Things nobody ever really mentions before you get pregnant then they all nod in unison and it obviously happens to every pregnant woman ever

[Pruni]

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You can NOT get away with buying your normal size in maternity clothing, whatever the books may tell you, because it will not fit when you are very pregnant unless you are one of those willowy pregnant types.

Hopingcat! totally agree with the socks thing! i don't know what i would have done if it hadn't been summer!

HOw bout the feeling of having such swolled ankles taht it feels like you have leg warmers on.

Heavily pregnant women are HUGE, no I mean HUGE. And everyone around you will be amazed at the fact and feel the need to point it out several times per day, as if you hadn't noticed already.

Had forgotten the socks thing. I remember knickers being quite a challenge too. I used to have to drop them on the floor, put both feet in, then raise my lower leg up behind me, so I could lean sideways to catch one side & pull them up. What a palarver!!!

Have just had dd2 a week ago and had forgotten that you still look 5 months pregnant after giving birth - v. depressing! The post-pregnancy tummy is a horror!

The temporary incontinence afterwards. Having to pour a jug of warm water over your bits before you pee.

Sinusitis.

Piles.

Acid reflux.

That you probably won't crap normally and/or be constipated for a bit afterwards.

And, for hte non-first time mum: AFTERBIRTH PAINS!

That I'd have to find out everything I wanted to know for myself, from websites like this. No-one in the medical professional tells you anything.

That the time being pregnant would really drag.

That I'd get spots in places no-one ever gets spots - chest, upper arms, shoulders, face, back, neck ...

That far from being thick and lustrous, my hair would be limp, flat and greasy.

That my hair and nails would grow twice as fast as usual.

That I would fart and belch like a man, and be unable to control either.

That I would grow hair in places hair has never grown before - on my belly and nipples!

Oh Currentbun you have a hairy belly too! I forgot that in my list! Sooo glad its not just me! Please someone say it goes away after.....

I hope so too Indith! It's not that bad, mainly along the line where the linea nigra develops if you get it, and fortunately not very dark/thick, but am so not used to having hairs there that I'm a bit freaked out by it!

That when you're pregnant your bump, and your entire pregnancy, become fair game for discussion by total strangers.
Indigestion
Never getting a proper night's sleep ever again
As soon as you give birth every shop seems to bring out really cool, sexy meternity clothes!
But no-one can ever explain that feeling when you get when you're sitting at work in a really dull/difficult meeting and suddenly bubba gives a kick, and you can just feel the warmth flowing through your body, and everything is put in perspective again!

think everything I think of has been mentioned here but:
the incredible amount of discharge. I'd forgotten how much there is
the nuclear waste wee
bleeding - yes doesn't always mean miscarriage, but is so alarming
the bloody forgetfulness
skin like a teenager for at least the first 3 months
piles. Oh god, piles.
Stuffy nose that currently with hay fever as well I would like to claw off my face altogether

and finally, the rude comments from all and bleeding sundry. 'Was it planned?' 'Aren't you huge' 'Ooh that looks like a girl bump to me - it' all round the sides as well' 'Are you sure there aren't 2 in there?' etc.

Needing to do pelvic floor excercises to make sure you don't end up with stress incontinence (as well as to help with the labour) - wasn't warned about this at all and ended up having to have physio after the birth!

What's the brown line called that you get from navel to pubes?

With 2nd child it was there for months afterwards

linea nigra I think. DD is 16 months old and I've still got mine !

TMI ALERT!!!!!!! with the loads of discharge business, does it change colour? mine has darkened today from clear to yellowy beige. Is this normal? paranoia. Sorry to ask...but you are all wise experienced types and I am 12+5 first timer!

Keep an eye on it mazaa could be thrush. I had this early on and it would not shift without a pesary which I got from my gp. If you start itching or burning get it checked out. Eat live youghurt too and dont forget to wear cotton nicks....

overwhelming urge to sniff turps,and drink petrol,when filling the car up,its ok i didnt..and hunting for cheese and onion discos,only the circle ones,they brought out heart shaped for valentines day,but i only wanted the circle ones,and cheddar spread in a jar,i only craved it and found out it was not made anymore i was devasted,kept thinking of it,it was well full of colouring and additives but i wanted it lol.

LOL imafairy, that was the first time I remember (since finding out) actually liking being pregnant - being in dull/boring meetings and feeling movements and kicks - it was so surreal, like I was carrying a little person around with me at work!!!

ok, Pretty much the same as others, other things i suffered with when pregnant which noone told me about was bleeding gums, total breathlessness when going up the stairs or doing anything remotely above walking, carpel tunnel in my hands.....awful awful....BTW i also had severe SPD which i had never heard of that was so bad i spent from week 20 on crutchs and wearing horrid belts for support
After birth, the ENORMOUS sense of relief and 'emptiness'i felt when bother DD was born and then the placenta came out....it was like having the biggest poo!!! (hehehehe TMI sorry)

Terrible constipation
Hair turns to hay
And OMG the leg cramps - one night they were so bad I screamed and DP thought I was giving birth!

Pruni are you actualy going to show your newly pregnant sil this thread? Itll frighten the bajeebas out of her! Still too late now I guess eh

Hi Girls

I have to admit that at 14 weeks with my first you have frightened the life out of me but this is a brilliant thread.

I don't want to be really crude but there is a couple of things I'd love to know. I've heard of piles and I know I don't want to know but they seem very common - what exactly are they??

Also what is SPD, I'm sure its really obvious? I have recognised a lot of the earlier symtoms and am still quite nausous at 14 weeks, but definately not so bad as before.

Thanks

Molly

Piles (aka haemorrhoids) are like varicose veins in the canal of the anus. There is a network of veins extending upwards for an inch or so from the level of the skin to just above the anal canal, where it joins the rectum. When the veins of this network become swollen with blood, haemorrhoids occur. The vein swelling can affect the part of the network just above the anal canal, where it is less well supported by the muscular ring (sphincter), and this causes internal haemorrhoids. Or it may affect the veins at the lower end of the canal, just under the skin, causing external haemorrhoids. Some people have both.

SPD is Symphasis Pubis Dysfunction. Hormones present during pregnancy cause the ligaments in the body to soften and stretch. This in turn causes the Symphasis Pubis (a ligament connecting the bones at the bottom front of the pelvic floor) to weaken. To an extent this is normal in pregnancy, but in cases of SPD the increasing weight of the growing baby in the womb causes more and more pain in the areas of the groin, lower abdomen and inner thigh.

Oooooh, have killed my first thread!

Trying to reverse into a parking space whilst having a huge Braxton Hicks contraction.
Watching your bump go pointy as baby wiggles.
Drinking Gaviscon directly from the huge bottle on prescription and asking, red faced for another bottle at every mw appointment.
Cramp. Swollen labia that make you sit at a slighty awkward angle and rather daintily.
'Friends' saying" bloody hell, you're massive" really loudly across pub gardens.