I miss my pregnant belly.  You may wonder why in the world I would miss having a huge stomach that didn’t allow me to tie my own shoes, but there was just something amazing about having a big pregnant belly.  When the point came when I couldn’t suck in my belly anymore there was a real liberation with that.  After all, most women suck in our bellies constantly, but once you reach a certain point in pregnancy there’s no chance that you can suck anything in.  Instead, you just relax and let your belly be huge.  I can’t do that now, although thankfully my belly is nowhere near as huge as it was when I was pregnant.

I also liked how people urged me to eat more.  “You must be hungry! You have to eat to keep up your energy, carrying that heavy load around!” Nobody says that to me anymore, and frankly if anyone did I would surely take it as an insult.

I really miss feeling the baby move inside of me.  I’ll admit that there were many times when I was trying to sleep and my baby kicked me that I wasn’t so thrilled about it, but I don’t think there are many things that can compare to feeling a baby inside me with hiccups.  I distinctly remember hugging my belly and having my friends do the same while we all sang out, “Hug the baby!” What an awesome connection with a baby that isn’t even born yet.

I do miss making people take a second glance.  Once when my husband and I were in the waiting room at the doctor’s office – and I was about thirty-eight weeks pregnant – I jumped up and did a hula dance just because I knew it would be a ridiculous sight for everyone in the room.  A woman doing the hula in a waiting room is a little weird, but a really pregnant woman doing the hula in a waiting room is downright hilarious.

Most of all, I miss the powerful feeling that I was solely responsible for carrying around a life inside me.  It’s such a powerful feeling.  Nursing my baby was a similar feeling, but nothing really matches how I felt watching my belly go from it’s normal size to pretty darn huge because I knew I was capable of growing a baby inside me.

My body changed a lot when I became pregnant.  After I had my babies I still held on to some of the extra weight I had packed on during pregnancy and now I’m suddenly allergic to cats.  My nails grow faster and my breasts are a cup size bigger.  Did I mention I have one dark hair that keeps growing back on my neck no matter how many times I pluck the stupid thing?

Of all the changes my body has retained – despite not having been pregnant for a few years – by far the most bizarre development I experienced was ocular migraines.  When I was in my first trimester I was at a restaurant with some friends and all of a sudden I started to notice some flashing lights in my peripheral vision.  Nobody else could see them, and then the next thing I knew there was a full-blown light show in front of my eyes.  It was really weird.  My head didn’t hurt, but I did feel a little lightheaded and it took about three minutes for the light show to pass.

I took my concerns to my doctor.  He diagnosed me with ocular migraines, which don’t hurt but do present a pretty spectacular light show for a few minutes.  It happened a couple more times during my first pregnancy then stopped.  During my second pregnancy it started back up again, so I chalked it up to pregnancy hormones.

The funny thing is that after I had my second baby the ocular migraines didn’t stop.  In fact, I just had one the other day.  I could feel it coming on so I grabbed my husband and told him to take the kids because I was going to be out of commission for a few minutes, then I sat there and waited for it to pass.

It’s quite bizarre, really.

Apparently there is nothing that can be done to stop the ocular migraines and since they haven’t stopped even though I’m no longer pregnant I’m wondering if they’re just going to be around forever.  I guess it’s not the worst thing that could happen, but of all the body changes I expected from pregnancy this certainly wasn’t one of them.

Chatting with some mom friends the other day, someone brought up the topic of information you would never, ever divulge to anyone else. And the top of the list of “questions I will never answer” was weight.

I had to reveal my weight to rent a snowboard the other day, so I can’t count myself amongst them, but  I certainly don’t feel comfortable talking about the actual figure. Turned out what I actually weigh is about 10 pounds away from my real weight.

I guess a lot of people don’t know our real weight. Or, we are in denial about how much we actually weigh. And it might be more important than habitually getting the wrong size when shopping for clothes. It seems that not having a realistic view of what you weigh affects weight gain in pregnancy.

Right, I’ll admit that. I gained 45lbs. Or 60lbs if you count from my lowest weight after my horrendous morning sickness finally went away.

According to Harvard University, perceptions of weight affect weight gain during pregnancy. Overweight and obese women who thought they weighed less than they actually did at the start of their pregnancies were much more likely to gain excessive weight during their pregnancy.

And strangely, healthy weight women who thought they weighed more than they actually did were much more likely to gain excessive weight.

