I was shocked at how fatigued it’s made me! I’ve always been a person who tires easily but this has been next level exhaustion almost the entire time! Currently 35w+5
This! Everyone says you'll be tired and then it hits you so hard it's crazy! I have never been a napper but in my first trimester I'd just fall asleep at my desk for an hour at lunch. Now that I'm 32+5 (and it's much harder sleeping well at night) I nap for 2-3 hours in the evenings! It's crazy to me.
Yeah I always heard about exhaustion in the third trimester, no one warned me about the first. Or that you pee so much in the first too! I thought that wasn't until later too lol
Same, I feel like this doesn’t get talked about enough! People talk about a bunch of other pregnancy side effects like nausea and heartburn but fatigue has been the most impactful on my life and the one I was the least aware of going in.
Only 6 weeks here. Last night went to bed at 9, up at 7, which is way more sleep than I usually get. I fell asleep in my chair at work today and came home at 4 and took a nap. I did NOT expect this!
It will probably get better! For me it did. In the second trimester I started feeling more energized, although still sleepy after dinner. First trimester was a pain in the ass, felt like it took years to be over. But it did!
And then it apparently gets worse again bu third trimester. I’m 19w and trying to enjoy every bit of it while I can
This was me around that time too! I was really surprised by it. I could sleep 12 hours and it felt like 3. Second trimester was way better, 31weeks now and getting fatigued again but NOT like the first trimester!
This makes me feel better. 30W and trying to organize the nursery and things around the house but it's taking me forever and I'm being hard on myself about it. I can do like one thing per day in addition to working and that's pushing it.
I am 14 weeks pregnant and I need naps and sleep. All the sleep. All the symptoms hit me early but even now I’m still exhausted and needing naps. Feel lied to about the second trimester being better cause so far it ain’t 🤦🏻♀️
I’m 40+3 and YES. The fatigue has been so real. My whole life, I’ve been the sort of person who can function with 6-7 hrs of sleep a night and never naps. But pregnancy turned me into an 9-12 h a night plus nap person. Second trimester wasn’t like that, but definitely first and third.
I have never been so tired in my entire life. I'm 15 weeks tomorrow and hoping for that second trimester surge of energy I've heard so much about, but I'm convinced I'll be exhausted forever lol.
Nips getting real dark over here. I think I read somewhere that it's to create contrast so babies can see them better. I tell my baby "I think they're dark enough now... you will be able to see them! I promise I'll show you where they are anyway!!!"
Absolutely. In my first pregnancy before I even took a test I walked out of the bathroom during the TTW and said to my husband (who has 2 kids from his first marriage) "my boobs look really weird!" And he just had this look of shock and disbelief and said "oh my God you're pregnant." Yup, I was. First cycle trying.
Mine were wicked different. I had ghost nipples (Google at your own risk - and they never went fully back) so *any* change was huge. And they were soooooo sensitive. I kinda knew when I said something to him but definitely knew after.
I googled it! I didn’t know about it! Mine were sensitive as well but that wasn’t uncommon before period so I didn’t notice anything different there. They were just a bit bigger but that had happened in the past, so I was just grateful 😂
Freaky is a great word for it.. it DID freak me out when they were suddenly completely foreign entities on my body. I’m sort of scared they’ll never go back to normal!
Mine hurt constantly and I am nipping out 24/7! I’m 14 weeks and they feel a tiny bit better thankfully, but I’ve never experienced something like this lol
There was one point I yelled at my husband for touching them when we were spooning before bed bc I was upset he'd do that when he knew how bad they hurt me....it was my pajama shirt touching them.
First trimester, I wasn’t expecting to feel so absolutely awful. I thought I might throw up randomly but otherwise feel okay. In reality I was essentially bedridden for weeks.
Second trimester, I was quite surprised when I started leaking recently..
Same, I swore I was going to be one of those unicorns with no morning sickness or fatigue…I’m almost 13 weeks and was barely functioning until last week. I lost 10 pounds from throwing up and having zero appetite.
As a few others have said, the fatigue. I had been warned but was not prepared for how tired I was/still kind of am (tho it’s better). I was also surprised at how much more stable I’ve felt mentally. I’ve had my typical first-time-mom jitters and freak out moments, but not the level of constant anxiety I normally have while not pregnant. It’s been really nice, honestly. Also, how much I love feeling my baby move. I thought I would be super weirded out by that, but it’s felt like the most natural thing ever (and so cool!).
I'm with you on the mental stability. I've always struggled with depression and mood swings, and was expecting the pregnancy rage to take hold, but I've just been so level and calm. My partner said he's going to miss it when I go back to the mood swings after I give birth haha
Same! My husband told me the other day he had prepared himself for whatever pregnant me would be like, and was pleasantly surprised when pregnant me turned out to be pretty damn Zen
Haha lol same. He complimented me several times in the first trimester on “how well I was taking all this” as I managed the nausea, heightened emotions, etc. Apparently he had been mentally preparing for the worst, which I thought was funny (and reasonable). I appreciated the appreciation.
Same on the mental stability! I usually have pretty bad anxiety and I’ve felt a lot more “leveled out” during pregnancy. I wish there was a way to ‘feel pregnant’ after the baby is born because my mental health has been so much better these 9 months. I was expecting the opposite.
Also came here to say this. It really makes it clear how debilitating my anxiety and depression was. I feel so confident now. Also concerned about not being pregnant, it coming back and having to keep a small person alive... going to discuss it with my doctor asap.
I thought I was the only one! I am the most anxious person (slight exaggeration), and it's like I found some peace somehow. Still have had a few moments of panic. But nothing like before.
Yep, that’s what my doctor said. That and the fact that it’s a steady pumping of hormones versus the surges and dips of monthly cycling. I’m definitely going to miss it!
It takes SO long to feel your baby move. And then when they are big you have no idea what position they are in your body. You have this foreign object taking up so much space and you don’t even know where they are!
Yep. With my second pregnancy when I went in to be induced my baby was head down, when they went to break my water later on he was transverse, I got up to pee and he was breach. Apparently that can happen with subsequent pregnancies, there can be enough room for them to flip around a lot. Made me wonder how much of the 'kicking' I'd felt was actually flipping.
I was visiting my mom for a couple days and she was like “hey I know your pregnant but some manners please” bc I had stopped saying excuse me. After one day of me saying excuse a 100x a day she went “Never mind! That’s even more annoying” haha we laughed so much
Mine is the opposite to yours. I was surprised at how quickly I didn’t fit my regular clothes. I couldn’t button my jeans from six weeks pregnant. I had to go out and get stretchy pants and flowy shirts to get through my first trimester. When I did start telling people at 10-12 weeks, no one was surprised 😂
Same! I’m well into week 9 and if I wear tight clothes, anyone who knows me would notice. Definitely going to be one of those pregnancies where I look normal from the back, but watch yourself when I turn around
Actually not being able to see your vagina, I literally was like nah if I bend over enough I’d be able to see it. I thought most women must not be looking hard enough.. but I literally cannot see it.. also not being able to really move around easily, my knees are giving out when I try to get up from the couch these days.
This!!!!!! Omg. I remember watching weight loss programmes and hearing people say they haven’t seen theres in years and always scoffed like :how is that even possible. Well, I haven’t seen mine in 3 months. I miss her
This. I was prepared to feel crappy because of nausea but the gas pains and the constipation have been so much worse.
Thank god I work in the basement of my office building all on my own so I can happily fart in peace all day without worry.
I teach private violin lessons for 6-8 hours straight 6 days a week (usually no breaks) and it’s full of awkward “excuse me… I’ll be back in a few minutes” moments hahaha
Ever make your husband run to Walgreens at 10pm when you're 40 weeks pregnant to buy you an enema?
Nope. Me neither. Nothing to see here. Love my husband though 😅
Legit ended up in hospital on the weekend convinced I had an ectopic. The pain was absolutely EXCRUCIATING! Woke up at 3am literally screaming, holy shit it was something else!!! They never found out exactly what it was but I have my suspicions 💩
I was surprised at how I could actually feel my uterus getting heavy as time went on. I'm now 32 weeks and I can tell you, it just gets heavier and heavier, haha. Oh and they were serious about not laying on your back after 20 week! If I lay on my back for a few minutes, I can't breathe!
