What to expect when you're expecting?
- Thread starter Gaze
- Start date
If you are nearing the end of your term and your cervix is not effaced, your health care provider will either A) Encourage you to have more sex, sperm is natural pitocin or B) Jab you with their fingers to thin out the lining. Ouch.
I didn't enjoy pregnancy, and I had easy pregnancies both times (toward the end I always felt like I was going to "bottom out" if I was on my feet too long) ... but I did enjoy the process of going into labor, seeing how long I could endure the pain until an epidural and delivery.
I found those dumb books did not prepare me for my care after having the baby. Stock up on Kotex Pads. If the hospital has those pads with ice packs ... ask for plenty.
Also the whole sitz bath thing is disgusting, I used it once and threw it away.
Then there is the whole cleaning the penis issue on the baby so the foreskin doesn't "stick".
For me, the first child was the most difficult. He had colic for the first 3 months, the crazy bells stopped going off in my head when I started to wear ear plugs. It didn't help that I had no clue what I was doing. The only difficult thing about adding a 2nd child to the mix was getting to appointments on time.
I didn't enjoy pregnancy, and I had easy pregnancies both times (toward the end I always felt like I was going to "bottom out" if I was on my feet too long) ... but I did enjoy the process of going into labor, seeing how long I could endure the pain until an epidural and delivery.
I found those dumb books did not prepare me for my care after having the baby. Stock up on Kotex Pads. If the hospital has those pads with ice packs ... ask for plenty.
Also the whole sitz bath thing is disgusting, I used it once and threw it away.Then there is the whole cleaning the penis issue on the baby so the foreskin doesn't "stick".
For me, the first child was the most difficult. He had colic for the first 3 months, the crazy bells stopped going off in my head when I started to wear ear plugs. It didn't help that I had no clue what I was doing. The only difficult thing about adding a 2nd child to the mix was getting to appointments on time.
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Barfing. Lots and lots of barfing, and then suddenly none at all.
Feeling the baby move is indescribable, at the end...
You start to get unusually patient and dreamy -- I think having that feeling of patience and calmness was a wonderful feeling. It is the best kind of closeness ever, having your baby that close to you all the time. It is like everything else in the world barely exists, or if it can be bothered to exist, it is certainly nothing to be worried about.
Oh, and you can soak little newborn size disposable diapers in water, they'll swell up, and then you can freeze them to make the best ever ice packs for you know where.
Your boobs will look absolutely glorious during pregnancy and breastfeeding, but they will also hurt, which is somewhat cruel, I've always thought.
Feeling the baby move is indescribable, at the end...
You start to get unusually patient and dreamy -- I think having that feeling of patience and calmness was a wonderful feeling. It is the best kind of closeness ever, having your baby that close to you all the time. It is like everything else in the world barely exists, or if it can be bothered to exist, it is certainly nothing to be worried about.
Oh, and you can soak little newborn size disposable diapers in water, they'll swell up, and then you can freeze them to make the best ever ice packs for you know where.
Your boobs will look absolutely glorious during pregnancy and breastfeeding, but they will also hurt, which is somewhat cruel, I've always thought.
Wow. None of that, NONE of that was my experience during pregnancy.
Sounds beautiful though.
Wow. None of that, NONE of that was my experience during pregnancy.
Sounds beautiful though.
To clarify, the patient and dreamy part came after the barfing. I did quite enjoy the latter stages.
I didn't have a typical pregnancy, so I don't know what was normal and what wasn't...I'll post what I thought was normal anyway!
Massive tittehs!! LOVED them....although now im left with my normal size boobs and stretch marks >.>
Insane food cravings...by insane I mean strong. Especially in the first trimester and you're ill.....I used to crave food and I fet like I had to have it or I'd die. The food I craved usually made me feel less nauseous and usually contained some nutrient I needed at the time. (For example when i first found out i was pregnant i massively craved strawberries and watermelon....both contain a decent amount of folic acid, vital in the first trimester)
Super human sense of smell....seriously. I could smell EVERYTHING. If someone on the opposite end of the bus was chewing gum, i could smell it. It didn't help that during my pregnancy I lived down town and could smell every restraunt in a two mile radius of my home.
Killer hormones -- Extreme bitch! Moody and angry and then soft and gooey and then melancholy and sobbing....all in the space of ten minutes >.>
Looking absoloutely stunning -- big ass booty (before i found out i was pregnant my ass got plump and looked so good that i would get stopped constantly as i walked down the street from pervy comments out loud, to whistles, to near sexual assault :/ ), healthy shiney hair, perfect glowing skin. It's a cruel side affect really...I got nothing but gushing compliments, and yet I felt like ass, and in the later stages a beached whale soon followed by what I thought must be the word "BLIMP" written accross my forehead.