Gaining excessive weight is linked to an increased risk of c-section, heavier babies, gestational diabetes, and a slightly increased risk or maternal mortality. And the more moms gain, the harder it is to lose.

Any mom will tell you that shifting pregnancy pounds while caring for a newborn is as hard as teaching someone as old as me to snowboard. Sorry, I won’t reveal my age either!

So basically, moms who had a realistic view of how much they weighed are more likely to gain a healthy amount of weight. What exactly is a healthy amount? It depends a lot on your starting weight, and your doctor will give you a target amount, but here’s rough guidelines of how much weight gain is normal.

For a new mom, breastfeeding for the first time in the hospital is like trying to diet during the holidays. Those who are determined enough can do it, but all forces seem to be conspiring against it.

My first experience breastfeeding involved four different nurses at four different times giving me four different bits of advice. One was rather rough as she shoved my breast into my daughter’s mouth. Another splashed formula on my nipple in the hopes of enticing the baby. Every single one scolded me with tsk-tsk noises or rolling eyes when I said Ashley had only nursed for a few minutes on each side. “Does that include all the time she was asleep on my breast?” I asked.

Meanwhile, my husband and I both had concerns that nothing was coming out. It’s one thing to know about colostrum and its benefits. It’s another to watch a baby sucking and wonder how she could possibly be getting any nutrition from a few teaspoonfuls of liquid that we couldn’t even see.

Because my daughter fell asleep on the breast so frequently, no sooner would we finish one session than a new one would begin on the hospital’s hourly feeding schedule. By the end of the night I surrendered, dropping my daughter off at the nursery and telling the nurses, “Just give her a bottle!”

My breastfeeding hardships were exacerbated upon our first pediatrician’s visit, when my daughter hadn’t shown any weight gain. She was wetting 6 + diapers a day, however and showing no outward signs of malnutrition. I described our feeding schedule—every 1 to 3 hours, usually closer to every hour. He respected this but said if it was too much for me, I should try feeding her every 2 to 4 hours, still on demand.

We tried that for a week, hoping the spaced apart sessions would be more successful if I wasn’t so fatigued. If she was asleep, we waited four hours rather than three to wake her for a meal.

Week 2… Still no weight gain. With the label “failure to thrive” looming (although she was still wetting diapers and was as alert as a newborn could be), we faced the decision of whether or not to supplement with formula.

This became my first experience as a new mom with trusting my instincts rather than the doctor’s advice. We went back to our hourly feeding schedule, adding one formula feeding at night before bed, when my milk supply began dwindling. This permitted me to get a few hours uninterrupted sleep, while still giving my daughter most of her nutrition and calories from breast milk.

When we went back to the doctor the next week, the baby had gained 5 ounces, beginning the upward curve of weight gain. The doctor asked what we were doing. It was hard not to smirk as I replied, “Feeding her more.” It concerns me that the doctor was so quick to recommend formula rather than suggesting we try to fix our breastfeeding difficulties with the help of a lactation consultant or simply by trying to nurse more frequently.

It is this philosophy, I believe, that causes so many women to give up breastfeeding so quickly. I know there are certain women who, for medical reasons, simply can’t breastfeed and others who choose not to. I respect those decisions and situations. But I’m referring to the women who want to breastfeed and are convinced by medical professionals that they “can’t.”

I still don’t produce inordinate amounts of milk; I’m making just enough to fill my daughter’s needs, with no extra to pump and save. Sometimes, when she decides to cluster feed, I do run out and have to give her a bottle. There is an article on Babies Online which outlines 5 ways to increase your milk supply.

It would have been very easy to give up trying to nurse in that first week when my daughter showed no weight gain, or in the hospital when it was such a struggle, or at any given time when my nipples were sore and it felt like I hadn’t been able to put on a shirt for hours because I’d just be taking it off again, anyway.

But we made it through all that and I know I’ve done the best thing for myself and for my daughter by sticking with it. As a new mom myself, I don’t have tons of advice to offer expectant mothers, but I will say this: Breastfeeding is not easy. But if you are determined to breastfeed your child, don’t give up too easily. You might be surprised by what you can accomplish if you stick with it.

In the interest of honesty, I’ll let you in on something that most of my friends probably already know but have been kind enough to not mention to me…at least not to my face: I gained too much weight with both my pregnancies, and even though my son is now a preschooler I still haven’t shed all the weight I gained from my first and second pregnancy. I guess when your “baby” starts speaking in complete sentences it becomes absurd to blame the pregnancy for the larger sized pants.

