Things they don't tell you before you get pregnant

[AnguaVonUberwald]

I know this has been done before, and that there are lots of bad things they don't tell you before you get pregnant.

But also, everyone goes on about how once you have the baby your life will never be the same again - they don't mention that you will love the baby so much, you will really like the new way, and not mind that everything you once enjoyed about your life has changed, because you have your baby instead.

OK, and then there is:

That you might never get the second trimester energy rush, and in fact might be exhausted all the way through!

That you will get instant attention from the NHS, until you get to 36 weeks pregnant, and then they will ignore you unless you can prove you are in labour (something that is impossible to do)

That you will never see the same midwife twice

That they will make you take home your wee, clean out the tub, and wee in it again a month later!

piles.

no one ever tells you about piles.

That it is possible to feel hungry and sick at the same time

People pretend that you will get your body back afterwards!!!

that its impossible to get comfortable once baby reaches your rib cage

that you will get a hairy belly

That you will get sinusitis due to inflammed blood vessels and you spend ages trying to find suitable hayfever medicines for months,posting on MN for remedies etc even when the pollen count is low! then you decide to read your pregnancy book and oooohhhhhhhh, its not hayfever or a cold!

That you will get stretch marks on your breasts

That your fanjo becomes engorged, hot, achy and sore and the only thing that will bring relief is a cool pack from the fridge.

That you sweat more then usual.

That the skin on your bump becomes so stretched and tight it turns shiny and loses its sensation so it feels numb, yet still itches

That all maternity clothes are minging.
That they don't make decent maternity coats.
That your whole life may become dominated by your bladder.

How horrendous morning sickness can be - biggest cover-up!

That the medical profession assume you have lost all powers of rationale thought along with your figure.

DoctorsWife and Mrs Mattie - thank you. At nearly 29 weeks I have HAD it with the sinusitis and the swollen fanjo. I didn't even GET morning sickness, which is one of the things you expect. However I did NOT expect to feel like my nasal passages and entire fanny would feel like they have been inflated with a bicyle pump. Didn't expect nipples to hurt from conception until (I presume) delivery and beyond, either, though that's sheer naivety I think.

How painful labour really is. I know that nothing can prepare you for the experience but I remember, after I'd had DS, feeling very angry and annoyed with everyone for not telling me how bad it would get.

That you think you can't get any more tired than you are at the end of the pregnancy and then.....wham bam...months on end of sleepless nights with a screaming baby.

My friend bought me an excellent book called, A Best Friend's Guide to Pregnancy. I've just passed it on to my niece - so so true and funny.

That morning sickness is not only in the morning, and that it does not always go away by 12 weeks, in fact sometimes it stays for the entire pregnancy.

Tht cravings can be so bad you almost kill your husband for not stopping quick enough to get a Flake Praline.

that constipation can reduce you to a raging, weeping shell of your former self

That morning sickness isn't just in the morning and can last right though to the delivery room

That stress incontinence is common so together with the wild emotions you start to feel like you've regressed to 3 year olds with limited bladder control and tantrums.

That morning sickness can be combined with a limitless ability to drool.

lol@cyteen.

I had never even had constipation - in my entire life - until this pregnancy. Christ, it's horrible.

Short term memory loss

Itchy soles of your feet (especially as you are trying to get to sleep!)

Clumsy clumsy clumsy

Losing interest in food in the third trimester because EVERYTHING gives you indigestion

So..no booze, no food, no sex, what madness is this?!

same here, and i hope i never get it again!

That epidurals wear off

(while you are still in labour I mean)