Highs and Lows

For most of this pregnancy, my stomach was so high that my boobs rested on it if I sat slouchily-- which I have been known to do. A couple of weeks ago my stomach suddenly dropped, much to DH's concern. I look much smaller now. But now the tummy is resting on my lap!

I don't remember such a dramatic change happening in my previous pregnancies. Well, they say that each one is unique and each of mine have definitely been different from each other.

One thing that is consistent from the last pregnancy to this one is that my face has grown fat now towards the end. SORRY-- I mean, I have filled out. Don't want to cause angst to any first time pregolas reading this blog (assuming anyone reads it). Don't worry, it's just water (or chocolate) and it'll go away as soon as the baby is born.

Power Mommy

I feel so much stronger now than I did during pregnancy. I can't believe the difference. I took DS the pool the other day. I had taken him a bunch of times in late pregnancy. It was so hard to move around with him then and to get in and out of the water or in any position other than plain old sitting. Also, my swollen feet hurt when I walked through the water. Not sure why. But now I was able to really have fun with him. I was able to put him on top of me and swim with him, and I could run through the wading pool with him and play games. It's so much better-- it's astounding.

I Love My Feet

I keep looking at my feet. They are so... gorgeous and shapely. Not at all like hot water bottles. I can't believe they're mine. And just think-- they were hidden under all that swelling all this time.

They didn't shrink back to size straightaway. They went down significantly immediately but they felt bruised and sore, which I guess they were. It didn't help that DS liked to step on them while they were huge.

It's only in the last couple of days that I've noticed the sinews showing through the skin again. I have very long, thin feet normally, so seeing sinew is normal for me.

Well, I'm glad to have them back. Now I can wear my crocs again! Can you believe I grew out of those too?

Off With My Rings

With apologies to my husband, I took off my wedding rings today. I usually don't like to take them off at all and leave them at home. I feel that they are safest when they are on my fingers. But lately I haven't been able to get them off and they're starting to irritate my fingers and leave indentations where the swelling has gotten to be too much. So this morning I realized I had just enough squeeze space to slip them off, and that's what I did with a touch of hand cream for lubrication. It's been a few hours but the indentation is still there.

I was worried that in a worst case scenario my fingers would really really swell or else I'd have to go to the hospital for some procedure and then it would really be a problem. I think I wore them through my last birth. I remember having difficulty removing them only towards the end of the pregnancy but even then it wasn't so bad.

DH made fun of me for apologizing to him over taking them off. He is not sentimental about things like this (though I'm sure he's glad I wear them on a regular basis.)

Pregnant and Sick to My Stomach

The last three days or so I've been dragging even more than I've already been. I thought it was just, you know, pregnancy and being tired and slow. But then I realized that no, this is not just regular blahs. This is sick.
It began with a cold and then I developed some kind of stomach ailment. I'll spare you the details, but I will tell you that this happens to some women before they give birth-- it's the body's way of clearing the system for labor. In my case I know it's not so because dear husband, brother, sisters, and brother-in-law, all who were over at my house this weekend, are or were also sick to varying degrees. Sounds like I was hit hardest, but considering my 'condition', that's hardly surprising. I just hope this clears up before I go into real labor.

At first I thought that DH was just having sympathy paints-- couvade syndrome. But when I found out that it was actually everyone who was ill, I stopped flattering myself with that notion.

Update: I feel much better today, though I am sure that I'm a bit dehydrated from having expelled so much fluid so fast. On the plus side, my feet are less bloated!

Compression Stockings - Dare I?

As most of my readers know, my pregnant feet are swollen with third-trimester edema. This does not cause me great discomfort, however I came across a pair of compression stockings the other day-- the knee-high kind-- that I bought for a plane trip during my last pregnancy, and I've been considering putting them on, despite the July heat and my lack of air-conditioning.

I don't get to put my feet up that often. At least not as often as it seems I should. So while I'm sitting and typing at my desk, I might as well put these things on and gain the advantage of a little better circulation.

The problem with wearing these, besides the heat, is that I have to plan a whole outfit around them. Since they are only knee high, and I am tall (rendering the stockings not-quite-knee-high), I have to wear a skirt that is long enough to cover the tops of them even when I sit. Then there is the shoe issue. While stockings usually solve the shoe issue in the winter, in the summer they present he problem of not being able to wear them with my thong sandals. Actually, my husband's thong sandals which are the only ones that fit me right now.

