The Newborn & Toddlers Off-Topic Chat Thread

How Strange

You're obviously not in the Coombe. They are super strict and even have a no nonsense security guard doing the rounds after visiting hours to kick you out if you're hanging around. My husband wasn't even allowed stay with me when I went into labour. He had to wait until I was 5cm before he could come back in.

seventeen sheep

Millem wrote: »

How many people are on a ward? If it is a 6 bed then there are 12 visitors. I wouldn't of liked that especially just after having the baby. Holles street only allow 1 person who has a card. I don't know if it's enforced or not as I did domino.

It wasn't enforced at all when I was there. There was a Nigerian woman in the bed beside me who had (not exaggerating) around ten visitors crowded in at one stage, chanting and singing and praying over the baby. That was fun for the rest of us on the already overcrowded ward.

Millem

seventeen sheep wrote: »

It wasn't enforced at all when I was there. There was a Nigerian woman in the bed beside me who had (not exaggerating) around ten visitors crowded in at one stage, chanting and singing and praying over the baby. That was fun for the rest of us on the already overcrowded ward.

Hehehe

seventeen sheep

Millem wrote: »

Hehehe

It wasn't so funny when half my brand new vests and babygros disappeared when I popped out to the loo!

Millem

seventeen sheep wrote: »

It wasn't so funny when half my brand new vests and babygros disappeared when I popped out to the loo!

Omg :eek:
Gosh no way would I be able for that!

uck51js9zml2yt

Rotunda have a card system that's enforced. 2 people max, no exceptions.

seventeen sheep

I'd have loved if the Holles St system had been enforced! Even apart from other patients' guests, I didn't particularly want any visitors myself, tbh. So at least I could use the rule as a way to stop people from visiting. I was stuck in there for four nights altogether. Another woman thought it was OK to watch Netflix with no earphones on a ward with seven other mothers and babies.

All said though, even though I have vhi, I couldn't justify the cost of private/SP care. While I hadn't a great experience on the wards after birth, I was very happy with the antenatal care.

Would definitely have gone for the domino scheme but it wasn't available in my area at the time - as it happened, my baby's blood sugar was very low and he ended up in neonatal intensive care, so it wouldn't have made a difference anyways.

cyning

On my first i had a lady in the bed across the way from me (who had her appendix out wasn't even pregnant etc) in the bed opposite me: she had 12 visitors at once. Unfortunately there was a member of another family they were feuding with in another ward(who had had a baby) and they started roaring at eachother on the corridor aswell as there being children running up and down into other women's cubicles: security and doctors came to clear the place. They broke the lock on the door of the maternity ward trying to get back in again... It was just awful! I remember sitting there with C asleep in her little bassinet yoke wondering what on earth I was going to do if they came back in: she wasn't even 12 hours old. So strict visiting rules should be enforced everywhere: it's so unfair otherwise.

AndyBoBandy

We were due our first on Friday, but he still hasn't shown up yet!!!!

Hurry Up and get out of your mammy's belly!!!!!!

Although just looking at some of the stories above, I'm kinda dreading that part of it! we are semi private in Holles Street!!
I really hope we are in there with like minded mothers/fathers who understand the need for peace & quiet, while respecting others...

The whole thing of items going missing while showering/toilet breaks etc.. just horrifies me.

Xdancer

Public wards in here in my local hospital consist of 2 beds to a room However visitors tend to arrive after work around 8pm and usually hang around until 11pm. The entire families of the couple including nieces and nephews, aunts and uncles come to visit. It can get very loud, but sure that's the Spanish life!