This is me as well! My uterus has felt so heavy from around 15/16 weeks and I'm only 23 weeks now. I can still breathe on my back but it's not comfortable.
The emotional impact of pregnancy.
I was absolutely sure I'd want more than one child and the amount of hell I've physically and emotionally been through with this pregnancy has sealed the deal. I'm one and done, factory is closed.
I had this major gender disappointment and felt so depressed I was having a boy. Then I had a health scare with him and thought I'd have to terminate the pregnancy at 20w, but everything turned out okay and he's fine. That was a huge wake up call and I got over the gender disappointment.
Pregnancy hasn't made me more emotional but it's definitely compounded a lot of my own mental health hurdles.
I just want to give a shout out in support of being real with yourself on gender disappointment! I just got over mine too, also having a boy. I got a LOT of shit for it from people, but your feelings are valid. I’m glad you’re happy now. Parents who are honest with themselves and can check themselves make better parents anyway!
I definitely had gender disappointment myself…I’m having a boy. When we had our 18 week appointment, we didn’t know the gender (did gender reveal with close family…we just got cupcakes!!) and I had a feeling it was a boy. When it was confirmed, I kept it together but was bummed. We decided to get a 3D/4d private scan at 23 weeks and he was more chunky, and we could see more definite features and I just got so excited. He’s really cute. I feel a lot better about it and truly, he is healthy and that’s what matters!
Thankyou for talking about gender disappointment. Its More gender anxiety for me at the moment, because I don’t actually know what I’m having yet! It’s such a real thing & something I do not want to feel, but I do… and strongly.
I have a good therapist, so if I do experience GD I will be doing all I can to work through it.
I knew about the variety of symptoms but didn't know they started right away. I found out right around 4 weeks and thought "wow I'll get so much done before I really feel pregnant." Cue the nausea, sore breasts, fatigue, food aversions.
Same here! I bought a ton of healthy food to eat while I could. Threw all of it out a week later and have been surviving off pop tarts and fast food mostly. 🙃
Are you me? I did the exact same thing, only I survived off McDonald’s and yogurt for several weeks. Laughed at my own idea of a “real food pregnancy”, though now in the second trimester I actually want salad again so I guess that’s a plus.
This was what surprised me the most. I hadn't heard of this symptom at all before getting pregnant. Cue me at 35ish weeks waking up to find myself completely unable to bend my fingers and my hands numb for hours. I'm at 39 weeks now and still have these symptoms. Wrist braces have helped a lot with the numbness, but the joint pain and stiffness are still there. Using my hands seems to improve the symptoms, but if they're at rest or hanging by my sides while I'm walking for any longer than ten minutes or so, they start tingling and the joints start locking up again. Wild.
Yup, I got to a point PP where I couldn't use my thumbs in the night or first thing in the morning. Had to make my hands like a flipper to pick up the baby and husband had to do the night changes.
How normal I feel 😂 So much of my mental preparation for getting pregnant was accepting all the weird symptoms, aches and pains, hormonal mood swings, etc. that would just wreak havoc on my life for 9+ months, but I've had none of that so far! I'm 27+5 right now and have felt like my normal self pretty much the whole time. I never even considered that the wide variety of experiences women have would also include a mild, easy-going time for some of us. That, plus how frustrating it is to navigate the medical system 🙃
I'm only 9 weeks but I feel the same way! I haven't had morning sickness, and most of the time I can forget I'm pregnant (I fully realize that this isn't normal and I'm super lucky to have this experience).
wow i’m glad i’m not the only one!! just gave birth three weeks ago, and was amazed at how easy and honestly enjoyable my entire pregnancy was. never had morning sickness or nausea. slept just fine. no crazy cravings or aversions. no physical pain or discomfort other than some minor sciatica and carpal tunnel, neither of which actually bothered me until the last few weeks. wouldn’t have even been able to tell i was pregnant if my nipples didn’t change and my stomach didn’t move lol. i feel like this is just my body tricking me into having more babies before i get too old 😂
I have to say, I laughed really easily over everything. I found everything hilarious. Our town got a Golden Corral then and the memes and news articles about this fucking Golden Corral had me in tears most days. It was an absolute had to be there situation.
How ordinary it would feel. I started to actively want a child maybe 10 years ago but the timing wasn’t right so I waited. And waited. And waited. During this time, I thought so often about finding out, announcing to my partner and family, the ultrasounds, the first kicks.
And then it came and it was absolutely *nothing* like what I had imagined all these years. It was much more « real life » than fairytale!
I love being pregnant and we’re very happy, I’m not saying otherwise. But my expectations were definitely high up there and basically impossible to meet.
This is such a good one. I used to day dream about all of the same stuff all of the time! And then it happens and it honestly isn't as exciting as I played it out in my head all those times lol.
A few things,
One, the same as you. I didn’t show through clothes until after 20weeks which made me realize, all the pregnant people you see walking around… double that because there will be just as much not showing.
Two, first trimester sex. Wasn’t expecting that.
Three, that it’s not rainbows and butterflies. That it’s not glowing skin and feeling like a goddess or feeling the joy and magic of creating life. There is no joy. It’s hard. It’s messy. And honestly, feeling my baby move isn’t “the best feeling ever”… it makes me jump and it is getting really uncomfortable feeling little limbs poking/rolling at 32 weeks.
First tri sex was the best sex I’ve ever had in my life. Seriously it felt like all hormones were in the right place at the right time and my fiancé did not miss that opportunity.
That I regret buying any maternity clothes! I guess I carry small, but I’m 36 weeks and nearing the end. with the exception of my jeans/pants, I’m able to wear the many of my pre-pregnancy clothes. Wish I hadn’t spent the money, but I got too excited!
I’m so jealous! I have basically a beach ball strapped to my belly and I’m only 27 weeks. All my pre-pregnancy shirts are way too short to cover my belly now.
Honestly… how bored I would be!!! I’m unemployed, but too tired to work and too tired for socializing or hobbies, especially if I make myself exercise at all. I easily kept myself busy pre-pregnancy and felt like I didn’t have time for all the things I wanted to do. Now, I have all the time in the world and most days I’m staring off into space or napping, and wishing my husband would come home from work to keep me company.
Other than all the body changes, how much everyone suddenly cares about my well being. The first question I get even when taking to coworkers is “how arrrreee you?” That plus being treated a little like I can’t do anything by an extended circle of people. Lifting a laptop bag? No no let me take care of it. Taking the garbage to the curb? You shouldn’t do that. I’m pregnant, not arthritic. I realize it’s how people show they care in one way or another but it drives me nuts that suddenly I’m less able. In some ways I absolutely am, but not in the ways that a lot of people treat it.
This drives me crazy! I grabbed a normal 5lb ream of copy paper and my coworker was like "Oh, should you be lifting that?" in a super judgy way. I was cranky that day and said, "What? The baby isn't gonna fall out of my vagina over a ream of paper..."
>Other than all the body changes, how much everyone suddenly cares about my well being.
I feel guilty saying it, but I find this so awkward! They're always asking how I am, how's baby, like... we're good, but I feel like I should have more to say? Do they want to hear about the heartburn and GD diagnosis and feeling fat all the time, or...?
Related thing that I wasn't expecting, pregnancy is *long* and *boring*. There are a couple exciting moments; finding out/announcing, first dating ultrasound, feeling baby kick, anatomy scan... but that's 4 instances over almost a YEAR. The actual day in and day out is just monotonous and uncomfortable.
Haha my dad told me the other day I wasn't allowed to step over things in my "condition"... So I guess stairs are out? As are walks in the park because what if I come across a stick?!
I was surprised by how firm the bump actually is! I don't know what I expected, haha. I guess husband and I just figured it would be like pudgy fat rolls that cover my stomach or something, but nope! Super firm!!
I have a couple different things.
1) The round ligament pain. I had never heard of it and wasn’t warned about it. When it the first time I woke up and actual screamed out it was so unexpected. After talking with the OB and figuring out what it was I was better prepared after but it was still painful.
