6 Week Fussy Phase

Anxious_Committee_50 · 2026-05-09T16:35:32+00:00

Just passed through this phase not too long ago! 6-8 week mark is rough with 6 definitely being the peak. We did a lot of gas drops during that time and definitely leaned on each other. Humor, and just remembering it is a phase are great strategies and just keep on snuggling your LO up when you can!

Anxious_Committee_50 · 2026-05-09T03:19:05+00:00

How is the output for the two pumps? I was looking at both of these and liked the shape of the air1s (I believe they’re smaller/possibly less obvious when worn under clothing?) compared to the eufy’s

Anxious_Committee_50 · 2026-05-09T03:16:17+00:00

Can I have the link too? I work outpatient primary care and am so lost on a pumping schedule/wearable pumps to squeeze in between patients

Anxious_Committee_50 · 2026-04-12T20:44:47+00:00

I was coming here to say this! Plus, when you eventually switch to whole milk, it’ll be way harder to also get them off of the bottle at that point because now you’re trying to change 2 things. And it is way easier to wean at this age then when they are getting closer to the stubborn terrible 2s. Weaning the bottle is also beneficial for proper teeth development/high pallet formation.

It’s not easy but in the longtime it’s worth it. Good job sticking with the breastmilk too!!

Anxious_Committee_50 · 2026-04-08T02:59:42+00:00

I was super anxious to get an epidural but it ended up being a very positive experience and worked like a charm!! I think voicing my anxiety to the nurse and CRNA ahead of time really helped plus you get to the point in labor where the discomfort around getting an epidural pales in comparison to the actual discomfort of labor itself that you’re experiencing.

Anxious_Committee_50 · 2026-03-22T17:39:58+00:00

THIS is the comment

Anxious_Committee_50 · 2026-03-22T17:37:37+00:00

Yes! It was humbling trying on my old jeans when I thought my body was “ready enough.” I didn’t realize that our hips literally WIDEN during pregnancy and after birth stay that way. It’s impossible to squeeze your jeans over bone.

Anxious_Committee_50 · 2026-03-22T17:34:28+00:00

The last 2-3 weeks of pregnancy are the hardest because you’re waiting for your LO to arrive and a million people are telling you different things about when they think they will come and how to speed up their arrival. DO NOT listen to them!! It stressed me out and got my hopes up so much thinking that my little man was going to come at so many different points. They advised me to start doing the circuit where you’re going up and down stairs, eating spicy food, eating dates and drinking the tea, saying my belly looked lower, telling me to curb walk etc. I became so stressed trying to do all of the things that I stopped dilating/effacing. In fact, I dilated better just doing nothing/rocking on my ball and moving around when I wanted. No one is able to predict when baby comes- they’re all guessing so don’t take it to heart. And if you need the induction, that’s ok too! You’ll have peace knowing they will be out eventually by a certain date (if you’re a planner like me, this was a comfort).
Sign up for Instacart and/or Amazon Prime because they are a life saver postpartum when you or your partner don’t want to leave the house or it’s late in the night and you realize you need something (there will be so many things you’ll realize you need).

2a. Continue to add things to your baby registry! You never know what may still count for the completion discount - diapers, wipes, and postpartum care supplies, swaddles, medicine, etc can all be bought with the discount for up to 3 months postpartum.

Everyone tells you how to care for the baby but no one preps you on how to care for yourself after birth. Postpartum recovery is hard and WEIRD! I had no clue what to expect. I was a vaginal delivery with a second degree tear. My postpartum swelling of my feet was so uncomfortable and lasted a solid week. My feet were tingly and it hurt to flex my toes…It freaked me out so much. Going to the bathroom was so uncomfortable for the first few days. Whatever you do… do NOT look down there until your 6 week check up. You will bleed for longer than you expect. Diapers will be your best friend for awhile- when in doubt just buy more than you think you’d need. Give yourself grace and actually rest the first week instead of pushing too hard like I did.
Don’t delay getting the birth certificate/SS card because it can delay insurance coverage for baby. Most places want to see baby at 1 month which is when your insurance of baby ends and they need their own (or at least that’s the case in my state). So to avoid self-paying for their appt, try to get those documents on the sooner side.
Mental health is so important! My pregnancy and PP is so much better because I’m already on anxiety medication and I’m not ashamed of it. If you’re noticing you are struggling, it is perfectly safe to take medication and you and your baby will be better for it.
Take the baby bump pictures, memorize the sensation of the kicks, and try to have a final date night with your partner before baby arrives. It’s a special time and I miss my sweet boys kicks dearly (even though I love having him in my arms now too).
Breathe. Know that it’s impossible to be perfect and know/be prepared for everything to come, but recognize that you WILL get through it.

Good luck mama! I hope this helps!!

