After birth..

Starting 5th April 2011,  11.58pm... we are a parent to a healthy boy!! :) alhamdulillah... greatest gift that a wed-couple could ever get... how are we coping? more or less the same as other newly parents i guess... it's NOT easy... even though 'some things' came naturally... overall, it's not easy at all... anybody who said it's easy.. well she's a definite biggest liar ever!!! on in-denial mode... heheh... agree new mums? :D


At hospital (mummy)
- I would say this is the least complicated.. erkkk... why? you have dedicated nurses who are there with you, to offer their help endlessly, 24 hours around the clock!! your job is only eat and breastfeed your baby... even almost every breastfeeding session, I was assisted by Ms Yee, a superb lactating officer in SDMC... toilet? 1st day, i was assisted by 2 nurses... as i can barely feel my leg due to the anaes.. and definitely was bathed by them.... on bed.. hehe.. felt like a queen!
- baby needs change? hmm.. call nurse! ehhe...
- again.. all we did was feed the baby.....
- 2nd day at hospital, i was able to walk to the toilet but hubby helped to bath me...
- 3rd day, i bathed myself.. yayy! and i felt the more i walk, the better i felt... so i took a stroll along the ward... hehe... gegeh tak? nurse said, "wahh.. mcm tak kena bedah pulak ya... good good"
- 4th day... discharge.. again.. refused to be on the wheelchair.. walked to the car proudly as a mother, pushing Armand on the stroller... :)


At hospital (baby)
- 1st night... slept with us... breastfeed started... felt funny and awkward as i have to hold him in a 'football position'

nurse said this position is the best for c-sect mums...

- Nurse only took him around 6.30am to 'clean' him... and almost all the time the baby is in my room... 

- 2nd night.. he cried more.. apparently he had BCG at 8pm that night.. and he preferred to sleep in my arms.. ok lorr.. mummy oso like! :)

- 3rd day.. Armand was chosen to be a 'model'... i guess because he is the 'right-size'.. hehe... it's just a session for bathing baby... practically.. as before in the antenatal class... we were taught theoretically... we had 7 couples with us.. and Armand behaved tremendously.. ahemm.. kecik2 dah suka limelight..

- 4th day.. His paeds, Dr. Sanjay Woodhull had cleared him from Jaundice (level at 128 - normal range)... we were grateful for that result as we all can go home.. but we need to return a week after to check his jaundice again and to check my wound dressing as well...

At home (mummy and baby)
- nurses' job were taken over by my mum... ahahah... except i bathed Armand by myself... and the breastfeeding part of course..
- daddy is being such a great daddy and husband!! take turns with me, day and night to hold our baby... in the 1st week, i would say he 'worked' more than me as my movements was limited...
- breastfeeding is getting harder as Armand feeds more and more... nipples are sore and badly hurt sometimes.. :( then i alternate breastfeed and expressed milk... luckily Armand has no 'nipple-confusion'... eheh...

1st check-up went well!
- My wound dressing was opened.. and it's already dried and healed! :) docCT gave me a compliment.. hehe... and i said, thanks to Pati Ikan Haruan Polleney and my mum/sis-in-law who cooked Ikan Haruan dish for me daily for 7-consecutive days!
- but she said, that's the 'outer'... inner-ones would take longer to heal.. ouch! advised me to rest from teaching at the gym for at least 3 months.. *sigh* ok lorrrr........... i'll wait!!
- DocCT checked my weight.. it was 81kg... and she'll see me in 6 weeks time... and we kinda 'bet' what's my weight gonna be... ahhaha.. hopefully i get to surprise her! :)
- Baby's jaundice decreased from 128 to 118... Dr Sanjay said that we are feeding him well... so keep it up!

Again.. alhamdulillah...


