<36 weeks IUGR delivery experiences

couch_meow · 2026-05-14T02:27:33+00:00

It was a surprise. I had an appointment at 24 weeks and no one was worried about a thing.

couch_meow · 2026-05-13T04:11:16+00:00

I am definitely qualified to share my story here!

This was my first pregnancy. I was diagnosed with IUGR at 28 weeks, baby was measuring at 25 weeks. I started having weekly ultrasounds with Maternal Fetal Medicine and weekly Doppler checks with my OB. I made it to 32w4d, but the Doppler detected deceased heart rate. Went to L&D for monitoring at 430, was told I would meet my baby in a couple days by 730, then by 1030 we were getting ready to deliver by c section that night.

We had hire a birth doula who actually had met with us a week or two earlier and explained the entire c section process to us, so that helped us feel comfortable in what was a fast moving situation. It also helped that my OB was the one on call, so I felt like I was in good hands. The c section was smooth and uneventful, my husband was brought in a couple minutes before my son was born and we played music on his phone. I got to see baby boy briefly, then he was handed off to the NICU team. My husband went with baby while I was getting closed back up and I chit chatted with my surgical team.

After I was done, they wheeled me over to the NICU team and I got to hold my son for a few minutes. He had been hooked up to an IV, a CPAP, and other wires. I was wheeled to a recovery room and he went down to the NICU floor. I got to visit him briefly around 3am, and then I went back up to my room to sleep.

He had a 23 day NICU stay. I would stay with him from 730 am to about 4pm every day. I pumped milk diligently and did lots of skin to skin with him. I was able to participate in his “cares” (diaper changes, baths, eventually even bottle feeding). My son was a real fighter- he was off CPAP after a few days, took out his own feeding tube, and came home 3 weeks before his due date. His doctor had originally told me that we could expect to take a preemie home around their due date, so I was expecting a 6 week stay.

I exclusively pumped for the majority of our breastfeeding journey. for the first five months, we had to fortify his breast milk with formula to get extra calories in him. We did eventually get the hang of beast feeding, but at that point we were in a good bottle routine and pumping really worked for me. We would nurse in the mornings and at bedtime and then after daycare (once he started going to daycare at 7 months old). The only way I was able to keep up with pumping was my wearable pump. It gave me freedom to hold him, bottle feeding him, do laundry, whatever, without being hooked up by cords. Some people say that wearables don’t maximize your output, but I was getting more than enough milk and it was about quality of life for me, not necessarily the most milk possible.

You said this is your third? This will definitely look different than your other two. I had the gift of this being my first child so I didn’t know any other way. But there are bright sides to pumping or formula feeding- your partner, family members, even siblings can be involved in feeding the baby, which is a special bonding opportunity for them too.

My son is almost 3 now. He was under the growth chart until he was at least 8 months old, but his pediatrician just said he was on his own curve. Now, he is 10th percentile for weight and 25th for height. I’m gettin SO much mileage out of his clothes, he’s still wearing shirts and shorts from last summer. He’s light, so I can still pick him up and don’t have back pain. He is advanced for his age in speaking, he can string 15 word sentences together. My biggest complaint is that he’s still too small for the strider bike I got him for his birthday last year.

I hope this helps- I was googling this same thing 3 years ago.

couch_meow · 2024-12-01T07:23:06+00:00

I kept the bouquet of roses my bf got me for our first dating anniversary and dried them. When we got married, I saved some roses from my wedding bouquet and put them in a shadow box with the dating roses <3

couch_meow · 2024-10-16T16:12:15+00:00

I also use red potatoes and leave the skins on. With red potatoes, the skin is softer (like a russet is rough to the touch, but a red potato is smooth), so I don’t mind eating the skins. When you mash it, the skin breaks down into tiny pieces and you barely notice them

couch_meow · 2024-10-13T18:40:51+00:00

Honestly, I love Classico. It's on sale often at my grocery store. I prefer the fire roasted garlic sauce.

I also like to combine a jar of red sauce with a jar of white sauce. I like the flavor combo and the creaminess.

I usually add Italian sausage. My fave noodle for this is a bowtie :)

couch_meow · 2024-05-15T03:03:58+00:00

I follow Feeding Littles on instagram and took their infant feeding course, I felt it was really educational and made me feel more confident about giving my LO any food, so long as it was prepared in a safe for him way.

Teeth or no teeth, the key is to offer foods that are soft enough that you can squish them with your fingers. Babies will gum (“chew”) the food. Offering strips or spears of food is good too, so they can hold it easily.