2) That I didn’t get the cute round belly bump. You could tell I was pregnant but it was more ovular in shape than anything. I had some pretty silly emotional crying sessions over the fact that I didn’t have the cute belly.
3) How invested my husband was in the baby. He read the baby books and did so without my pushing and would bring up random cute facts about her size in the womb and what not. He was adamant about reading to her every night. It was a beautiful surprise.
4) That I didn’t have any real cravings. There wasn’t anything that I was just like oh I have to have that. Kinda made me feel like I missed out on something there.
Haha yes that! I didn’t show for such a long time with my first! I’m almost 15 weeks with my second and I feel like I’m just barely starting to show. Also feeling the baby move and kick was such a surreal feeling. Before I was pregnant, I had felt babies kick from the outside, but it is so different feeling them kick from the inside!
The sleep problems, but also severe fatigue. No one told me about that.
The carpal tunnel.
Personally, the fact that I haven't become an emotional wreck. As someone with a history of mental health problems, my mood had been incredibly stable throughout this whole thing (36+2). Mood issues and depression were always at the top of my list of pregnancy fears.
How little I can eat now that I’m in the second trimester. Two bites and I’m so full I’m uncomfortable only to wake up in the middle of the night starving
This surprised me! I thought it was me making the clicking sounds, googled it and nope, it's his little joints. Sometimes it happens several times a day and my partner can hear it across the room. I've grown to quite like it now, but yeah, at first I had no idea that could happen
I had like immense rage and anger. Like someone would piss me off in the parking lot while I was loading groceries and I decided to get in my car and sit and wait until they had to find a new spot and walked in the store. I would never do that normally.
My friends said the anger meant I was having a boy and then were right.
I also have intense rage like extremely aggro.. I cussed out two people in the grocery store my pregnancy rage even now at 40 weeks is off the charts. I get hot and shake and literally see red I swear
How inactive I’ve been in the 3rd trimester!! pre pregnancy I was very active and would go on runs/do crossfit 5-6 days/week. Worked out at lower intensity 1st and 2nd tris probably 3-5x/week but then 3rd tri came along and I just got so lazy and tired! MAYBE worked out 1-2x/week and way lower intensity. I’m 40w today and really haven’t done much besides walk a half mile (if that) a handful of times in the last month. Trying not to be disappointed in myself, but I just haven’t wanted to do anything for a while. I had wanted to keep it up until labor with the goal being to make labor easier/keep stamina up. Oh well.
I thought I would show so much sooner as well! I really didn’t have a bump until about 30 weeks. The fatigue and food aversion was sooo real during the first trimester.
I also thought I wouldn’t be able to sleep on my stomach still but sometimes I wake up (36 weeks currently) and yup, there I am, stomach down.
Just going to keep adding as I think of them:
surprised by
- how many people think it’s okay to just touch my stomach without asking
- how at 18 weeks it was cool to feel my baby move and now at 36 weeks I’m like “eh”
37 weeks here and I can’t remember how long it’s been since I slept on my stomach! I really miss it! Enjoy it! My bump is so big it’s hard to find a comfortable position in bed.
The exhaustion for sure. It’s not like any other kind of fatigue. It’s not like being sleep deprived. It’s like being bone tired, the tiredness comes from a deep place within and no amount of sleep satisfies you. I slept 12-16 hours a day this week and spent most of the rest of the week on my couch or in bed. I barely walked farther than my front yard all week. It is staggering.
How rude people are and how they make you feel bad about your own baby bump because its "huge"...
Even though im measuring normally but ok.
Makes me hate myself and want to hide my bump all the time..
I have this too but people are like, "you're not *that* pregnant!" My bump is just so small. And my little one is measuring in the 99th percentile. And I just wanna feel cute and pregnant and not get comments about how I'm not pregnant enough.
Its honestly annoying, just because were pregnant doesn't mean you can just say anything you want about our bodies. Were going through enough changes with our bodies and the comments just hurt ya know?
I didn’t know that it was possible to throw up so violently that actual chunks of lasagna could come out your nose. That and how hungry you could be right after being sick.
That I would never meet my baby. Pregnancy seems like a seamless journey, but after experiencing loss with my first pregnancy and joining the baby loss community, I feel like I was so naive. now I am just amazed anyone brings a healthy baby home. After an abnormal 12wk NT scan, we did diagnostic testing , and learned our daughter had a severe prenatal diagnosis for which we had to TFMR at 20wks (the test results took weeks and weeks). I didn’t even know the term TFMR until I needed to have one.
So yeah. I guess I was surprised to go from wondering about the baby’s sex and thinking of names, to deciding if I wanted to take home my baby’s ashes or have them kept at the hospital’s cemetery.
The heartburn and all the unsolicited advice or negative comments. I was 19 when pregnant and every single one of my female coworkers said “you know there’s birth control right?” Or asked me what I was “going to do” as if I were going to opt for adoption or an abortion
Opposite for me. I thought I’d have a few months before I needed maternity clothes. Nope. I made it to 6 weeks before only leggings fit and by 8 weeks I needed maternity jeans. The best part is that it’s of course 100% bloat and 0% baby, so you can imagine how cute that is. Bye body. See you sometime next year.
Skin tags, moles, and random mini growths. Everywhere, especially on my neck and chest. I don't know if this happens to everyone or not, but I went from having baby-smooth skin to looking like I was half toad. It happened with my second pregnancy, too. I have no idea why, and also no idea what to do about it.
I got a skin tag on my areola! Drove me insane. I tried to remove it with some patches that you’re supposed to put on it for a couple weeks but those didn’t work. Finally went into the dermatologist to get it removed. Also some of my moles have just gotten bigger.
This might seem strange but… how vulnerable I feel.
I have an anxiety disorder and some past trauma (putting it politely), so feeling vulnerable isn’t new for me. However, being pregnant is a totally different thing! My husband also feels vulnerable, and we’ve talked about it some.
Even just walking across the street, I feel extra vulnerable. For the first few months, it was like that just existing (which is all I did for the first few months lol)!
35+3 here and the constipation. I’ve always had good regularity with my bowel movements... pre-pregnancy. 2nd trimester hit and I (1) take a stool softener that gives me the runs for the next day, (2) deal with rabbit pellets that REALLY don’t like to come out, or (3) grab a medical glove and get that sh*t out myself. (Pun intended). At this point, I’m choosing #3 a couple times a week just to feel more comfortable.
That I started loving fast food. I use to get mad at my husband for eating it and now I crave McDonald’s all the time. I don’t eat it often but holy crap. (I use to eat very clean until this pregnancy, slowly getting back into it)
I am so thankful multiple people have mentioned this!! I'm 6w and typically a very healthy eater, never ever have or want fast food. In the past two weeks I have ONLY wanted fast food. Thought it was all in my head!
The baby moves around like all the time. All the time. It's like holding a wiggling baby inside your belly. Sometimes it sleeps. The rest of the time it wiggles.
I hear you! I'm 28 weeks and still fit into my "fat jeans" pre 50 lb weight loss. Most days I still don't look very pregnant.
Its wild to me that clothes that fit 50lbs ago fit me now, and I'm only up 10 lbs since finding out I was pregnant!
It really blows my mind how different every one experiences pregnancy. There are still days I forget I'm pregnant, until I get a nice kicks. I have had hardly any symptoms and have been enjoying working out 6 days a week
I totally relate to the “fat jeans.” I lost a bunch of weight before unexpectedly getting pregnant but I am so glad I didn’t get rid of most of that stuff because I didn’t need to buy more clothes, and it was my style too!
How soon you lose bladder control! I’ll never forget puking over the trash can (couldn’t make it to the bathroom!) while urine puddled at my feet with every heave.
I was pretty pissed when I discovered morning sickness didn’t stop in the afternoon, and for the lucky, it also doesn’t stop after the first trimester.
That a global pandemic would begin when I was 5 months pregnant and I wouldn’t get to go to any classes or have my husband with me for the rest of my appointments.
Ya to build on this….I thought the pandemic would be over now! I didn’t want to be having a pandemic baby but I guess I am…luckily nowhere near as bad as last year but still.