Current
- i understand the meaning of post-natal blues!!
- still  breastfeeding... alternate with expressed milk of course... from 2.5oz every 3hrs.. now he demands for at least 4oz... i managed to get 5oz in each 'pump-session' every 4hrs... really hope that i can cater to his needs... huhu... so thinking of baby formula to back-up... :(
- mum and hubby are still helping me endlessly and patiently... thanks you both! love u lots!! and i promised to recover fully as fast as i can so that i can be less-burden to you... sob sobss... xoxo

p/s: thanks for all the gifts and visits from our lovely friends!! :)

p/s/2: dear relatives... your comments/ advice during visits are not welcomed! thank you... seriously.. in the 'pantang-mode', new mums do not need comments/advice at all.. what we need is help! 'action-wise'.. not words! even though you thought you are helping.. believe me.. you are not! thanks in advance... :)

Mum makes me wear big shirt

Hi.. Today I'm wearing 6-12mths old shirt... As my mum said it's easier to make me wears bigger shirt.. Hmmm....

Hahahhhh... as he was 3.86kg when he was born, there's no way I can fit him to newborn's... He started wif 3-6mths.. Next doc visit is on 16th may.. Till then, I didn't know how much he had gained weight currently.. But holding/ breastfeeding him now is so a workout for me.. Yikess!!

Currently 74kg! 5 more to go to weight b4 pregnancy! And I was 90kg at the end of my pregnancy.. Damn!!
LEONORA

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How Armand came into the world..

Assalamualaikum!! :)

Before i proceed with the details... bear in mind that my EDD was 28th March.. so docCT decided to induce, after 7 days overdue... it was scheduled on 5th April 2011. On the morning... mintak maaf dgn mak bagai... in-laws also called... :)

5th April 2011, 8.30am:

- Arrived at SDMC.. escorted to Delivery Suite 12.. wahh.. suite?? hmmm... psycho-ing mummy to be i guess.. hehe.. changed into uniform... gave me tag... they showed other 2 same tags.. will be used for the baby..

- Put CTG for 30 mins.. and husband was escorted to pre-admission to pay the deposit.. heee...

- Nurse asked whether i have eaten or not... well... i had Mak's fried rice for breakfast... getting ready! :) then nurse still offer whether she can order some food for me.. i said no thanks.. 

5th April 2011, 9.15am:

- erkk.. i felt very warm... and nurse moved me into Delivery Suite no 9.. hehe... 

- *phewwww* better aircond...

- docCT came... smile smile... talk talk... and we began the drip... put 'thingy' in my butt to get me poo-poo.. and she broke my waterbag... arghhhhhh!!! hurt like hell... i cried! :P i'm not ashamed to admit that i'm not good with pain tolerance.. ahah...

- then every now and then i can feel 'warm water' came out from 'down there'... feels like pee-ing all the time.. nurse said, "it's ok Leo.. u can pee on the bed.. " owh.. like dat oso can arr.. ahahah... feels funny at 1st until i really pee-ed!!! OMG!! i wet the bed! my gown.. blanket.. all smell pee.. euwwww... nurse just laughed, ":) no worries Leo.. we'll change it for you ok.." then she did lah... :) so schweeettttt...

- and i want to poo-poo!!! nurse escorted as i need to bring the whole drip in...

5th April 2011, 10.30am:

- Nurse did VE.. only 1cm opening... check CTG.. it shows contraction.. yet i don't feel anything... hmm... funny... baby's HR seemed good.. in the mean time, all i do was pee on bed.. ahahah... and nurse only came to say hi to me and changed my pad..

5th April 2011, 11.30pm:

- Nurse wanted to order lunch for me.. although i'm not hungry but she insisted for me to eat.. i will need the energy later.. ok.. chicken porridge then.. :) hubby went out for lunch as well...

- 12.52pm.. VE again.. 1.5cm... hmmmm... still.. mummy still didn't feel any contraction... all i can feel was the pain from the VE... arghhh.. me no likeee!!! Ctg chart shows every 3mins already.. nurse said it's a very unusual case.. hmm.. what to do... i'm started to feel sleepy... haizzzz...

5th April 2011, 2.15pm:

- Opening 2cm.. i'm still bored and sleepy... doc just monitor everything.. baby's ok.. then i went back to sleep.. ehee...