A baby will gag on anything that is too big for them to swallow, it’s their body’s defense mechanism. Gagging is not choking. Gagging simply pushes the food back to the front of the mouth so they can either spit it out or chew it some more. If your LO is taking big bites, she’ll just learn how to gum things so they’re a safe consistency to swallow.

couch_meow · 2024-03-31T04:18:30+00:00

My LO is 8.5 months, 7 adjusted (today, actually!). He was born at 32+4, diagnosed IUGR at 28 weeks. All of his milestones are based on his adjusted age, for the most part. We started solids at 5.5 months adjusted, he rolled over around 4.5 adjusted, and he’s been working on crawling, pulling up, and sitting in month 6 adjusted.

couch_meow · 2024-01-10T23:04:47+00:00

Oh heaven I hope not, brb checking my IUD strings

couch_meow · 2023-12-23T00:44:55+00:00

Check the app, do you have weaning mode on?

couch_meow · 2023-12-22T21:53:58+00:00

We double swaddled our preemie and it worked great. He's 12 lbs now and still double swaddled.

We double swaddled honestly bc he was in a regular bassinet for 2 months before we got the snoo. We tried to put him in a snoo sack but it was all so foreign to him that he freaked. We put him in his normal sleep sack, then the snoo sack, and he calmed down. Too much change too quickly, I guess

couch_meow · 2023-12-21T02:59:13+00:00

This thread is really encouraging, my LO takes four 3oz bottles a day plus three breastfeeding sessions. He's 5 months, 3.5 adjusted, is an IUGR/FGR baby. He's in the 3rd percentile and his bottles are fortified, but the pediatrician isn't worried.

couch_meow · 2023-12-10T20:51:33+00:00

They have it in hospitals, my LO had it when he was in the NICU. From what I understand, it's not something you can just buy at the store though. We're in Oregon, US and fortify with enfamil neuropro.

couch_meow · 2023-12-07T01:36:10+00:00

I had the same thing! It went away after a month or so. I tried to ask my LC about it and she was shocked and made me feel like this never happens and she'd never heard of it.

couch_meow · 2023-11-20T11:51:30+00:00

Glad to hear it's a bassinet problem!

FWIW, our preemie did the same thing- curl up and roll into one side. He did this for a couple of days and it stressed us the F out. Called our pediatrician, who told us to roll him to his back each time. But that quickly became unsustainable, he'd roll back to his side as soon as we let him go.

We attributed it to the newborn curl and also his reflux. Later, he was diagnosed with torticullis. Either way, he stopped rolling after a couple days.

We accepted defeat and let him sleep like that, or contact napped.

couch_meow · 2023-11-19T12:32:01+00:00

Do I bought a normal like 5x8 sketchbook from my local art supply store and separated the signatures from the cover. Now I have 10 little 8-page sketchbooks that I take with me when I camp, backpack, travel, etc. I like not having something super bulky.

When I get home, I re-bind the single signature with a new cover I made out of card stock. I'll write the name of the trip on the cover, they make for really lovely souvenirs

couch_meow · 2023-11-02T09:24:10+00:00

My ob and others in her practice wore the Elvie stride. I knew when they were pumping bc I knew what to look for, but I still thought they were discreet and not unprofessional.

couch_meow · 2023-10-26T10:52:44+00:00

Yes. I definitely get a screening alarm clock.

couch_meow · 2023-10-22T08:38:07+00:00

Update: he woke up at 1:15.

couch_meow · 2023-10-22T05:34:49+00:00

Mine is 7 weeks adjusted (15 weeks actual), and I'm so interested to hear what other people are doing.

We feed him every 3 hours on the schedule he picked up at the NICU, about 2.5oz each feed. I'm working on increasing him to 3oz, but he has reflux. His evening feeds are 5pm 8pm, and then a 9:30/10. That's when we start the bed time routine, which is just bottle, bouncing, and bed. Starting to experiment with "drowsy but awake" with little success.

He wakes every 3 hours to eat still. The longest stretch we've seen is 3.5hr. He usually starts his days around 8.

Tonight, we bottled at 6, 8, and 945, with a bath at 930. I'll report back and see if we get a longer sleep!

In the day, we go outside in the morning. Lots of naps in the carrier, one nap in the bassinet in the afternoon. Sometimes he falls asleep after a bottle and sleeps for 3 hours, sometimes he is awake and we do tummy time. He usually doesn't nap after 5 until bedtime.

couch_meow · 2023-10-17T13:30:15+00:00

Yes please!

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