I don't think I'll be wearing compression stockings anytime soon. This post has helped me make up my mind.

Finally Putting My Feet Up - This Pregnant Lady Loves the Dentist

Who likes going to the dentist? My experience today took me from feelings of ambivalence to sheer pleasure... and I also enjoyed observing a bit of irony in the whole thing.

I was in the middle of giving DS a bath this evening when the dentist's office called. Uh oh. I was late for my appointment. After spending an entire day rushing about, I was looking forward to having DH put DS to sleep and spending some quality time with my computer. Instead I found myself hurrying out of the house once more.

When I got to the dentist's office, I finally had a few minutes to calm down. The room was air-conditioned, the TV was on, there were plenty of magazines to browse. The secretary wasn't angry with me. The dentist had taken someone in since I was late and I was able to take the time to refill my water bottle at the cooler and catch up on the latest television commercials. It's been so long.

Just a little too soon, the dentist's door opened. She called my name. She asked how I was doing. And then she invited me to sit down and put my feet up. I was glad to oblige.

I have had two chief complaints in this pregnancy, and especially in the last couple of weeks: edema, or big, fat, swollen feet, and sinus pain in my cheek. I just finished a round of antibiotics for my sinus pain, which was discovered by the dentist via x-ray at my last appointment. I'd originally thought it was a toothache. Well, today I took care of it all in one shot. It turns out that at least part of the pain I was feeling and attributing to sinuses was tooth pain. The dentist said that a previous filling on this same tooth had come loose and there was food in there, which might account for at least part of the terrible pain I was feeling.

But as I sat there with my fat legs raised comfortably at the end of my dentist chair and had my cheek problem taken care of at the same time, I wasn't thinking about the painful anesthetizing needle or the drill in my mouth. I reflected on how happy I was to not be washing dishes or running about or picking things off the floor. And I was very happy to be taking care of two pregnancy symptoms at once-- from my head down to my toes.

Put Your Feet Up

The problem with being pregnant and having a kid and having swollen feet is that everyone tells you that all you have to do is put your feet up... but putting your feet up requires that you stop doing pretty much everything else. That is, everything besides reading, knitting, or watching television. Chances are that if you're a working mom, these three activities are not an option, not even at the end of a busy day when there is a kitchen to be cleaned and toys to be picked up and laundry to be hung or gathered.

Have You Had Enough Of My Feet? Edema Continues

Edema edema edema. Maybe that's what I should name my baby. It has a nice ring to it, no? It's because of the baby that I'm getting it, so maybe I'll just pay it back with that name. Edema. Edem if it's a boy...

Just kidding.

Now back to my feet. They look like hot water bottles. You know, the red kind that you fill from the kettle? The kind that squish when you step on them and jiggle when you drop them? Yeah. That's what my feet look like.

DS has a new habit of stepping on my feet in order to access things he can't reach on the counter. My feet don't normally hurt but when he steps on them I'm afraid they're going to pop. My toes look like little sausages. In fact, my feet look like a baby's foot. Not as cute, though. Not something I'd pretend to munch on. But I would refer to my toes as little piggies. I think that it's an appropriate metaphor right now. This one went to market, this one sayed home...

More on My Feet: Edema and Pregnancy

I know I've been talking a lot about my feet lately but edema has been a theme in the third trimester of my second pregnancy.
The truth is, it's not painful -- except for when I was wading through the wading pool with DS the other day and then for some reason it hurt to drag it through the water-- and I guess the swelling in my feet doesn't make that much difference to my life except for the fact that I'm bursting out of every shoe I own except for my Crocs. Thank God it's summertime or else I don't know what I'd be doing.
My sister saw my feet for the first time the other day and she actually felt so moved that she decided to rub them for me. Maybe edema is a good thing after all. DH is too grossed out by my feet to touch them but it's not because of the water retention. It's because they need a good washing. The ratio of how much barefoot walking I'm inclined towards to how much floor washing I find myself doing lately is quite high.

