The post The Not So Joys Of Pregnancy appeared first on All Mum Said.
]]>Pregnancy is a time of joy and excitement. Well it is supposed to be.
Yes it is true that you are taking part in creating a life and it is such a precious and magical thing. What they don’t tell you is how horrible some of the pregnancy side effects can be. From heartburn to varicose veins and stretch marks to exhaustion. I like to call these the ‘not so joys of pregnancy’.
You think you prepare yourself for it but each time you have a glimmer of hope you will escape the wrath of whatever is to come. I am currently pregnant with baby number four and while I did receive a stomach covered in stretch marks from my first born, I have experienced worse in side effects in the consecutive pregnancies.
Baby number two introduced me to heartburn and all day morning sickness. What two better things to experience simultaneously (insert sarcasm)? I tried everything I could think of to help but unfortunately nothing I tried worked.
Then of course came baby number three. While I pretty much escaped morning sickness with her, I wasn’t fortunate enough to get away scot-free. I experienced torturous varicose veins and extremely severe pregnancy heartburn. I had experienced nothing like it before. I tried ginger, fruit tingles, eating small meals, not eating before bed, milk, quick-eze, Renee tablets but nothing worked. Well apart from not eating everything sweet, savoury or salty. I was left with pretty much only a selection of certain fruits and vegetables, rice and chicken. It was a very healthy diet so I cannot complain about that.
It wasn’t until after I had my daughter that I had heard about Gaviscon from a friend who had recently fallen pregnant and was also suffering heartburn. She swore by it and called it magic in a bottle! She said it was great because it was not only safe to take while pregnant but it also worked. Which when you are suffering indigestion you want nothing short of that. I have always had that conversation in the back of mind and kicked myself for not trying harder to find a solution when I needed it most. Now I am in my second trimester and have not experienced heartburn once. Maybe because now I know there is something that can help ease the pain and restore comfort.
Did you experience heartburn or indigestion during pregnancy? What was your ‘go to’ method for relief?
This is an S1 POST.
The post The Not So Joys Of Pregnancy appeared first on All Mum Said.
]]>The post Pregnancy is NOT all glamour appeared first on All Mum Said.
]]>Pregnancy is not all glamour and perfect glowing skin. I know many expectant mothers are under the illusion that pregnancy brings so many wonderful experiences and benefits. I’ll admit it does bring with it some of the most amazing experiences a woman could ever imagine however it doesn’t always come with no strings attached. I’ve personally learnt that sometimes you do really have to take the good with the bad and learn to accept the changes that have occurred; things that may never be the same again.
A friend of mine was expecting nothing but radiant glowing skin, a perfectly round belly and complete and utter joy. This was not the case for her and I’m sure many other women out there are expecting one thing but end up experiencing something completely different. Mood swings, the amount of changes to her body, lack of sex drive and being uncomfortable are not things she expected and because she had this expectation of the perfect pregnancy her journey has not been as joyous it could have been. I am a little nervous about publishing this post as I share images of my body that have taken me an extremely long time to come to terms with and accept that is what I’ve been dealt. 6 years to be exact!
My body has gone through a transformation that could be described (and has been by me in the past) as nothing short of complete and utter destruction. I was blessed with beyond ridiculous stretchmarks and a flap of excess skin on my lower belly due to the size of my beloved children and their C-sections.
This current pregnancy the damage has been increased and has presented itself in the form of varicose and spider veins. They are not only unattractive but they can be extremely painful and spread like fuel to fire. They started near my knee and have spread up my thigh and down to my ankle, on the bright side at least they have only taken over one leg. Apparently they get worse with each pregnancy so I think it is safe to say this will be my last baby.
*26 years old and I have legs like this!*
It isn’t all bad though; I have experienced the radiant glow of an expectant mother, the ability to feel my baby grow and be nurtured inside me, the perfectly round (as huge as it may be) pregnant belly and of course the joy that motherhood brings. I’m not saying it has all been sunshine and rainbows but I have learnt to appreciate what I have. I can say I am more comfortable with my body now that I have acknowledged and accepted that it has done an incredible job creating and protecting my children.
I would like to let every woman out there who is suffering from poor pregnancy body image (before and after) that even though your body may no longer be perfect to you, it doesn’t mean it isn’t amazing. I have shared my images to let you all know that you are not alone and there is no reason to be ashamed, embarrassed, disgusted or disappointed in your body. It is strong, incredible and deserves credit for the hard work it has done – without it you wouldn’t have the little people who now or soon will call you mum.
TOTALLY WORTH IT!
The post Pregnancy is NOT all glamour appeared first on All Mum Said.
]]>