Second trimester: doctors, body, cosmetics, thoughts on labor and birth.

My pregnancy tale continues...

Second trimester is supposed to be easy. Well, my first trimester wasn't that challenging so I didn't notice much difference. Though, yes, it was easier in a sense that now I had more information and knowledge about pregnancy and was more confident.

There was a couple of things that took a lot of my attention during this time.

I started thinking more about labor and birth.

1. My perception of birth and birthing process started to shift. When I was looking for a gynecologist before I became pregnant, I was searching for someone that had a lot of practice with epidural deliveries and cesarean (just in case). I had seen lots of videos where women were talking about how wonderful epidural is: no pain, wonderful experience - and I wanted something like it for myself. ... 
2. Then, just to educate myself on more options, I decided to read a book called "Guide to childbirth" by Ina May.  Also I watched a film called "The business of being born" and ... wow!!! My mind was blown. I had never thought that the birthing experience could be positive, manageable and even empowering. There are a lot of techniques that help a future momma to go through the birthing experience easier, feel connected to her baby and husband, and become a hero in her own eyes. (Well, I don't know about becoming a hero, but women often described their experience as very empowering.) 
3. I have learned about general, mandatory procedures that happen in hospitals that may not facilitate labor and birth for a future momma, but are designed mostly to help doctors to feel at ease. For example, mandatory IVs, constant fetal monitoring that restricts your movement, position on your back for giving birth... Just to make sure, during each appointment with my OBGYN I started asking questions about mandatory procedures in the hospital I was at, and what I learned didn't make me happy. 
4. There were four doctors in my OBGYN practice who saw me and I didn't have a good connection with either one of them. All of them were polite and professional, but brisk and there was no warmth and trust between us. Sometimes they gave my very vague answers when I asked about labor and delivery, saying that it depends... Also, I learned that during my labor (if everything goes fine) nurses will take care of me and the doctor will show up only for the delivery - at the very end. So it means there will be no familiar face (besides my husband's) to support me. Hmmm... I started looking for more options - other doctors, hospitals, but I wasn't successful in finding one just yet. 

Body.

 To me it seemed that at 3-4 month pregnant everybody in the Universe could look at me and see my bulging belly and tell that I was pregnant.

May 8. Thinking that everybody in the Universe knows that I am pregnant. (3month)

I tried to wear layers and scarves to cover up my belly. I kept looking in the mirror, and kept seeing the huge change that was happening to my body. (It was visible only to me, apparently).There was a pile of cloth that didn't fit me already. I felt... unattractive. I even cried a couple of times.
The funny things was - even when I was 24 weeks pregnant my neighbors didn't guess it.

July 4. Thinking that it is easy to see what I am hiding. (Not really ;P) (4 month)

Only when I came back from a month long trip to Europe at 28 weeks pregnant some of them guessed. Wow. What???? I was already 6 months pregnant at that point.

August 14. Here is the belly that people can actually see. (6 month)

Another interesting things was - I started getting used to my body and my belly and stopped noticing changes that much. Now everybody else was easily able to tell that I was pregnant and it surprised me every time when a stranger mentioned it. ("How do you know that I am pregnant?" - the voice in my head sounds on the border of surprised and offended ;)

• Stretch marks. I was so afraid of them (because they are permanent) that I was ready to do anything to try and prevent them. I know that it all depends on your genes, but why not try and do something??? This is what I did: At the very beginning of my second trimester (or even a bit earlier) I stared using Weleda Oil for Stretch marks following with a Dr. Nona Solaris (body lotion) every morning right after shower. In the middle of the second trimester I added Cocoa butter in a stick form at night (right when I was changing into pajamas, I would lather my breasts, belly, and lower back with cocoa butter - quick and easy). Also I kept drinking my green smoothies, eating more fruits and vegetables than usual, and exercising. It worked. My mom had stretch marks on her thighs - I don't have any. Maybe I am just lucky, maybe what I did worked - I'll never know. I don't care. I am happy!!!!!
• Shape. I wanted to feel good so I exercised. Even when I went on a trip to Europe I still exercised. Sometimes it was a very light and short set of stretching and warming up exercises, but I did it everyday and my body thanked me. 

