Prior to being pregnant I never understood a lot of what pregnant women go through...who really can until they are pregnant? And yes, that means men will NEVER fully understand what it's like to be pregnant and what labor is like. As much as Chad tries to say his Kidney stone was as painful as birth, I personally still don't think you can compare (even though I haven't actually had the baby yet, I've heard it's painful to say the least....) Maybe if I ever have a kidney stone, let's hope not, then I can say for sure.
Anyways....what I am getting at is, being pregnant is hard.
Everything changes.
Everything.
And I'm just talking about the run of the mill pregnancy, that's not including complications. I can only imagine what it's like to be on bed rest, or worry constantly about your baby because of complications. My heart goes out to those women especially.
I promised myself I would blog more about my pregnancy so I can remember later and of course I have failed. So this is me trying to make up for that and hopefully entertaining and enlightening a few people along the way. This is what I have noticed along the way:
1. Pregnancy Brain- is real. It's not made up. I must admit I didn't but into it before being pregnant, but I definitely do now.
Example 1: Chad and I are sitting in sacrament meeting next to our neighbors Michelle and Bryan. I turn to Michelle and ask, "do you have ____? Wait I can't remember what it's called... uh you know..." She stares back at me blankly. She does not know. "You know, that thing that tells you who's speaking and stuff..." More blank stares. Meanwhile Chad overhears and very kindly intervnes. "A Program, that's what she's trying to say." Of course Michelle doesn't have one, so the conversation was futile to begin with.
Example 2: I'm at work talking to my boss about when I will be taking maternity leave. " I'm probably going to work right up until if I'm feeling ok. So I will probably be off after Christmas. (My due date is Jan. 1st) Christmas is usually on a Thursay so...." Both of my bosses laugh and I realize that Christmas is not usually on a Thursday and I have no clue where I came up with that idea.
So these are just a few of the silly things I do now a days. But I really do feel like I am only using about 1/2 of my brain most of the time. The other half which holds informations such as words to say and memory seems to have completely disappeared. I have had many a mom's tell me that it never fully comes back either, so I am preparing for the worst but hoping for the best. Let me know if any of you have gotten it back...it would make me feel much better.
2. Energy- The first trimester was obviosuly physically hard with the nausea and sickness all the time. And of course I was always tired, especially working 40 hours a week. But then that faded. And the second trimester was much better. I got some of my energy back but never fully. I kept waiting for it to creep back into my body when I wasn't paying attention, but it didn't and it still hasn't. Most nights I get at least 8 hours of sleep, sometimes more. On the weekends lately. I feel like all I do is sleep and sleep some more. And rest. And take naps. And it does help me get through my busy weeks but then by Friday I'm exhausted again. Heaven forbid we actually did something on the weekend like go out of town. I don't know if my body could take it. So i am resigned to the fact that I probably won't ever get all my energy back until January.
3. Body- Let's face it, does any women really have their ideal body? Probably not. I certainly don't. Not pre-pregnany and not now. However, I have found that during pregnancy I really don't care as much. I know weight gain is normal so it doesn't depress me. I know stretch marks are normal, ok, those still depress me :-). I know it will take me a while after birth to get back to what I want to be.
With that said, it's all for a really really good reason. When I look at my growing stomach I think more of what's growing inside than the strech marks. When I waddle down the street, yes I have gone into my waddling phase, I don't really notice anymore. When I am so exhausted at the end of the day, I don't care what I look like. Instead I love to climb in bed and feel Afton kick and remember why my body is so exhausted. And it helps to have a wonderful husband who loves me just the way I am. He is so patient and understanding.
So yes my body will be changed forever, but really should I care when I will be getting a beautiful baby girl out of it?
4. Diet- I am always hungry. Always. I could have just ate and I will probably be hungry in another 30 minutes. But I don't have cravings really. Nothing weird or unusual. Sometimes sometihng sounds really really good and I have to have it, but I don't think that is really anything new. The weird thing is I have been eating much healthier without really trying. I actually do crave fruits more, so our fridge tends to me stocked with more of those. And we haven't really been eating fast food at all lately. Taco Bell makes me sick now. Even In-N-Out has been really unsatisfying the last few times I've eaten it.
That's all I can really think of now, I'm sure there is much more. Stay tuned for nursery updates and growing belly pictures soon.
