Why do some have easy pregnancies and others don't?

[AiyaNapawithmorenaps]

Just that really.
I think about how lucky I was to never have any morning sickness or back pain or swollen ankles. I was overweight at the time of getting pregnant the second time and had only had my first twelve months before. Even running about with a toddler felt relatively easy and photos of the time show me looking happy and relaxed (sort of.) This isn't a brag honest!
My friend is already having frequent days off with sickness when she is younger and healthier than I was when I conceived my first. My other friend had morning sickness so bad she seriously considered whether she could continue the pregnancy. Do medics understand what makes some people breeze through pregnancy and not others?
With mine I found out late both times (eight weeks with number 1 and six weeks with number 2) so I can't have had much in terms of physical symptoms.
Just from anecdotal evidence, I feel there is no correlation between the lifestyle of the mother and how difficult a pregnancy you will have.

@Reallyreallyborednow

Being fit, healthy and a healthy weight before you get pregnant helps, also it can be more difficult over 35/more complications. Also eating healthily in pregnancy to avoid excessive weight gain. This is no guarantee, you could still have a rough time but it gives you the best chance of having an easier pregnancy and more straightforward birth

Do you have any evidence of this? In keeping with the thread o/p is asking if there is any actual evidence that x, y and z results in an easier or harder birth.

So have any studies been done that back up your post? I agree it would make sense, even though I was all of those things and had emcs. I even had the proper “child bearing hips” and a family history of females dropping babies on the bathroom floor. My mum actually thought any labour over 2 hours meant something had gone wrong.

The NHS website has some info on too, drawn from NICE guidelines:

www.nhs.uk/pregnancy/related-conditions/existing-health-conditions/overweight/

Possible problems if you're overweight in pregnancy
Being overweight increases the chance of complications for you and your baby. The higher your BMI, the higher the chance of complications. The increasing chances are in relation to:

miscarriage
gestational diabetes
high blood pressure and pre-eclampsia
blood clots
the baby's shoulder becoming "stuck" during labour (The Royal College of Obstetricians and Gynaecologists has more information about shoulder dystocia)
heavier bleeding than normal after the birth
You are also more likely to need an instrumental delivery (forceps or ventouse), or an emergency caesarean section.

Possible problems for your baby if you're overweight in pregnancy
Problems for your baby can include being born early (before 37 weeks), and an increased chance of stillbirth.

There is also a higher chance of your baby having a health condition, such as a neural tube defect like spina bifida.

Although the chances of these problems increase if you are obese, most pregnancies will result in a healthy baby.

I would love if they cared enough to do some thorough research into it but as it only impacts women it'll probably never happen.

Before becoming pregnant I had slightly heavy periods but never any real bother. I was totally healthy and hadn't seen a Dr since I was a child other than to go on the pill (tried 3, couldn't get on with any of them) Got pregnant with our first in our first month of trying age 30 and had horrific HG which eased around 18 weeks but I was still stick multiple times a day until baby was born. I also developed GD, was anaemic and then had BP issues and was put on medication for 6 weeks after baby was born. I've since been sick and had nausea with every period until I got pregnant again. Again we were lucky enough to get pregnant in our first month of trying, HG started before I could even do an early test and continues now at 17 weeks, I'm assuming it'll last the whole way through like last time. I've been diagnosed with GD again much earlier this time and I've been put on aspirin because of the BP issues last time.

I'm so lucky to be able to get pregnant easily but the pregnancies are horrific. I think my body just can't handle the hormones but I'd love to know why, with my GD only my fasting numbers are high so they've put it all down to hormones, I've ended up on insulin for them both times. I couldn't handle hormonal contraception either. This will definitely be our last baby because of the physical and mental toll pregnancy takes on me.

I think some women may have undiagnosed immune conditions that affect their pregnancies. I was diagnosed with coeliac disease and then rheumatoid arthritis a while after my DC was born. The rheumatologist asked me how many miscarriages I had had, so I assume there is some sort of correlation there otherwise why would they ask. Seemed odd. Also I had PUPPP during my pregnancy which I now think is also related. Needless to say I only ever many to have one.

My first pregnancy I had a huge baby, too much water, stretch marks and it took many rounds of ivf to get to that point but I didn't seem to struggle and I loved it.

I'm pregnant again, no ivf this time and normal water amount, babys not as big and I'm not swollen or anything but my god I am exhausted and struggling so much more.

I had no sickness but I did get weird bouts of fainting and low blood sugars which was crappy

Yes, as is the case for most female-only medical issues, there's little-to-no research on it and little-to-no drive to do any.

Such a shame, as this could potentially be so informative. I had such a horrific pregnancy and birth that I am only having one. If a correlation could be found between certain factors and certain outcomes, it can only be to the good, surely? At least give people odds of xyz happening so they're half-way prepared.

But how much of the obesity problems are due to related factors such as poverty, poor health in general, reduced exercise etc?

