life with a new baby
Posts tagged pregnancy
Pain, pain go away…
Jul 29th
So I haven’t been feeling well the past few days. I’ve been dealing with insomnia, which is irritating as all-get-out (You know, when I think about it, that saying doesn’t make much sense, does it?). Plus, I’ve had these really strange stomach pains lately. It feels almost like hunger pains, and it subsides somewhat after I’ve eaten something. Only I KNOW it’s not hunger pains. I’ve been hungry before, and it’s never hurt like this… to the point of waking me up (after I finally manage to fall asleep) and persisting until after I eat something.
This morning, it was so bad that I couldn’t take it anymore. I made an appointment with my doctor and scarfed down a baked potato to stave off the pains somewhat. The doctor thinks I might have either gallstones or ulcers.
Not good, right?
I don’t know if it’s my gallbladder. I had severe gallbladder pains when I was pregnant. I mean, severe to the point that I sometimes couldn’t walk and it was painful to just breathe. These gallbladder pains would surface after I consumed something a little too fatty like bacon or butter, and it would last for hours. But what I’m experiencing now? The pains subside substantially AFTER I eat something. And it hurts way worse than the pregnancy gallbladder issues.
So I’m leaning more towards ulcers. YUCK.
So anyway, they’re going to schedule an appointment for me to have an ultrasound on my gallbladder, and they’re also going to do some blood-work along with an x-ray of my lower back. See, I’ve been taking Ibuprofen because of all the back pain I’ve been experiencing lately, and the doctor thinks that could have contributed to the possible ulcers. So he also prescribed Zantac in case it’s stomach ulcers. So we’ll see, right? It’ll be a couple more weeks before I meet with my doctor again. Until then, I need to figure out how in the hell I’m going to prevent myself from feeling like I’ve been in a wresting ring with a Mack Truck on a daily basis.
I thought I was too young to be having these problems. I’m not even 30 yet! This sucks, guys. I hope it’s not gallstones, because don’t you have to have surgery to remove them? At least ulcers can be cured with the right diet and medication like Zantac. Right?
Happy Valentine’s Day!
Feb 14th
HAPPY VALENTINE’S DAY!!!
This time last year, I was 39 weeks pregnant and ready to meet my little guy! Little did I know that he would actually arrive SIX DAYS after his estimated due date. (Exactly why it’s ESTIMATED, right?) An extra six days may seem like a walk in the park to some of you Mega Moms… but me? Me, I was in agony. That was six extra days of bloating, back pain, insomnia, waddling, swollen ankles, and achy bones. Even my TOENAILS were in pain.
Valentine’s Day ’09
Seriously, I don’t see how some of you do it. You make pregnancy look so easy and… fun! But for me, during the first four months, I was so weak that it put even a bad case of the flu to shame. I didn’t have the energy to WIPE OFF THE COUNTERS.
That’s some serious fatigue.
But hey. It takes a lot of energy to GROW A LUNG, right?
And oh, the morning sickness. I couldn’t keep anything down. Nothing. I remember before I could even get out of bed in the mornings, Paul had to bring me a glass of apple juice and some saltines. And he was not allowed to jostle the bed. And yes, that included NO WIGGLING HIS TOES.
The morning sickness was so over-the-top vicious that just the SOUND of someone farting made me throw up. Seriously. Whenever I heard someone fart, even if they were in the other room, I would puke. And everything, I mean EVERY. THING. made me gag. But not just a regular old gag. No, I would gag like I was about to projectile-puke up a massive hairball. WHO DOES THAT?? Well, folks. Apparently I do when I am pregnant.
And get this. I would throw up and the very sight of it would make me throw up even more… so before you knew it, I was on this vicious cycle of throwing up, which made me throw up, which made me throw up… so yeah, I was in the bathroom constantly. It was becoming my second home.
Then there was the second trimester. It was easier than the first for me because the extreme fatigue and nausea finally subsided when I was about 18 weeks pregnant… but then the body aches started. And I had this uncontrollable urge to thoroughly clean and reorganize the entire house.
Only I had this intense back pain that only abated when I wore HEELS.
As in, HIGH HEELS.
So here I was, in my second trimester with a bulging belly and sweat pants (because you know how important comfort is to pregnant women) and high heels, cleaning the kitchen.
The third trimester?
IT FELT LIKE DEATH.
Oh, the pain. Pain, pain, pain. Every single step I took was agony. My feet were swollen. My toes cramped a lot. And my back? It felt like someone had jammed a hot poker into my lower back and left it there, jostling it every couple of minutes for some extra oomph. And constant peeing. The most sleepless night I ever had, I got up to pee nine times..
NINE TIMES. IN ONE NIGHT.
But you know what? Even though I had a painful pregnancy that was nothing like the giddyness that I had imagined, I wouldn’t give any of that up for anything, though. My little guy is so worth it! And I would go through all of that and worse just to have him here with me. And I know there are so, so many women out there who would give anything to be able to get pregnant. I am very fortunate… and all the “negatives” about pregnancy just give me something to joke about later.
Insulting Advertisment?
Nov 11th

The first time we knew Nathan was coming…
I was watching TV the other day and saw an advertisement for ClearBlue Easy pregnancy test that I found borderline insulting.
Did you know that 1 in 4 women can misread a traditional pregnancy test result?
With the Clearblue® Easy Digital Pregnancy Test there’s no need to interpret the lines. Its advanced digital display tells you in words whether you’re pregnant or not.
What? Are you seriously telling me that 1 in 4 women CAN misread a pregnancy test? By definition, that means that 1 in 4 women have the physical or mental ability to misread a pregnancy test. Sure, 1 in 4 women CAN misread a traditional pregnancy test… but WILL they?
The word “can” isn’t even what gets me in this advertisement. Granted, I’m in pain right now so that has put a dark cloud of bad-mood gloom over my normally rosy outlook on life, but seriously, ClearBlue Easy, do you really think women are too stupid to “interpret the lines?” Because I’ve never, ever thought there was anything remotely difficult about reading what the box says is pregnant or not pregnant… .especially since all pregnancy tests come with directions.
And included in those directions are descriptions and pictures of what a positive result and a negative result look like.
I’ve never thought it was that difficult to understand.
But that’s just me.
Maybe some women truly get confused.
But I’ve personally never known any one who couldn’t tell the difference…
ClearBlue Easy, I think you should rethink your advertising campaign.
Torture: An American Pastime
Aug 27th
NY Nears Ban on Shackling the Pregnant- Crime & Courts- msnbc.com
How barbaric! I’m apalled that anyone would have the audacity to shackle a pregnant woman. Believe me, a woman in the throes of labor and childbirth will not be able to escape; shackles are completely pointless and atrocious.
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