May Symptoms Thread

kboydbowman

Sometimes, being pregnant just sucks.

kboydbowman

I am pretty sure I'm growing a future gymnast, because HE WILL NOT STOP BOUNCING ON MY BLADDER.  I have been at work for 45 minutes and have peed 4 times so far.  And that's after the 3 in 45 minutes at home after I got out of bed.

trapperkeeper87

@kboydbowman At this point in pregnancy it gets pretty difficult to empty your bladder completely without some gymnastics of your own. It's possible he's just shifting positions and easing up on your bladder, making you feel like you need to pee again. My bub is usually most active around 9:30 in the morning and just before bed, and I'm pretty sure he/she just wiggles a lot. But the pee is getting more difficult to pass in one sitting. So annoying!

kboydbowman

Lol rationally I know all those things but I still like to envision him just sitting there and using my bladder as a soccer ball - he was just kicking away it through most of my anatomy scan.  It was fun to watch.

newbabymama27

@kboydbowman just imagine how much worse it’ll be once he’s bigger and stronger 😅😅 anatomy scans are soooo cool to watch. I loved it with my first and can’t wait for this one. The last time, ultrasound tech was like “can you feel this? How about this? And this?” I was like noooo.. not really (placenta was in the way). Apparently my son was doing full on summersaults in the there and she had to chase him like crazy because he just would. not. stop. It was so cute. 

jhysmath

So tip to those who don't know and a reminder to those who know but forgot like me. It is so much easier to burn while pregnant. I have a sun burn and every student who came in my class today was like Oh! Where'd you go during break!? I was like ummmmm to a town down the way in VT yesterday with my kids to play at the playground. Thankfully I was wearing a coat but my face, feet and chest are burnt. Both of my kids who were in cooler clothes weren't really pink at all. 

mamamoomoo12

The insomnia is so real... I cannot get comfortable at night and I am so so hot when I sleep. I also cannot find anything that I actually want to eat that is satisfying. 

laj0217

@jhysmath hood to know! I burned last weekend but blamed it on using last years sunscreen. Guess I need to up the SPF and apply more diligently. 

For the STM+ out there, any tips to empty your bladder completely so you aren’t running to the bathroom as much? I swear I pee and then have to get right back up 5 minutes later. I understand some of it is just pregnancy, but surely there are some tricks!

runsonanxiety

@jhysmath I didn’t know that! Makes sense after my small time outside last weekend, my face was definitely suffering. And I am not one to typical burn, ever. Thanks for the helpful tip!

trapperkeeper87

@laj0217 My best tip is to kind of twist, bend over, sit up straight, basically just stretch all the ways. It is far from foolproof or perfect, but it tends to help a bit. Also give yourself a bit more time sitting there before you get up.

@jhysmath I also didn't know this! So fascinating!

@mamamoomoo12 Try Mexican. For some reason that seems to hit the spot for me when nothing else will, and it did the trick last pregnancy too.

kboydbowman

@laj0217
this is so my life right now (re: bladder)

mamamoomoo12

@trapperkeeper87 Mexican is always a safe choice for me except the last week the heart burn has been horrible. I guess I would rather be satisfied with heartburn than just eating buttered noodle and being grumpy lol 

jhysmath

@laj0217 if you are on IG follow the.vagina.whisperer She has a great post or reel I can't remember, but you want to do circle stand up sit back down, basically try to get baby to move off your bladder or move in a different direction before you decide you're done peeing. 

kboydbowman

@mamamoomoo12
that's why god created Tums.  I'm a big fan of the coconut/pineapple ones.

laj0217

@jhysmath and @trapperkeeper87 thanks so much! I swear I pee and then go lay down/ sit on the couch etc and I have to pee again 5 minutes later. Nothing concerning for a UTI, just annoying pregnancy symptom lol

pangolindrome

@jhysmath I did know that because my husband’s cousins told me last year. It has me a little worried about field day on the last day of school and I’m kind of hoping I can supervise something indoors instead.

jhysmath

@pangolindrome I guess I'm excited we don't have field day here. 

pangolindrome

@jhysmath It’s our first one since 2019 so it’s pretty exciting that it’s happening, but I am worried about the sun as a fair-skinned blonde full of hormones that make me more prone to burning 🤣 

laj0217

@pangolindrome will they allow you to have a sun umbrella?

pangolindrome

@laj0217 That's a great idea! I suppose even a regular umbrella would do in a pinch and I bet if I combine it with sunscreen, I will be fine!

laj0217

So by the end of the day, my feet are killing me. I assume some combination of swelling and carrying extra weight. Has anyone tried compression socks for this and did they help?

newbabymama27

@laj0217 I wore them a lot with my last pregnancy due to severe swelling and they helped! But that was also during fall/winter so idk how comfortable they’d be now that it’s warm 🥴

laj0217

@newbabymama27 I’m usually freezing at work (have a blanket and jacket I keep there) so I may give them a try if they helped you. At this point, I dread getting out of bed to pee at night because the initial weight on my feet is so painful. I do have an OB appt on Tuesday, so I might see what they say as well. 

