Tag Archives: symptoms

Pure sisterly ass-vice on pregnancy

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1. I was much too tired to have any morning sickness. I just slept. I tend to refer to the first trimester of my pregnancy as my coma. I’ve heard that keeping bland crackers near the bed for near intravenous snacking really helps morning sickness, but I didn’t have that problem. Here are some symptoms I did have…

2. Your body will probably never be the same again. You may be able to get it close, but the pooch belly will probably always linger. Make your peace with that now and don’t worry about how many pounds you gain during your pregnancy. Some women gain 25, some gain 35. I gained 42. Your body will pack on the pounds you are supposed to gain no matter what you eat. That doesn’t mean you might as well go crazy with the chocolate cream pie or whatever, but don’t worry too much if your cravings take you away from dirty-hippy-vegan-leafy-granola-squirrel-food. The weight doesn’t just go to your belly either. You will get bigger EVERYWHERE and you will feel like you ARE a planet by the end of it. You’ve been warned – albeit a little late.

3. You are in fact eating for two, but remember one of you starts out about the size of a pea. Something the size of a pea couldn’t possibly need *that* much. Don’t force yourself to eat more than you can handle. Just eat as healthy as possible.

4. There are TONS of lists of what you should or should not eat and drink during pregnancy. You will drive yourself MAD trying to follow it all. The big one is to stop smoking crack. Never do a drug named after a part of your body (Dennis Leary). Seriously though, street drugs are a pretty obvious no-no.

The following three quoted areas are from Pregnancy Nutrition Guidelines by Elizabeth Eden at How Stuff Works*.

Alcohol:
In the US you will probably NEVER find a doctor that says it’s ok to have any amount of alcohol, however they will tell you not to worry about the drinks you had before you knew you were pregnant. I’ve known several people that had a drink here and there during there pregnancies and their kids came out just fine. I didn’t dare have any because it would be my luck that just smelling one silly drink would permanently harm my child.

No safe level of alcohol consumption has been established. As a result, it is best to take a cautious approach during pregnancy by abstaining from alcohol.

Cigarettes:
If you smoke you already know it’s not good, so I’m not going to beat a dead horse.

Caffeine:

increases production of stress hormones, causing constriction of uterine blood vessels, which lessens the blood flow to the uterus and may temporarily decrease the amount of oxygen reaching the fetus. Large amounts of caffeine cannot be good for your baby or you. However, caffeine consumption in small amounts (one to two cups of coffee per day) is considered safe during pregnancy.

Herbal Tea:

Some herbs and herbal teas contain drugs. Ginseng tea contains a small amount of estrogen. Chamomile tea contains ragweed, which can cause severe allergic reactions in some people. Teas made from juniper berries may cause stomach irritation. Just because herbal teas are considered to be natural does not mean they are safe for pregnant women. So, in general, avoid herbal teas except for those teas known to be safe for pregnancy such as peppermint and raspberry leaf.

I ran into a bunch of sites that say to stay away from soft cheeses and lunch meats. My thoughts are to just make sure the cheeses you eat are pasteurized (it should say on the label). I haven’t found a cheese in the US yet that isn’t pasteurized, including the ones listed as “no-nos” on the CDC web page about preventing listeria like feta and queso blanco fresco. As for the deli meats and such, don’t eat them past the expiration date and toss them after about a week.

The other thing I saw a lot of are sites saying to avoid fish because of mercury content, but it is safe to eat some fish in moderation (that’s always the key isn’t it?). FDA – What You Need to Know About Mercury in Fish and Shellfish.

Fish contains DHA, which is fabulous for brain development, so if you like fish at all don’t rule it out completely because of mercury fears.

The best sources of DHA are: seafood, algae, and especially coldwater fish. Omega-3 fatty acids are nature’s antifreeze. In general, the colder the water, the higher the omega-3 content in the fish oil. Popular sources of DHA are: salmon, sardines, and tuna. Eggs and organ meats have a small amount of DHA in them, but the healthiest source of dietary DHA is seafood. Two 4-ounce servings of omega-3-rich fish per week should yield a sufficient amount of omega-3 fatty acids, especially DHA. Besides fish oils, vegetable oils (primarily flaxseed, soy, and canola) are also rich sources of omega 3 fatty acids, with flaxseed oil being the best. The two F’s, fish and flax, are the top brain-building foods for growing children, and adults.

I am not a doctor, nor do I play one on TV. This advice is not meant to take the place of talking to a doctor.

*Eden, Elizabeth. “Pregnancy Nutrition Guidelines.” 17 November 2006. HowStuffWorks.com. 21 July 2008.

