Accepting physical limitations while pregnant

[McGurk]

@candyappy

No matter what at least you know this is a temporary condition!

And you get a baby at the end of it! Eyes on the prize!

Re: in my experience, that is, n=1, I was fine in the first trimester as long as I could sleep 18 - 20 hours a day. In the second trimester, I had this big energy surge and was an unstoppable force of nature. The third trimester? I was huge and awkward, and had the aforementioned feet in my ribs most of the time. I had a work colleague ask me what was the matter when I grimaced, and I put her hand on my belly over the baby’s foot. The look on her face was priceless “OMG, that’s a foot!” Yes, yes, it is and it’s lodged in my ribs.

[hallie2]

Going from walking 5 mi/day and weight lifting 3x wk to very suddenly becoming so fatigued that you need to lay down on the road to catch your breath seems extreme. It’s the suddenness that is unusual. Of course if your ob can’t find anything on routine screening, she will default to “it’s just pregnancy” Maybe it is. But can you see your internist and get a second opinion?

[dogsbody1]

@hallie2

Going from walking 5 mi/day and weight lifting 3x wk to very suddenly becoming so fatigued that you need to lay down on the road to catch your breath seems extreme. It’s the suddenness that is unusual. Of course if your ob can’t find anything on routine screening, she will default to “it’s just pregnancy” Maybe it is. But can you see your internist and get a second opinion?

My OB actually sent me straight to the ER because they were worried it could be a pulmonary embolism. Ruled that one out, but I also had a lot of blood work done that ruled out infection and anemia (and maybe other stuff, that’s all I could interpret from it). The only marginally concerning finding was that my BP was low. I agree, it feels extreme to go from feeling so great to feeling so poorly out of nowhere. But I’m taking it one day at a time and hoping it improves. Maybe my blood volume just isn’t keeping up with the vascular demands of the baby? I suppose it’s an excuse to eat more salt.

[thoroughbred22]

If you’ve got lowish BP, do not get dehydrated.

And from what you’ve described about the upcoming family trip, my personal decision would be to skip it. You don’t want to faint and fall.

Making a new life is a whole full-time job. The fact that some women are able to do a bunch of strenuous stuff while pregnant does not negate that. I remember the fatigue of the 2nd-3rd trimesters, and the sensuous pleasure of taking a long nap whenever I could fit one in. Just sinking into sleep, me and the little one.

Do you have a good blood pressure cuff, the kind that sits up on your arm? Tracking that might be worthwhile. But get those electrolytes and all the water you can handle (I know the bathroom trips are an infernal nuisance).