There were plenty more....I'll post more when they come to me
Massive tittehs!! LOVED them....although now im left with my normal size boobs and stretch marks >.>
Insane food cravings...by insane I mean strong. Especially in the first trimester and you're ill.....I used to crave food and I fet like I had to have it or I'd die. The food I craved usually made me feel less nauseous and usually contained some nutrient I needed at the time. (For example when i first found out i was pregnant i massively craved strawberries and watermelon....both contain a decent amount of folic acid, vital in the first trimester)
Super human sense of smell....seriously. I could smell EVERYTHING. If someone on the opposite end of the bus was chewing gum, i could smell it. It didn't help that during my pregnancy I lived down town and could smell every restraunt in a two mile radius of my home.
Killer hormones -- Extreme bitch! Moody and angry and then soft and gooey and then melancholy and sobbing....all in the space of ten minutes >.>
Looking absoloutely stunning -- big ass booty (before i found out i was pregnant my ass got plump and looked so good that i would get stopped constantly as i walked down the street from pervy comments out loud, to whistles, to near sexual assault :/ ), healthy shiney hair, perfect glowing skin. It's a cruel side affect really...I got nothing but gushing compliments, and yet I felt like ass, and in the later stages a beached whale soon followed by what I thought must be the word "BLIMP" written accross my forehead.
There were plenty more....I'll post more when they come to me
[MENTION=5297]Neverwhere[/MENTION] Oh yes on the super-human sniffer. My husband's teeny bit of cologne made me nauseated.
Loved my hair ... and the funny part is that you don't lose it, until after you have the baby (for me anyway.) It just came out in the handfuls then. :S (I have a lot of hair anyhow, enough for 3 people.)
Loved my hair ... and the funny part is that you don't lose it, until after you have the baby (for me anyway.) It just came out in the handfuls then. :S (I have a lot of hair anyhow, enough for 3 people.)
Its okay. I'm very jealous of the women that loved and enjoyed pregnancy. I didn't. I don't know why. I almost feel guilty and less of a woman for it.
[MENTION=4871]CindyLou[/MENTION] -- don't be silly sweetheart! You're an awesome woman. Pregnancy is so over glamourised. They never tell you about the death farts (oh yeah...forgot about those!), the extremely painful muscle stretching, the sore pelvis, the constantly being hungry but not always being able to eat, the constipation, haemerhoids, mood swings, stretch marks, peeing constantly, insomnia, swollen elephant feet etc etc.....pregnancy is so unglamorous. I enjoyed elements of it, but over all, it was not all that fun. A lot of women feel the same way....its a rite of passage!
[MENTION=2926]Bird[/MENTION] APART from all the above...pregnancy is quite magical in many other ways. Day dreaming about the future and what your child will be like is lovely. Reading all the books about how your baby is growing and developing, feeling your baby move, seeing them in a scan for the first time, labour -- there are a lot of awesome elements to it!
[MENTION=2926]Bird[/MENTION] APART from all the above...pregnancy is quite magical in many other ways. Day dreaming about the future and what your child will be like is lovely. Reading all the books about how your baby is growing and developing, feeling your baby move, seeing them in a scan for the first time, labour -- there are a lot of awesome elements to it!
What to expect, when expecting?
A baby, at some point.
(Someone had to make the smart-ass reply)
A baby, at some point.
(Someone had to make the smart-ass reply)
[MENTION=4871]CindyLou[/MENTION] -- don't be silly sweetheart! You're an awesome woman. Pregnancy is so over glamourised. They never tell you about the death farts (oh yeah...forgot about those!), the extremely painful muscle stretching, the sore pelvis, the constantly being hungry but not always being able to eat, the constipation, haemerhoids, mood swings, stretch marks, peeing constantly, insomnia, swollen elephant feet etc etc.....pregnancy is so unglamorous. I enjoyed elements of it, but over all, it was not all that fun. A lot of women feel the same way....its a rite of passage!
[MENTION=2926]Bird[/MENTION] APART from all the above...pregnancy is quite magical in many other ways. Day dreaming about the future and what your child will be like is lovely. Reading all the books about how your baby is growing and developing, feeling your baby move, seeing them in a scan for the first time, labour -- there are a lot of awesome elements to it!
YES. All of those things. I have great memories of the scans, putting together the nursery, feeling her move for the first time, even labor.
What I didn't enjoy was insecurity, weight gain, the TWO YEARS it took for my hormones to get back to normal, anxiety over kick counts and miscarriage, feeling like I had the flu for 9 months. Lol, etc etc.