I could have been a little more careful with my eating and exercise during my pregnancies, and I know for sure that I went a little too crazy with my appetite while breastfeeding. I remember a friend telling me that Weight Watchers offers a special program for nursing moms, and while I never checked it out myself I couldn’t help but think that it took some of the fun out of being a nursing mom.

Now I’m reading about a “pregnancy diet” that is designed to help women keep their weight down throughout pregnancy. Talk about taking the fun out of something! It’s one thing to watch what you eat while pregnant and to make sure you get enough exercise, but an actual diet? My jaw would drop if a pregnant friend were to turn down a piece of pie, stating that she was on a diet. A diet? While pregnant? Well, I never.

I did a little research and found out that the diet is supposed to be based on medical research and be safe. Nonetheless, it has some nutritionists and doctors up in arms. I think the fear is that women will get the idea in their head that they aren’t supposed to gain any weight during pregnancy, and that’s just not healthy. I remember cringing at the numbers on the scale when I was pregnant, but never so much that I ever considered going on a diet.

It seems to me that if I had gained too much weight my doctor would have told me to cut back on my caloric intake and to increase my physical activities, but if he had referred me to a diet place I think I might have looked for a different doctor.

It’s a difficult issue – maintaining a healthy weight during pregnancy.

There was a time was when doctors were mainly concerned about women being underweight during pregnancy. Nowadays, the concerns go in the opposite direction as trends towards women tipping the scales during pregnancy.

A new study by researchers at the University of North Carolina suggests that women with history of unhealthy weight control strategies (e.g. dieting) before pregnancy are the ones most likely to run into weight problems during pregnancy. Based on survey of 1233 women, the study results suggests that women who are prone to dieting though not overweight before pregnancy have a higher likelihood of gaining excessive weight during their gestation period. On the other hand, those dieters who were underweight right before pregnancy may actually have problems gaining weight.

The authors suggest that these women who were dieters or had history of dieting before conception should be given special nutritional counseling during pregnancy to help them gain and maintain a healthy weight based on their pre-pregnancy weights.

The American College of Obstetricians and Gynecologists recommends:

• for women with a normal weight during pregnancy – weight gain of 25 to 37 lbs
• for women who were underweight – weight gain of 28 to 40 lbs.
• for women who were overweight – weight gain of 15 to 25 lbs

In case, pregnancy weights should be clearly discussed with your obstetrician. Maintaining a healthy gestational weight can prevent a lot of pregnancy complications!

I saw an article recently about a trend for women to diet during pregnancy. According to the article, women are trying to emulate the numerous slim, yet pregnant celebrities by dieting excessively during pregnancy. I have not known women who actually do this, but I admit, I have seen more than my share of women who diet excessively after the baby is born in order to resize to their svelte pre-pregnancy shape. I also know women who just lose that pregnancy weight easily.

We all know at least one woman who gained like 11 pounds and ate any and everything while she was expecting and actually left the hospital with her baby weighing less than she did before her pregnancy. Well, at least I do.

I also have several friends who were back in their pre-pregnancy jeans by the time they went back to work 6 weeks later.

My body doesn?t work that way. I?ve carried 5 babies to term and for each of them, it?s taken me at least 10 months to regain my pre-pregnancy figure. Yes, I watch my calories and yes, I exercised. It seemed that no matter what I did, the baby weight didn?t budge until after I weaned my children.

I suppose this was one of those actually good evolutionary things that was pre-programmed into women of my genetic history?you know, for the good of the survival of our species during the early, early years of history. I assume this is so because all of the women in my family who nursed their babies shared the same struggle.

However, only in the last 40 years or so has this created a dilemma for anyone. For example, in my grandmother?s generation, a woman with curves and a little extra fat was considered desirable. People were just coming out of the Depression, and being skinny meant that you couldn?t afford to eat. How times have changed!

With my son, I have noticed a sort of unhealthy sense of competition between women to race to see who can lose her pregnancy weight the quickest. Just who can zip up those jeans first? I actually got an email from an acquaintance who belonged to our homeschool group announcing that she had lost precisely 18 pounds in the 3 weeks since she birthed her son. She had only 10 more pounds to go until she was her pre-pregnancy size. She detailed her plans to drop those last 10 pounds too.

I was stunned and saddened. Where was the ?it?s been 3 weeks since little Elmo came home and he?s almost sleeping through the night!? or ?Little Elmo has his Daddy?s eyes most definitely!?

