SECOND TRIMESTER
The beginning of my 2nd trimester was perfect. There were actually days in which I thought “Am I pregnant!?” Then… I started feeling her move! Even though she kicks my ribs and gives me mornings where I get out of bed at 2 a.m., I still love it! I know I’m going to have sleepless nights, but I can’t wait to hold her and love her! I can’t wait for it to be HER waking me up and not my back or her kicking my ribs!
WORKING OUT
I started working out again during the last 12 weeks! It has been so nice to feel sore, but man things just get harder and harder when you have this belly! Swimming and yoga has been my saving grace! I thought I would share my swimming routine in case any of you pregnant mamas want to try it out!
- The first day, I think I swam maybe 500 yards, so about 20 laps! LOL I was pooped! I hadn’t swam in awhile and it was more exhausting than I remember!
- The next day I did almost 1,000 yards. Just freestyle. Back and forth laps. Nothing too much and kept my heart rate under 140!
- After the first two times this has been my normal routine.
- 200 yard warm up
- 10 x 50 (10, 2 laps each)
- 4 x 100 (4, 4 laps each)
- 2 x 200 (2, 8 laps each)
- 1 x 400 (16 laps)
- I would take a lot of rest in between sets and even each swim. My doctor told me that I can’t have my heart rate over 140, so I wore my Apple Watch to keep an eye on that!
- Make sure YOU ASK YOUR DOCTOR before you start working out. Everyone is different and everyone’s bodies are different. I know a lot of people who aren’t limited at all during pregnancy and I know some people who aren’t allowed to work out at all!
SLEEP
Sleep is something that became very hard during the second trimester. I noticed it around 18 weeks. My belly was bigger and I was just so uncomfortable. Then, at 20 weeks you’re no longer allowed to sleep on your back. Now, I’m not normally a back sleeper but with the extra weight, my hips, back, and shoulders started hurting really bad during the night.
I have tried FOUR pregnancy pillows! FOUR! LOL My husband literally thinks that I’m crazy! Each one hurt my neck or my back. Hurt to the point where I wobbled every night to the bathroom because my body would get so stiff! Finally, I ended up just stuffing 3-4 pillows around my body so that I could sleep. I move around a lot so I would have to wake up each time I moved and adjust my pillows and try to go back to sleep.
This last week my sweet husband found THIS and OMG it is literally the best thing ever! It is actually a belt and has padded sides, like pillows! It is so nice because you don’t have to readjust your pillows every time you move. I now only wake up a couple times a night and I’m able to go right back to sleep! It is not hot either, I thought because it was a belt it would make me feel warm. But, it doesn’t! (I have now been using this for over one month and I love it SO much that I’m going to write a FULL blog post on it!)
HOT FLASHES
Oh my… before you do anything- go give your Grandma or maybe even your Mom a hug! Hot flashes are probably the worst side affect that I have had this pregnancy, especially with it still be 90-100 degrees in SoCal! I’ve been told that this occurs to many women during pregnancy because of your changing hormone levels. I always have a water with me that has ice and Phillip is so sweet to bring me cold washcloths in the middle of the night.
BED REST
I have told you guys before about my fibroids. Well, the day after my baby shower my body showed me just how painful my fibroids would be. I had such intense cramps that I was almost on the floor and then I started to have contractions. I don’t remember the exact time, but they were between 5-7 minutes apart and they lasted about 90 seconds each. Let me tell you that those contractions were less painful than my cramps! I immediately called my doctor and that is when she put me on bed rest. For about 10 days, I could be up for no more than 10 minutes every hour. These 10 minutes were meant for showering, going to the bathroom and getting food. Even though, I would utilize my 10 minutes and unload the dishwasher, clean the kitchen, prepare as much as I could for dinner… LOL I just couldn’t stand to sit all day and not be able to do anything!
I’m glad to say that my cramps have slowed down a lot and I’ve not had any contractions! I have a doctors appointment today and she will tell me more of how I’m doing and if I’m resting properly!
JOY
There is a lot of joy in the second trimester! Baby girl really started moving during this period. I feel like I’m starting to understand her likes, which may be silly! But, she LOVES salads and spaghetti which makes me think she is going to be a mini version of my Mom! It is also a relief knowing that if something does happen and I do go into labor that her chances of survival are high! It has taken a lot of stress out of me! I’m also just excited to be 2/3 over with this pregnancy and one step closer to meeting her!
I feel like I will be posting a few more updates every couple of weeks because it feels like SO much happens each week now!
XO,
NMC