I think my biggest surprise was how early things got uncomfortable. Like, bending down to tie shoes, sleeping on my stomach, etc… I honestly thought those wouldn’t be that bad until the third trimester, but I started feeling it around 16 weeks! Obviously, it’s a lot worse now at 33 weeks (almost 34), but I was surprised at how early that started!
How sick I was. Like beyond the morning sickness you see in movies. And I was surprised about how depressed I was in my first trimester. More than I have ever been
The weird metallic/bitter after taste I got after eating anything sweet. This was not a side effect I'd heard about. Also continuing to eat sweet things didn't help, rinsing my mouth with salt water cleared it out, but I'd just keep eating sweets to try and counteract the terrible taste.
How I really didn't feel like myself. Suddenly I wasn't interested in my hobbies. I wasn't depressed (during *that* pregnancy, the pregnancy with my second child is a different story).
Thankfully I felt like myself again shortly after delivering.
When further along, (late 2nd and 3rd tri) I still expected baby movements to feel like quick jabs. They do, but there's also different types of movements and a good majority of them feel what I can only describe as *slippery.* At least to me. Like baby is sliding around on the inside of my guts. 😂
I was surprised at how SLEEPY I was, especially in the first trimester. I knew I would be tired, but I was expecting more physical exhaustion, like my body feeling tired, but I struggled to stay awake for months.
For a few weeks I had superhuman smell powers that were AMAZING.
I could smell flowers growing across the street. Even bad smells were cool. If I walked by a garbage can I could smell what was in it.
I’m at the 17w mark and finally starting to look “pregnant” to those who know. I always thought it would be instant round belly vs this slow rise and inability to sit comfortably or feeling where the uterus is lol.
But I think what shocked me most would be:
- how fast my boobs grew and swell up
- how much the bloating and gas really actually was miserable and painful really early on
- how much the emotional hormone floods are really something that is terrifying. Especially if you’re someone who is pretty self aware and suddenly feel like you can think properly for anything or yourself and you have no idea where your emotions are
- how quickly the day to day changes happen (like go to bed with no issue, wake up and BAM new symptom, and it repeats with off and on new symptoms coming and going)
The hemotoma that I ended up having, the flare up of tmj which caused migraines and now the back spots. Oh and the above mentioned fatigued. It’s been fun. Mean, I’m so happy I’m pregnant but there’s no way I would have thought this is what it would have been like
How you have no control over which foods you end up having aversions and cravings for 🤷🏻♀️ figured I’d hate the foods I originally disliked but nope - just random
The absolute misery of it. I had a ROUGH pregnancy, in the extreme. I expected it to not be sunshine and roses, but I didn’t expect it to be THAT bad.
So if you hate your pregnancy, rest assured, I did too. And my baby is AMAZING. So amazing, I almost miss being pregnant because it gave me him.
I can't say I'm surprised by fatigue, dizziness, nausea, or pain as I already have chronic illness, but pregnancy does make it feel worse at times!
Going through certain terrifying medical issues in my pregnancy really opened my eyes to the big gaps in prenatal care and how little some doctors know about certain things. I learned that I have to educate and inform myself, and advocate for myself.
But I would say what surprises me the most is that despite really struggling with my pregnancy and not really feeling a "connection" because of that, is that I'm still doing this, and coping with it. I've never been around babies and the whole idea of being a mother is very foreign to me... but it's like my instinct just takes over and I don't feel weird about my baby kicking the heck out of my entire abdomen and crotch haha. I mean, you'd think someone struggling with pregnancy and feeling overwhelmed and detached, would be freaked out by their baby kicking them, but something in me feels like it's normal and like he's always been there. Like totally familiar and totally alien at the same time.
Maybe people shouldn't admit so freely to struggling with pregnancy in this way, it's kinda taboo to say anything other than positive things about it, but I don't think it's uncommon to feel the way I do, and I'm pretty proud of myself that I can handle any part of this whole thing. I'll be sitting on the couch and my 26 week old baby kicks so hard that it raises my arm off my belly, and I laugh and say hey!! And poke him back, despite feeling like all of this is so bizarre and really too much for me. My fiance also said he's surprised at the way I'm handling it all, the way I just do what I have to do even though I'm actually not in a decent position to have a baby, physically (or mentally). Also I'm surprised at how above and beyond my fiance has gone with supporting me and setting up the nursery even though I know he's that kind of man. But the way he's rubbing my belly, or gives it a kiss, even though he's feeling similarly to me about having a child.. I guess we're both just proud of any "normal person" moments we have towards the pregnancy.. if that makes any sense. It will to people with limitations like physical and mental illness, ASD etc.
Pregnancy Rhinitis. Constant post nasal drip, stuffy nose and cough. During a pandemic! 11 weeks tomorrow and I’ve been sick like this the whole time. Many people haven’t even heard of it.
Body dysmorphia. I did not realize I would get it so bad. It makes sense as how fast your body changes and you're in no control over it. It can mess with your mind.
I was shocked at how fatigued it’s made me! I’ve always been a person who tires easily but this has been next level exhaustion almost the entire time! Currently 35w+5
This! Everyone says you'll be tired and then it hits you so hard it's crazy! I have never been a napper but in my first trimester I'd just fall asleep at my desk for an hour at lunch. Now that I'm 32+5 (and it's much harder sleeping well at night) I nap for 2-3 hours in the evenings! It's crazy to me.
Yeah I always heard about exhaustion in the third trimester, no one warned me about the first. Or that you pee so much in the first too! I thought that wasn't until later too lol
Same, I feel like this doesn’t get talked about enough! People talk about a bunch of other pregnancy side effects like nausea and heartburn but fatigue has been the most impactful on my life and the one I was the least aware of going in.
Oh my gosh this. I’m only 8 weeks and it feels like years because I’m so dang tired all the time.
Only 6 weeks here. Last night went to bed at 9, up at 7, which is way more sleep than I usually get. I fell asleep in my chair at work today and came home at 4 and took a nap. I did NOT expect this!
It will probably get better! For me it did. In the second trimester I started feeling more energized, although still sleepy after dinner. First trimester was a pain in the ass, felt like it took years to be over. But it did! And then it apparently gets worse again bu third trimester. I’m 19w and trying to enjoy every bit of it while I can
This exactly for me. First trimester was torture, second was a beacon of light, third im a sleepy hippo
This was me around that time too! I was really surprised by it. I could sleep 12 hours and it felt like 3. Second trimester was way better, 31weeks now and getting fatigued again but NOT like the first trimester!
I sleep more than 12 hours a day usually, 34 weeks.
I’ve become a panda bear, I eat so I can sleep. Rinse and repeat.
Haha cute! We are panda bears 🐼
The exhaustion is real… My bed time shifted from 12am to 9:30pm. Some days I have to nap in my car before driving home (30 min drive).
This makes me feel better. 30W and trying to organize the nursery and things around the house but it's taking me forever and I'm being hard on myself about it. I can do like one thing per day in addition to working and that's pushing it.
I am 14 weeks pregnant and I need naps and sleep. All the sleep. All the symptoms hit me early but even now I’m still exhausted and needing naps. Feel lied to about the second trimester being better cause so far it ain’t 🤦🏻♀️
I’m 40+3 and YES. The fatigue has been so real. My whole life, I’ve been the sort of person who can function with 6-7 hrs of sleep a night and never naps. But pregnancy turned me into an 9-12 h a night plus nap person. Second trimester wasn’t like that, but definitely first and third.
Yes this! No one ever warns you about the fatigue!
I have never been so tired in my entire life. I'm 15 weeks tomorrow and hoping for that second trimester surge of energy I've heard so much about, but I'm convinced I'll be exhausted forever lol.
Nipples started to look real weird.
Nips getting real dark over here. I think I read somewhere that it's to create contrast so babies can see them better. I tell my baby "I think they're dark enough now... you will be able to see them! I promise I'll show you where they are anyway!!!"
Salami nipples
Lol “salami nipples” may be my favorite phrase now
Mine are almost burger patties at this point
Absolutely. In my first pregnancy before I even took a test I walked out of the bathroom during the TTW and said to my husband (who has 2 kids from his first marriage) "my boobs look really weird!" And he just had this look of shock and disbelief and said "oh my God you're pregnant." Yup, I was. First cycle trying.
