Belle

yes am keen to help on this in some way as I had a v tough time though was lucky with wonderful husband,friends and famil y - but you need people to talk to who understand I agree. Had heard there was a possibility of htis happening with NCT locally (know there is a dearth of tea groups in the area due to lack of volunteers, and I really missed that this wasn't an option). I've thought personally about post natal doula training because I feel so strongly about it all but not sure of practicalities with my own 15 mth old to juggle just now. Like your idea Fuschia of maybe when they're in nursery sessions (hoping to send mine at 2, for a couple of mornings a week) - using the time to help out with a group. Bee - let us kn ow what kind of thing you have in mind/what help you'd need? I had PND and would be very happy to come to a group and share my experiences and how I got over it if that would help.

yep, I remember thinking it was like I was on a notice period of infinity and it was horrible! not sure about the idea that nature works to make sure you're a good mum in those early days, not for everyone anyhow - nature (or perhaps circumstances, or both) def didn't come through for me on that one! I managed to keep my baby looked after and he was fine, but I definitely wasn't.

congratulations Fuschia!

i've heard she is good - there is also a bloke at dulwich therapy rooms (above health matters) who is meant to be very good, I can't remember his name but suspect the only hypno therapist working there, you could try calling them to check. He was recommended to me by another practitioner at the therapy rooms there and I'd def try him if/when i have another baby.

like a permanent state of anxiety and exhaustion really, and yes agree about the shock. I just kept thinking 'this is my life now...oh my god!'. But i know others who've had far more positive experiences. atlhough it got easier - other things got harder - but having said that, the anxiety and tension of those early days did go for me.

I think the issue probably more likely the bottle not the contents of the bottle. My cousin's baby didn't take a bottle either and she needed to go back to work at six months so he switched to a cup, and yes have heard the doidy is good in this instance (unfortunately my boy would just throw the contents all over himself and me so stuck to sippy cups!). I know what one poster meant about wondering if the baby would take enough milk but think they will take what they need, it may just be it takes longer. But yes, others have had success I think from just trying lots of different types of teats etc. Heidi - realise you're not trying to provoke the forumla versus breast debate which is of course not what this OP was looking for, but do think that comparing formula to cheap meat is a bit ill-considered. To be honest I've come out the other side of supposedly 'failing' to breastfeed and am v happy about having used formula, and would do again, but I do worry that new, anxious mums could be made to feel bad about what they're giving their babies if people persist in rubbishing formula. I find it useful to think of breastmilk and formula as, respectively, excellent and very good options for nourishing your child. It doesn't have to be right versus wrong or good versus 'vile'.

Another vote for stopping earlier rather than later - i opted to stop 3 weeks before but got signed off with pre eclampsia a few days before ML was due to start and baby arrived the day before I'd have officially stopped work - I was gutted not to have had any time to myself and really think this made the transition to motherhood very tough. I remember thinking I'd have liked to change the dates and stop a month or 5 weeks before but I felt too guilty to ask - how stupid! As am now a full time mum am contemplating the thought that I'll never have real maternity leave now (well unless we leave it a long time to have another baby in which case I'll go back to work before). So I'd say grab the time now!

Sillywoman might know with the arnica? I think we were told on our nCt course but can't remember. Yes there are baths in hospital, though I just had showers. Not sure if it's been mentioned but I took in dettox wipes so i could wipe round in the shower - I was paranoid about infection, perhaps unreasonably so but it gave me peace of mind.

My midwife found a childminder who would do 'on-calls' - so similar to what you need (tho not sure if she had to pay some kind of retention fee) - from the list of childminders which you can get from Southwark Council. i've not personally used it but know others on the forum have found their childminders that way.

The cath kidston one comes in cowboy print if you dont' want to go too girly - that's what we got, though later I graduated to the baby bjorn rucksack (not glam but v practical esp when carting the buggy up steps at the tube for example). Baby Bjorn change bag I agree that in a way they're not essential but it's useful getting the extras eg travel change mat and what I like about the BB one is that it has two insulated pockets that fit bottles (or your own drink if need be).

Tania -a lso at Dulwich Therapy Rooms - really good and handled my exciteable little boy really well. hard to say definitively whether what they do works but it certainly calmed us both down which is worth something!

sounds like he is tired at tha tpoint then...maybe just that as he's getting older he's starting to not want to leave the party and go to sleep kind of thing (that's what my son was/is like anyway!) so protesting a bit but still needing, and getting, that sleep. I'd keep going with it till he refuses to sleep at that time to be honest - really believe in sleep begets sleep in terms of the night-time, or at the very least, sleep begets happier baby to deal with come bedtime!

on naps - our little boy was on 3 naps till quite late - think poss 9ish months but can't really remember - def later th an GF routine though, but think the last one gradually got shorter and shorter. Does he still sleep at that time even though fractious beforehand?

i had this but at that stage (10ish weeks) I was still doing a 3amish feed. i found I was working hard to get him to take that feed - and then he had little or no interest in his 7ish feed. So rather than cutting the 3am feed completely (as he was still waking for it) I just didn't persevere so much when he stopped after only a couple of ounces, and I found he had more at 7am accordingly (which is what GF's advice says) - and it fact a couple of weeks later slept through (still did the dream feed). i wonder if the same principle might work with your dream feed - maybe try it, so he has the option of feeding then - but if not interested don't bother persevering with the rest of the feed, and keep that up for a week or so as some nights he might be hungrier than others...but as others have said sounds like you could probably drop it with no problems if he's still not bothered. I didn't drop the dream feed (though was a misnomer in our house as he was never asleep for it) until 8is months and looking back it was madness clinging on to it for so long, mainly fear that it was the one thing getting him through the night I guess.