Also eating healthily in pregnancy to avoid excessive weight gain.
This is… not an option for women with severe nausea or sickness. I couldn’t even take the vitamins first few months with my first two.
I had two pregnancies with hg, and now having one ordinary ie I’m averagely miserable one. My mum had every pregnancy with hg. Her mum had every brown eyed pregnancy with hg and the 2 blue eyed babies she didn’t, although thats probably not the causal factor. They really just don’t know. I’ve been fairly healthy and a healthy weight with all mine,before pregnancy started anyway when I quickly became a less healthy weight with the first two. I’m older now to state the obvious and having a normal pregnancy… no idea.

With my first pregnancy I was sick lots wlbut with this pregnancy I'm sick but nowhere near as bad as with my first. Both are girls. So I have no answer at all for your question

I was horrendously sick both times, all the way through each pregnancy. Both boys.
DS1 stopped growing so was induced at 37 weeks. Never found any reason.
DS2 was stillborn at 35 weeks after I developed acute fatty liver of pregnancy and my liver and kidneys packed in. Most of the obvious symptoms of this I had routinely anyway, so instead of going to hospital to get checked out like many mothers would, I just thought I was having a particularly bad few days, because you're supposed to suffer during pregnancy aren't you? What of it?
Post mortem and genetic testing found no reason why this happened. Statistically it was more likely to happen to DS1 than DS2. Incidence in the general population being 1 in 15-20,000.
I will probably never know why my son died. Its shit.

@HarebrightCedarmoon

Being fit, healthy and a healthy weight before you get pregnant helps, also it can be more difficult over 35/more complications. Also eating healthily in pregnancy to avoid excessive weight gain. This is no guarantee, you could still have a rough time but it gives you the best chance of having an easier pregnancy and more straightforward birth.

Nah, my mother had five kids, was always slim and incredibly active (you'd have to be by the 4th kid in five years when the only way to get to the shops was shove them in and on the Silver Cross and walk the 3 miles to the nearest shop and then 3 miles back, plus walk the dog and look after the animals and food she grew). Every labour was around the 45 hour mark, until the last, which was around 18 hours following induction, because the babies were poorly positioned, which really annoyed her because she'd say 'my floors were bloody immaculate and they still got themselves tangled up so much they wouldn't come out for days'.

I was also slim and active - that didn't stop me being horrendously sick until around 28 weeks, it didn't stop me catching chickenpox, it didn't stop threatened miscarriages, it probably made things worse in terms of anaemia and feeling like crap, nor did it stop both babies getting into daft positions that meant they would have undoubtedly died and either would have killed me were it not for being in hospital.

Women have had awful pregnancies and awful labours - and died of them - since human existence began. Being aesthetically pleasing prior to pregnancy doesn't guarantee a thing in childbirth.

It's luck!
DC1, I was 34. Took a few months to get pregnant. Pregnancy was an absolute breeze. A bit of nausea early on but apart from that felt really well, full of energy. I look at photos of myself from then and I did have that pregnancy glow. Labour? Induced as very late, took ages, forceps. Not much fun.
Currently pregnant with DC2, aged 37. Got pregnant straight away, a bit of a shock as assumed it would take ages. Until I reached the third trimester it was really hard. Terrible nausea, vomiting 2-3 times a day from week 6, felt unbelievably grim throughout the first trimester and only a bit better in the second. Very severe headaches at times as well. To be honest, the first trimester I felt so terrible I did consider whether I wanted to continue with the pregnancy.
So I'm hoping my reward for all this is an easier labour!

It's total luck. I had a rubbish birth but then my body could produce enough breast milk for triplets, it was ridiculous. A good friend of mine had a very easy birth but then a nightmare producing enough milk. Neither of us did anything differently.

Also I would like to join the criticisms of hypnobirthing - believing that thinking positively is going to help you just sets you up for disappointment! You get a straightforward ride or you don't, in my opinion.

I don't think anything guarantees anything with pregnancy and childbirth. Luck, genes, good care, good health, age it is impossible to separate it out.

I particularly dislike experts who've had one baby and know it all. I try to just smile and wish them well with the next one.

A method of preparing women for natural childbirth by means of special breathing, relaxation techniques and psychological conditioning, This was the big thing in the 70s when I had my first. I still do the breathing and relaxation techniques if I'm having a procedure done, anything from root canal to colonoscopy. It does help me, it isn't the same as a GA but for someone awake with no pain relief it is definitely a positive for me.

For got to add the name of the method Psychoprophylaxis.

@Youseethethingis

I was horrendously sick both times, all the way through each pregnancy. Both boys. DS1 stopped growing so was induced at 37 weeks. Never found any reason. DS2 was stillborn at 35 weeks after I developed acute fatty liver of pregnancy and my liver and kidneys packed in. Most of the obvious symptoms of this I had routinely anyway, so instead of going to hospital to get checked out like many mothers would, I just thought I was having a particularly bad few days, because you're supposed to suffer during pregnancy aren't you? What of it? Post mortem and genetic testing found no reason why this happened. Statistically it was more likely to happen to DS1 than DS2. Incidence in the general population being 1 in 15-20,000. I will probably never know why my son died. Its shit.

I'm so sorry, what a horrible thing to happen.

