Today I entered the third trimester – it really doesn’t feel like that long ago that it seemed ages away. Another mum at pregnancy yoga (a week behind me) was saying that when we started and met the ‘bigger’ mums they seemed so big and now we’re at that stage. I’ve got one more week in the group I’m in now then I move up to the big mummy class!
I’ve struggled a lot more over the last week too, just generally moving about and also trying to settle in the evenings/in bed. I don’t know why but I always assumed that it was in the last few weeks that you felt huge and couldn’t really move but trying to get out and about last weekend proved quite difficult. I swear it takes me twice as long to get anywhere these days and when I get out of bed or off the bus it feels like everything has seized up. It probably doesn’t help that I skipped yoga last week.
There are a few unpleasant sides of pregnancy that I feel like no-one warned me about – leaky, crusty nipples starting midway through the pregnancy (classy, I know!) was the first one that threw me but now I have the added bonus of feeling like I’ve been kicked between the legs! Recent conversations with other mums suggested that it’s the weight of the baby pushing down but tonight’s yoga session threw up the idea that it could be the public bone already softening and opening up ready for birth. My yoga instructor also suggested seeing a chiropractor. I’ll run it by the midwife when I see her tomorrow – we have an appointment after our last antenatal class.
Speaking of which, last week’s session was all about breastfeeding – the benefits (some of which the boyfriend was quite skeptical about but you can’t deny others – savings, bonding, etc) and how to. I’d like to breastfeed for the first six months if possible but I won’t be beating myself up over it if it doesn’t work out. I didn’t know that if you do this the baby can often reject the bottle when you try to wean him/her after, so I’m planning on expressing from six weeks – just enough so that we can introduce a bottle a day. That gives the boyfriend a chance to spend some more time with him and also means the transition to just bottles will be easier. Plus it gives me a break if I fancy going to yoga or back to roller derby,
I can’t believe tomorrow is already our last antenatal class! I always thought that I’d come away from it feeling completely prepared, so I’ll let you know how I feel next week! In the meantime, we have another midwife appointment, where I should get the results of my GTT (check out my epic bruise below! I have deep veins and bruise like a peach, so blood tests are always eventful!) and have to have another routine blood test, plus I’m booked in for my whooping cough vaccine on Wednesday. A couple of the yoga girls have had some iffy reactions but I know it’s worth it. It’ll just be my fourth needle in ten days! Joy!
Following my struggles over the weekend, I made the decision to go on maternity leave a bit earlier. I thought that I’d be fine working in a desk job until 38 weeks but it turns out that even sitting down all day is knackering! Whodda thunk it? Anyway, I sat down with my Line Manager and decided to take maternity leave from 38 weeks as originally planned but take two weeks of holiday beforehand (my contract is being extended, which means more holiday to come) and work shorter days towards the end. That’ll massively help as my last four working weeks will see me commuting for longer periods, as we’re moving in less than a month. It’s not the end of the world and I’m happy to do it when I go bsck to work next year but I know it’ll take its toll when I’m fatter and more tired.
Ooh, I also went shopping in Plymouth last weekend for bits for myself and the baby, so I’ll be sharing pics from my mini splurge in the next couple of days. I’m really looking forward to moving and sorting out the baby’s room!