5th April 2011, 3.30pm:

- Diff nurse came... did VE again! :P still 2cm... i'm getting fed-up from VE pain... and i said to my hubby.. if i were to ask for epidural bcoz i couldn't stand VE, will my request be rejected? eheee... 

- docCT came around 4pm... nurse said she just checked and i'm still 2cm.. docCT decided to check again.. haizzz... apparently, she not only check.. but 'wiggle2' her fingers to 'force' some opening... auwwww... my eyes teary again... thats's it!! epidural it is!! hehe...

- Dr Bius came in.. got a 'little lecture' from her for requesting epidural whereas i have no contraction pain at all... heheh... sorry doc... me no like VE!!!

- i thought this process wud be painful.. but i was totally wrong... i guess this doc is super-hebat!! she talked with me throughout the procedure... which only take less than 10 mins i think... few moments after that.. i started to feel numb... and backpain gone totally.. hehe.. i like! then what i did? i slept!! soo heavenly i felt... hubby try to catch some zzz on the couch as well

5th April 2011, until 10.40pm:

- Nurse already changed 3 times... did VE.. i felt nothing... ahahhaha... 

- docCT came... and my opening still 2cm... la la laaaaaaa..... this is where my eyes were totally wide-open.. why? docCT explain in details... she preferred to perform c-sect as there is no progress in my opening... water already been broke.. amniotic fluid is getting lesser... already 12 hours.. there's no point of waiting as i can be 4cm in another 12 hours.. by that time, baby might be in distressed and she did not want to do emergency c-sect... moreover, if the water broke more than 12 hours, baby is prone to infection as well... again, something we want to avoid...

- i looked at Alif with a look of no opinion... hubby said.. we'll go with what doc recommended.. she knows best... and i smiled and said ok... let's do this!!

- then nurse prep me for operation.. Alif called my mum and his mum to update our situation... and before i left to Operation Theatre (OT), salam alif.. cium tangan... and felt so sad as i so want him to be on my side... he kissed my forehead and told me everything will be okay... see me with the baby in awhile.. :)

5th April 2011, approximate 11.15pm (in OT8):

- I'm on half-anesthetic.. as docCT said if full-anesthetic the baby will prone to be 'sleepy' as well.. 

- Ok... i could hear what docCT was doing... one nurse hold my hands and calming me down all throughout the surgery.. moment after that, i can feel baby crying.. owh.. that;s my baby... docCT said, "owh.. sharifah.. beratnya baby u.. patut la takmo keluar" hehe.. i can see nurse took the baby, and brought him under a 'machine'..looks like a 'warmer'... then brought him to me.. "puan.. baby puan.. comel.." and i kissed him on the cheek! i cried my heart out... "saya tak boley bagi puan lama2 ya.. kena bawak pegi nursery.. sebelum tu, jumpa suami puan dulu utk azankan semua ya.. nanti jumpa baby dkt ward nanti"

- baby is born at 11.58pm, 5th April... 2 mins to 6th April.. hehe...

- i'm so sad.. huhu.. couldn't explain that moment in words... 

- then docCT said she's 'closing' everything.. as fast as she could to minimize 'bleeding'... by this time.. i suddenly can feel the pain and pressure.. Dr Bius inserted more anes and i dozed-off.. weird.. as i cudn open my eyes.. felt like sleeping but i can still hear what's going on...

- all in all... i was escorted out from OT to the ward.. when i arrived at the room.. hubby, mak, parents in law and fieza were there... owh.. i'm so blessed! hubby kissed me on and said our baby is beautiful.. :) relief.... psychical and mental.. hahah...

6th April 2011, 2.00am:

- saying bye-bye to mak, PIL and Fieza... fieza sent my mom home... huhu.. thanks babe!

- hubby stayed with me in the ward of course.. love you abang!

- nothing much, but i remembered vomitting.. hehe... due to the anes nurse said.. and it's normal... and i was shivering... again, due to the anes... nurse blanket-ed me twice.. and i slept! hehe...