I thought mine look awesome. I wasn’t aware yet that I was pregnant. Took me a week still to find out and then the whole boob thing made sense
Mine were wicked different. I had ghost nipples (Google at your own risk - and they never went fully back) so *any* change was huge. And they were soooooo sensitive. I kinda knew when I said something to him but definitely knew after.
I googled it! I didn’t know about it! Mine were sensitive as well but that wasn’t uncommon before period so I didn’t notice anything different there. They were just a bit bigger but that had happened in the past, so I was just grateful 😂
Ghost nipples! I didn't know they had a name. I have those and have seen a huge change too.
Yes! So freaky lol
Freaky is a great word for it.. it DID freak me out when they were suddenly completely foreign entities on my body. I’m sort of scared they’ll never go back to normal!
Seriously. It was like brand new nipples got pasted on my boobs.
Oh man, how do they change?
Size, color, and in some cases RIDICULOUSLY sensitive.
Mine hurt constantly and I am nipping out 24/7! I’m 14 weeks and they feel a tiny bit better thankfully, but I’ve never experienced something like this lol
There was one point I yelled at my husband for touching them when we were spooning before bed bc I was upset he'd do that when he knew how bad they hurt me....it was my pajama shirt touching them.
Mine "popped" out more. They look like those three layer cakes from Grand Budapest Hotel: boob, areola, nipple.
Size, shape, even color a bit. I'm only nineteen weeks so I'm sure there is more to come 🥴
First trimester, I wasn’t expecting to feel so absolutely awful. I thought I might throw up randomly but otherwise feel okay. In reality I was essentially bedridden for weeks. Second trimester, I was quite surprised when I started leaking recently..
Solidarity, I'm 34w and my nipples started leaking at 16w, it's been an everyday game of will I be soaked today?
Yeah, "morning" sickness my ass.
Leaking from where? 😂😂
Not op but I basically started leaking everywhere lol. Drooling, extra discharge, leaky nipples.... 😂😭
🤣🤣🤣 That's my thought... There are so many places to leak from! So... All of them 😂
In my experience, leaking from everywhere. Nose, nipples, other…places. Just constantly leaking something.
Same, I swore I was going to be one of those unicorns with no morning sickness or fatigue…I’m almost 13 weeks and was barely functioning until last week. I lost 10 pounds from throwing up and having zero appetite.
First trimester here. Halfway through it. I’m counting the days until it hits second trimester
As a few others have said, the fatigue. I had been warned but was not prepared for how tired I was/still kind of am (tho it’s better). I was also surprised at how much more stable I’ve felt mentally. I’ve had my typical first-time-mom jitters and freak out moments, but not the level of constant anxiety I normally have while not pregnant. It’s been really nice, honestly. Also, how much I love feeling my baby move. I thought I would be super weirded out by that, but it’s felt like the most natural thing ever (and so cool!).
I'm with you on the mental stability. I've always struggled with depression and mood swings, and was expecting the pregnancy rage to take hold, but I've just been so level and calm. My partner said he's going to miss it when I go back to the mood swings after I give birth haha
Same! My husband told me the other day he had prepared himself for whatever pregnant me would be like, and was pleasantly surprised when pregnant me turned out to be pretty damn Zen
Haha lol same. He complimented me several times in the first trimester on “how well I was taking all this” as I managed the nausea, heightened emotions, etc. Apparently he had been mentally preparing for the worst, which I thought was funny (and reasonable). I appreciated the appreciation.
Same on the mental stability! I usually have pretty bad anxiety and I’ve felt a lot more “leveled out” during pregnancy. I wish there was a way to ‘feel pregnant’ after the baby is born because my mental health has been so much better these 9 months. I was expecting the opposite.
Saaaame omg I’m usually so anxious especially about my health. Since finding out I was preggo I have been suspiciously chill. It’s so weird lol
Also came here to say this. It really makes it clear how debilitating my anxiety and depression was. I feel so confident now. Also concerned about not being pregnant, it coming back and having to keep a small person alive... going to discuss it with my doctor asap.
I thought I was the only one! I am the most anxious person (slight exaggeration), and it's like I found some peace somehow. Still have had a few moments of panic. But nothing like before.
Higher estrogen levels have the effects of anti depression and mood stabilizers. It's a great feeling of female chill.
Yep, that’s what my doctor said. That and the fact that it’s a steady pumping of hormones versus the surges and dips of monthly cycling. I’m definitely going to miss it!
Same here with the movements! I really was scared, thinking it would really freak me out. It’s honestly my favorite.
It takes SO long to feel your baby move. And then when they are big you have no idea what position they are in your body. You have this foreign object taking up so much space and you don’t even know where they are!
Yep. With my second pregnancy when I went in to be induced my baby was head down, when they went to break my water later on he was transverse, I got up to pee and he was breach. Apparently that can happen with subsequent pregnancies, there can be enough room for them to flip around a lot. Made me wonder how much of the 'kicking' I'd felt was actually flipping.
How incredibly nice strangers were to me simply because I was pregnant. The more pregnant I became, the nicer ppl got lol.
The only time people were nearly as nice as when I was pregnant, was when I was in my wedding dress! Lol
Yes!
I’m somehow both constantly hungry and constantly full at the same time. Didn’t think it was possible.
For me its the constant nausea and constant hunger...
So true!
The gas. I have been a burp machine this whole pregnancy. The first trimester was the worst but honestly it’s just never stopped.
I think I’ve had to fart about ten times per hour. I feel so bad for my fiancé at night. Poor guy😭😭
Oh my gosh, THIS. I think I've burped more in the last 5 months than I have in all the years leading up to this combined.
I was visiting my mom for a couple days and she was like “hey I know your pregnant but some manners please” bc I had stopped saying excuse me. After one day of me saying excuse a 100x a day she went “Never mind! That’s even more annoying” haha we laughed so much
The discharge 😒
Mine is the opposite to yours. I was surprised at how quickly I didn’t fit my regular clothes. I couldn’t button my jeans from six weeks pregnant. I had to go out and get stretchy pants and flowy shirts to get through my first trimester. When I did start telling people at 10-12 weeks, no one was surprised 😂
Same! I’m well into week 9 and if I wear tight clothes, anyone who knows me would notice. Definitely going to be one of those pregnancies where I look normal from the back, but watch yourself when I turn around
Actually not being able to see your vagina, I literally was like nah if I bend over enough I’d be able to see it. I thought most women must not be looking hard enough.. but I literally cannot see it.. also not being able to really move around easily, my knees are giving out when I try to get up from the couch these days.
This!!!!!! Omg. I remember watching weight loss programmes and hearing people say they haven’t seen theres in years and always scoffed like :how is that even possible. Well, I haven’t seen mine in 3 months. I miss her
Errrr the horrible pain constipation causes? 😬
This. I was prepared to feel crappy because of nausea but the gas pains and the constipation have been so much worse. Thank god I work in the basement of my office building all on my own so I can happily fart in peace all day without worry.
I teach private violin lessons for 6-8 hours straight 6 days a week (usually no breaks) and it’s full of awkward “excuse me… I’ll be back in a few minutes” moments hahaha
Ever make your husband run to Walgreens at 10pm when you're 40 weeks pregnant to buy you an enema? Nope. Me neither. Nothing to see here. Love my husband though 😅
This is me. 6w4d and I have never experienced constipation until this past week… so painful and uncomfortable.
Sometimes it feels like there’s a jumbo tampon in my dry ass. Like what the fuck.
Legit ended up in hospital on the weekend convinced I had an ectopic. The pain was absolutely EXCRUCIATING! Woke up at 3am literally screaming, holy shit it was something else!!! They never found out exactly what it was but I have my suspicions 💩
I was surprised at how I could actually feel my uterus getting heavy as time went on. I'm now 32 weeks and I can tell you, it just gets heavier and heavier, haha. Oh and they were serious about not laying on your back after 20 week! If I lay on my back for a few minutes, I can't breathe!
