Everything was fine and all normal during this pregnancy. In third trimester, I was diagnosed with Group B strep after getting a UTI. However as I had elected for a planned C section, this wasn’t really a problem. C section was due to her being breech and my previous daughter also being breech.
Amal was born at 38 weeks & 4 days. She weighed 2.95kg (6lbs 7oz) and birth was ok. There were no complications.
I was unwell during and after the birth as the local anaesthetic wasn’t enough so I had to be given further pain relief and had a bit more blood loss than usual. I felt it was harder to recover from this birth than the birth of my first daughter.
I breastfed straight after birth and had no problems at all with this. I fed Amal on demand but she soon fell into a rhythm of feeding every 3 hours.
I breast fed exclusively for 7 months and then introduced formula.
Trying to get Amal to take the bottle was very difficult even with pumped breast milk, which we tried from day one but she never really took to it at all, so we gave up trying to do that. However, her sleeping between 5-6 months became really bad. She was waking every hour and wanting to feed, I was trying to introduce formula to fill her up before bedtime so she wouldn’t wake up as much as she did. I didn’t feel my breast milk was filling her up and whenever I was pumping, it was quite watery. We tried many different bottles and teats and formula. She finally started taking Hipp Organic milk at 7 months.
She was quite colicky and gassy but ok otherwise. She started sleeping through the night when she was about 7 weeks old until she was 20 weeks and then regressed.
I got mastitis three times whilst breastfeeding. I took antibiotics the first time and then managed without the other times by trying different methods.
When Amal was 22 weeks old, she became rather unwell with a UTI which turned out to be an e-coli infection. She was hospitalised with a raging high temperature and had a lot of tests done (blood test, urine samples, lumbar puncture) and antibiotics that had to be given via an IV line for 7 days. It was really traumatic but she coped really well and is absolutely fine now.
Amal took to weaning really well. She likes her food and everything I have given her so far to eat, she takes and doesn’t turn food away. I started off with porridge and puréed vegetables and then soon introduced fish and meat, fruit and dairy. She struggled with harder things and still chokes a little with toast, bread and some fruit but I keep on giving it to her to get her used to it.
I have tried giving her peanut butter once but she didn’t really like it but I will keep trying. No allergies yet that I can see from anything.
I try and give Amal things that we all eat as a family which includes Indian food. It won’t be spicy or salty but I do put other spices and herbs in so she is familiar with different flavours.
7.30 pm – Milk and then falls asleep by herself in cot. Will go to sleep independently but some nights will cry hysterically and bang her head against cot or wall. Routine is I feed her the bottle on my bed. Light is on. If she falls asleep I wake her up. Normally she is awake after having milk and then I put her in the cot and say goodnight and put the light off. She normally gets a little upset and I sit on a chair in the dark near the cot so she can see me. I have my back to her and just tell her to go to sleep. I don’t say anything else unless she’s crying hysterically. It will normally take between 5-25 minutes for her to fall asleep.
9-10pm – she sometimes starts crying. We wait before going in to see if she settles herself” sometimes she does and other times like last night she will not stop crying. We usually go in and just soothe her, stroke her head and back but do not pick her up. She will normally fall back asleep. However, lately like last night she wouldn’t settle so then I try and press reset and take her into the living room to calm down and then try again in an hour. Last night, I had to rock her to sleep and then once in a deep sleep, I put her back in the cot. She then woke up at 6.30am.
4-6.30am – Wakes up in cot and then I usually bring her into bed with me if she will not settle.
8am – sleeps until just before 8am and then plays for a bit
8.30-9am – Breakfast. Details below of food given in next schedule on next page.
10.30 – Milk
11am – Nap – usually falls asleep by drinking milk or rocking her. I have tried a few time to just put her in the cot but the crying is unbearable and her father usually has meetings and until last week her older sister had online lessons so I couldn’t just leave her to cry. Sleep for 40 mins.
1pm – Lunch – details below of food given.
2.30 pm – milk
3pm – Nap. Falls asleep by drinking milk or by me rocking her. Sometimes I take her out for a walk and let her sleep in buggy . Only sleeps for 30-40 mins.
4pm – Snack. Details below of food given
6pm – Dinner
7.30pm – Bath, milk and bedtime
7.30 – Wake up and play/cuddle.
8.30 – Breakfast – Porridge with or without bananas/ blueberries
10.30 – Milk (formula 240mls)
11am – Nap-time – usually 40 mins
1pm – Lunch – Sometimes a pouch of Ella’s Kitchen of chicken casserole/Beef stew etc. or I give pasta/eggs/rice mixed chicken or beef mince etc. Dessert – fruit
2.30pm – Milk (formula 200 mls)
3pm – Nap – 30-40 minutes
4pm – snack (fruit or melty stick / wafer/ Rice cake/ toast/ bread stick)
6pm – Dinner – Rice/ Pasta/ vegetables/ meat/ fish. I always make from scratch and Amal has two portions. I normally feed her until she stops me. Dessert – Greek yoghurt with banana/ Blueberries/raspberries/ mango etc
7pm – Bath and milk (200 mls formula)
7.30pm – Bed settles herself to sleep within cot and would sleep until 7.30 am.
I had to sleep train from 6 months as she was waking constantly every hour to feed so I did go cold turkey for a week and it was very stressful but managed to stop feeding at night and instead fill her up with milk during the day and especially before bed. If she woke at night I would offer her water instead. This worked for a while and she would wake up at 7am and I would then breastfeed her and then at 8-8.30am, I would give her breakfast. I stopped breastfeeding completely at 8 months, so she now wakes up, plays and then the first thing she has is breakfast.
Amal has been waking up over the last 5 months once a night and not every night but I could normally settle her by just talking to her soothingly or patting her back and not taking her out of the cot. She would also settle herself. However, now she will not settle and is crying hysterically. She will usually wake twice a night and the first time I can usually settle her but the second time I have to take her out of the cot to stop her crying, which takes a while. Once I get her back in the cot, I normally have to pat her back for ages for her to fall asleep. She will desperately try and get herself back to sleep by rocking on her hands and knees back and forth or by sucking her sleeve. This takes about 2 hours normally and lately I have been so tired that I have started putting her in bed with me so I can get some sleep otherwise I feel like a zombie. The lack of sleep is really affecting me physically and mentally as well. I also have been giving in as everyone wakes up from the crying and my partner needs to work, and my elder daughter needs to go to school.
Amal sucks her sleeve or my clothes when she is quite distressed and wants to sleep or soothe herself. I have tried to give her a soother but she will not take it and I’m averse to giving her a dummy. We tried when she was a few weeks old and she never took it.
No dummies but likes sucking clothes or her sleeve. Also sleeps on her front and will suck the sheets. Tried to give her a soother but will not take it. Also try and put starry night light on but doesn’t really do anything to help her sleep.
I am a widow from my first marriage and have a 6-year-old daughter from that.
Amal is my 2nd child, from my relationship with my Fiancé, and we have been together for 2 years. We have been very close friends for 15 years prior to having a relationship.
