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New moms can lose weight faster by adopting a calorie-reduced regimen such as the HCG diet.
November 20th, 2007 | Babies, Breast Feeding, Personal | 23 Comments
It was weird, my baby Clarisse just decided to stop drinking formula milk one particular afternoon when she’s around 6 weeks old. Before that, she would willingly consume a bottle of formula milk and breast milk but on that day, she started to cry and refused after drinking only 1/2 oz.
Initially, I thought nothing of it. Maybe she’s just being fussy. I kept trying to persuade her to drink her bottle of formula milk. She would drink a sip, turn her head away and start crying uncontrollably if I continue forcing the bottle at her. We tried everything but the kitchen sink, baby Clarisse just won’t give in. She just won’t drink her formula milk. I put the bottle of formula milk away. She seems perfectly alright when I breast feed her afterwards.
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November 19th, 2007 | Babies, Personal | 3 Comments
After a full one month stay at my mother’s house, it’s time to say goodbye and Clarisse and I went back to our house. I have to admit, I’m slightly spoilt having my mom take care of me and Clarisse, in particular. And I’m feeling a bit nervous about having to care for Clarisse all by myself. After all, it will be a new experience for me and there’s a lot to be learnt when handling a one-month old infant.
The first day started out fine. Then come night time. Clarisse just refused to sleep during the night. My husband and I tried whatever we could – hours of nursing on sore nipples, rocking her in aching arms, walking all about the room on tired feet, singing lullabies till our throats get sore – to make her sleep. Just when we thought she dozed off, we slowly put her down on her baby cot. Before we could catch our breath, Clarisse would either wake up immediately or startle herself awake in a matter of minutes. This went on for at least 5 times and I nearly fainted due to fatigue. Finally, we gave up trying to make her sleep in her own baby cot and let her sleep next to us on our bed instead. Thank god, she stopped crying and slept. The time was 4am.
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November 17th, 2007 | Babies, Breast Feeding, Personal | 2 Comments
Baby Clarisse was scheduled for a visit to a paediatrician 6 days after she was born. I was shocked to see Clarisse’s bilirubin level rising to 16. Jaundice with bilirubin level above 13 is considered high. On the day she was discharged from the hospital, Clarisse had a 9 on her bilirubin level and wasn’t considered to be suffering from jaundice.
I was adviced to admit her for phototherapy. She was stripped down to her diaper, except for an eye patch protecting her eyes, and placed under ultraviolet light therapy to speed up her body’s removal of bilirubin. The hospital’s phototherapy room is a small room houses several newborn cots with ultraviolet lamps. No parents or individuals are allowed to stay overnight. I was worried and sad as I couldn’t bear being away from her. Moreover, I wanted to breastfeed Clarisse as much as possible so I made several trips in a day to the hospital just for that. It was painful having to walk and move about during the first week after delivery but I had no choice. We’re grateful we live just 5 mins away from the hospital.
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November 16th, 2007 | Babies, Breast Feeding, Diet, Health, Personal | 3 Comments
After spending 4 days and 3 nights in the hospital, I went back to my mother’s house for my confinement period. Previously, she took care of my eldest sister’s newborns so Clarisse is the third grandchild she’ll be taking care of. I’m so grateful she agreed to take care of us because the first month is an extremely busy and taxing time for families with a newborn. She has to cook for the family, household chores and apart from breastfeeding, she took care of everything else for the baby – bathing, changing diapers etc. It was a learning experience for me. I learnt the ABC’s of baby care by watching my mother.
We had worries about me lacking in breast milk production. My intention from the start was to fully breast feed Clarisse but she would cry after every breastfeeding session. My mother and I worried that I might not produce enough breast milk to satisfy her hunger so we supplemented formula after breastfeeding her. She would sleep soundly after a bottle of formula.
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November 15th, 2007 | Babies, Health, Personal, Pregnancy | 1 Comment
It’s been decided long before giving birth to Clarisse that I will breastfeed her for at least one year. My eldest sister was a big influence in my decision. She told me that she can see the difference in general well-being between bottle-fed and breastfed children. Her daughter was breastfed for only for 2 months, whereas her son was breastfed for up to 2 years. She told me her daughter easily fall sick, unlike his son who appears to have a stronger immune system.