I have a different perspective though. I have difficult pregnancies and after numerous miscarriages and a stillborn child, the weight games mean nothing to me. If given the choice between a healthy child and several baby pounds that I couldn?t shed, I?d choose the child. Yes, with my first child I obsessed over my weight and feared that I wouldn?t lose my pregnancy pounds. But it?s been 15 years since then, and I am approaching the age of 40. I have to say I am heavier than when I birthed my first child, but I am also healthier.

I have learned to make peace with my body and to accept the fact that it will do what it is designed to do, irregardless of the ?acceptable? images that the media and our culture toss out. It has taken me almost 40 years to get to the point where I am able to accept my body and marvel at the miracle of it all.

Perhaps you are reading this article now and you have concerns just like I did during my first pregnancy. I?d encourage you to enjoy your pregnancy and to be objective about your weight, not obsessive. I?d encourage you to realize that just because Suzy Starlette is thin and svelte during and after her pregnancy doesn?t mean it will be that way for you. It may take sometime for your body to lose all that weight, or you may not lose those last 5 pounds. I?d encourage you to look at your overall health and not at the number on the scale or your pant size for validation.

Remember, you are more than your size or your weight!

It’s taken me about thirty years, but at last I think I’ve made peace with my body image. It’s been through diets, exercise regimes taken up and abandoned, my weight fluctuating between 100 and 160lbs, boyfriends, marriage, separation, a new relationship, and the most important factor: my son.

Gaining pregnancy weight – a lot of pregnancy weight – taking abuse from my ex-husband for being fat, and loosing a lot of breast volume from breastfeeding damaged my self-esteem.

Now I have more positive people in my life, most of all my son, who gives me an indescribable amount of joy every day. My body cradled him safely for 9 months, and fed him, and held him and nurtured him. The lines above my belly button that will never go away are a reminder of that, and instead of being revolted by them, as I once was, today I’m proud of them.

Today, I’ve made a commitment to eat right (or at least, not too badly) and I’m also trying to set an active example. I’m riding my bike, I’m doing yoga, and we are walking to the store. I want to set a good example to my son, so that I’ll be his mom in good health, and be there for him as long as possible.

Also, throwing him up in the air has given me great shoulders!

My weight has stabilized, I feel good that I’ve managed to incorporate healthy eating and exercise into our routine (as opposed to exercise being a chore to fit into the day somehow) I have more energy, and I’m even confident enough to go out wearing shorts.

Looking back, I didn’t appreciate that I probably looked great when I was 17, even though I felt awful about myself. But now, at last, I’m at peace with my body image, I have more self-esteem, and it’s due to respect for my body and what it can do, rather than trying to conform to an unrealistic image of society’s “ideal” woman.

How has having children affected your body image and self-esteem?

Do we fast during the week and feast on weekends?

We all know how holidays – Christmas, Easter, and Thanksgiving for Americans – lead to feasting – and extra pounds. This new study shows that we tend to feast and gain weight on weekends as well. True, we tend to lose what we have gained when we start out on our regular weekly routine on Mondays. But we don’t lose all – and these extra pounds tend to add up! And Saturday seems to be a really a bad day for those watching calories.

Maybe there is some truth to this – at least in my case. During the week, it’s cereals for breakfast, warm lunch at the office/school cafeteria and cold supper of bread, cheese, and veggie cuts.

Now, weekend is a different thing. Weekend is the time when I have the time to bake and cook for my family – unless we are eating out. Weekend is the time when we can have brunch and then treat ourselves to 3-course (usually home-made) dinner plus dessert and a glass of wine. Yes, we feast on weekends. But then weekend is also the time when we do the most exercise. My husband and I take turns to go jogging, the whole family goes on mountain walks and cycling tours. And weekend is the time to relax, hang out, and enjoy family life.

I love weekends – European weekends. When I was growing up in Asia, weekend was just one day – Sunday – when Mom and Dad didn’t have to work, when we had to go to church, do chores, and go grocery shopping. Whatever time we had left, we used for visiting. Now, as an adopted (and adapted) European, I love the European way of enjoying life on weekends.

But what about the extra pounds?

Well, I and my family will continue to enjoy our weekends. We know the importance of a healthy lifestyle – and it’s not about counting calories or pounds. It’s about eating healthy food (most of the time), doing exercise, getting rid of stress, and being happy. It’s about having a life.