However the Dad is allowed to stay with the Mom from the moment she is admitted until the moment she is discharged. I was in hospital for 48 hours, and my OH was with me most of the time, bar about 2 hours to go home and have a shower the day after A was born.

dori_dormer

I went semi in coombe last year. 4or 5 in a ward. They sometimes had 3 or 4 people visiting as security can't tell where people are actually going when they walk past them. One guy used to take the p*ss tho visiting his wife. Visiting hours were something like 9-12 and 2-5 and 6-8 or something like that. He'd turn up before 8 ( before even breakfast!) and hide behind curtain during quiet time etc. so no one could ever relax with this guy there all the time. I just told a midwife one morning at about 8.30. Minute later security guard was up and asking him to leave. The evil looks we got after that! Cheek of him though.

nikpmup

When I was in Holles St in October '13, it was just grandparents that were allowed, as well as partners. However, grandparents only could mean 6 to a bed (incl mammy, daddy, and 2 sets of g/parents) and baba too! In a 6 bed ward (which turned into an 8 bed ward when I was there - they squeezed two extra beds in) that meant possibly 48 people and 6 babies, as well as staff. Fortunately it never got quite that bad, but it was loud. Meant for zero privacy too, especially when I was struggling to breastfeed and was sitting there with both my enormously swollen boobs hanging out, and midwives were swishing the curtain back every ten seconds.

I discovered after I had Hugo that my local health centre has a midwives scheme for the Rotunda. It's five minutes from my house, rather than trekking into the city centre for all appointments. I'd nearly be tempted to switch if I were to go again, even though I am more than happy at the care I received in Holles St.

bp

I was SP in holles st 2013 and the people beside me had heaps of visitors.....I had four at once - grandparents and husband - not well enforced at all - mine were quite at least and stayed 20 mins

AndyBoBandy

Are the wards in Holles St all the same? i.s will SP patients be in with public patients? or are there separate wards for SP & public?

nikpmup

All in together, as far as I know; if there's a private or sp ward available it's first come first served.

bp

Semi private is five to a ward, public not sure - six or eight I think, but you will only get SP if available

seventeen sheep

I gave birth at 00.14. Around 3am, when I was all stitched up, I was brought to a six-bed ward where there were already seven mothers and seven babies. Two women had their curtains opened, and had myself and my baby plonked in the middle of their cubicles in the middle of the night. Obviously there was no privacy when I or they were being examined by staff the following morning, as the curtains couldn't be closed with my bed and cot in the middle of the dividing rail.

AndyBoBandy

seventeen sheep wrote: »

I gave birth at 00.14. Around 3am, when I was all stitched up, I was brought to a six-bed ward where there were already seven mothers and seven babies. Two women had their curtains opened, and had myself and my baby plonked in the middle of their cubicles in the middle of the night. Obviously there was no privacy when I or they were being examined by staff the following morning, as the curtains couldn't be closed with my bed and cot in the middle of the dividing rail.

Which hospital was this?

seventeen sheep

Andybobandy wrote: »

Which hospital was this?

Holles St

Suucee

This is terrible reading these stories. I had mine in mullingar. 4 bed wards.
Partner allowed in 8am - 1pm then mothrrs rest and quiet time until 4 pm. Partner can return at 4. Then grandparents allowed between 6.30-8.30 (partner can be there also)
Partner out between 9-10.
If your partner remains quiet after 8.30 theres no major deal. A lady beside me was really struggling and her OH used to stay on as late as he could mindibg the baby to give her sone rest.He was always dead quiet and would only be noticed when the nurse came in. It didnt bother me in the slightest as i knew she was finding it hard.

fro9etb8j5qsl2

That is shocking seventeen sheep :eek: I was public in Limerick and was in a nice quiet 4 bed ward. Partners were allowed from 9am until 11pm (but they would turn a blind eye to staying a bit longer provided they were quiet). They were fairly strict about keeping everyone else to visiting hours though, which was fine by me because I wasn't very keen on having anyone other than close family visit anyway.

nikpmup

seventeen sheep wrote: »

Holles St

Wasn't October 2013 by any chance, was it!

When I was in, I was recovering after a section under GA. My son was in ICU and I hadn't seen him since he was born, so around 3am I begged one of the nurses to take me upstairs. When I came back, knackered and full of morphine, I couldn't understand why my cubicle seemed smaller - two more beds had been wedged into a 6-bed ward. I was lucky as I was beside the window, the middle beds had all been shoved around and were piled on top of each other.

seventeen sheep

Oooh there's a new thread with a midwife in the AMA forum. Should be interesting!

galah

While obviously the conditions arent as important as the care you ultimately receive (which i cannot fault, really), i could weep everytime i talk to friends back in Germany, where they have family rooms after delivery, just for you, baby, and your partner - with an actual bed/sleep couch for said partner. Lovely, friendly warm hospitals with a decent choice of food that's also healthy (dont get me started on the muck they serve in uhg, or the general 'post-war Bosnia' feel to the place).

