It's the beginning of the end
Of the honeymoon, that is. Sigh.
I've been blessed with a fairly easy pregnancy so far; hardly any morning sickness, no hemmorhoids, no bad acne outbreaks and, so far, no stretch marks. But, in the past week or so I've been starting to really feel the extra weight. I'm walking slower, getting winded more easily, feeling more tired and achey. And this morning, yet again, I almost fainted after walking to the T station. WTF?
The triumverate of pregnancy powers that be -- myself, my husband, and my doctor -- has concluded that it would probably be best if I bid farewell to my daily 17-minute walks to and from the T. I'm not happy about this; I really enjoy the walk, for the exercise and the pleasure of it. The overachiever in me says, "Oh, come on, it's not so bad, just slow down a little!" But even walking slowly, as I did on my way home tonight, wears me out. Not to mention the fact that in the evening when I walk my hands swell, and it hurts unless I hold them up in front of me like a surgeon. Which just looks deranged.
My doctor, who I saw today, said that this "doesn't bode well," for my being able to continue working indefinitely, and asked if in the next few weeks I might be able to start working from home some of the time. I probably could, but would hate to ask before it's absolutely, urgently necessary. I only work 3 days a week as it is. My goal was to keep working as usual through Thanksgiving, then use the vacation/unpaid time built into my contract (long story) to take me through delivery while still collecting a paycheck. We shall see.
I hate feeling impeded / limited. It's just not my style. And it's only going to get worse in the next 3 months. At least it's only temporary, and for a good cause.
On the upside, these babies are little kickin' fools! The nurse who did the doppler today was very impressed (and slightly frustrated, I think) by how active they were. Last night I took a look at my belly while they were breakdancing, and could see little pokes and pops from the outside. I love it! It makes me want to just bundle them up in my arms and kiss their little monkey faces. (After wiping off all the amniotic fluid and vernix and other gunk, of course.)
Belly shot to come soon....
I've been blessed with a fairly easy pregnancy so far; hardly any morning sickness, no hemmorhoids, no bad acne outbreaks and, so far, no stretch marks. But, in the past week or so I've been starting to really feel the extra weight. I'm walking slower, getting winded more easily, feeling more tired and achey. And this morning, yet again, I almost fainted after walking to the T station. WTF?
The triumverate of pregnancy powers that be -- myself, my husband, and my doctor -- has concluded that it would probably be best if I bid farewell to my daily 17-minute walks to and from the T. I'm not happy about this; I really enjoy the walk, for the exercise and the pleasure of it. The overachiever in me says, "Oh, come on, it's not so bad, just slow down a little!" But even walking slowly, as I did on my way home tonight, wears me out. Not to mention the fact that in the evening when I walk my hands swell, and it hurts unless I hold them up in front of me like a surgeon. Which just looks deranged.
My doctor, who I saw today, said that this "doesn't bode well," for my being able to continue working indefinitely, and asked if in the next few weeks I might be able to start working from home some of the time. I probably could, but would hate to ask before it's absolutely, urgently necessary. I only work 3 days a week as it is. My goal was to keep working as usual through Thanksgiving, then use the vacation/unpaid time built into my contract (long story) to take me through delivery while still collecting a paycheck. We shall see.
I hate feeling impeded / limited. It's just not my style. And it's only going to get worse in the next 3 months. At least it's only temporary, and for a good cause.
On the upside, these babies are little kickin' fools! The nurse who did the doppler today was very impressed (and slightly frustrated, I think) by how active they were. Last night I took a look at my belly while they were breakdancing, and could see little pokes and pops from the outside. I love it! It makes me want to just bundle them up in my arms and kiss their little monkey faces. (After wiping off all the amniotic fluid and vernix and other gunk, of course.)
Belly shot to come soon....
posted by Jane at 6:17 PM
6 Comments:
I remember when I was working in ob/gyn and we would have to do non stress tests on women with twins. Once we finally fixed on one heartbeat, the other twin would start doing jumping jacks and we'd lose both of them and have to start all over again.
I can't imagine what that must feel like when it's going on inside you.
Oh, that must be hard, looking at your retirement from work, even if it is partial and temporary.
When do they think the twins will arrive? What is the average?
That's hard, that point where you start getting really uncomfortable and having your body boss you around. A strange thing for women like us, having to take our physiology into account all of a sudden. It passes, of course, but it's intense while it's happening.
I hope the work situation factors out as well as it can.
Yes, what Bihari said. I was so determined all throughout the pregnancy to be unimpeded in any way, none whatsoever!! (What was I thinking??) And then came the time I had trouble rolling over in bed, and I had to eat Thumbelina-sized meals because my ONE child was pressing so far into my stomach. And just wait until the girls are external and you try doing postnatal yoga and your boobs get in the way. Huh. That's still weird.
I know how you feel...I think my running days are over. I went last weekend for perhaps the last time--put the belly band on and pulled some tight-fitting shorts up as high as I could (very stylish), but I think it might be too much bouncing and stretching. I haven't felt faint, but then, I'm only carrying the one kiddo.
Even with only the one, I'm definitely feeling some belly gymnastics more and more often--in the car on the way to work, at night when I'm grading papers, and often when I'm sitting at my desk in the afternoon. Not much during actual classtime, probably because I'm jumping around the room way too much to notice.
The kids at the middle school where I teach are pretty interested in the whole baby thing--are you having your baby at home? (no) Can I touch your belly (no) Can I be the godmother (I didn't have to answer that, because another student said "You can't take care of a baby!" Good point.)
Very fun. I can't wait for the belly to stick out even more.
--julie
Wow, Julie, you've been running all this time? Color me impressed. For me, being pregnant was the perfect excuse not to run. Not that I did it that often anyway, but still.
Love the comments from the kids...
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