Pregnancy Update

I am 27 weeks today. I have never quite understood whether it’s the beginning or the end of week 27 that marks the 3^rd trimester, so I’m just telling myself that after this week I can officially call myself 3^rd trimester and that the light at the end of the tunnel is nearing.

I had my glucose test at my last appointment and I am assuming all went well since I didn't get a phone call telling me otherwise. During my pregnancy with Connor I failed the 1 hour test and suffered through the 3 hour test, only to be told it was a false alarm in the end. I have zero desire to do that test more than I need to, so I’m glad to have alls well this time around on the first try.

This pregnancy is keeping with my normal uncontrollable weight gain problem. During my pregnancy with Connor I gained a total of 80, yes, I just said EIGHTY pounds. THAT’S A LOT. And I wasn’t sitting on my butt pigging out on food that pregnancy at all. I worked up until 35 weeks. With Evelynn I thought I did really, really well with my weight. My only 46 lb. weight gain was very exciting to me. Since then, I’ve recognized that the only reason my body didn’t pack it on was because I was puking daily for more than half the pregnancy. And considering the fact that 46 lbs. is still more than the average recommended weight gain, I guess there was nothing really to be proud of. In the 4 week span between my last appointments, I gained an additional 6 lbs. to what I had already acquired. I have been working SO hard on eating right! Salads for lunch, fruits, veggies… but alas, I guess my body just packs on the weight when I’m pregnant despite my efforts.

On another note, I have a condition when I’m pregnant which is referred to as Pelvic Girdle Pain, or Symphysis Pubis Dysfunction. You can read more about it here if you really want to. It first came to my attention when pregnant with Connor. I was in so much pain when I walked. My doc explained it as the hormones that relax the ligaments in preparation for labor kicking in waaaaay early, and them being waaaay too excited about their job. It makes for a very unstable pelvic. I distinctly remember being at my husband’s basic training graduation in South Carolina at 35 weeks along and wishing to lay down in the middle of the field instead of walking back to the car and to just be magically transported there somehow. Or just pass out. That was an option I really would have welcomed. Or perhaps, maybe I would have preferred that one. I had to take painkillers to even sleep at night through the horrible, horrible pain. Thankfully though, it all went away after I was done being pregnant.

When I got pregnant with Evelynn I had what I was sure had to be sciatica. The pain was in the lower back and hips, rather than the front. I assumed it wasn’t the same thing that I had previously dealt with. I remember being in pain, but the puking was so much worse than the irritating twinges and the tendency my hip/pelvic had to just pinch and give out while I was walking. There are a few times, towards the end of my pregnancy, that I remember catching myself on whoever or whatever was closest to me to avoid hitting the floor. Then, as before, it all went away with the conclusion of the pregnancy and I forgot all about it.

This pregnancy the pain started early, and it focused on my hips.  My hips would pop where the connected to my back, and I thought it was strange, but assumed it was normal. I remembered the problem from my previous pregnancies and I continued to think it was sciatica. Because the pain was focused on my back, I didn’t think it could be the Symphysis Pubis Dysfunction my doctor had explained in my first pregnant. I spoke to my OB/GYN about tips of how to handle this sciatica problem, because I was convinced that’s what it was. Some of you may recall me begging for advice on how to help it. In the time since then, I realized this pain is NOT sciatica. And in fact, half the stuff I was trying to do to help the “sciatica” actually put me in more pain and worsened it. I read an article I came across on Pinterest (found here) about sciatica vs. pelvic girdle pain and quickly recognized what had happened. A discussion with my doctor verified that more than likely it’s not just sciatica, its pelvic girdle pain.

Unfortunately there’s nothing to be done about it besides trying to stabilize the pelvic and avoiding certain things that aggravate the problem. I’m trying to do pelvic strengthening exercises and I’m slowly learning to take it easy when it starts to hurt instead of pushing through it or stretching it out like everyone told me to. I am telling myself that it will all go away when the pregnancy finishes, just like the previous times. It does create issues in my attempts to exercise, but I’m learning to find what works, and learning to stop as soon as the pain begins. I am also planning to see a chiropractor, because my Doc says that might be helpful.

I have come to the conclusion that I most likely will not be the cute pregnant lady this time around. I’m probably going to be the ginormous whale I always think I am. And I will more than likely fall on my face when I walk sometimes (since I already have multiple times). But that’s all ok. If pain in my hips and the inability to walk without a waddle and a limp at a snail-like pace is the worst of my problems, so be it.

Overall, baby and I are doing well. The kids love to give my belly kisses and say hi to “baby bubba”.  We are all looking forward to his arrival this summer, and our next visit to Idaho in another month. My little sister is getting married and Caleb’s sister is leaving on her mission right around the same time so we will be able to participate in those exciting events, despite my 32 weeks belly that will be going on. J