I guess it's how we respond individually even with me, I have 2 kids and 2 totally different pregnancies. With my first I had horrendous sickness for the first 14 weeks from pretty early on, pretty bad with it. With my daughter no sickness until 8 weeks, it wasn't half as bad as with my eldest either!

I never had swollen ankles with both pregnancies but I used to get awful headaches with my first (was checked out numerous times but nothing was found). With my first I had a little high bp near the end (not pre eclampsia) but with my daughter not at all. Heartburn with my first but not much with my second.

I was pretty active and done mainly normal activities up until my due date and beyond with the first - walking the dog for miles a day with my daughter I didn't feel like it as much! 😂

I was very lucky to have problem free pregnancies, apart from swollen ankles. I was also very lucky to have problem free deliveries.
My mum was the same with each of hers.
Yet, my sister had an horrendous first pregnancy with sickness and swelling, but problem free subsequent pregnancies. It's very strange. There doesn't seem to be any rhyme or reason for it
I feel really sorry for any woman who has a problematic pregnancy and birth, it must really take the shine off it for them ☹️

Mine were awful. I've been pregnant five times. Each one was worse than the one before.

I have several medical conditions, disabilities which have worsened significantly over the years, but they were largely undisguised or only recently discovered, depending on which pregnancy. So there can be many underlying factors. Even if one woman had only one missed diagnosis of something, it can be something otherwise subtle, but which means that pregnancy can send their bodies a little more haywire than others.

Luck.

I had two healthy and fairly easy pregnancies. I never even felt sick, not once. Did get uncomfortable at the end when I was huge and got carpal tunnel first time but other than that I was fine. Breezed through it.

Labour and birth though? Not so lucky there. My body is great at getting pregnant and staying pregnant but it's terrible at getting them out!

Never again

Also I would like to join the criticisms of hypnobirthing - believing that thinking positively is going to help you just sets you up for disappointment! You get a straightforward ride or you don't, in my opinion

Hypnobirthing is not about "positive thinking". Not are birth plans setting you up for disappointment. For me it was being completely informed about what was happening to me and what the options might be or what might happen next, which reduced the fear considerably. I was still scared first time round, when the contractions started in earnest. In spite of all that reading I hadn't expected so much pain in my lower back/backside and was worried that something had gone wrong. But because I was informed I knew that I could request an epidural as it was still quite early on and had one, and it was brilliant. Also I didn't know how long it was going to be. Second time round I knew it was not likely to go on for days (though that can happen) when it had been six hours for DD1. One thing I did notice though was that I was tensing up with the pain in contractions so second time round I had learned to breathe through it, and it did help me massively, probably apart from the short time transitioning to second stage when there wasn't much I could do! Good job really as DD2 was quite a bit bigger than her sister.

All the women I'm my family seemed to have sailed through pregnancy with ease. They fall pregnant quickly, have safe and straight forward deliveries with no illnesses ect.
I on the other hand have had horrendous pregnancies with multiple losses, premature babies, life threatening illnesses, emcs and very sick babies.
Most of my problems seem to stem from having pcos, which I seem to be the first person in my family to have.
I imaging that problems are multi factored - genetics, fitness, underlying conditions, diet, environmental factors, ect.
There will be no one answer for everyone as every person is a complex mix of factors and even two people with similar factors can have wildly different results

I strongly believe that hypnobirthing and meditation and all that can be beneficial during labour IF you are having a straightforward labour in the first place!

I used both techniques with my second baby and honestly, it was a breeze. The labour and birth with him was one of the most amazing experiences of my life. However, it was an incredibly calm situation, circumstances just aligned for me to be totally in the zone and relaxed and the labour itself was very short and straightforward. This is massively not the case for most people (and hasn't been for my other births either) and for them, no matter how much hypnobirthing you study it's never going to help.

These techno are great in theory, but I went to NCT and it was pitched that if you do all of them then you will have a good birth. But the reality is that if you are having a 'good' birth, you might be ABLE to do them and have it be a benefit - that's all.

*techniques

@AiyaNapawithmorenaps

But how much of the obesity problems are due to related factors such as poverty, poor health in general, reduced exercise etc?

I gave a book recommendation upthread which analyses the evidence and looks at how we know this is related to obesity rather than other factors, you should take a look if you're interested.

@mistermagpie

I strongly believe that hypnobirthing and meditation and all that can be beneficial during labour IF you are having a straightforward labour in the first place!

I used both techniques with my second baby and honestly, it was a breeze. The labour and birth with him was one of the most amazing experiences of my life. However, it was an incredibly calm situation, circumstances just aligned for me to be totally in the zone and relaxed and the labour itself was very short and straightforward. This is massively not the case for most people (and hasn't been for my other births either) and for them, no matter how much hypnobirthing you study it's never going to help.

These techno are great in theory, but I went to NCT and it was pitched that if you do all of them then you will have a good birth. But the reality is that if you are having a 'good' birth, you might be ABLE to do them and have it be a benefit - that's all.

I agree with that. I had a long labour with EMCS and a labour resulting in a rough forceps delivery. Hypnobirthing made no difference to the outcomes, but it did help with working with my body until the point where interventions were required.

MW after the second birth asked about the guided tracks I was playing... apparently they kept her very calm