Questions- In need of support

You ladies have always been there for me on this forum, since about this time last year when we were TTC.

I haven't really been updating about this so much because I am so completely overwhelmed.  Being a new mom is overwhelming in itself.  When we went to the pediatrician on Tuesday I mentioned that Sage has been breathing weirdly since day one.  Every nurse, doctor, surgeon at the hospital told me it is completely normal for newborns to have erratic breathing patterns when they are so new.  I figured I would get some reassurance from my ped.  He told me he wanted Sage on a sleep apnea monitor to monitor her breathing and heart rate while she's asleep.  I told him she breathes that way while she's awake too but he wasn't worried about that so much.  We found a hole in her heart that same day, which I was assured would not hinder her in anyway and should close up by the age of 1.  This breathing thing is completely un related.  The Dr. told me he wanted it on her for a week, two at most.  Well the lady came to my house teach me how to use it and it is completely scary and totally overwhelming.  She also taught me how to resuscitate Sage, if need be.  I was a complete mess yesterday and the day before.  I tried to get the monitor on her last night, but she kicked it off within 2 minutes and the alarm is SO ear piercing loud we decided to only do it during the day while she sleeps.  She is on it right now and so far so good.

I wanted to ask if anyone on here has experienced their child breathing how she breaths as was told it was "normal."  The way I describe it is, she starts breathing from her belly, pretty hard up and down, for about a minute at a time.  Then she will start to breathe normally again, then a minute or two later the same thing.  A heavy belly breathing.  I never ever notice her stop breathing (Thank God) and I've never seen her any other color but nice and pink.  Anyones little ones every breathe like this?  The ped I go to did tell me he is extremely paranoid about babies breathing and no other Dr. would prob ever order the monitor but he was being cautious.

This is all just so new and scary.  I literally cry every single time I think about it or talk about it.  Any one have any advice?

Karen

karen.. i understand that this is very very scary... when jayson was born.. he wasnt crying... i delivered him in triage and they literally ran with him to a room where they would make him breath... it was the worst 2 mins of my life..being calm is imporant.. you dont want to make your self sick.. jgirl did the same thing with the breathing... almost like a belly laugh but they were just breaths.. babies need some time to get used to being in the outside world.. she will be fine.. take a breath :)

Alex breathed the same way for the first few weeks.  Based on your description, it sounds completely normal newborn breathing.

I totally agree with Tabitha...that is sounds perfectly normal for a newborn.  Matthew breathed like that for a few weeks.....they have to "learn" to breath and it takes a little while. 

It's hard being a new mom! My daughter had jaundice really bad and we had to have her under the lights at home- that was really overwhelming and caused a lot of tears for me! In addition to the daily heel sticks they had to do to test her levels. A few months later she had a problem with her neck and we had numerous x-rays, physical therapy, and had to have several different braces made to fit. That was horrible too! I struggled a lot with it. I would say do what your ped asked- hook her up to the monitor just to be sure. It wiill make you feel less anxious in the long run, although it doesn't seem to right now. Knowing how to resucitate a newborn is an important skill- look at it as being something that you are competent in, even if you never need it. I'm not sure how she's breathing- you're the mom and if you're worried, there may be a reason for that. Trust in your instincts, use the machine, and if everything turns out fine in the long run, great! It won't be the last tiem something medically stressful happens, so it's good training for a lifetime.
Carrie

I don't have any advice but wanted to send support and hugs. I am sure that Sage is just fine, the Ped would have taken more drastic measures if he had any uncertainty.

I am so paranoid with a newborn that I was constantly waking up in the night and putting a hand on the baby's stomach to make sure she was breathing. I slept horribly. I am so sorry you're going through this. I know I would be a complete wreck too, you can't help it.  My sister in law had a premature baby and she had to be on the sleep apnea monitor and it was really freaky to them as well but she grew out of it. I'm sure Sage will grow out of it too. I think the doctor would be way more paranoid about things if he thought something truly serious was wrong. I will pray that everything will be ok.

All of my kids did the same thing. Almost looked their whole stomach sucked all the way to the back with breaths. They stopped that by the time they were 6 weeks old. Very normal to adjust to breathing air

Its normal :)

Hannah was on an apnea monitor to (she was getting very choked from her acid reflux).
I remember how scary it was when we had to attend an infant CPR class.  I was in tears the whole time.   

I would try to follow the Dr.s orders about when to put the monitor on.  When they download the card they can tell when she was wearing it.   If he doesn't get the info he needs (such as night time sleep monitoring) he may want her to stay on it even longer.

Does the monitor strap around her chest with a velcro band?   If so, don't be afraid of hurting her.  You have to get it really tight so that it doesn't alarm.

Noah was also on an apnea monitor, but only in the hospital (he turned blue on me from having RSV).  His were the sticky electrodes and they alarmed all the time.  

Hang in there sweetie!   Being a Mommy gets easier!

Amy