- we were woken up at 3.30am.. brought baby to us!! yayy!!! we hold Armand in our arms.. then nurse taught me how to breastfeed.. then Armand slept in my arms... hubby and i talked until 6am.. hehe...admiring our baby! :)

My personal conclusion... we can only plan.. but Allah always knows what's best for us!! :)

Love,

Short Entry

Still jumbling time between effort/hard work/patience for taking care of Armand and myself... Hopefully I'll get the hang of it by the end of confinement... Today's short entry, just to share some tips/meds for new mothers like me...

Especially for the ones who had c-sect for their babies' birth.....

My experience
- I'm able to walk on the 2nd day.. In a way forcing myself bcoz of 'toilet-process'.. Hehe.. Alhamdulillah... Actually I felt better with a bit walking here and there..
- 3rd day, I took a stroll around the ward.. Saying hi to all nurses, whom all, apparently remembered my names.. Haha.. I think they are well-trained to be 'user-frenly' and memorize all the moms' names.. Kudos to SDMC's nurses!!!
- 4th day.. Trip home!! Able to walk while pushing our baby on the stroller.. NO WHEELCHAIR!! Heheee.. Proud of myself! Yayy...

Home:
- the pain seems gone.. Until... Jeng jeng jeng... 10th day: I'm out of painkillers!!!
- aiyoooo.... this is when you can feel your uterus 'squeezes' every time you breastfeed.. Doc said it's normal as the hormone that produces milk = hormone that helps you "kecutkan rahim".. So that pain is a good pain.. Well... There's no beauty without pain.. Ahemm.. Pain is still pain... Besides that, sore all over body...

Then my sis-in-law found a product.. Recommended by her several friends whom used it successfully after their c-sect delivery.. Helps a lot with the pain.. And makes u feel stronger... And it works for me too.. So.. Feel free to try...

LD-VENUS Gold... Elken Product.. Manufactured in DongBao new village, Tonghua, China... Comes with Halal certificate.. And it tastes nice too!! :) like a very heavy honey..

P/S: I still on Pati Ikan Haruan Polleney though.. Good meds won't hurt u.. :) and this one is tasteless!! Buwekkkk....

Love,
LEONORA


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Me like sleep!

SLEEP 1

 

his favourite sleep position until today.. 'football hold' position for breastfeed...

SLEEP 2

 

with my sister.. his first day at our home in USJ.. just back from hospital...

SLEEP 3

 Baby rocker, gift from Tok Lang.. his daytime sleep place...

SLEEP 4

 he prefers not to 'bedung' his hands... after awhile asleep, he will 'pose' like that..

 SLEEP 5

 he'll become like this everytime after feeding.. fall asleep on my lap.. ehhe...

i think mummy has new sleeping habit too.. aka.. less sleep! haizz....

Armand's virtual friends

I've been keeping all these photos.. just for this moment.. :) but first, apologize coz publishing these cuties without permission of their mothers first... do message me if you are not comfortable having your baby photo at my blog.. i'll remove it as soon as i can ya.. :) and also do forgive me if i miss-spelled the name/ info... tolong komen utk pembetulan...

 Baby Diah -Nayli - DOB: 11th Feb

 

 Baby Cindellyna - Amani Sofea - DOB: 18th Feb

 

Baby Yanie - Nurul Aleesya - DOB: 24th Feb

 

Baby Diana - Adam Mikael - DOB: 6th March

 Baby Anor - Harith Iskandar Umar - DOB: 14th March

Baby Nza - Arryan Rifzain - DOB: 15th March

And Megat Armand Firdaus

is really proud to have them as their virtual friends... hehe... by the way, do you know when i'm born, i weighed 8lb 8oz (3.86kg), delivered at OT8? hehe.. org Cina kata nombor ada ong lahhh

proud breastfeeding mummy!

We're home!!

