YOU NEVER FULLY UNDERSTAND THE STRUGGLE OF SHAVING YOUR LEGS UNTIL YOU’RE 37 WEEKS PREGNANT #PREGNANCYPROBLEMS @ALLYM
SHOULDEXPECT WHATYOU TIP OH THE ANTICIPATION
The start of labour can be very confusing and often you are not sure if your contractions are for real. You are full of worry at this time. What will this baby be like? Will I cope? Will I love him? Will he love me? And most importantly, will this baby ever – ever – come?
IF YOUR
CONTRACTIONS FALL INTO SOME KIND OF PATTERN, ARE REGULAR AND THEY INTENSIFY WITH ACTIVITY, THEN THIS IS LIKELY TO BE THE START OF LABOUR. ALSO IF THERE IS A SHOW (PINK OR BLOOD STREAKED), AND YOUR WATERS HAVE BROKEN THEN YOU ARE VERY LIKELY TO BE IN TRUE LABOUR.
Braxton Hicks contractions: “You’re having a baby tonight! Hahaha, just kidding” #PregnancyProblems @CIEthridge
#PregnancyProblems #ThirdTrimester Not knowing whether you’re starting to feel labour cramps or are just really really constipated @TheJetsetMama
Most pregnant women are on intimate terms with heartburn, especially in the last few months of pregnancy when your big bump pushed your acidic gastric juices up into your throat. Try to avoid eating for at least three hours before bedtime, and don’t drink anything two hours before. Avoiding peppermint, tomatoes, chocolate, hot drinks and fatty or spicy foods may help.
THINGS PEOPLE SAY
People see a bump and they feel they have the right to suggest just about anything – from what you should name your child, to how to have the perfect birth. You have to learn to sift through the information, and use only what will benefit you.
I already know I’m tired so I probably also look tired. No need to point it out, thanks #PregnancyProblems @helenlindsay
#PregnancyProblems when people try to convince you to change your child’s name. People go have your own kids and name them @ag_romay
KARIN SAYS: “Comments on Twitter are very good for normalising your experience.” You may not have friends who are pregnant at the same time as you, and your mother has long since forgotten the discomforts of her own pregnancy. A safe, anonymous place to vent over the tactlessness or inconsiderateness of the non-pregnant world? How wonderful – as long as you remember also to seek other support, says Karin. “The great risk here is if mothers surround themselves with so much negative emotion that they don’t move towards acceptance. Don’t exclude your mother and partner – you need real life support, and not only cyber support, during pregnancy. Women who are less supported and who are less excited about their pregnancies have a higher risk of contracting postnatal depression.”
ALL IMPORTANT SLEEP
One of the great ironies of pregnancy is that, no matter how much experienced parents warn you to “sleep now before the baby comes,” you often simply can’t. Whether it’s backache, toilet visits, your changing body or your bouncing baby keeping you up, sleep is hard to come by in pregnancy.
This child inside of me has decided 2.30am is a good time to start thumping around. I fear it is an omen #PregnancyProblems @gwenwright
She isn’t even born yet and she doesn’t let me sleep #PregnancyProblems @katelworth
Seriously considering cutting a big hole in my mattress just so I can sleep on my front! #PregnancyProblems @MrsSarahLSharpe
KARIN SAYS: “These are great examples of women using a social medium platform to get rid of frustrations and fears – and move into positivity.” You know who else is awake at 4am, waiting to share tales of insomnia with you? The Twitterverse, that’s who. When the lucky so-and-so’s in your life are awake though, remember to involve these real life people too, stresses Karin. They are going to be there afterwards, holding the baby, after all. “And they will remind you, then, of your strength and resilience.”
JUNE/JULY 2015 91
TIP
CAN’T SLEEP WITH A TUMMY IN THE WAY? INVEST IN A SEMICIRCULAR PILLOW. YOU CAN USE THE PILLOW FOR BREASTFEEDING AFTER BIRTH.
Page 1 |
Page 2 |
Page 3 |
Page 4 |
Page 5 |
Page 6 |
Page 7 |
Page 8 |
Page 9 |
Page 10 |
Page 11 |
Page 12 |
Page 13 |
Page 14 |
Page 15 |
Page 16 |
Page 17 |
Page 18 |
Page 19 |
Page 20 |
Page 21 |
Page 22 |
Page 23 |
Page 24 |
Page 25 |
Page 26 |
Page 27 |
Page 28 |
Page 29 |
Page 30 |
Page 31 |
Page 32 |
Page 33 |
Page 34 |
Page 35 |
Page 36 |
Page 37 |
Page 38 |
Page 39 |
Page 40 |
Page 41 |
Page 42 |
Page 43 |
Page 44 |
Page 45 |
Page 46 |
Page 47 |
Page 48 |
Page 49 |
Page 50 |
Page 51 |
Page 52 |
Page 53 |
Page 54 |
Page 55 |
Page 56 |
Page 57 |
Page 58 |
Page 59 |
Page 60 |
Page 61 |
Page 62 |
Page 63 |
Page 64 |
Page 65 |
Page 66 |
Page 67 |
Page 68 |
Page 69 |
Page 70 |
Page 71 |
Page 72 |
Page 73 |
Page 74 |
Page 75 |
Page 76 |
Page 77 |
Page 78 |
Page 79 |
Page 80 |
Page 81 |
Page 82 |
Page 83 |
Page 84 |
Page 85 |
Page 86 |
Page 87 |
Page 88 |
Page 89 |
Page 90 |
Page 91 |
Page 92 |
Page 93 |
Page 94 |
Page 95 |
Page 96 |
Page 97 |
Page 98 |
Page 99 |
Page 100 |
Page 101 |
Page 102 |
Page 103 |
Page 104 |
Page 105 |
Page 106 |
Page 107 |
Page 108 |
Page 109 |
Page 110 |
Page 111 |
Page 112 |
Page 113 |
Page 114 |
Page 115 |
Page 116