time is just rolling along! i've been so busy at work and with some special extracurricular activities that i feel like i've hardly stopped to breathe the past couple of weeks. luckily, i took today off to visit both doctors, so i have some down time and a three-day weekend by default. i definitely need it.
physically, i'm doing pretty well. the nausea is mostly gone. i still have occasional morning bouts, but that's about it. i've started taking my prenatal vitamin before bed so i just make sure to stuff some crackers in my face when i wake up early in the morning and that change seems to have helped. my constipation is much, much better... but this week i developed a couple of hemorrhoids. the doctor said there's a chance they may have been inside during the Age of Constipation and now they've worked their way out as everything is... working more smoothly. it is definitely one of the most uncomfortable things i've experienced. i'm using the treatment cream and hoping to get a reprieve for part of the second trimester. i realize they will probably return in the end, and make delivery all the more thrilling.
my belly has reached a point where it's becoming almost impossible to hide unless i'm wearing a coat. or carrying something in front of it, which is still a strategy i use at work. i'm not quite sure why i'm still so self-conscious about it. i've announced the pregnancy at work and everyone is thrilled, of course, and i get frequent comments on how "cute" my belly is... but i'm still not used to this changing body. i'm exclusively in maternity clothes (maternity pants = amazing) other than a few really loose-fitting tops, sweatpants, and a couple pairs of hip-hugging pants. i am so much more comfortable than when i was trying to fit into my regular clothes. the belly doesn't seem to be growing at a speedy pace, either. even though it popped out weeks ago i'm not as huge as i feared i might be by the start of the second trimester. i know it's growing... mostly because i've started experiencing what they call round ligament pain from the growing and stretching of my uterus (mostly sudden shooting pain in my groin). and still, thankfully, it's really just my belly that is growing. i've officially gained two pounds, but aside from the belly the rest of me is still... me. i like that, a lot.
oh -- here's a weird thing! all of a sudden this week i started having urges to hug a stuffed animal. i haven't had one in years. maybe it's because i'm sleeping on my side now and don't know what to do with my arms. and with the hemorrhoids my couch time has also transitioned to side-laying because my ass hurts. after two nights of longing i finally went out yesterday afternoon and bought myself a stuffed elephant. i slept hugging it all night.
today i had an appointment with both my regular OB and the perinatologist. at the regular OB's office we just listened to the baby's heartbeat ("nice and strong") and she did a pap smear. i have to assume that she would have done an ultrasound by now if i wasn't having them done at the other doctor's, but she doesn't seem to feel the need to do them... yet? ever? like i said, she is very laid-back and hands-off, which i appreciate only as a total contrast to my other doctor.
after that appointment i went to see the high-risk folks. at first they were a little concerned because my cervix seemed to be contracting, but once i told them i had just had a pap smear they assumed that was probably the cause. my cervix still looks fine, and the blood clot is still there, but small, and --sadly-- the placenta is still partially covering the cervix... so our ban on intercourse continues. but in general, things looked fine.
we were hoping to get some good pics of the baby today since it officially has all of its parts, but it was jumping around like crazy in there! the ultrasound technician and the doctor both had some giggles over how active the baby was. from what they managed to see (the heart, spine, fingers and toes and arms and legs) everything looked just great, but mostly the little thing was doing handstands. backwards. i couldn't believe how much it was dancing around. i'm sure it's going to be even weirder when i can feel its acrobatics. but even though i was sad not to get a good look at its cute little face, i was just happy to see it doing its thing in there and to know things are still progressing as they should be.
and after the second appointment i went and got a pedicure. cause a pregnant lady's gotta pamper herself, right? pampering will be much easier once i'm done working for a couple months and on summer vacation. i have eternal respect for ladies who work all the way through their pregnancies. i'm barely into mine and i already can barely keep it together during the work week. i'm so tired, and crabby, and sore. weekends are glorious, though, so i'm not thinking about any of that right now. it's sunny and lovely outside and i think it's time for a nap.
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