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Flu Shot

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Our doctor told us that Kurt and I should get out flu shots so that we don’t bring the flu home to Sophia, so on Tuesday when I had my six weeks check up (seven weeks) I also received my flu shot. My appointment was late in the day so that Kurt would be home and could watch baby squishy pants, so I didn’t feel any affects that day. Wednesday however was completely different. Most of the day I just felt very tired. Sophia and I took a nap from one to three. When Kurt got home I went to the store to get a few things and by the time I got home all of my joints were aching. I felt like I had arthritis in my fingers, the house felt like an ice box and I had a headache. Kurt made dinner and afterwards I asked him to watch the baby. I just didn’t feel good at all. I tired to take a nap but fuss budget just would cooperate with dad and kept wanting to eat. At nine Kurt brought her up AGAIN to eat. I told him to wait a minute while I went to the bathroom. Dinner came up soon after. – That’s not on the list of flu shot side effects. Last night I was so cold I used an extra blanket and woke up in a puddle of sweat (attractive eh?), and today I’m not feeling much better.

The CDC says you can actually get the flu from the flu shot, but then again they don’t list throwing up as a symptom either. From the CDC:

  • Soreness, redness, or swelling where the shot was given
  • Fever (low grade)
  • Aches

I hope this can’t be passed on to Sophia. It’s painful not being able to kiss my baby for fear of passing this on. :(

For those with a twisted curiosity last night for dinner we had ham, green beans, and rice – none of which was fully digested. I also drank a lot of the best Martinelli apple juice in the world, so when it came up I had a bit of a hard cider after taste. – Your Welcome.

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Random Skin changes

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On Saturday I spent the day garage saling with a friend. The day was gorgeous so I wore one of my summer pregnancy tops as opposed to an oversized t-shirt. Except in the shade, I didn’t need a jacket. It was the first time I gave strangers the opportunity to see my belly and the first time people started asking me, “When are you due?” It was a little odd. It wasn’t a good or bad it just caught me off guard. Thankfully I didn’t get any unsolicited advice. I’ve heard and read stories about it, but with exception to my mother telling me what to eat, I haven’t run into it. – Where oh where is a piece of actual wood?

The only problem that I did have was at one sale this lady had two sleepsacks / sleep blankets that were red and had, “Baby’s first Christmas” embroidered on it. They were both new with the tags still on, so I snatched one up and asked her how much she wanted for it. This is how it all began. I now know more about that woman and her twin granddaughters than I ever cared to know. Don’t get me wrong, the lady was very nice and at first it was sweet to hear about her tiny twin granddaughters in California, but after a while I could feel the sun starting to burn my shoulders. I felt like a trapped animal, and she continued with telling me about her daughter-in-law finding two very nice cribs on craigslist for $100 from a woman that had triplets – that’s fantastic, but I can feel my scalp burning now. There was no shade on this woman’s driveway. I should have asked her for some juice or other refreshment – even prisoners of war get water. We finally made our escape when another pair of garage salers were drawn in.

Normally I don’t burn this easily. I’ve heard that the skin changes when you’re pregnant, so here is yet another symptom. I actually did experience skin color changes very early in my pregnancy and forgot to list it as one of my many first trimester symptoms, but I’ll get to that later. For now, on to our irregularly scheduled program…

Kurt and my parents all commented on my sunburn that night and I told them about the garage sale lady. The next day when Kurt and I were in the shower he asked, “What’s that on your shoulder?” He was pointing to the back of my shoulder; gee, I don’t know could you be more vague? “I don’t know. Does it look like a mole? What color is it?” I asked. He described it as a very dark brown ring that was white in the center. Then he asked me if it was a pimple. “Does brown with white in the center sound like a pimple to you?” I was a little freaked out, but as it turns out it was just one of my chickenpox scars that got too much sun – it turned brown while the rest of my shoulder was red and the scar part stayed white. It wasn’t even as freakish looking as he made it out. Remind me never to pay attention to his descriptions of things when he’s not even wearing his contacts. I blamed the garage sale lady for the burn and Kurt said, “I never thought I’d ever tell you this but don’t be so fucking polite! Next time just leave!”

The other skin issue I had was actually one of my very first symptoms that I had forgotten about. My armpits actually got extremely dark. It was February so this wasn’t just some odd tanning and when I say dark I mean three shades of pantyhose darker than my normal winter color. It looked horribly out of place – similar to those people that spend their life working outside in the sun wearing a t-shit and then one day they go shirtless. The parts seem to come from another person and attached to a very pale torso. I stopped using the only product (other than soap) that I use in my armpits. I used Jason Natural – Deodorant Apricot w/Vitamin E Stick without any problems for more than a year – now I use Crystal which is 100% natural mineral salts and Kurt must give my hell about my “magic rock”. *eye roll*

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