Pregnancy, Sinusitis and Me

Prior to going to the hospital yesterday, I actually had a doctor's appointment for my terrible sinus pain. (With all the hubub of having DS in the room with me, I totally forgot to ask her about the edema. If you think of it, the higher likelyhood of edema and sinus pain in pregnancy stem from the same problem-- water retention. This has definitely been a problem in this 2nd pregnancy of mine. I'm hoping that a lot of the weight I gained is just water.

My sinus pain has been excrutiating. At times it has me moaning and walking around holding my face. Tylenol provided some relief but at really bad times it just takes the edge off, it doesn't make the sinus pain go away. It's not always terrible, but when I have a flare-up, it is just horrible horrible horrible. I can't do anything. I can't sit, stand, or lie down. The pain keeps me from talking comfrotably. I can't concentrate on anything else. It wakes me up if I'm asleep. I find that it usually creeps up on me when I'm doing something that doesn't require moving my head around too much. Driving is a big culprit. So is reading. Using the computer, for some reason, isn't that bad.

Last night for the first time I tried putting ice on it. I hadn't tried it before because anything touching that side of my face when it hurts makes me feel worse. But after the initial shock of the cold, the ice actually managed to soothe the pain in the nerve running along my jaw, which is where all the sinus pain radiates from. The first thing you would try if you are not pregnant is decongestants. But they are strictly forbidden during pregnancy. I'm going to have to try some natural remedies for sinusitis such as vapor inhalation and nostril flushing. Also cutting out dairy and wheat products which contribute to the development of mucous.

Anyway, back to the doctor. I finally went to see her and she gave me antibiotics for it-- amoxicylin-- which is supposed to be safe for pregnant women, but which didn't make me any less nervous to take it. I even called my OB and confirmed with him that it was OK. It was. It is. Which made me feel slightly better about it. The truth is that I have to do SOMETHING about this sinus pain, pregnant or not, because at times it renders me completely non functional, not to mention the complete agony I feel.

Here's the irony between my leg swelling (which doesn't hurt, btw) and the sinus trouble. The radiologist who scanned me for blood clots yesterday at the hospital reminded me that if I sleep on my left side, it should help the swelling in my leg. Well, because of the sinusitis I can only lie on one side for so long before the pain starts and then I have to flip to the other side, whcih causes the pain to subside temporarily but makes my leg swell up. This doctor said that it's better even to lie on my back than to lie on my right side. That was a fist for me. EVERYONE says not to lie on your back in pregnancy. But apparently lying on your right actually blocks blood flow while lying on your left allows it. Lying on your back is only bad if it causes you discomfort. I don't have discomfort from lying on my back so I tried it out last night. It wasn't as good at relieving the pain as flipping from side to side, but I had my ice pack, and between the two, I managed to get a few good hours of sleep.

My Brush With DVT

Deep Vein Thrombosis basically means that there is a blood clot in your vein. I don't have it. I know this because I just returned from the hospital where my leg (in addition to my abdomen-- just for fun) was ultrasounded. Pregnant women are at high risk for DVT. It's one of the reasons they tell you to get up and walk around all the time. One of the indications of DVT is swelling in one foot and not the other, which is what I had. Well, actually I have swelling in both feet but one of them is a lot more significant, depending on the time of day. I called my doctor and he said I might as well go to the hospital and check it out.

At the hospital they did a bunch of tests before they ever got around to looking at my balloon foot. Urine stick, blood pressure and temperature, and then heart monitor. The doctors on call-- well, one of them-- remembered me from having given birth there not too long ago. I didn't mention that I'm planning on another hospital this time. Not because they were bad in particular. I just had a tough birth and want a fresh experience that is not in a place I associate with all this trauma from last time.

But I digress. I was wheeled down to Radiology in a chair. I should have felt embarrassed-- I have no problem walking-- but I decided to enjoy my chariot ride. When the radiologist came to fetch me, he found me reading with my feet up against the railing. He scanned only my thigh and not below. He said that if there are any significant clots, that's where they are. Clots lower than the knee aren't considered dangerous. When he didn't find anything he sent me back up for discharge sans wheelchair. Now that I was clear of DVT I'd have to fend the elevators by myself.