When you’ve been married five years and are five-and-a-half months pregnant, you don’t have quite the same mentality about friends weddings. In other words, there’s no mental stigma of being ‘always the bridesmaid, never the bride.’

But that doesn’t mean shopping for a bridesmaid dress is fun.

I’m fortunate in that I won’t be walking down the aisle carrying 30 or more extra pounds; the baby will be almost two months old by the time my friend gets married. But this left lots of guesswork when it came to ordering my dress for a late November wedding.

As a 5′3′, 125 lb. woman, I have never had to pay those wonderfully humiliating ‘over-size charges’ for a dress. But when the seamstress measured me this time, wrapping the tape measure loosely around my waist (the bride could have stepped inside the tape measure with me, honestly!) she said I had a 37-inch waist, putting me in a Size 22. I gasped. If I have a 37-inch waist, why do I still fit into my size small maternity jeans (designed to fit a woman who regularly wears size 4 ‘ 6 pants)’ How can I still fit comfortably into my paintball clothes, designed to fit a waist up to 34 inches? (Okay, so they are the only ‘regular’ clothes in my closet that still fit, but they do!)

When I argued, she pointed to my belly and said, ‘Yes you are. Just look at the fat here!’

Pssst, it’s called a woman’s body doing what’s needed to protect the 5-month old fetus inside me! And, as my last doctor’s appointment, I found out that at least one pound of my 10 pounds of extra weight is baby, with another 2 pounds or so placenta. I don’t even want to talk about how much weight I’m carrying around in my chest right now.

She also acted like she couldn’t believe I normally wear a size 4, or Juniors size 5. It made me even happier knowing I paid more than $200 for the entire degrading experience.

Of course, I went home wallowing (an appropriate verb, apparently, for a pig such as myself) in a state of ‘I’m fat’ self-pity, ignoring the facts. Two weeks ago, my doctor said my weight gain is within the normal range for my stage of pregnancy.

So what exactly is ‘normal’ for a woman in the middle of her second trimester, or at any time during pregnancy? What is cause for concern?

This article by Beverley Brooke offers some guidelines. The American College of Obstetrics and Gynecology says that a normal weight woman can expect to gain between 25 to 35 pounds, while someone who is underweight can gain up to 40 lbs. Women who are overweight should try to limit weight gain to 15 to 25 pounds. No matter what your starting weight, you should never diet while pregnant. If you are overweight, work on eating healthy foods and gaining slow, steady amounts.

For women of ‘normal’ weight, it’s safe to gain as much as a pound a week throughout your second trimester, and to keep up that rate throughout the seventh and eighth months, too. Most women will only gain 4 to 6 pounds in the first trimester, and this will vary depending on your appetite and morning sickness.

This article on the March of Dimes Web site shows where all that weight is going. I find this interesting because although I’m in my 20^th week of pregnancy and have gained about 7 lbs. from my starting weight, I’ve gained it mostly in my waist and chest, so I still don’t look pregnant. (Or, as a friend said to me this weekend, ‘I just figured you’d been eating well over the winter!’)

It’s important to note that all these figures and formulas are simply guidelines. Every woman is different. Follow your doctor’s instructions, and, as long as your tests are coming back well, with no signs of high blood pressure, gestational diabetes or other issues that can be caused by a poor diet and rapid weight gain, don’t worry what your mother, sister, best friend or that hag at the dress shop says!

Sleep, blessed sleep. We definitely need to have enough. We all know what sleep deprivation feels like. But can too much of a good thing ? such as sleep ? turn bad? Apparently, yes, it goes both ways. Too little or too much sleep can result in health problems ? such as extra pounds that we don`t want or need.

A Canadian study studied the sleeping habits of 276 people over 6 years categorized into:

? Short sleepers (5 to 6 hours per night)
? Long sleepers (9 to 10 hours per night)
? Average sleepers (7 to 8 hours per might)

And their results:

? 35% of short sleepers are more likely to gain weight (about 11 lbs) than average sleepers.
? 25% of long sleepers gain the same number of pounds compared to average sleepers.
? Short sleepers add 124% more body fat and 58% around the waist than average sleepers.

The link between sleep and weight gain is due to fluctuating hormone levels.

Americans are sleeping less and less compared to 40 years ago. This trend, coupled with others research studies, indicates that sleep can be a contributing factor in the increasing rate of obesity.

