Second Trimester Recap

Wow, I am officially in the third trimester as of yesterday. Which is crazy and sort of unbelievable and I am beyond thankful. Every kick I feel (which is a lot, this little one is very active) is a reminder of this sweet life I'm carrying and the privilege it is to be pregnant and carry life. By the time this babe is brought into this world my body will have carried and grown and birth three entire human beings. By the way my boobs have been leaking all the time, I am assuming that I will be able to nurse this one as long as I did my boys if not longer. In this time of "Holy cow, you are 12 to 14 weeks away from giving birth" I feel the switch in my brain switch into nesting mode. I never felt a significant "nesting" feeling in my last pregnancy but rather spent the entirety of it preparing for their arrival. This time I haven't thought much about it until now. I feel the time slipping away in which I am able to do all that I feel needs to be done. People will tell you, "The nursery doesn't need to be done, all you need is diapers, wipes, clothes, blankets, and a feeding method" that IS true. But also it's insensitive. If it would bring you more peace and calm for your baby's nursery to be complete and to have picked out a swing, them do so. I am in full on, let's get everything done now. I'll probably be bored senseless by the time March rolls around and I begin waiting on labor to start. (Though I am saving specific tasks for this time to keep me busy while I wait.) That is, if I still get to go into labor spontaneously rather than be induced. Trying to accept all possible birth methods at this time as you really never know.

That was a long intro about what I'm experiencing now to tell you what I experienced in the previous three months.

Let's start with how I felt in the second trimester.

First, I felt significantly better. The nausea and upset stomach abated rather quickly (can't remember by what week exactly, but around 13 or 14 weeks). I also felt my energy come back. That nasty first trimester fog gradually lifted and I began to feel more human again. Unlike my last pregnancy I did not have any sciatic pain this time and still haven't which is a hug blessing. One thing I remember clearly is for sure feeling babe move for the first time. I was sitting on my knees in my boys room cleaning up after them and I felt a flutter at 12 weeks. I knew it couldn't be anything else but a tiny one rolling around in there. That was very exciting and comforting to watch out for. A symptom that popped up like an old enemy was good ol heart burn. Tums quickly became my BFF. That symptom has stuck around. I started leaking colostrum around 18 weeks which I was very excited about. I remember hitting 16 weeks and thinking, "I had started leaking by this time already last pregnancy. What if I can't breastfeed again?" but I reminded myself all things happened earlier with my twin pregnancy. Finally I saw the liquid gold and felt relief. It has since increased and I will have to start catching it soon, haha.

Physically and mentally I felt better in the second trimester. I felt like I could handle my home and my children so much better again. I didn't feel quite as emotional. Until November that is. I came down with a cold right after Thanksgiving, which was nothing I couldn't handle. But after a week I still didn't feel better while other members of my family were over the cold already. I decided to wait until one day I woke up with horrible pain in my face and jaw and realized I probably had a sinus infection. I was trying to avoid antibiotics while pregnant and thought I could let it take its course. However after almost a month of being sick I was struggling hard both physically and mentally. I would have one good day and the next I'd have to quit on life. I would crawl into bed as soon as my kids fell asleep for their naps and just sleep and or cry. I remember one day I cried the entire drive to Wal-Mart, and through hobby lobby as well. This is when I started to worry deeply about myself. I had an appointment and knew I was going to ask for some meds to help me get over this, but it took almost a week to get the prescription. By the time I finally got my antibiotics, I was in such a dark place mentally. Crying all the time, feeling fatigued, barely able to keep up with anything, and feeling the desire to withdraw from my friends and socializing. I decided if I didn't feel better psychically and mentally after the antibiotics I would talk to my doctor about perinatal depression. Thankfully I started feeling better physically and mentally and currently don't feel like I am struggling with depression. I am still checking in regularly with myself to make sure I am okay. It gave me a lot of empathy for people with chronic illness, as I can't imagine feeling awful all the time physically with no end in sight. That would cause depression without a doubt.

Overall my second trimester felt great and I am so thankful for a continually healthy baby. I had two anatomy scans and got to see our sweet babe. We had a blood test around 11 weeks that told us we are having a baby GIRL and the ultrasound confirmed it. Truly an answered prayer. The entire time leading up to the test results I this feeling that it was a girl, whenever I thought about the baby I thought of a girl. It just seemed to me that a girl is what our family was meant to have next. It is interesting that the Lord gave me some premonition during each pregnancy. I had a gut feeling the first time I would have boys, and the second time I felt that we would have a girl. I am so excited to see her soon.

Soon I will share all of the things I am doing in the third trimester to prepare for birth. The countdown begins. I know the next three months will go by so fast.