Oh, my goodness! No! That was not the intended effect at all, and it in no way diminishes what you (and your body) did. I know women who spent nearly their entire pregnancy in the hospital on bedrest, or who had such bad nausea/vomiting that they also had to be hospitilized. Everyone's different and I sincerely hope you are proud of and accept your own strong self. :grouphug: And I'm sure your baby was worth everything!
[MENTION=4871]CindyLou[/MENTION] -- don't be silly sweetheart! You're an awesome woman. Pregnancy is so over glamourised. They never tell you about the death farts (oh yeah...forgot about those!), the extremely painful muscle stretching, the sore pelvis, the constantly being hungry but not always being able to eat, the constipation, haemerhoids, mood swings, stretch marks, peeing constantly, insomnia, swollen elephant feet etc etc.....pregnancy is so unglamorous. I enjoyed elements of it, but over all, it was not all that fun. A lot of women feel the same way....its a rite of passage!
Omg, lmao. I dare remember what I referenced as "the thousand wipes poop." Don't know why I thought of that.
Omg, lmao. I dare remember what I referenced as "the thousand wipes poop." Don't know why I thought of that.
o.o Do I want to know? lol
I remember sweating a lot, even though it was winter in my later months for both my pregnancies. My then husband needed a comforter to keep warm. I was always boiling hot even though I was naked with no comforter or even a light sheet. I still soaked the sheets with sweat.
I also had really bad morning sickness both times (for the first four months). Something that was really irritating was encountering women who never experienced any morning sickness at all. They intimated that I was lying about feeling nauseous, or "putting it on", or something. All I have to say is "Fuck Off".
I learned that it is definitely impossible to look even remotely elegant when you are 9 months pregnant.
A previous poster mentioned that feeling the baby move in the later months is indescribable. I agree. That is THE most amazing thing I've ever experienced.
I could not sleep until I felt them moving. I would wake them up by poking and prodding them. As soon as I felt them move, I could relax and then finally fall asleep myself.
Pregnancy is a real journey. It's also tough slugging.
I also had really bad morning sickness both times (for the first four months). Something that was really irritating was encountering women who never experienced any morning sickness at all. They intimated that I was lying about feeling nauseous, or "putting it on", or something. All I have to say is "Fuck Off".
I learned that it is definitely impossible to look even remotely elegant when you are 9 months pregnant.
A previous poster mentioned that feeling the baby move in the later months is indescribable. I agree. That is THE most amazing thing I've ever experienced.
I could not sleep until I felt them moving. I would wake them up by poking and prodding them. As soon as I felt them move, I could relax and then finally fall asleep myself.
Pregnancy is a real journey. It's also tough slugging.
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Ah the vomiting... the vomiting...and more vomiting...and vomiting. They said it'll stop after the 3rd month. It did. For a month. then I got the less usual nausea some have at the end of the pregnancy. I was 50% heavier than I was before the pregnancy despite all that vomiting.
I also had an infection in my back muscles because of the weight. I couldn't carry anything or sit for more than 20 minutes.
My husband thought I looked awesome. I thought I looked like a zeppelin in a mumu. By the 9th month all that fit was a hat. My feet became a size larger.
I also thought I'd start a new hobby while I was on maternity/sickleave and took up playing the bass. What I didn't know is that the ligaments in your hands begin to stretch (stuff like sandwiches and coffeecups would literally fall out of my hands) and you get carpal tunnel syndrome easier. ...so I ended having an infected back and carpal on both hands...
XD Oh well... But it was awesome too. My husband and I were totally spellbound by the little kicks and my son's hands trailing on my belly. You could just see the little fists poke the skin up. He curled his toes around my ribs. My daughter used to not like the doctor's heatbeat monitor..She'd move away from it and turn so that she really had to work to get the heartbeat measured. It was just amazing. And when they were born, so tiny and warm. I don't think there are words for that.
I also had an infection in my back muscles because of the weight. I couldn't carry anything or sit for more than 20 minutes.
My husband thought I looked awesome. I thought I looked like a zeppelin in a mumu. By the 9th month all that fit was a hat. My feet became a size larger.
I also thought I'd start a new hobby while I was on maternity/sickleave and took up playing the bass. What I didn't know is that the ligaments in your hands begin to stretch (stuff like sandwiches and coffeecups would literally fall out of my hands) and you get carpal tunnel syndrome easier. ...so I ended having an infected back and carpal on both hands...
XD Oh well... But it was awesome too. My husband and I were totally spellbound by the little kicks and my son's hands trailing on my belly. You could just see the little fists poke the skin up. He curled his toes around my ribs. My daughter used to not like the doctor's heatbeat monitor..She'd move away from it and turn so that she really had to work to get the heartbeat measured. It was just amazing. And when they were born, so tiny and warm. I don't think there are words for that.