No wonder I couldn`t get rid of those extra pregnancy pounds. I wasn`t just getting enough sleep!

Source:

MedicineNet.com 1 April 2008

I was meeting a business associate/friend for dinner last night. It took me more than an hour to find something to wear. Looking at a pile of my favorite skirts and dress pants on the floor, knowing it would be at least a year before I could wear them again, I wanted to cry.

As a work-at-home freelance writer, my wardrobe has consisted of sweatpants and t-shirts for the past month. Prior to getting pregnant, I usually made an effort to get dressed for work. I’d shower in the morning, do my hair and some light make-up, and put on jeans and a t-shirt; the same thing I’ve worn to work for every office job I’ve held since college.

I still shower every morning, but it’s far too time-consuming to find pants that fit my rapidly-expanding waist. My legs and thighs are still the same size as always, so buying larger clothes is tricky right now. Besides, I don’t know how long I’ll stay this size.

This morning, I braced myself to get on the scale for the first time since January 30, when I found out I was pregnant. ‘I will not cry if it says 140,’ I repeated like a mantra.

I’m 5′3′ and very petite. My ideal weight is between 115 and 125. Pre-pregnancy, I was hovering around 132, depending on the time of month. (Sometimes I hit 129, some mornings I was at a high of 134.)

Imagine my surprise when the scale said 131.6. ‘How could this be?’ I asked my friend and fellow blogger, Julie Fletcher, mother of 4. “None of my clothes fit!” ‘Your womb is expanding,’ she explained. ‘Your waist and hips are growing, but you haven’t gained any weight yet. It’s perfectly normal.’

So what to do when you don’t yet fit into maternity clothes, but your pre-pregnancy low-rise jeans and baby doll tees just aren’t cutting it (or buttoning, for that matter)?

The rubber band trick: Wrap a rubber band around the button of your jeans, thread it through the button hole, and wrap it around the button again. Add a long, baggy shirt, and you can get another month of wear out of your favorite pre-pregnancy denim.

Be thankful sweat suits are in! I’ve never liked the trend, but women and teens wear sweat suits with hooded, zip-up jackets everywhere. Some women can make these suits look good! What’s their secret? A nice, well-made t-shirt, some casual jewelry and clean, matching sneakers dress up a sweat suit, making it perfectly appropriate for the movies, the mall, even dinner. When you wear one of these comfortable ensembles, the secret is in the details; your hair, your make-up, and your accessories will complete the package.

Look for pants with stretch waistbands. You can even find dress pants today made from stretchy material. Add a long, loose shirt, nice shoes and some jewelry and you have an outfit that will take you from the office to dinner appointments with no fuss.

I knew during my pregnancy that one day I wouldn’t be able to see my feet anymore, and I was prepared for it. I actually looked forward to it a little, believe it or not. The whole experience of carrying a baby inside me was new and interesting, but it all seemed a little surreal and unbelievable. Am I the only pregnant woman to actually think to herself, “How in the world is there a living thing in there?” As my belly expanded it all became much more tangible.

The day I lost my feet was a landmark day for me. I was in the shower, and when I looked down to scrub my feet I couldn’t see them. My belly was so big that I couldn’t even see the tips of my toes. Mind you, if I hadn’t been pregnant this probably wouldn’t be cause for celebration, but after my shower I dashed to the phone and called all my female relatives and friends. “I lost my feet!” I announced breathlessly. They all cheered.

My husband – bless his heart – wasn’t quite sure how to react to my announcement, and I could see the wheels in his head turning: “Am I supposed to think this is good, or do I console her about the weight gain?” I assured him it was good news, and cause for a celebration.

I didn’t see my feet from a standing position again until after my daughter was born, but I will never forget the sheer joy that came with losing sight of the tip of my toes. I wonder if I’m the only woman who made such a big deal out of this.

When I was pregnant with my daughter I got so puffy that my wedding ring didn’t fit anymore. It wasn’t all her fault because I’ll admit that I really indulged in eating whatever my heart desired plus I had some hypertension issues that made me swell up, so all in all I wound up gaining about sixty pounds with that pregnancy. It actually came to the point when I didn’t fit into some of my maternity clothes anymore. Now that’s puffy.

When my wedding ring didn’t fit anymore, I started wearing a set of silver bands that my husband had bought me a few years ago when we lived in Turkey. The bands were beautiful, and since they passed as a wedding band I didn’t feel quite so bad about the switch. I figured I could just start wearing my wedding ring after the baby was born. Surprise, surprise: as my due date neared, my puffy fingers outgrew even the silver bands. I started to get a little distraught by this development since the bands had always been relatively large on my finger, so this solidified just how big I was getting.