No Heartburn

Sometimes when I'm browsing through pregnancy forums online I have to stop and thank my lucky stars about some of the things I don't suffer from. Pu Pu PU. Knock on wood.

Heartburn is very common in pregnancy but I have only consumed a half package of TUMS since I first got three or four packages at the beginning of my FIRST pregnancy. and most of that half-pack was consumed by DH. I was playing it safe since my sister had heartburn REAL BAD and went through a pack a week of TUMS. I had some stomach pains that turned out to be gas (to be blunt) but not heartburn-- not that I know of.

At the end of my sister's most recent pregnancy, she was popping tylenol every day for lower back pain. Thank God I don't suffer from that either. I also never had this stupid edema that's been plaguing me last pregnancy but I guess you can't win them all.

On the other hand, last pregnancy I had a terribly itchy scalp and also ear pain. Nobody could figure out either of these things. There was seemingly no reason for the itch and nobody could see any redness in my ears. It turns out that (according to my pregnancy book-- how come the doctors didn't know?) that painful ear is associated with fluid retention. So I guess you can say that I had some symptoms of edema last pregnancy but it was nothing like what I'm going through now. Especially with the sinus trouble.

BigFoot: Edema is Me

My foot, when I stamp on it, jiggles like jelly. I didn't even bother trying my sandals on yesterday. I opted for DH's flip-flops instead. (Okay, I did try to put my foot in my sandal but I only gave it one half-hearted shove before I gave up.) My sister's sister-in-law, a nurse, discretely checked out my legs and ankles when I saw her over the weekend and she gently recommended that I keep a close eye on my blood pressure and take frequent urine tests. I sent in a pee-pee sample this morning. My blood pressure is usually on the low end of fantastic. But I'll have to get that checked out too. Sigh.

Oh yeah, I also couldn't get my rings off yesterday, though this morning it's a bit better. It was a terribly hot day yesterday, which could have accounted for a lot.

I finally made a doctor's appointment for my sinus trouble, which is also related to the excess body fluid in pregnant women. In this case the fluid is mucous. Apparently, they don't give decongestants to pregnant women although nobody is really sure why. I guess it's one of those 'not enough research done on it' kind of things. I'll have to update when I get her response. I'm hoping she'll send me to an ENT specialist because when it starts to hurt, it can be so bad as to wake me up. The pain runs along my upper and lower jaws and sometimes towards my eye and my ear. I've had a couple of flare-ups that had me in complete agony. DH thinks it'll all go away once the baby is born, but that's a long time from now. At least, it's a long time to be in agony.

Fat Feet

I've got that edema thing going again. A lovely surprise in my second pregnancy. My feet were so fat yesterday that I almost didn't recognise them. I thought it would go away when I went to sleep, but this morning I had to coax my feet into my thong sandals. I sure hope my foot size goes down after I give birth. I don't want to buy whole new set of shoes. Besides the fact that we can't currently afford it, I hate hate hate buying shoes. My feet are big anyway, and I am tall, and still they don't make decent flat shoes. How many 5"10 people do you know who want to walk around in two-inch heels all day? Or in any high shoe, for that matter?

I know the swelling should go down when the baby is born, but some people's shoe size gets permanently changed. That would bring me up to a size 11. I don't care about the number itself but shoot, have you ever tried to find a size 11 women's shoe? It's not an easy thing to do, at least not if you care about selection.

Edema

Edema is what happens excess fluids in your body gather in your extremities. I didn't have any problems with it in my first pregnancy. I even flew six times in late pregnancy (four of those were part of a trans Atlantic trip) and did fine-- though I did wear compression stockings each of those times and I took care to move around a lot.
Now, in my 2nd pregnancy, I've been noticing that my legs and feet are pouffy-- much more substantial looking than my usual chicken-like appearance. I even had marks on my feet when I took off my fancy sandals after an affair last week. I showed it to DH who pressed on my shin with his finger and sure enough, it left an indentation. That's how you tell. Apparently it's pretty mild, but I'm still not happy with the situation. It means one more thing to be careful about. One more succumbing to pregnancy ailments that I'm going through this time around. On a positive note, it probably means that I have less to lose after the pregnancy since a higher percentage of my weight gain this time is water.