List/Grid Tag Archives: Pregnancy
Due Date
Cue the trumpets and cheering crowds….We’ve crossed the finish line. My due date is today. And…nothing. I am still pregnant. I have thought about this date so many times and put so much energy into thinking about what labor will be like. I have also spent hours imagining what our little baby girl will look, smell, sound, and feel like. Despite my midwife repeatedly telling me that first born babies are late eighty percent of…
Swimming Through Week 39 of Pregnancy
In my search for pain relief, I have also taken up swimming again. I found a one piece swimsuit in the plus size section of our local department store. I mention this only as a tip to other pregnant woman. It was about half the price of anything I found at maternity shops. That seems to be the trend in general with maternity clothes, but I digress. There is something quite liberating about being nearly…
Pregnancy Massage
In my quest for pain relief in my third trimester of pregnancy, I decided to try a massage specially designed for pregnant woman. It seems to be a small niche in the market here. I found two spas in my city, but it took a week to get in for an appointment. Like with most niche offerings and especially those labeled ‘maternity’, I am very cynical initially about how specialized the treatment will actually be….
Pregnancy Pain Management: Floatation
I have been really fortunate so far in my pregnancy and have not had any morning sickness or much of any symptoms to speak of. That is all catching up with me now, though. In the process of “lightening”, the baby has dropped so low that she is creating pressure on my lower back, pelvis, and inner thighs. This results in varying degrees of radiating pain. It can make walking, sitting and lying down uncomfortable….
Maternity Leave: To Do List
My four month maternity leave started last week, approximately one month before my due date. By Dutch labor law, a woman is entitled to 16 weeks of paid maternity leave. The law requires pregnant woman to take four to six weeks of this leave prior to their baby’s due date. At first, I did not really like the idea and thought I would have preferred to work right up until I went into labor and…
Pregnancy And Childbirth: Lightening
Everyone I ask tells me that I will know when I go into labor. Well, last night I was wrong. I was in pain and convinced my water had broken. Apparently, I was just lightening. According to Babycenter.com, “an expectant mother may feel what is known as ‘lightening’ a few weeks before labor starts as your baby descends lower into your pelvis. You might detect a heaviness in your pelvis as this happens and notice…
Mini-Babymoon: Bubbles, Beer, and Chocolate
My husband and I are trying to fit in as many fun activities as we can before the baby arrives. A woman in my birthing class that is eight and a half months pregnant nonchalantly mentioned she went kayaking. That is not exactly what I have in mind. Last weekend, we spent a night away in nearby Ghent, Belgium. It is a three hour car drive for us and, for many reasons, was just the…
Pregnant Pause: Week 33
It is Week 33! I can’t hardly believe it. I have done more than my share of reading about what to expect at this stage and have asked anyone that will let me about their experience. There is just nothing closer than it happening in your own body, though. So how does it feel for me, you ask? Being pregnant is more painful, exhausting, and distracting by the day. I still cannot believe those movements…
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