Hi there - not tried it but as a buggy-obsessive I can say that it looks pretty good - facing both ways, quite light for what it is, is it suitable from birth or do you need the carrycot for that? As I'd be inclined to do without hte latter if possible, though others may have had better experiences. We had the pliko that lies flat with a pram liner (cheaper than getting the one with the separate carrycot) and it was a bit heavy once he got older but good for the first six months or so. But if I was buying again now I'd def look at the urbo. Cheaper than the bugaboo bee I think?

I don't but it sounds great - not nearly as big as some of the ot her schools around here, graded as 'good' by Ofsted and when you read the report, it's really positive about things like teacher/pupil relationships. I'd be delighted if my son could go there but guess we'll have to see where the ballot puts us in a few years time - you all have my sympathies as it sounds incredibly stressful and upsetting.

i remember seeing them once at the door of Number 11 a few years ago when I was doing a press event (ah, a different lifetime!) and thinking then how cute they were.

Another side effect of the whole being a mum-hormonal thing is that anything at all to do with kids makes me cry - case in point, just cried when Gordon Brown brought his kids out after his resignation.

katie1997 Wrote: ------------------------------------------------------- > Indeed. > > Also, why do some people have chips with their > full english (when there is already a hash brown > or two on the (not square) plate - WTF? > > Whatever next? Jacket potatoes with chips? > > *goes to lie down in a darkened room* Actually i feel I must stay true to my Scottish roots and take issue with this. Chips with everything thanks. I used to regularly have baked potato with chips in my halls of residence at uni in Edinburgh, mmmm. I also enjoy a portion of chips with a kebab - who says you can't have two carbs? Whilst we're on the subject, and since this thread is about rage, if it's not been covered already I'd like to introduce the topic of chips in general. My favourites are proper chippy chips and skinny chips. I loathe, with every fibre of my being, fat chips. particularly those of the ilk that burn your tongue and are so flaming fat they're not even cooked in the middle. Once I know a restaurant/cafe does fat chips without any alternative chip on offer, it puts me off them for life.

I've always thought Ed Miliband looks like his brother after his head's been put in a vice. But i know a lot of women who seem quite taken with one or both of them.

yes, agree about encouraging kids to feel relaxed around dogs. I noticed my little boy was afraid of the dalmation in the florence pub over in herne hill and did my best to show him it was fine, though with limited success. Later on we stayed with friends with a very friendly and placid lab, and whilst he was again afraid, we just made an enormous effort to pat the dog, act naturally around him, etc till eventually he stopped being scared and went through first curiosity (they rubbed noses at one point!) and then basic indifference. My only problem with all this is that I'm extremely allergic (was ok to pat dog in question as was forearmed with antihistamines) and it's quite possible my son will be too apparently, so can only do so much patting! But def like this idea in principle. Am sure in years to come will have to apply similar plan towards my other phobias eg spiders and moths ie making out am not massively scared of them - not looking forward to that so much!

I feel the same and for peace of mind I carry one of these I'm told they're harmless but just basically ward the dog off as they emit a high pitched sound which puts them off - have never had to use it but feel better with it as have a bit of a phobia. My mum's partner was bitten whilst out running and now carries one, which is where I got the idea.

I cried at this week's Gray's Anatomy even though it was really quite corny. But that's why I love it!

I never have till today, but was stopped in Primark in peckham and told it was a health and safety risk and I'd have to leave the buggy. There's no way I could try on clothes and keep an eye on my hyperactive 15month old out of the buggy, so I didn't bother. The odd thing is I've taken the buggy into loads of changing rooms, including that particular Primark. To be fair, i can see in a way that having say 8 people with prams trying to barge out of a small fitting room in the event of a fire would not be good. Just think they obviously apply this rule randomly! I had to to make do with the slightly embarassing 'hang dress on hanger over head in middle of shop' approach instead, much to the amusement of my son.

if you're worried about the timing you can easily postpone for a bit - I had to postpone several times as my little boy kept geting colds etc and I wanted to wait till he was well - so in the end was a couple of months after we'd initially had the appt for. Am pretty sure his is on his left arm Molly though it's one of those thingsg that now I'm t hinking about I can't quite remember (he's sleeping so can't check!). Like others, was fine for a while then wept a bit, but showed doctor and she said they just do that from time to time for quite a wee while after the injection. Doesn't cause him any problems and he didn't react at all to the jab itself.