From what I heard so far, I really do believe breastmilk is the best milk for my baby. First of all, baby could consume colostrum from the mother’s milk produced during the first few days after giving birth. Colostrum is essential for newborns because it is high in carbohydrates, high in protein, high in antibodies, and low in fat. It is by far the most beneficial nutrition your baby could get.
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November 13th, 2007 | Personal, Pregnancy | 1 Comment
Friday 9pm
I checked into the hospital delivery ward on a Friday night for my induced labour. Shortly after admission, my OB arrives and inserts a pessary containing prostaglandin into my vagina to ripen the cervix and hopefully stimulates enough contractions to jump-start my labor. After that, I was asked to stay in the delivery ward and get some sleep. If all goes well, I could be ready to deliver the next day.
Saturday 1am
My husband left the hospital at 1am. I couldn’t doze off no matter how I tried. After a few hours tossing about on my bed, I began to feel slight contraction pains at around 4am and from then on, all I could do is lie down and rest my eyes. There’s no way I could sleep with the pain being a constant bother. It’s during times like these I wish I could fast-forward the clock. Anyway, it was a really long, boring and uncomfortable night.
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November 10th, 2007 | Personal, Pregnancy | 1 Comment
During an appointment with my OB on my 36th week of pregnancy, I was adviced to opt for an induced labour sometime around the 38th week of my pregnancy. Due to my previous miscarriage, he told me my baby appears to be doing well and her head is engaged, it would be better for me to go for an induced labour. But I did not decide immediately.
I went for my 37th week check up after a week, my OB told me that my baby was in good condition but traces of varginal fungal infection remains. He precribed another type of varginal tablets, a 7-day treatment to completely get rid of the infection before labour.
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November 9th, 2007 | Health, Personal, Pregnancy | 6 Comments
By the eighth month of my pregnancy, my skin itchiness seemed to have suppressed quite a lot. Still, there were moments of irritation and itchiness but it was mild. Easily relieved by my preferred natural remedy mix of tapioca flour and bittergourd juice.
Just when I thought to myself, the worst of my skin ailments were over, nothing could’ve prepared me for the worst itchy skin problem I’ve ever encountered in my entire life. At precisely 34 weeks, a different type of rash started to appear on my thigh and stretch mark area. These rashes, which looks kind of like eczema, are much more severe than the earlier ones and they itch a lot worst. At it’s peak, the rash spread all over my entire left thigh making the skin dry and red. It’s the dreaded condition called “pruritic urticarial papules and plaques of pregnancy“, in short: PUPPP!
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November 8th, 2007 | Health, Personal, Pregnancy | 2 Comments
Fungal infection took over as the main problem eight months into my pregnancy. I was terribly stressed out because of it. The infection started right after my course of antibiotics for a minor ear infection. Could it be the cocktail of antibiotics upset the balance of good and bad bacteria in my body? I wondered.
Anyway, it started out very mildly and I did not inform my OB about it. I tried taking extra amounts of probiotics and yogurt, which contains live culture of Lactobacillus acidophilus. I also included garlic into my diet each day for it’s anti-fungal properties. Sweet stuff are kept to an absolute minimum as they are known to aggravate fungal ailments.
As it turned out, I had grossly underestimated the severity of my fungal infection. In less than a week, my condition was turning from bad to worst.
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November 7th, 2007 | Health, Personal, Pregnancy | 3 Comments
Time may have heal the wounds of my miscarriage but I could never get over my ignorance of premature labour signs. If only I have known more about the signs and symptoms of premature labour, I wouldn’t have suffered a miscarriage 20 weeks into my pregnancy.
I remember sensations of mild cramps on a Friday morning so I went to see my OB that very day. He told me that I might’ve been too stressful, suggests I go back and get some rests. Thinking there’s nothing to be too concerned over, I did what I was told. I went home and catch as much bed rest as I can. However, my cramps felt a bit more painful at night. It didn’t felt any better when I woke up the next morning. Following my OB’s advice diligently, I went about the day trying my best to release stress, put everything aside, relax and get as much bed rest as possible. My cramps felt worst and much more frequent by night time. It was midnight when I started to experience some bleeding so I immediately rushed to the hospital.
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