Was talking to my gynae back home about the horrendous 6 bed wards and cramped disgusting shower "facilities", and he was shocked; said the last time he'd seen a 6 bed maternity ward was back in the 1960ies, 2-bed is now the absolute max over there.

For a country with so many babies being born each year we sure have disappointing facilities. Just my rant.

And private insurance doesnt mean squat in uhg, as afaik they only have two private rooms, chances of getting one of them are usually slim.no semi private option either.

Roesy

seventeen sheep wrote: »

Oooh there's a new thread with a midwife in the AMA forum. Should be interesting!

Probably a stupid question but what's the AMA forum?

seventeen sheep

Roesy wrote: »

Probably a stupid question but what's the AMA forum?

It stands for Ask Me Anything. Link.

It's basically a forum where different posters volunteer to start up a thread to answer questions about their careers, etc. It's a new forum, but there are a couple of good threads there!

lolademmers

I think we have pretty good maternity care compared to 3rd world countries!! Makes my blood run cold when I think of certain situations my friends have been in in labour. They or the baby would not have survived in those countries.

Millem

seventeen sheep wrote: »

I gave birth at 00.14. Around 3am, when I was all stitched up, I was brought to a six-bed ward where there were already seven mothers and seven babies. Two women had their curtains opened, and had myself and my baby plonked in the middle of their cubicles in the middle of the night. Obviously there was no privacy when I or they were being examined by staff the following morning, as the curtains couldn't be closed with my bed and cot in the middle of the dividing rail.

That sounds like holles street the week before I had my baby! The dinnerlady told me all about that madness!! I only stayed a few hours she was on a mad one telling me if it happened again she was going to Walk out!

galah

lolademmers wrote: »

I think we have pretty good maternity care compared to 3rd world countries!! Makes my blood run cold when I think of certain situations my friends have been in in labour. They or the baby would not have survived in those countries.

Definitely nothing wrong with the care, really the nurses and doctors that looked after us were great, and i had two non-standard births with a few complications. But the facilities leave a lot to be desired, at least in uhg.

cyning

seventeen sheep wrote: »

Oooh there's a new thread with a midwife in the AMA forum. Should be interesting!

I'm really looking forward to her answers!!

Sligo1

cyning wrote: »

I'm really looking forward to her answers!!

Cyning, how did your meet with the childminder go?

cyning

Sligo1 wrote: »

Cyning, how did your meet with the childminder go?

Great I'm settling them in for the next few days so fingers crossed. Don't know wether to send S with a bottle or if introducing a bottle at ten months is ridiculous! Have you had any luck?

Sligo1

cyning wrote: »

Great I'm settling them in for the next few days so fingers crossed. Don't know wether to send S with a bottle or if introducing a bottle at ten months is ridiculous! Have you had any luck?

O I'm delighted for you cyning! No luck here... But I'm kinda writing everyone off before I even Meet them... .... I need to seriously sit down, have a big think and get my stupid head sorted! lol. Will S take a cup?

cyning

She will but I'm thinking she may get more comfort from a bottle than a sippy cup for naps?

cyning

Sligo1 wrote: »

O I'm delighted for you cyning! No luck here... But I'm kinda writing everyone off before I even Meet them... .... I need to seriously sit down, have a big think and get my stupid head sorted! lol. Will S take a cup?

Is there anything in particular you want? It's so hard I'm heartbroken about tomorrow

Sligo1

cyning wrote: »

She will but I'm thinking she may get more comfort from a bottle than a sippy cup for naps?

I was gping to say a bottle would definitely be better for comfort... But if she is anything like my little one was starting her on a bottle... Good luck! Lol. If she takes the bottle tho without too much fuss I would go with that I think.

Sligo1

cyning wrote: »

Is there anything in particular you want? It's so hard I'm heartbroken about tomorrow

I think I would like a nice trustworthy mature woman who would come to my house and mind them. Take them for a walk, read them stories and play games with them for the day.

