Worried about pains and size of baby!! Help!!

[CrazyDi]

Hi..I am 31 weeks with baby number 3 but am having severe side effects with this one!! I am having backache, heartburn, swollen feet, itching and am suffering with severe anaemia which makes me pass out a couple of times a week at least!! I react to any medication, especially iron, which obviously doesnt help the anaemia!!

The biggest worries at the mo is that I am experiencing really bad pain in my hip/groin/legs and somedays find it hard to get up and walk! I move like a slug and cant even turn over in bed without waking everyone with my moans and screams as it is unbearable...is this normal and just babies position?

The second worry is that I am seriously huge..people think that i am full term, not 31 weeks, and i am twice the size as i was at the end of both previous pregnancies...does this mean i am having a mega huge baby?? is there anyway to tell? My belly feels completely 'full of baby' and when he moves its kind of everywhere, if you know what i mean...both sides!!

Sorry for blabbing on and hope someone can put my mind at ease!!

[teabelly]

Hi there,

For the anaemia eat lots of potatoes, broccoli, raisins, beans, oatmeal, leafy green vegetables, whole grain breads, lean red meat and iron-fortified cereals. Orange juice/vitamin C will help to absorb the iron...but tea and coffee will stop you absorbing iron so avoid these.

The pains sound like they could be PSD where the pelvis separates (as for birth) but early and so you get pains when you move and from the pressure of the baby...there have been afew threads on this recently and they may have some good advice about coping with PSD. But I would also talk to your Dr/MW as they may be able to recommend a good physio or accupuncturist which can help allieviate the worst of the symptoms.

Re the size of your bump...your MW/scans would probably have indicated that it was a large bubba...if not maybe you have alot of fluid, and the babe is just at the front of your belly so you feel him more??

Sorry I can't be more helpful Good luck with the rest of your pg.

[Amanda3266]

Hi there,

Can't add anything more useful than teabelly. Talk to your midwife and ask for a physio referral.

Have you had any scans recently?

[TracyK]

the bigger they are the less you have to push - gravity helps more. plus the biggest part is the babys head and there's not a lot of diff in circumference versus their weight iykwim

[Bozza]

Does sound like SPD - the pains you're getting. Could you get referred to physio? My sister also had a nerve trapped by baby which caused her problems until baby moved down - she was given a support belt to help.

I was very prone to lightheadedness/fainting in both my pregnancies but in my case it was a combination of anaemia and low blood pressure. Whats your blood pressure like? Found that if I ate something like glucose sweets that would help it to pass.

Also mention the itching to midwife because their is a pregnancy related liver condition which can cause itching. Don't get alarmed but do check it out.

[Bozza]

Obstetric cholestasis is the liver condition. But unlikely.

[Prufrock]

The itching could be obstetric cholestasis if it is unbearable, not soothed by scratching and mainly on your hands, ams feet and legs. If it is just on your belly and other areas that have grown it is likely to be just stretching skin. But ask your midwife to do Liver Funtion tests (LFT's) just to be sure.

Physio and the belt can really help with SPD - it's something lots of people on here have had so do a search for other helpful suggestions.

've only had 2, but did find that I was a lot bigger with my second than my first - I think it's because your muscles are less able to hold the belly in because they've already been stretched before.

Good luck