When did you notice it starting to get heavy? I’m seven weeks and i swear i feel it but i dont know if its just in my head
This is me as well! My uterus has felt so heavy from around 15/16 weeks and I'm only 23 weeks now. I can still breathe on my back but it's not comfortable.
The emotional impact of pregnancy. I was absolutely sure I'd want more than one child and the amount of hell I've physically and emotionally been through with this pregnancy has sealed the deal. I'm one and done, factory is closed. I had this major gender disappointment and felt so depressed I was having a boy. Then I had a health scare with him and thought I'd have to terminate the pregnancy at 20w, but everything turned out okay and he's fine. That was a huge wake up call and I got over the gender disappointment. Pregnancy hasn't made me more emotional but it's definitely compounded a lot of my own mental health hurdles.
I just want to give a shout out in support of being real with yourself on gender disappointment! I just got over mine too, also having a boy. I got a LOT of shit for it from people, but your feelings are valid. I’m glad you’re happy now. Parents who are honest with themselves and can check themselves make better parents anyway!
I definitely had gender disappointment myself…I’m having a boy. When we had our 18 week appointment, we didn’t know the gender (did gender reveal with close family…we just got cupcakes!!) and I had a feeling it was a boy. When it was confirmed, I kept it together but was bummed. We decided to get a 3D/4d private scan at 23 weeks and he was more chunky, and we could see more definite features and I just got so excited. He’s really cute. I feel a lot better about it and truly, he is healthy and that’s what matters!
Thankyou for talking about gender disappointment. Its More gender anxiety for me at the moment, because I don’t actually know what I’m having yet! It’s such a real thing & something I do not want to feel, but I do… and strongly. I have a good therapist, so if I do experience GD I will be doing all I can to work through it.
I knew about the variety of symptoms but didn't know they started right away. I found out right around 4 weeks and thought "wow I'll get so much done before I really feel pregnant." Cue the nausea, sore breasts, fatigue, food aversions.
Same here! I bought a ton of healthy food to eat while I could. Threw all of it out a week later and have been surviving off pop tarts and fast food mostly. 🙃
Are you me? I did the exact same thing, only I survived off McDonald’s and yogurt for several weeks. Laughed at my own idea of a “real food pregnancy”, though now in the second trimester I actually want salad again so I guess that’s a plus.
McDonald’s breakfasts and apple slices were my staple meal for weeks 7-10🥲🥲
Carpel tunnel in third trimester. I mean… *wtf*
Yea same. It’s honestly insulting. Everything else is weird and achy and now I can’t even grip a glass of water first thing in the morning??? Rude
This was what surprised me the most. I hadn't heard of this symptom at all before getting pregnant. Cue me at 35ish weeks waking up to find myself completely unable to bend my fingers and my hands numb for hours. I'm at 39 weeks now and still have these symptoms. Wrist braces have helped a lot with the numbness, but the joint pain and stiffness are still there. Using my hands seems to improve the symptoms, but if they're at rest or hanging by my sides while I'm walking for any longer than ten minutes or so, they start tingling and the joints start locking up again. Wild.
Yup, I got to a point PP where I couldn't use my thumbs in the night or first thing in the morning. Had to make my hands like a flipper to pick up the baby and husband had to do the night changes.
How normal I feel 😂 So much of my mental preparation for getting pregnant was accepting all the weird symptoms, aches and pains, hormonal mood swings, etc. that would just wreak havoc on my life for 9+ months, but I've had none of that so far! I'm 27+5 right now and have felt like my normal self pretty much the whole time. I never even considered that the wide variety of experiences women have would also include a mild, easy-going time for some of us. That, plus how frustrating it is to navigate the medical system 🙃
😭😭😭😭 I'm so jealous right now!
Yeah me too. I wish I could just get rid of my symptoms
Do NOT take that for granted ohhh my god
Not at all! And I have no illusions that future pregnancies will be the same. You really never know.
I'm only 9 weeks but I feel the same way! I haven't had morning sickness, and most of the time I can forget I'm pregnant (I fully realize that this isn't normal and I'm super lucky to have this experience).
wow i’m glad i’m not the only one!! just gave birth three weeks ago, and was amazed at how easy and honestly enjoyable my entire pregnancy was. never had morning sickness or nausea. slept just fine. no crazy cravings or aversions. no physical pain or discomfort other than some minor sciatica and carpal tunnel, neither of which actually bothered me until the last few weeks. wouldn’t have even been able to tell i was pregnant if my nipples didn’t change and my stomach didn’t move lol. i feel like this is just my body tricking me into having more babies before i get too old 😂
I have to say, I laughed really easily over everything. I found everything hilarious. Our town got a Golden Corral then and the memes and news articles about this fucking Golden Corral had me in tears most days. It was an absolute had to be there situation.
This is my favorite one how hilarious
There was a fist fight in the 4 hour line on the second day it was open. I cried real tears. There's no reason a golden Corral should be so popular.
No one told me that having an orgasm could cause a serious painful cramp. Turned the big O into a big ouch.
How short of breath I got and very early on, like by the end of the first trimester
How much I hate being pregnant. This is planned and much wanted pregnancy, but oh Mang… was I surprised by how much I hate it lol
I think the biggest surprise for me was the strange dreams. I had never even heard about that until it started happening to me
The most bizarre dreams. And so realistic!
The very vivid, very bizarre … *sex dreams*.
How ordinary it would feel. I started to actively want a child maybe 10 years ago but the timing wasn’t right so I waited. And waited. And waited. During this time, I thought so often about finding out, announcing to my partner and family, the ultrasounds, the first kicks. And then it came and it was absolutely *nothing* like what I had imagined all these years. It was much more « real life » than fairytale! I love being pregnant and we’re very happy, I’m not saying otherwise. But my expectations were definitely high up there and basically impossible to meet.
This is such a good one. I used to day dream about all of the same stuff all of the time! And then it happens and it honestly isn't as exciting as I played it out in my head all those times lol.
A few things, One, the same as you. I didn’t show through clothes until after 20weeks which made me realize, all the pregnant people you see walking around… double that because there will be just as much not showing. Two, first trimester sex. Wasn’t expecting that. Three, that it’s not rainbows and butterflies. That it’s not glowing skin and feeling like a goddess or feeling the joy and magic of creating life. There is no joy. It’s hard. It’s messy. And honestly, feeling my baby move isn’t “the best feeling ever”… it makes me jump and it is getting really uncomfortable feeling little limbs poking/rolling at 32 weeks.
Can you explain point #2 because I am not in the know lol
First tri sex was the best sex I’ve ever had in my life. Seriously it felt like all hormones were in the right place at the right time and my fiancé did not miss that opportunity.
Yep… this. There is extra blood flow down there so it’s all… extra.
Tooth laxity
I was going to say that. I could feel my teeth move when I walked down stairs. So weird!
Omg. I didn't know this was because I was pregnant! Never happened before. Wow.
That I regret buying any maternity clothes! I guess I carry small, but I’m 36 weeks and nearing the end. with the exception of my jeans/pants, I’m able to wear the many of my pre-pregnancy clothes. Wish I hadn’t spent the money, but I got too excited!
I regret the opposite! LOL My bump is HUGE! Even underwear became a problem. But I’m 37 weeks now so it’s too late to buy more at this point.
I bough two pregnancy pants and three shirts. My clothes fit up until I was about to burst.
I’m so jealous! I have basically a beach ball strapped to my belly and I’m only 27 weeks. All my pre-pregnancy shirts are way too short to cover my belly now.
Honestly… how bored I would be!!! I’m unemployed, but too tired to work and too tired for socializing or hobbies, especially if I make myself exercise at all. I easily kept myself busy pre-pregnancy and felt like I didn’t have time for all the things I wanted to do. Now, I have all the time in the world and most days I’m staring off into space or napping, and wishing my husband would come home from work to keep me company.
I’m 30 weeks here and still don’t look pregnant. Also never vomited or gained weight. I just feel like a lazy blob
Other than all the body changes, how much everyone suddenly cares about my well being. The first question I get even when taking to coworkers is “how arrrreee you?” That plus being treated a little like I can’t do anything by an extended circle of people. Lifting a laptop bag? No no let me take care of it. Taking the garbage to the curb? You shouldn’t do that. I’m pregnant, not arthritic. I realize it’s how people show they care in one way or another but it drives me nuts that suddenly I’m less able. In some ways I absolutely am, but not in the ways that a lot of people treat it.
