The Highs and Lows of My Second Trimester

I officially hit my third trimester a week ago!!! I can’t even believe it. On one hand it feels like it’s going so fast and on the other I am so excited to meet our baby boy it feels like it is taking forever. My second trimester brought on a lot of new experiences. I thought I’d do a little recap of what I’ve been going through these past few months.

Maroon Knee Length Maternity Dress (multiple color options)

BABY BOY’S SIZE

My first ultrasound at 20 weeks showed that this baby boy is a little chunker. He was measuring 8 days ahead of schedule. They wanted me to come back for an ultrasound at 24 weeks to monitor his weight. Sure enough he’s getting even bigger. At 24 weeks he was measuring 10 days ahead of schedule. Now I know these measurements can be pretty arbitrary and babies go through growth spurts at different times. I’d be lying though if I didn’t say that when they told me they wanted to schedule a third ultrasound at 32 weeks to make sure he’s not getting “too big” I freaked out a little inside. My mind immediately jumped to trying to deliver a 10 pound baby. Eek! My OB reassured me that babies tend to follow the maternal line. Since both my brothers were in the 6 pound range and I was in the 7 pound range, my fingers are crossed. It might mean that he even makes an early appearance, but time will tell.

THE NOT SO COOL SYMPTOMS

Vitamin D Deficiency

This baby boy is sucking up all my Vitamin D. At my most recent OB appointment they looked at the blood work and put me on supplements. I’m thankful I can easily take supplements to help. While they haven’t kicked in quite yet, I am looking forward to when they do. It’s been such a joy to get more energy back from the first trimester, but the lack of Vitamin D results in good days and bad days. On the good days I get a workout in and try to keep the blood moving. On the bad days, I curl up with a book for the evening and relax.

Back Pain

I started with lower back pain pretty early on. Everyone keeps telling me that I’m not showing that much for how far along I am. My mom said that when she was pregnant with me she showed the least even though I was born the biggest, because I was favoring her back. I have a feeling that is exactly what’s happening with him. Part of the back pain is probably because he’s favoring my back.

Lack of Sleep

My first symptom before I tested positive was the constant urgency to pee. That feeling has never gone away. I still get up 3-6 times a night to pee. The growing belly has added an additional challenge of getting comfortable at night to sleep. The lack of sleep and working full time has had its challenging moments. I definitely have a newfound appreciation for all the hard working mamas out there! It takes a lot of energy and somehow we all pull through it.

Heartburn and Indigestion

I have never experienced heartburn or indigestion until I got pregnant. It seems the bigger he gets, the more he pushes my stomach and everything upwards and this is a daily occurrence now. Tums haven’t been a huge help for me and I have a weird reaction to them where they change my taste buds. I’ve found that cinnamon helps to neutralize the acid and mints have helped a lot too.

Swelling

So far, the only swelling I’ve experiences has been in my fingers. It’s been off and on, but becoming more of an occurrence. I think I’ve finally hit the point where I need to invest in a silicone wedding band to get me through the next few months.

Pregnancy Brain

I debated on adding this one. Not because I’m not experiencing it, but because it is so insanely embarrassing. I have become beyond forgetful. I’m not just talking about leaving a room and forgetting what I was went in there for (which has happened multiple times). I’m talking about much bigger things. For instance, my husband and I went out to dinner for date night. I was in the process of closing down my old bank account, but needed to wait for my job to fix my direct deposit to our joint account (this took 7 months! Ridiculous). I never changed my last name from my maiden name on my old bank account since I knew I’d be closing it. I paid for our dinner that night with my account and when I went to sign the bill I stopped after my first name. Like deer in headlights stopped. I completely FORGOT how to sign my maiden last name. I couldn’t believe it. A last name I had been signing my entire life just vanished from my fingertips and memory. Pregnancy brain is a real thing ladies. I’m telling you.

THE PRETTY COOL SYMPTOMS

My Skin

My skin has never been clearer. The first trimester brought a lot of acne with all the hormones, but I don’t break out at all anymore. I am absolutely loving having flawless skin right now. I know it probably won’t stay, but I am enjoying every second of it while I can.

Those Little Kicks

I don’t know if I’d exactly call this a symptom, but being able to feel my baby boy move around every single day is really amazing. My husband finally felt him move a few weeks ago and that was so exciting. It makes it all that much more real and I can’t wait to finally meet him.

THINGS I MISS

Giving up things you can’t have while pregnant isn’t a huge sacrifice. The more time that passes the more I start to realize how much I miss them though. A few of the things I miss include charcuterie boards, sushi, eggs benedict (turns out hollandaise sauce is made with raw egg), and craft beer. As a huge foodie, I’m already planning to indulge on all these items within days of delivery. I see it as a great way to treat myself after going through delivery and one more thing to look forward to in addition to the arrival of our baby boy!

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