Will be thinking of you tomorrow cyning.

How Strange

Mine went straight to sippy cups and only had a bottle for the very odd bottle of expressed or formula milk. I can vouch that they get a lot of comfort from a sippy cup of warmed milk. My almost 4 year old still loves it. They both scream for a cup of milk when we get home from crèche.

angeldelight

Sligo1 wrote: »

I think I would like a nice trustworthy mature woman who would come to my house and mind them. Take them for a walk, read them stories and play games with them for the day.

Will be thinking of you tomorrow cyning.

If they mind the kids in your house they are employees, you have to pay PRSI, give statutory paid holidays etc but if they mind them in their own house you don't have to do any of that

Sligo1

angeldelight wrote: »

If they mind the kids in your house they are employees, you have to pay PRSI, give statutory paid holidays etc but if they mind them in their own house you don't have to do any of that

The cost doesn't bother me . I'd prefer the peace of mind of having them in my house. Thanks for the heads up tho .

cyning

That's what I wanted except in her house Sligo: hoping it works out now! Oh really How Strange? I gave her a bottle if water earlier and she took it no bother so not worried about that: aagh decisions! I'm going to keep breastfeeding so fingers crossed that works out too

Sligo1

cyning wrote: »

Is there anything in particular you want? It's so hard I'm heartbroken about tomorrow

Cyning how did work go? And the minders? My first day back today. Just on my break now on a 12 hour shift . Daddy is minding the kids today...

cyning

Sligo1 wrote: »

Cyning how did work go? And the minders? My first day back today. Just on my break now on a 12 hour shift . Daddy is minding the kids today...

I'm starting mon was settling them in this week... Minders going ok C loves it but S isn't really settling. She has a temp this evening so I hope she's not getting sick. Again.

How are you feeling? Big hugs x

Sligo1

cyning wrote: »

I'm starting mon was settling them in this week... Minders going ok C loves it but S isn't really settling. She has a temp this evening so I hope she's not getting sick. Again.

How are you feeling? Big hugs x

O I hope she's not getting sick again! . Well at least C is settling in well. My 12 hrs shift ended up being a 13 hr shift. I'm so tired. Im usually giving out about being at home all day but I just can't wait to spend tomorrow with T and L. I was gone this morning before they woke and I'm only home now and they in bed. Cant wait to c them tomorrow. X

cyning

Oh that's really hard enjoy the cuddles tomorrow! Any luck on the childminder front?

IvyTheTerrible

Ok so we try hard not to let our almost three year old see violence on the telly or to be violent/rough himself, and we don't have toy guns or that at home. But in the last week or so he's been play shooting us with anything he can get his hands on, sticks of lego, bananas etc etc. He knows the words for several types of guns. He told us one of the other boys at the creche told him about guns.

Oh I KNOW he'll play like that eventually but I was hoping it would be later rather than sooner.

Marz66

Hi - quick q re the role of PHNs - my one runs a drop in clinic. Are the PHNs only involved with health and development or could you ask them other parenting type questions about stuff like sleep routine, clothing layers, room temperature and other queries from a first time mom?

Woshy

Marz66 wrote: »

Hi - quick q re the role of PHNs - my one runs a drop in clinic. Are the PHNs only involved with health and development or could you ask them other parenting type questions about stuff like sleep routine, clothing layers, room temperature and other queries from a first time mom?

You can ask them anything - they're happy to give you advice. That's what they're there for

I went to my drop in clinic every week and found it very helpful. I had good PHNs though - they can be hit and miss!

Marz66

Woshy wrote: »

You can ask them anything - they're happy to give you advice. That's what they're there for

I went to my drop in clinic every week and found it very helpful. I had good PHNs though - they can be hit and miss!

Thanks Woshy
I have a load of questions in my head every day that I keep forgetting to type up n ask on here. Would be handy to just get them all answered in real life by the same person 😊

Woshy

Marz66 wrote: »

Thanks Woshy
I have a load of questions in my head every day that I keep forgetting to type up n ask on here. Would be handy to just get them all answered in real life by the same person 😊

They're a good resource I know with mine I could phone them too if I wanted to talk about something so that's an option too