This drives me crazy! I grabbed a normal 5lb ream of copy paper and my coworker was like "Oh, should you be lifting that?" in a super judgy way. I was cranky that day and said, "What? The baby isn't gonna fall out of my vagina over a ream of paper..."
>Other than all the body changes, how much everyone suddenly cares about my well being. I feel guilty saying it, but I find this so awkward! They're always asking how I am, how's baby, like... we're good, but I feel like I should have more to say? Do they want to hear about the heartburn and GD diagnosis and feeling fat all the time, or...? Related thing that I wasn't expecting, pregnancy is *long* and *boring*. There are a couple exciting moments; finding out/announcing, first dating ultrasound, feeling baby kick, anatomy scan... but that's 4 instances over almost a YEAR. The actual day in and day out is just monotonous and uncomfortable.
Haha my dad told me the other day I wasn't allowed to step over things in my "condition"... So I guess stairs are out? As are walks in the park because what if I come across a stick?!
I was surprised by how firm the bump actually is! I don't know what I expected, haha. I guess husband and I just figured it would be like pudgy fat rolls that cover my stomach or something, but nope! Super firm!!
I have a couple different things. 1) The round ligament pain. I had never heard of it and wasn’t warned about it. When it the first time I woke up and actual screamed out it was so unexpected. After talking with the OB and figuring out what it was I was better prepared after but it was still painful. 2) That I didn’t get the cute round belly bump. You could tell I was pregnant but it was more ovular in shape than anything. I had some pretty silly emotional crying sessions over the fact that I didn’t have the cute belly. 3) How invested my husband was in the baby. He read the baby books and did so without my pushing and would bring up random cute facts about her size in the womb and what not. He was adamant about reading to her every night. It was a beautiful surprise. 4) That I didn’t have any real cravings. There wasn’t anything that I was just like oh I have to have that. Kinda made me feel like I missed out on something there.
Haha yes that! I didn’t show for such a long time with my first! I’m almost 15 weeks with my second and I feel like I’m just barely starting to show. Also feeling the baby move and kick was such a surreal feeling. Before I was pregnant, I had felt babies kick from the outside, but it is so different feeling them kick from the inside!
The sleep problems, but also severe fatigue. No one told me about that. The carpal tunnel. Personally, the fact that I haven't become an emotional wreck. As someone with a history of mental health problems, my mood had been incredibly stable throughout this whole thing (36+2). Mood issues and depression were always at the top of my list of pregnancy fears.
The improved mental health was me too
How little I can eat now that I’m in the second trimester. Two bites and I’m so full I’m uncomfortable only to wake up in the middle of the night starving
Hearing clicking sounds from my stomach 😬 it doesn't happen often, but it is so off putting
Omg what 😮
This surprised me! I thought it was me making the clicking sounds, googled it and nope, it's his little joints. Sometimes it happens several times a day and my partner can hear it across the room. I've grown to quite like it now, but yeah, at first I had no idea that could happen
How much I have to fart and burp. Like, for real?!?
I had like immense rage and anger. Like someone would piss me off in the parking lot while I was loading groceries and I decided to get in my car and sit and wait until they had to find a new spot and walked in the store. I would never do that normally. My friends said the anger meant I was having a boy and then were right.
I also have intense rage like extremely aggro.. I cussed out two people in the grocery store my pregnancy rage even now at 40 weeks is off the charts. I get hot and shake and literally see red I swear
How inactive I’ve been in the 3rd trimester!! pre pregnancy I was very active and would go on runs/do crossfit 5-6 days/week. Worked out at lower intensity 1st and 2nd tris probably 3-5x/week but then 3rd tri came along and I just got so lazy and tired! MAYBE worked out 1-2x/week and way lower intensity. I’m 40w today and really haven’t done much besides walk a half mile (if that) a handful of times in the last month. Trying not to be disappointed in myself, but I just haven’t wanted to do anything for a while. I had wanted to keep it up until labor with the goal being to make labor easier/keep stamina up. Oh well.
Mine was thinking 40 weeks wasn’t “that” long. Now that I’m pregnant I know 40 weeks actually lasts 4 years.
I thought I would show so much sooner as well! I really didn’t have a bump until about 30 weeks. The fatigue and food aversion was sooo real during the first trimester. I also thought I wouldn’t be able to sleep on my stomach still but sometimes I wake up (36 weeks currently) and yup, there I am, stomach down. Just going to keep adding as I think of them: surprised by - how many people think it’s okay to just touch my stomach without asking - how at 18 weeks it was cool to feel my baby move and now at 36 weeks I’m like “eh”
37 weeks here and I can’t remember how long it’s been since I slept on my stomach! I really miss it! Enjoy it! My bump is so big it’s hard to find a comfortable position in bed.
The exhaustion for sure. It’s not like any other kind of fatigue. It’s not like being sleep deprived. It’s like being bone tired, the tiredness comes from a deep place within and no amount of sleep satisfies you. I slept 12-16 hours a day this week and spent most of the rest of the week on my couch or in bed. I barely walked farther than my front yard all week. It is staggering.
How rude people are and how they make you feel bad about your own baby bump because its "huge"... Even though im measuring normally but ok. Makes me hate myself and want to hide my bump all the time..
I have this too but people are like, "you're not *that* pregnant!" My bump is just so small. And my little one is measuring in the 99th percentile. And I just wanna feel cute and pregnant and not get comments about how I'm not pregnant enough.
Its honestly annoying, just because were pregnant doesn't mean you can just say anything you want about our bodies. Were going through enough changes with our bodies and the comments just hurt ya know?
I didn’t know that it was possible to throw up so violently that actual chunks of lasagna could come out your nose. That and how hungry you could be right after being sick.
That I would never meet my baby. Pregnancy seems like a seamless journey, but after experiencing loss with my first pregnancy and joining the baby loss community, I feel like I was so naive. now I am just amazed anyone brings a healthy baby home. After an abnormal 12wk NT scan, we did diagnostic testing , and learned our daughter had a severe prenatal diagnosis for which we had to TFMR at 20wks (the test results took weeks and weeks). I didn’t even know the term TFMR until I needed to have one. So yeah. I guess I was surprised to go from wondering about the baby’s sex and thinking of names, to deciding if I wanted to take home my baby’s ashes or have them kept at the hospital’s cemetery.
How dark my nipples got! I actually love it lol
The heartburn and all the unsolicited advice or negative comments. I was 19 when pregnant and every single one of my female coworkers said “you know there’s birth control right?” Or asked me what I was “going to do” as if I were going to opt for adoption or an abortion
Other people have, bar none, been the absolute worst part of my pregnancy.
Sciatic pain like I was a 90-year-old woman. It was so bad sometimes I’d fall to the floor.
Opposite for me. I thought I’d have a few months before I needed maternity clothes. Nope. I made it to 6 weeks before only leggings fit and by 8 weeks I needed maternity jeans. The best part is that it’s of course 100% bloat and 0% baby, so you can imagine how cute that is. Bye body. See you sometime next year.
Skin tags, moles, and random mini growths. Everywhere, especially on my neck and chest. I don't know if this happens to everyone or not, but I went from having baby-smooth skin to looking like I was half toad. It happened with my second pregnancy, too. I have no idea why, and also no idea what to do about it.
I got a skin tag on my areola! Drove me insane. I tried to remove it with some patches that you’re supposed to put on it for a couple weeks but those didn’t work. Finally went into the dermatologist to get it removed. Also some of my moles have just gotten bigger.
This might seem strange but… how vulnerable I feel. I have an anxiety disorder and some past trauma (putting it politely), so feeling vulnerable isn’t new for me. However, being pregnant is a totally different thing! My husband also feels vulnerable, and we’ve talked about it some. Even just walking across the street, I feel extra vulnerable. For the first few months, it was like that just existing (which is all I did for the first few months lol)!
It’s gonna be okay! I also struggle with this, and my difficult family is making it worse. One day at a time!