My husband’s office had a party scheduled for a week before my due date. It was a formal affair, and I was huge. I had no trouble finding a gown (hint: try bridal stores) but I didn’t have a ring for my finger. I remembered a ridiculously large ring my grandmother had given me. It was costume jewelry, and I kept in case my unborn daughter would someday want to pretend she had a big diamond ring. I wore this as a wedding ring the night of the party, and I knew if I gained any more weight there probably wouldn’t be a ring big enough for my massive fingers.

After my daughter was born the puffiness subsided quickly, and I was delighted to get back into the silver bands and then eventually in a few months I had my original wedding ring back. When my second pregnancy rolled around I prepared myself with a vast array of rings, and I did wind up needing them. If you’re pregnant right now and frustrated beyond belief at how your fingers look like sausages, fear not: this too shall pass.

According to the March of Dimes website, gaining the right amount of weight during pregnancy is an important part of creating a healthy baby. They state that women who don’t gain enough weight are at risk of delivering an underweight baby (5 lbs. or less), while on the other end of the spectrum, women that gain too much weight are at risk of not only delivering early, but creating health problems for themselves, such as high blood pressure and diabetes. While these statements are certainly true in most cases, what about those of us who are already small, have always been small and cannot possibly gain the recommended amount of 28-40 lbs. while pregnant?

I have always been a petite woman and, in fact, have never weighed over 100 lbs. My usual weight is around 94 lbs. and I have never had a problem of looking too skinny or emaciated, which has been a blessing. With my first pregnancy, I did gain quite a bit of weight (almost 30 lbs.), but a majority of that was water weight. In fact, after delivery, I immediately lost about 15 lbs. of that weight due to all the excess fluids that many times are present in a woman’s first pregnancy. With my second pregnancy, I didn’t gain near as much weight. Actually, it was only about 21 lbs. and I did not look or feel as bloated as I was with my first. Both my sons were born at healthy weights, around 6 lbs. 5 oz., and had no problems at delivery.

I am currently pregnant with my third child, and at 16 weeks have actually lost weight. This is the first pregnancy I have had where I’ve experienced the wonderful effects of nausea, firsthand. I feel almost embarrassed and ashamed to walk into the doctor’s office and have them see that I now weigh barely less than 90 lbs! Luckily, my appetite is slowly returning back to normal and I am sure that I will gain back the weight I have lost in no time.

Basically, every woman is different and they gain and lose weight differently while pregnant, as well. Though you may be concerned about your weight gain or loss, as long as the baby is shown to be healthy and thriving, then you should not place too much stock in what is considered “normal”. The amount of recommended weight gain is only a guideline and you, more than anybody else, know what is comfortable as you go through your pregnancy.

Most women wonder, if not concerned, about how much weight they will gain during pregnancy. Although no one can foresee how much weight you will gain, doctors have agreed upon a range of healthy weight gain. Although it has fluctuated all over the map (when my grandmother had her four babies, she was only allowed to gain 20 pounds, and she is a rail-thin, 5?2? woman to this day), doctors now recommend gaining 25-35 pounds during pregnancy. It is important to note however, that this is for the average healthy woman. A considerably underweight and overweight woman will likely receive different instructions from her doctor.

If you?re wondering where all of these pounds are going to appear, resources agree that the weight is spread?on average?according to the following:

• Baby: 7 to 8 pounds
• Larger breasts: 1 to 3 pounds
• Larger uterus: 2 pounds
• Placenta: 1 1/2 pounds
• Amniotic fluid: 2 pounds
• Increased blood volume: 3 to 4 pounds
• Increased fluid volume: 2 to 3 pounds
• Fat stores: 6 to 8 pounds

Doctors also seem to agree that what may be more important than the number of pounds you gain is the consistency with which you gain them. Suggested to be the healthiest for you and your baby is low weight gain in the first trimester and steady weight gain in the second and third trimesters.

To achieve a healthful amount of weight gain during pregnancy, doctors suggest adding a mere 300 calories to your diet each day. Paying attention to the nutritional information on things you eat will help you in this pursuit.

More information on pregnancy and weight gain can be found on Babies Online

References:

http://www.mayoclinic.com/health/pregnancy-weight-gain/PR00111