot of things also cannot do.

But very strangely, some mornings you wake up and voila! she can do liao.

So I think our babies will know when to surprise us.
 
stressed,
does yr baby go for follow ups wif the neo nats?

we really hope for pleasant surprises from our bbs everyday
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Yes. But she didn't go to the one she saw in the beginning coz he is too popular. His appts are fully booked 2 months in advance!!

I went to another in Singapore Baby and Child Clinc. They have docs that specialises in preemies.

No worries. One day you'll be surprised with a lovely smile from ds and all your problems will melt away....

I know mine did.
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stressed,
thanks, so you can just follow up wif any other doctors instead of those at the hospital yr baby was staying...

really hope to be surprised one day....
 
Thanks for the welcome.

Yvonne,my bb is still trying to learn how to bottle feed.He is coming 35th month but get breathless sometimes.Thus,nurse hv reduce his milk intake.He is now 2.045kg when I visited him yesterday.
 
costa &amp; stressed,

premmies will be slow in the beginning BUT they really do catch up nearer to age 1.

my boy also din turn at 5-6 mths, din sit well at 7-8 mths but was standing pretty steadily with support.
sometimes bb skip certain stage... my boy din crawl &amp; moved onto standing. only started to crawl a little NOW at 14mths!

as for follow-ups, as long as the doc has all the necessary record to track, guess it doesn't quite matter where u go.
 
as for following instructions... i try to do wat's suggested but not always lor.

in the beginning when bb is less mobile, i do the exercises.
as bb grows older, it's not easy to get them to co-operate so do alot lesser or not at all.

but i do notice a few ocassions during normal play time, subconsciously some exercises are being done. so guess that's how i become really lazy now.
 
jolene,

yr bb has improved lots in 5 weeks. be very proud of... is a boy or girl???
oredi reached min weight requirement so don't worry too much.
 
Jolene,
which hosp your kiddo is in now?bb is at a good weight now...dun worry...

yvonne,
so scary when the neo nats said must track under 8 yrs old...i nearly fainted...ha ha...

you are right that bbs may skip certain stages,hopefully my bb can skip the slow sucking and swallowing and quickly swallow...yterday saw that he drink milk until want to koon liao, the eyes so comical like struggling to open....

guess you are right for the exercises...we maybe lazy when it has become our routine...
 
costa,

sounds more like ur boy so comfortable that even sucking motion can lullaby him to sleep... definitely don't sound like he's struggling... heehee
 
hello,

sorry miss in action for a while.


yvonne - so your boy is born 24 aug...my husband just returned from hosptial and told me my boy can go home by next week (if he pass his eye review and blood test on next monday).

i am now trying to plan what to buy and what to prepare for his coming home :p.

i am curious, before discharge will the doc tell me when and where i should do follow up for my boy?

tomorrow i am going for the mother craft class, hehe, learn how to bath my boy etc :p

oh jolene - welcome to the thread... my boy also breathless hence when bottle feed has to hve good pace...
 
yvonne,

tink so...either that or he noes that if he lazy to suck, he can be tube fed as the tube has been inserted into his throat
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jane,

tink the nurses will tell you where to go for review etc....they wun just discharge you without proper instructions one lah..they look after him so long..sure will hv detailed follow up actions, one...

tell me more aft the mothercraft classes...tink i noso need alot of hands on...
 
congrats jane! ur little warrior is heading home liao.

yes, the nurse will do:
1. make all necessary appointments at respective clinics (eye, clinic K, etc)
2. jab bb's BCG &amp; 1st Hep B &amp; give u health booklet to keep track of jab schedule
3. arrange for pharmacist to dispense medication, if necessary (we went home with a few)

most important, remember to bring yr boy a nice homecoming outfit &amp; blanket to swaddle &amp; keep him comfy.
 
hi yvonne,

yes a warrior he is....3 mths down the road...we have been anticpating for the day to come and finally...it came..

oh i see. okie, then i not so worried. so the nurse will bascially informed me what i need to do and etc...

thankfully, though quite last minute, my mama has asked me to bring my boy to her house..so she can 'guide' me on how to care for my boy (i be taking leave).

this weekend will be busy getting things ready :p.

tonight will go and try bottle feed my boy again.

hope i can be a good caring mother... :p
 
hi costa.

hehe...ok ok, sure will drop u all note about my day at the mother craft lesson. sure a lot of funny thing i will do hahahah... i very blur one :p.. like i say, at first i don't even know how to carry my boy properly.
 
jane, how long you going to be on leave?

i oso need a gauge for my work planning purposes...

is yr mama staying near you?

i dun noe if i can be a caring mum...hope i can be oso...i try to see if i can bathe him tis wkend...as it is,he is wriggling and kicking vy hard...so how to handle,...i oso noe nuts...
 
jane,

u'll definitely be a good caring mother, there's no doubt abt it.

with bb at home, u'll bond alot more &amp; maternal instinct will soon guide u along naturally.
 
hi costa and yvonne,

i only left with 20 days (the 3rd mth) maternity leave, which will expired next feb 07. so i will clear the 20 days, plus my 2 days Annual leave plus some misc leave. so all in all i be with my boy for about 25 days before i go back to work again.

after that my mama will take care. but here and there i will take one day two day to be with my boy lor...

my mama is staying in bedok...while i stay in Jurong east ler :p. so my boy tentatively will have to live with my mum until he is big enough for me to bring home during weekend or at night (which my mum is not very encouring as my boy is small at this stage).

hehe...i hope i can cope and learn as much as i can with my mum...
 



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