After having a lovely home birth, I was asked to take my newborn to ward 8 at Forth Valley Royal Infirmary for her newborn checks. We initially were sent away as the people answering the buzzer in the ward weren't expecting us. When we got to the right place and were seen, my daughter was unsettled as it was hot and we'd been sitting around in the hospital ourselves for 90 minutes.
The paediatrician asked if she could give her sucrose to try and calm her for the examination and I said I'd prefer not as we are trying to establish breastfeeding and she was only 2 days old. I offered to hold her or feed her to calm her down but the doctor declined. She wanted to get a second opinion on my babies hips.
While she was away asking an advanced practitioner to come and give a second opinion I started nursing my baby. My baby was still feeding when the advanced practitioner came through and was waiting to do the exam. I asked if she needed my to stop feeding and she said yes. Again my daughter got upset during the exam and the advanced practitioner gave her sucrose without asking and too quickly for me to say anything.
I felt very upset and exhausted. I didn't feel I could say anything as I would have cried and just wanted to get home to feel safe again. ( I was very emotional 2 days postpartum and was tired hungry and thirsty as I wasn't expecting to be there so long and hadn't packed a drink snack and stressed being out alone with my new baby for the first time) and felt dis-empowered and vulnerable.
"newborn checks"
About: Forth Valley Royal Hospital / Maternity unit Forth Valley Royal Hospital Maternity unit FK5 4WR
Posted by Newmum54321 (as ),
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