Alhamdulillah.... we're all home already... mummy and baby is healthy... i can walk around quite comfortably already... and breastfeeding Armand every 2-hours is a bliss even though it's verrrrrrry tiring sometimes... heheh... tomorrow i'll be gathering photos and facts.. hehe.. to share with you my delivery experience... till then, i'll leave to you Baby Armand is his new Baby Rocker... present from Tok Lang and Nek Lang... :)

3 days old Armand! :)

loving every moments of the pre-motherhood!!

The Debut

Assalamualaikum....

Thanks for all your prayers.. Now I'm officially a mother to a healthy son, Megat Armand Firdaus bin Alif Fazli. 3.86kg.. *opps.. Mummy over-eating* On 11.58pm, 5th april 2011 at Sime Darby Medical Centre....

More stories to come.. Stay tune!

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THE DAY...

Assalamualaikum....

InsyaAllah... 5th April 2011, 8.00am... we'll be in SMDC's delivery room for the birth of our first baby... We hereby humbly request for your prayers for the health and safety of mummy and baby... Will keep you update... 

Thanking all in advance... love,

Alif and Leonora

hapdet!

not yet frens... docCT has decided it's better for mummy and baby to NOT to induce today.... will wait until 5th April... if nothing happens in between, 5th April, i'll report straight to labour room... insyaAllah by then i'll be able to hold Jr. in my arms....

what happened actually???

my due date was 28th March.... besides mild contractions that i felt few days back... there is no indication at all that i'm going into labour any sooner... docCT said last week that i might be induced today (1st April)... after few findings... we're gonna wait....

8.30am - CTG (cardiotocography - the fetal heartbeat and the uterine contractions) for one hour at the Diagnostics Dpmt... i'm 'strapped' to the CTG machine and waited patient-ly for one hour... got the report after one-hour.. and brought it back to clinic...

9.45am - met docCT... did VE test... ouch... today, the 'new nurse' almost got kicked by me!!! eeee... i'm so pissed... when docCT is inserting half-way, usually i'll stop her hand if i felt a bit discomfort and she will let me take a few breaths and she'll proceed... and you know what.. all of a sudden, this nurse put her hands on both my knees and start to push them apart!!! like harlowwwwwwwwww.......... i raised my voice, "take your hands off my leg!!!" docCT quite surprised by the nurse's action and also my scream i guess.. haha... so she 'ordered' the nurse to back-off... go docCT! :) eeee..... you are a woman!!! you should know how uncomfortable it is for a woman to do such examination especially when u use 'force'... luckily she is intelligent enuff to apologize... so, i just said ok and pls don't ever do that again to other pregnant ladies... 

10.00am - The discussion. DocCT said... i barely has an opening... only tips of her finger. Even though she can feel the baby's head (i felt the touch too) but all surrounding muscles are still 'tough'... meaning naturally, my body is not giving any indication of giving birth... even the CTG shows no contractions within that one hour... and baby's heartbeat so strong as normal... so, she is not keen to induce me today... then.. quite a long pause... :) maybe she can see that i don't want to wait anymore... so she furthers her explanation... 


induce... in easy terms.. force labour.. by giving me drugs/ imitation hormones to progress labour... 1st - insert down there.. so it will dilates for readiness of the opening.. and 2nd - by drip... to progress contractions.. the thing is, she can't do the 1st step to me, as the medication somehow can trigger my asthma. She doesn't want to take that chance.. so what happens, she can only proceed with 2nd step... which is the 'force contractions'.. With the condition of my opening now (yang tak bukak2 tu),  contractions + no opening = longgggg labour!! mummy + baby = stress big time... and possibility of c-sect is very high... docCT stressed that, if possible, we want to avoid c-sect.... moreover, my baby's heart beat is very strong still + amniotic fluid is still ok = we can afford to wait a bit longer... :) mummy smiled at this time... in my mind... i've been waiting for the whole nine months... what more only few days... :) 

so... our new target date is 5th April!! 8am = labour room! this time.. confirm induce cos it will be exactly 1-week off the due date... docCT only comfy to wait extra 7 days... no more than that.... 

and people!! mummy has few more days to eat durian and ice-creams!!! ahahahhaha....