Face.

Early in my pregnancy I switched to all natural (or almost all natural) products. Before pregnancy I was plagued with pimples. Then I changed a couple of things in my morning routine and - I was really pleasantly surprised at the result. Here is what I did:

1. I stopped using my foamy facial cleanser from Dior. (Instead I used make up remover by Bioderma Craline H2O Micelle Solution and then rinsed my face with water.)
2. Started using Pai products such as eye cream and facial cream.
3. Started using avocado oil (after the eye cream and before the facial cream). 
4. Sun screen on sunny days (to avoid melasma, which my mom had).

Cosmetics.

I tried to use as little decorative cosmetics as possible. My must haves were:

1. Anastasia Eyebrow kit (used for eyebrows and as a highlight).
2. Eyelash curler.
3. Blush
4. Sometimes eye shadows,  lipstick, mascara. 

Changing my creams and potions was important. But the most important thing is the diet. Even now if I start eating too much ice cream or other sweets, I get a pimple. It is not a rain of pimples that never ends and never fades (like it was before), but one or two after "bad" diet choices still visits me... Unfortunately. Or fortunately - it is a good stimuli to eat well. 

My pregnancy tale. The beginning and first trimester.

Pregnancy tale.

Today I am officially 39 weeks and 5 days pregnant. Pretty advanced, huh? It makes me happy to know that I'll see my baby very soon. I just ate a breakfast and she is moving around, going very close to my ribs. It's a nice feeling. Or maybe I am in love... ;)

First time I noticed that something was different with me was when Enrique and I went to Puerto Rico. He had a conference there, and I happily joined in because it is the Caribbean, warm weather and lovely sea, instead of the freezing cold here in the Chicago area. (It was February of 2014). I was so excited to go to the Caribbean for the first time and I wanted to be in the best shape possible. A month before the trip I started doing regular exercise in the morning and drinking green smoothies right after. My hard work paid off.

Enjoying green smoothies with kale, spinach and other goodies.

Enjoying smoothies on February 1 2014.

 In Puerto Rico February 28 2014.

Here I am having lots of fun and enjoying the beauty of the sea.

One strange thing that happened to me when I was in Puerto Rico was that  I was repeatedly getting more and more nauseated in the restaurants. I couldn't understand why. Maybe after those green smoothies the food was too greasy for me? Hmmm... My only solution was - look for the bathroom, just in case you'll need to retreat from the table very fast :D. 

Well, anyways, I was one happy camper in Puerto Rico. An intimate detail - my period was supposed to come any day now, but it didn't. I was happy - I could swim and have fun and show off that beautiful body I worked hard to achieve. (Shameless, I know).

When we came home (to Chicagoland) my period still didn't arrive. I became slightly suspicious and my hand reached for the pregnancy test. Result - one line... Or... is there another line? No, it's too... I can barely see it. Three pregnancy test with barely visible second line didn't convince me of my pregnancy. Though I was getting more and more suspicious that maybe...  My husband had to run for the digital test that says loud and clear (actually, it doesn't speak, but it's as if ;) PREGNANT or NOT PREGNANT. Guess what it said? PREGNANT!

Oh my god! I didn't expect that! In the moment I was so overwhelmed with emotions, I didn't know what to do. I was stunned. My husband on the other hand did a happy dance right there in the bathroom, cried with me happy tears and was reaching for the phone to tell the whole world about the news. Oh no. I decided to wait a couple more days, did another pregnancy test and then when word PREGNANT flushed in my face one more time I gave in and we shared the news with our closest family. 

And my pregnancy journey has begun :).