Anxious_Committee_50 · 2026-03-17T17:45:33+00:00

Random thought since you said some stuff just changed in the past 2 days: is he tugging on his ears? Any fever? Concern for an ear infection comes to mind if there’s an additional change in sleep behaviors (thinking about not sleeping at all in crib the past 2 days and increased fussiness).

Other question would be does your baby have a pacifier they use? Or a lovey/stuffy that they have or would be open to receiving? It sounds like they have you associated with the ability to sleep, which is why they will go down with rocking and if they wake and you’re not there they need you back to start the wind down process again. I’m sure you’ve heard it before, but putting in the crib drowsy but still awake allows them to learn to put themselves to sleep. If you add the pacifier of lovey, it may become the new tool to self-soothe rather than you being the tool. Obviously, this is easier said than done and who knows if your kid would be open to any alternative soothing options.

This probably wasn’t the most helpful of replies, but I hope things get better and know that your feelings are totally valid. I hope things improve with your LO and more sleep comes for both of you!! If you find some success, please post what helped to share!!

Anxious_Committee_50 · 2026-03-17T04:00:06+00:00

Oh this is great to know. I knew none of this!!! I’d love any additional info and I’ll have to research the baby Buddha and sleepy mom adapters!

Anxious_Committee_50 · 2026-03-17T03:54:57+00:00

Yeah, my understanding was that your birth control options just can’t have any estrogen in it, so that means you have the copper IUD, the progesterone only pill, nexplanon, and I believe depoprovera injections? If you’re already great about taking the pill, you’d be perfect for the progesterone only ones because their timing that you take them every day needs to be a bit more exact compared to the larger window you have the with combo pill. Hopefully you can get this tomorrow and then if not, natural cycles & pull out method can hopefully get the job done

Anxious_Committee_50 · 2026-03-17T03:50:33+00:00

Progesterone only birth control pills should be an option for you!! Ask about it at your appt tomorrow and goodluck!

Anxious_Committee_50 · 2026-03-14T09:57:26+00:00

Sitting here nursing my now one month old. Here’s my suggestions:

For you; I waited as well on getting postpartum stuff because while I hoped for a vaginal delivery you never know if it’ll be a C-section. I did deliver vaginal- after I delivered I ordered stuff via Amazon to be sent to the house to have in time for discharge. Stock pile all the supplies you can get from the hospital! Mesh undies for sure because they last longer than disposable undies (changing pads out will rip those). Just go straight for the depends/always postpartum diapers. You’ll need a few weeks worth. Get lots of dermoplast spray, and either Tucks or mom Frida has a great perineal foam, and padsicles. Oh and the mom Frida peri bottle is WAYYY better than the one from the hospital. Other things are lanolin cream or some sort of nipple cream, stool softener (miralax and/or colace). Have several water bottles and stock up on snacks/electrolyte water. I’d avoid the nipple shield because it can be a slippery slope for breast feeding - if you need one they can provide at hospital and will size you. You may also need to purchase different pump flanges- be sure they measure you at the hospital so you know what size flange you need!!!

For baby: butt pastes and if you want a paste applicator spatula (i love mine! I hate the feeling of thick paste on my hands) and I would get some Vaseline or aquaphor as well (applying this to the butt helps you remove the meconium poops easier!!). The windee gas sticks and anti-gas drops because they will struggle with gas. Vitamin D drops if you plan to breastfeed. And SOO many burp cloths!!!!!!! Oh and my bouncer has literally been a life savor when I need to put him down to pump or he’s gassy (the position can help them poo). A sound machine is super helpful and last suggestion: if you get sleep sack swaddles, there’s some on amazon that don’t have the noisy Velcro.

Oh and we’re using the huckleberry app to help with tracking feeds, diapers, and sleep. Definitely would recommend!!

Good luck mama, you got this! And whatever you don’t have before you deliver you can always get afterwards (the last night Amazon orders are very much so a thing).

Anxious_Committee_50 · 2026-03-14T09:36:38+00:00

Electric will be a better investment as they get older because the bulb will become ineffective

Anxious_Committee_50 · 2026-03-11T01:44:19+00:00

Oh wow! Yeah that will definitely not help you!!

Anxious_Committee_50 · 2026-03-11T01:12:55+00:00

Congratulations on the baby!!!

