Pregnancy's Best Kept Secrets

Snaggles

joanne0620 wrote:

No-one ever tells you that you are not really pregnant for 9 months, it's actually 9 years! :eek: 39 weeks today and still no sign of any action I feel like I have been pregnant for ever!!!!

I know the feeling - I swear I'm going to start pushing at 38 weeks regardless of contractions this time!! :rotfl: :rotfl:

(I am joking, just in case my midwife is reading lol)

Thriftylady

No one ever told me that I would still be hopelessly soppy, even long after the hormones should be back to normal. My pregnancy hormones should have died down by now, but even watching a hospital drama on TV, (which obviously I know is made up!), I was reduced to tears as a character had to have an emergency C-section. My OH was nearly reduced to tears too, of laughter in his case, as I sniffled into my hanky 'but look, she's so scared, I know what she feels like'........to which he, rather exasperated, replied 'er...she's acting....'

gravitytolls

joanne0620 wrote:

No-one ever tells you that you are not really pregnant for 9 months, it's actually 9 years! :eek: 39 weeks today and still no sign of any action I feel like I have been pregnant for ever!!!!

Any news yet Joanne?

iwanttosave_2

djtonyb wrote:

Forgot to add:

Your body thermostat goes to pot (was initially told 1 year but still suffering 2 1/2 years l8r) - your permanently HOT :rolleyes:

i got that, I was going round in the middle of december in a T-shirt :rotfl:

Joanne must have laboured by now :j

abijanzo

Pregnancy:

That Severe Morning Sickness (Hyperemisis) cannot be treated with a ginger biscuit and a travel wristband and does not disappear at 12 weeks!

That your belly resembles a scene from alien when your baby stretches/moves.

It can take in excess of 25 mins to produce a poo the size of a raisin.

That heartburn really does burn! and is not a minor discomfort. That you can consume a gallon of Gaviscon a day and they make it in industrial size bottles.

That in the latter stages of pregnancy you can literally feel like your baby could fall out any minute whilst walking around Asda.

That you really cant get away with just a pair of jogging bottoms one size up from your usual size as maternity wear.

That your husband suddenly smells constantly like tomato soup and the smell of his (usually perfectly sweet smelling) breath can make you retch from a distance of 3ft!

That having all bedroom windows open in Februaury and no heating on in the house still feels like youre living in a sauna.

You consume more ice lolly's in a few months than you did in your entire childhood!

They take so many blood samples from you that you wonder why they dont just abandon the donor scheme and use pregnant womens samples to supply the nation instead.

Birth

That you dont actually have to be induced unless you agree to it.

That induction isnt just a quicker way to get the baby out and actually takes you from nought to ninety in the pain stakes.

Once your waters have ruptured (or been ruptured) you no longer have the nice watery cushion around the baby and those 'cute' kicks can become agonising pains in your ribs...and incidentally the epidural doesnt extend to your ribs!

That an episiotomy feels similar to the sensation you get when cutting a chicken breast with kitchen scissors...with one quite major difference!

That consultant surgeons really should take needlecraft lessons as my stitches were so appaling (think big notts) that the midwife nearly cried for me when she saw them at 10 days post birth!

That you can vomit and nearly fall off your bed after giving birth due to the syndometrine injection making your blood pressure fall through the floor.

Afterwards:

That maternity wards are not serene places and sleep is impossible.

That your breasts will be man-handled by more women than a lesbian !!!!!!-star whilst clumsy midwives try to 'help' you to establish breast feeding.

That it shouldnt take 2 hours to express half an ounce of milk and that this may indicate a problem!

and most importantly..........

That the love you have for your little one will overwhelm you like nothing else in this world....and despite all of the above I am again pregnant (10 weeks), again with severe HG but knowing it will all be worth it....

and this time I'm a little wiser and a little more prepared!

gelato_cat

Lovin the stories!!! I'm really shocked about certain things - like people getting busy in the maternity ward! How rude!

I know this might seem like a funny question, but what happens to your boobs after you've had a baby? I know they get really big but do they shrink after you've finished breastfeeding? What happens if you don't breastfeed? Is it just time that makes them sag or does having kids/breastfeeding accelerate the process?

Suze

sooz

Suzey wrote:

Lovin the stories!!! I'm really shocked about certain things - like people getting busy in the maternity ward! How rude!

I know this might seem like a funny question, but what happens to your boobs after you've had a baby? I know they get really big but do they shrink after you've finished breastfeeding? What happens if you don't breastfeed? Is it just time that makes them sag or does having kids/breastfeeding accelerate the process?