I have to say, that the first trimester was the most challenging for me. I wanted to be perfect. I wanted to maintain my health in the best possible way for me and the baby, but I was clueless about what to  do. What is safe and what isn't when you are pregnant? Exercise - not any kind; food - not any food; medicine - only some of it. I started reading info online and became more and more confused and unsure and nervous. It didn't help that my OBGYN was willing to see me only 30 days after I realized I was pregnant. My head was like a beehive - buzzing with thousands of questions and doubts and there was nobody to ask "What do I do now???" It was hard for me. I even stopped exercising in fear that I'll do something wrong to my body or baby. Yeah, frustrating... 

On my first appointment with my OBGYN she told me all the things that I was supposed to do that first month. The first trimester is the most important time because baby is just forming and blah-blah... Why she didn't give me this info right when I got pregnant I'll never understand. 

Short summary:

• prenatal vitamins are extremely important. The sooner you'll start taking them the better it is. Folic acid is the main hero (it easily prevents very serious problems with the baby's skeleton which may occur if the mother is deficient in folic acid). DHA is another big guy. My doctor didn't recommend any specific brand, so I just went to CVS and bought prenatal vitamins that consist of two packages - multivitamins for Folic acid and capsules for DHA. If someone out there is planning on getting pregnant, it is recommended to take those prenatal vitamin in advance and keep going till the end of the breastfeeding season. 
• Exercise is beneficial and if you have been doing some kind of exercise, you can safely keep doing it. The problem may occur when a pregnant lady on receiving news of her pregnancy jumps into some challenging exercise routine and hurts herself because she started doing something she has never done before. So it is not a good time to experiment, but if you are already in the groove, you can safely keep going. Also, any aerobic exercise is beneficial. The only thing to pay attention to is your heart rate. If you are so out of breath, you can't speak - stop, slow down. It's not good for the baby!
• Diet - balanced. No raw fish, eggs, meat or soft cheeses. (This info is debatable, but to be safe...) Also no green tea - it might interfere with the absorption on Folic Acid. And who want's that?

That was what my doctor said to me. This advice might not work for other people, but I benefited from it, calmed my crazy head and was able to keep going with day to day life. 

Some "highlights" of the first trimester:

• Nausea. I had a mild case of nausea, that was annoying but manageable. Fresh fruits and vegetables helped me. Exercise helped me. Laying down and taking a nap also helped me. (I was surprised with the exercise part, nauseous feeling would go away after I started doing my exercise routine). Listening carefully to what my body wants helped me.
• Tiredness... and sleepiness. Even though the baby is very small, it'll take a lot of energy from her momma to transform herself from a couple of cells creature to human looking being. The speed with which the baby develops is absolutely incredible. That is why it is so important to eat well and rest, and be healthy and do exercise. 
• Back ache. (I was so sad when my back started aching so early. "What???? What will happen to me later? What about when I'll be 8 month pregnant?". Well, exercise solved it for me. After I started doing very simple exercises for the back plus 10 minute prenatal Pilates workout DAILY, pain eased and never troubled me again. Here is the link to prenatal Pilates that I followed during all of my pregnancy.
• Food cravings. Nothing weird. I can't even say that I had cravings. The only thing that my husband noticed was that I started to cook more Ukrainian (home) meals.

Making dough.

In the process of making pirogies.

Frying time...

Yay! Ready to eat!

Nom-nom: close-up.

• Mood swings. Not really. I was very afraid to turn into a crazy hormonal lady, but it never happened to me. (Yes, I did cry w/o a reason a couple of times, but nothing crazy.)

The real highlight of my pregnancy happened during my first ultrasound when Enrique and I saw our beautiful little baby for the first time. I was so amazed looking at that little human being! I was big eyed with my mouth opened in "awe". My heart flooded with love and ... joy. Those feelings are very tender and personal. On the way back home I kept smiling to myself and crying a bit. Very happy. 

Our little precious treasure.