newbabymama27

@laj0217 oh yeah then they’re definitely worth a try!! I just can’t remember where all the ladies are located and if you’re one of the ones in the scorching heat haha. I just got a pack of 3 (or 4?) from Amazon that had good reviews. I also tried to lift my legs up on a few pillows if I was relaxing on the couch at the end of the day. Good idea to let your OB know too! I know swelling in legs, feet and face are some of the signs of preeclampsia but then you’d also have high blood pressure and some other symptoms. My OB always monitored me for it but I never had the other symptoms so she said it was normal water retention due to pregnancy. I gained 35 lbs by the end of the pregnancy but lost almost 20 within the first week just from peeing all the liquid out. 

pangolindrome

I ran in compression socks when I trained for my half marathon and it was hot out, so for as long as you get sweat wicking compression socks you’ll be absolutely fine. My only problem was that they were a little too tall and kind of cut into the back of my knee, but the tradeoff was that my calves and feet weren’t as close to death after a long (10-12 mile) run.

I will for sure recommend compression socks!

jhysmath

@laj0217 read up on how to put them on if you're not familiar. Once I figured that out they were much easier to wear. I only wore mine when driving long distances (12 hours), though I probably should have worn them towards the end of my second pregnancy when I had swelling almost daily, but putting them on was too much of a work out at that point. 

jhysmath

My pelvis and hips today after sitting through a movie. Ugh. 

foreveronyourside

Ate like crap these last 3 days and now paying for it… is it possible to poop out your baby??? #dying 

laj0217

Thanks for all the advice! I’ll probably hit up amazon for some compression socks this week and I’ll be sure to watch a YouTube or something to learn to put them on correctly. I am in the scorching heat (90°+ here already), but everywhere is over air conditioned so I think it’ll be fine. 

babywiik

@laj0217 you can get compression pantyhose also. My SIL wears them for varicose gains when pregnant. The ones she had were a "nude" color. Now that I'm thinking about it, nude isn't even a color. It's a state of undress🙄

laj0217

@babywiik I’m not mad at nude. I’m so pale, it always makes me look like I have a nice tan 😂

I think I’m going to try the ones at target and see if they help and talk to my doctor Tuesday and see what she says. I know it’s gonna get worse not better, though, so I’d like to get a handle on it. 

csardaszz

This pregnancy brain is unreal! The other day I left a pot of beans cooking on the stove while I went outside to do some gardening FOR AN HOUR. And yesterday while assembling some furniture I put in a bolt that was too long and made a hole in the wood. 🤦🏻‍♀️ I’m usually really careful about this sort of stuff, but these days my brain just doesn’t have the resources.

pangolindrome

jhysmath said:

@laj0217 read up on how to put them on if you're not familiar. Once I figured that out they were much easier to wear. I only wore mine when driving long distances (12 hours), though I probably should have worn them towards the end of my second pregnancy when I had swelling almost daily, but putting them on was too much of a work out at that point. 

It might not feel very dignified, but I will suggest one of these for putting them on when bending over isn’t feasible anymore. 

https://www.amazon.com/RMS-Deluxe-Sock-Foam-Handles/dp/B00U9TWCXU/

As far as symptoms go… my sleep has become less reliable. I’ll wake up around 4am (assuming Tiny is awake and active and I just can’t consciously feel it) and be awake for 30-60 minutes. It sucks because I get up at 5:30am.

jhysmath

@pangolindrome that would be great for putting on regular socks, but the compression socks are so tight that I have to roll them into a ring and roll them on. 

pangolindrome

@jhysmath Darn, that's true. It's been five-six years since I needed them, so that would not help me remember.

laj0217

@jhysmath the ones I got at target aren’t too tights, more like sports compression socks. I’m gonna talk with the doctor tomorrow about whether to get something stronger. I can def do the donut roll if needed for the tighter ones.

mnmomma84

Have been waking up with headaches the past few mornings. And also swollen hands. I struggled to get my wedding ring off this morning, and just left it at home because I was still slightly swollen. Will check if swelling went down when I get home from work. Is this something to be worried about? Over the weekend, I attributed the swollen hands/fingers to the extra intake of salt (movie theatre popcorn and pizza for dinner). But it's been a few mornings in a row now and I don't think I had a ton of salt yesterday...

kboydbowman

Could be elevated BP, could just be good old fun pregnancy edema.  When's your next OB visit?

babywiik

@mnmomma84 my last pregnancy, I took finally took my ring off around 27 weeks due to swelling and couldn't get it back on until 4 months post partum. Always good to check with your OB if your worried about it.

bigworldlittleg

Woke up this morning feeling like I had just run a marathon. Just physically exhausted. I kept dreaming last night that the baby was moving/kicking around, so perhaps he actually was especially active throughout the night, and that's why my body feels so tired today. Ugh!

mnmomma84

@kboydbowman
It's so hard to tell...I wouldn't consider it "extreme" swelling, but this morning was definitely more than yesterday. I just saw my OB last week, so I'm not due to see her again until 5/31.