Suze

NO NO NO NO don't tell me, as i don't want to know. i have the most amazing boobs at the moment....i'm getting wolf whistles from people in space, they are that big :j :j .

i don't want to hear that they get all saggy after, i'm breastfeeding til he leaves home......................:D

Becles

When I had my first, my boobs were a cup size larger but not saggy.

After my second, they went a cup size smaller and still not saggy.

I'm on my third now, so hoping for non-saggyness again!

My tummy stayed saggy though. Got like an empty flap of skin that never spung back. It doesn't look nice in the nude, but you can't tell when I've got clothes on so it's not too bad. I even manage to wear a high waisted bikini and tuck it in, and it doesn't look bad.

sarymclary

Suzey wrote:

I know this might seem like a funny question, but what happens to your boobs after you've had a baby? I know they get really big but do they shrink after you've finished breastfeeding? What happens if you don't breastfeed? Is it just time that makes them sag or does having kids/breastfeeding accelerate the process?

Suze

I b'fed all 4 of my boys, and I worked out that it was something in the region of 6/7 years all toll! :eek: That said, they still point in the right direction, and have no inclination towards the floor.

Yes, your boobs are absolutely amazing during pregnancy. They're even more amazing about 3 days after birth , but you won't let a soul go near them because they're so rock solid full of milk. I don't think it's the actual pregnancy/breatfeeding itself that can ruin your boobage, but the lack of substantial and properly fitted bras. That goes for BEFORE and after pregnancy you know.

The worst breasts I have ever seen were on a close friend of mine, aged 35, with no children. She had to have an op to sort them out, but they were like those of an 80 year old tribeswoman, and it was all down to yo-yo dieting and dreadfully fitted bras.

If you don't choose/aren't able to b'feed, once the milk has 'dried' up, your boobs will go back to pretty much their pre-pregnancy state. Varying experiences of going up/down cup sizes, but if your weight stays much the same, the rest of you should too is a rule of thumb.

The best advice I can give you is go to somewhere like John Lewis, or a reputable lingerie retailer to be professionally fitted, and more than once during pregnancy as they grow, and also after birth, as they can be different again. I wore a night-time bra too, and still either wear one at night now, or a lycra vest top, which gives them some support. Once the muscle wall behind the boobs has gone, it can't really be retrieved again, so look after your assets girls!

By the way, your boobs can still have a small amount of milk in them a year or more after stopping feeding, and you can successfully restart feeding weeks after stopping, if you want to. Saved myself a bundle on formula and follow on milks over the years, and it was so rewarding. Lucky me!

gelato_cat

Thanks for the info! Looks like I was wrong when I thought pregnancy and childbirth ruined your boobs (apart from the fact your areolae get massive and your nipples get bigger).

Some of the stories in this thread have scared me though - but I'm glad I read it cos I learnt a few things!!!

Now, where's my Microgynon... :rolleyes:

Suze

sarymclary wrote:

I b'fed all 4 of my boys, and I worked out that it was something in the region of 6/7 years all toll! :eek: That said, they still point in the right direction, and have no inclination towards the floor.

Yes, your boobs are absolutely amazing during pregnancy. They're even more amazing about 3 days after birth , but you won't let a soul go near them because they're so rock solid full of milk. I don't think it's the actual pregnancy/breatfeeding itself that can ruin your boobage, but the lack of substantial and properly fitted bras. That goes for BEFORE and after pregnancy you know.

The worst breasts I have ever seen were on a close friend of mine, aged 35, with no children. She had to have an op to sort them out, but they were like those of an 80 year old tribeswoman, and it was all down to yo-yo dieting and dreadfully fitted bras.

If you don't choose/aren't able to b'feed, once the milk has 'dried' up, your boobs will go back to pretty much their pre-pregnancy state. Varying experiences of going up/down cup sizes, but if your weight stays much the same, the rest of you should too is a rule of thumb.

The best advice I can give you is go to somewhere like John Lewis, or a reputable lingerie retailer to be professionally fitted, and more than once during pregnancy as they grow, and also after birth, as they can be different again. I wore a night-time bra too, and still either wear one at night now, or a lycra vest top, which gives them some support. Once the muscle wall behind the boobs has gone, it can't really be retrieved again, so look after your assets girls!

By the way, your boobs can still have a small amount of milk in them a year or more after stopping feeding, and you can successfully restart feeding weeks after stopping, if you want to. Saved myself a bundle on formula and follow on milks over the years, and it was so rewarding. Lucky me!