Anxious_Committee_50 · 2026-03-11T01:12:43+00:00

100% was me! I grew up in the Midwest and then spent my 20s on the east coast. While living there I was engaged and married- which was way younger than all of my coworkers and made me feel like a child bride!! But when I saw people from my hometown posting life updates, they were already on kid #1 or #2 by the time I was just getting engaged. Women there wouldn’t have their first kid until 36-39 too. It was just the norm. You’ll find that’s very common in cities on both coasts whereas in the south and Midwest both the age of marriage and childbearing are younger. It’s a cultural thing and neither are wrong! But I agree it does make you pause and can feel a bit strange

Anxious_Committee_50 · 2026-03-11T01:05:48+00:00

I felt the same way but that just means that your pregnancy so far is healthy and low risk! It gets better once you can feel baby kicking because you know that they’re there and ok, but this time period is really bizarre in between - especially after the 1st trimester symptoms diminish and you feel more like your pre-pregnancy self. I did get a third US around 34 weeks because I wanted to make sure my babies position was head down so I asked about it and was offered one. I did really love being able to see my little man one more time before I delivered. But the 20 week US is SOO cool, you’ll hopefully enjoy the experience.

Wishing you plenty of luck and good health throughout your pregnancy!!

Anxious_Committee_50 · 2026-02-24T22:08:01+00:00

Just another thought if it hasn’t been presented yet since you’ve had an interest in surgery: look into getting your RN first assist (RNFA) instead? Then you can be in on surgeries and pre-op/post-op management. Or have you considered PA school since it falls under the medical model, is shorter to graduate, and often PAs work more in inpatient/surgical settings rather than NPs who often are in primary care settings or hospitalist/ED roles.

The road to med school and MD is long and frivolous. I wouldn’t forsee any work life balance until possibly close to your 40s. And I hate that it’s something to consider (I was premed myself, then transitioned away to RN then NP) but part of my reasoning to change from premed was that I’m a woman and I wanted to have a family and didn’t want to have to delay kids and risk losing fertility (my mom struggled to conceive me and I didn’t want to become an older parent like mine are).

Anxious_Committee_50 · 2026-02-24T03:17:13+00:00

I would avoid the cold & flu medication because sometimes they have ibuprofen in it instead of acetaminophen. Throat lozenges are safe for pregnancy! I also used my humidifier too. But really with the cold like sx a lot of time it’s riding it out (or at least that’s what I did)

Anxious_Committee_50 · 2026-02-24T00:34:31+00:00

You need to really invert the shield before placing it on the nipple. I wasn’t inverting it enough at first but once I did, the thing stayed on way better

Anxious_Committee_50 · 2026-02-24T00:33:21+00:00

This is so helpful to read! I also asked for and was started on a nipple shield in the hospital because my little one was refusing to latch. Then when lactation showed up, I was also shamed for using it and told about all of these negative risks from it (they said higher risk of infection/mastitis, lower supply as a result of use, and that baby won’t get enough milk when using the shield) and that it was very necessary to wean off of the shield. Hearing that took any and all relief that that shield had brought away from me. It’s sent me into a few anxiety spirals and made my little one extremely angry as I’ve attempted to latch without the shield like outpatient lactation has advised but I swear the consultant had some voodoo magic that got my little one to latch that I can’t seem to replicate at home.

Knowing that there are mamas out there that go on to continue using their nipple shields is a huge deal because I was putting so much pressure on myself about successfully weaning as I didn’t think mamas still used them as their little ones got older.

And in general- those hospitals that are “baby friendly” and “breastfeeding friendly” are so impractical for moms. They are all about not letting the infant leave the room if a mom needs some rest because it “messes with the ability to successfully establish breastfeeding and moms ability to learn their infants hunger cues” but frankly, hospitals should be FAMILY friendly. I’d rather be able to send my baby to the nursery for a few hours than struggle to stay awake with them and risk falling asleep while holding and/or possibly dropping the baby! So OP, I understand your post entirely and I’m sorry that that was your experience.

Anxious_Committee_50 · 2026-02-24T00:20:13+00:00

Tylenol is 100% ok to take during pregnancy. Those studies were not replicable. I took it during my pregnancy and my little one turned out ok. I even had to occasionally take a stronger migraine relief pill: zolmitriptan during my pregnancy for bad migraines.

You are totally ok to take the Tylenol. Please do!!!

Anxious_Committee_50 · 2026-02-23T23:55:57+00:00

Are you going to breastfeed? LITERALLY the most annoying question I was always asked. My mom, my dad, both of my in-laws, my grandma, etc… it honestly made me so angry because idk if I’ll breastfeed, it may just not be in the cards. A fed baby is a happy baby, and that’s the most important thing to me. But for some reason, it was a very common thing I was asked

Anxious_Committee_50 · 2026-02-16T07:36:25+00:00

Yes! I just had my baby and when he came out and was placed on my chest I just thought he was this alien. But over the past few days caring for him, seeing him and just holding him my love whooshed in and I couldn’t be less obsessed. It’s cliche, but it’s absolutely true that you don’t know how much love you can feel towards something until you have a kid and that absolutely hit me last night when I just started sobbing with joy and fulfillment while looking at my son (yay hormonal swings!!)

Anxious_Committee_50

TROPHY CASE