Lets talk about pregnancy

 Hi Friends,

Thank you for those that have stuck around so far. I have so much more to talk about and this is a wonderful platform for us to get together and have an open book discussion. You can also head over to my instagram 'mumslifeinwords' to join in on some more fun!

Now, lets talk about pregnancy. 

For some of us, seeing that double line on the test can be a thrilling yet frightening experience. Thrilling because of the thought of bringing a child into the world, someone you're going to love unconditionally. Frightening because, well because you are bringing a child into the world. A little human who is going to solely depend on you. Physically, mentally and emotionally depend on you 24/7/365. There are no days off. No break times. No lunch hour. No salary. It's all on you. A full time job some may call it.

As the news of being pregnant started to sink in for me, I was already experiencing the dreaded first trimester symptoms. If you were lucky enough to have skipped these symptoms then pat yourself on the back because the nausea was vicious. Even before doing a test, the nausea hit me like a tonne of bricks. Of course, once the test confirmed my suspicions the vomiting started almost immediately. Ladies, we need to stop the world from calling it morning sickness. It is FAR from morning sickness. It is all day sickness. No, it is all day and night sickness. For those who can relate, I would love to know when yours subsided. We are always told by 12 weeks this will clear. The people lie. With my first, it didn't stop well into 5 months. My sickness with the twins lasted until 4 months. Babies 1 - 0 Momma

Following from the first trimester nausea came the second trimester pelvic girdle pain, also associated with symphisis pubis disorder (SPD). Walking, turning, sleeping all disrupted from this pain. They say it is caused by stiffness in your joints (thanks Google) but to me it felt like my babies were playing tricks on me. Sitting on all types of nerves and dancing around inside just to see me squirm. Babies 2 - 0 Momma.

Then came third trimester. Oh hello there. Final stretch. What have you got for me now? Swollen feet... check. Heartburn... check. Hernia... check. Not to mention, peeing every 15 minutes whilst waddling in pain from the SPD. Babies 3 - 0 Momma

Now I know everyones pregnancy is different and some people may have it better, some may have it worse. But I think we can all agree on one thing. Labour day is Hooray day. No matter how you delivered, what problems you faced during labour and delivery. Ultimately, seeing your baby for the first time makes all of it worth it, wouldn't you agree? This is when I realised Momma won.

But let us not forget the 4th trimester. The moments after your little one/s have arrived. The 4th trimester is described as the first 12 weeks after your baby/babies are born. You go through extreme emotional and physical change whilst trying to adjust to a new lifestyle with a newborn. Those first gruelling weeks of leaking and sore boobs, post partum bleeding, healing from delivery, lack of sleep are definitely hard. The UK paternity system is not great at all in supporting new mothers, so some of you may relate in the fact that you are left on your own after the 2 weeks paternity leave are up. This change again can present even more hardship, especially if you don't have much support from friends and family. I found with my firstborn my pride would take over and I would never accept help as I didn't want people to think I cannot cope. However, after having my twins, I was not shy to accept help from anyone and everyone. My friends would offer to take my toddler out so I could catch up on rest whilst the twins nap. Although resting was usually unachievable as they were on separate feeding schedules at the time and feeding every 2 hours so I was essentially feeding every hour. I still accepted this help with open arms. Goodbye pride. My mental health was far more important. Also knowing my son was going to be entertained and not glued to a screen watching Blippi was also very reassuring. 

Overall, I can proudly say that all of the above was worth every sleepless, pained day just to have my boys here with me today happy and healthy. Pregnancy isn't always rose tinted glasses, but our kids are.

All the best,

Momma