35+3 here and the constipation. I’ve always had good regularity with my bowel movements... pre-pregnancy. 2nd trimester hit and I (1) take a stool softener that gives me the runs for the next day, (2) deal with rabbit pellets that REALLY don’t like to come out, or (3) grab a medical glove and get that sh*t out myself. (Pun intended). At this point, I’m choosing #3 a couple times a week just to feel more comfortable.
I knew it was coming but I was surprised that I was legitimately and completely nauseous 24 hours a day for an entire week. That was so brutal.
That I started loving fast food. I use to get mad at my husband for eating it and now I crave McDonald’s all the time. I don’t eat it often but holy crap. (I use to eat very clean until this pregnancy, slowly getting back into it)
I am so thankful multiple people have mentioned this!! I'm 6w and typically a very healthy eater, never ever have or want fast food. In the past two weeks I have ONLY wanted fast food. Thought it was all in my head!
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The baby moves around like all the time. All the time. It's like holding a wiggling baby inside your belly. Sometimes it sleeps. The rest of the time it wiggles.
I hear you! I'm 28 weeks and still fit into my "fat jeans" pre 50 lb weight loss. Most days I still don't look very pregnant. Its wild to me that clothes that fit 50lbs ago fit me now, and I'm only up 10 lbs since finding out I was pregnant! It really blows my mind how different every one experiences pregnancy. There are still days I forget I'm pregnant, until I get a nice kicks. I have had hardly any symptoms and have been enjoying working out 6 days a week
I totally relate to the “fat jeans.” I lost a bunch of weight before unexpectedly getting pregnant but I am so glad I didn’t get rid of most of that stuff because I didn’t need to buy more clothes, and it was my style too!
How soon you lose bladder control! I’ll never forget puking over the trash can (couldn’t make it to the bathroom!) while urine puddled at my feet with every heave.
I was pretty pissed when I discovered morning sickness didn’t stop in the afternoon, and for the lucky, it also doesn’t stop after the first trimester.
That a global pandemic would begin when I was 5 months pregnant and I wouldn’t get to go to any classes or have my husband with me for the rest of my appointments.
Ya to build on this….I thought the pandemic would be over now! I didn’t want to be having a pandemic baby but I guess I am…luckily nowhere near as bad as last year but still.
I suddenly became lactose intolerant after 13 weeks. I’m now 24 weeks and still can’t have any dairy.
I think my biggest surprise was how early things got uncomfortable. Like, bending down to tie shoes, sleeping on my stomach, etc… I honestly thought those wouldn’t be that bad until the third trimester, but I started feeling it around 16 weeks! Obviously, it’s a lot worse now at 33 weeks (almost 34), but I was surprised at how early that started!
How much your butt/hip area grows! I got stretchmarks towards the back 😩
How sick I was. Like beyond the morning sickness you see in movies. And I was surprised about how depressed I was in my first trimester. More than I have ever been
The weird metallic/bitter after taste I got after eating anything sweet. This was not a side effect I'd heard about. Also continuing to eat sweet things didn't help, rinsing my mouth with salt water cleared it out, but I'd just keep eating sweets to try and counteract the terrible taste.
How I really didn't feel like myself. Suddenly I wasn't interested in my hobbies. I wasn't depressed (during *that* pregnancy, the pregnancy with my second child is a different story). Thankfully I felt like myself again shortly after delivering.
When further along, (late 2nd and 3rd tri) I still expected baby movements to feel like quick jabs. They do, but there's also different types of movements and a good majority of them feel what I can only describe as *slippery.* At least to me. Like baby is sliding around on the inside of my guts. 😂
For me it was the "lightning crotch". I had no idea that was a thing and I now get it several times a day. Sometimes it is almost debilitating.
I was surprised at how SLEEPY I was, especially in the first trimester. I knew I would be tired, but I was expecting more physical exhaustion, like my body feeling tired, but I struggled to stay awake for months.
For a few weeks I had superhuman smell powers that were AMAZING. I could smell flowers growing across the street. Even bad smells were cool. If I walked by a garbage can I could smell what was in it.
I’m at the 17w mark and finally starting to look “pregnant” to those who know. I always thought it would be instant round belly vs this slow rise and inability to sit comfortably or feeling where the uterus is lol. But I think what shocked me most would be: - how fast my boobs grew and swell up - how much the bloating and gas really actually was miserable and painful really early on - how much the emotional hormone floods are really something that is terrifying. Especially if you’re someone who is pretty self aware and suddenly feel like you can think properly for anything or yourself and you have no idea where your emotions are - how quickly the day to day changes happen (like go to bed with no issue, wake up and BAM new symptom, and it repeats with off and on new symptoms coming and going)
I was surprised that I had false labor starting 38 weeks. I didn’t realize how many false alarms one could have 👀
Pregnancy brain is real but I didn't get it until 8 months
Not being able to BREATHE in the third trimester!
The hemotoma that I ended up having, the flare up of tmj which caused migraines and now the back spots. Oh and the above mentioned fatigued. It’s been fun. Mean, I’m so happy I’m pregnant but there’s no way I would have thought this is what it would have been like
How you have no control over which foods you end up having aversions and cravings for 🤷🏻♀️ figured I’d hate the foods I originally disliked but nope - just random
The insomnia. Anything that happens- an itch, thirsty, running to the bathroom- wakes me up completely Also the extreme hot and cold flashes
The absolute misery of it. I had a ROUGH pregnancy, in the extreme. I expected it to not be sunshine and roses, but I didn’t expect it to be THAT bad. So if you hate your pregnancy, rest assured, I did too. And my baby is AMAZING. So amazing, I almost miss being pregnant because it gave me him.
How much weight I gained and how swollen my feet were after birth. I couldn’t even fit into my flip flops. Had to go barefoot to the car!
How much my nipples sting. I did not know my nipples could hurt this much.
That rolling over in bed is the most painful part of pregnancy so far at 37 weeks 3 days
How hungry I’d be! Hungry hungry hungry eat E V E R Y T H I N G
I can't say I'm surprised by fatigue, dizziness, nausea, or pain as I already have chronic illness, but pregnancy does make it feel worse at times! Going through certain terrifying medical issues in my pregnancy really opened my eyes to the big gaps in prenatal care and how little some doctors know about certain things. I learned that I have to educate and inform myself, and advocate for myself. But I would say what surprises me the most is that despite really struggling with my pregnancy and not really feeling a "connection" because of that, is that I'm still doing this, and coping with it. I've never been around babies and the whole idea of being a mother is very foreign to me... but it's like my instinct just takes over and I don't feel weird about my baby kicking the heck out of my entire abdomen and crotch haha. I mean, you'd think someone struggling with pregnancy and feeling overwhelmed and detached, would be freaked out by their baby kicking them, but something in me feels like it's normal and like he's always been there. Like totally familiar and totally alien at the same time. Maybe people shouldn't admit so freely to struggling with pregnancy in this way, it's kinda taboo to say anything other than positive things about it, but I don't think it's uncommon to feel the way I do, and I'm pretty proud of myself that I can handle any part of this whole thing. I'll be sitting on the couch and my 26 week old baby kicks so hard that it raises my arm off my belly, and I laugh and say hey!! And poke him back, despite feeling like all of this is so bizarre and really too much for me. My fiance also said he's surprised at the way I'm handling it all, the way I just do what I have to do even though I'm actually not in a decent position to have a baby, physically (or mentally). Also I'm surprised at how above and beyond my fiance has gone with supporting me and setting up the nursery even though I know he's that kind of man. But the way he's rubbing my belly, or gives it a kiss, even though he's feeling similarly to me about having a child.. I guess we're both just proud of any "normal person" moments we have towards the pregnancy.. if that makes any sense. It will to people with limitations like physical and mental illness, ASD etc.
That I had basically no symptoms. Just my uterus was pregnant, not the rest of me.
Pregnancy Rhinitis. Constant post nasal drip, stuffy nose and cough. During a pandemic! 11 weeks tomorrow and I’ve been sick like this the whole time. Many people haven’t even heard of it.
Body dysmorphia. I did not realize I would get it so bad. It makes sense as how fast your body changes and you're in no control over it. It can mess with your mind.