While there’s been lots to complain about this pregnancy (YES. I’m puking again. Not everyday, but enough to be miserable.), there’s also been some stuff I HAVEN’T gotten.
My skin looks the best it’s looked in years. Not one pimple the entire pregnancy. Ditto my hair. It’s gotten a lot drier (same for my face) and that’s GOOD for me. My hair looks fantastic.
I haven’t had any “issues” in the area you could have issues in – very common in pregnancy – think low. Not that low. Up a little. YES. There. No issues. Everything’s moving right on schedule thank you very much.
No swelling. No blood pressure issues. No infections. My weight gain has been pretty on target. (I think I can thank the puking for that.)
And up until last night – I was sleeping pretty good.
Usually I fall asleep with the lights and the TV on a bit early and then G comes in and I wake up and pee and take my vitamin, etc. Last night was no different, except when I woke up, all of a sudden I was hit by TERRIBLE heartburn. I took a Pepcid (which I should probably just be taking every day no matter what) and that didn’t really help. I couldn’t lay down. I even went and had an ice pop because it burned so bad. I brought the husband pillow in from the den and tried that but I was so freaking uncomfortable. And hot. This weather is killing me. I’m HAPPY to be pregnant in the winter because it’s COLD out and I’m WARM all the time but NO. I get freaking Spring.
I didn’t fall asleep until 3AM. Caught up on a lot of General Hospital though. My freaking neighbors woke me up at 8 with their new blender. Fucking fantastic.
I’m so cranky today. I’d really LOVE to go to sleep but my bedroom stinks from all the cooking my neighbors do. Now that they have the blender, they can really chop up all those horribly offensive ingredients they use. (You may think I’m exaggerating, but there’s nothing worse than walking into your house – especially your bedroom – and being bombarded with SMELLS. Smells that aren’t yours or your loved ones or anything else you might want to smell. It’s truly awful and nothing we’ve tried works. Dude! Why can’t they bake cookies or something?!?) ETA: We can’t open the windows anymore (not that it helps much) because we sealed them for the winter (something we do routinely – the drafts are HORRIBLE) and for the expected construction.
Also, did I mention we have no water today? Hot or cold? Yup. No water. And the fire alarm blared off and on for two hours last night while I was trying to rest.
I’ve been really busy this week so I never finished my Oblique sleeves and I’m behind on other stuff and time is ticking away.
Sorry for the complaining. I’m just tired. Welcome to the THIRD trimester!?
PS – I’ve picked the Color Contest winners! I’ll announce them as soon as I hear back from the winners. CHECK YOUR SPAM FOLDERS!
Hang in there, girlfriend! Life is gonna get better!
I had RAGING heartburn while pregnant. Sleeping with my head slightly elevated did help. My Dr. Suggested putting bricks or cinder blocks under the bed (head portion only)so I would be sleeping at a slight incline to avoid reflux. I ended up getting a really form bed chair and slept quasi-sitting up. Saved my bacon.
Oy. That’s no fun at all. A bad night’s sleep totally sucks, especially for all of those reasons in one night! You definitely get to be cranky after that. I had horrible heartburn, too (and months of nausea) — couldn’t lie down for hours after eating. Hang in there, and enjoy the unswollen ankles 🙂
A bowl of white vinegar in your room will help absorb some of odors. White vinegar can do wonders. can you open your windows to air out your room?
freeze wet paper towels for 5 minutes and place them on your wrists and neck to cool off.
i am just leaving the first trimester and i swear I pee every 2 hours. the iron in muy vitamins is killing me in the digestive area.
but babies are awesome. I am knitting tons of baby sized ball band wahcloths for the my existing and future kid. thats fun.
For the smell, did you ever try an Air Sponge? You can get them in most supermarkets and they really suck up stinks well, but they do have their own odor that, although mild, does smell a bit like a (clean) public bathroom . . . best thing I ever used for smells, good luck!
I hear you on the smelly bedroom thing! Our next door neighbor cooks a lot and routinely smells up our bedroom. The only time I don’t mind is when they bake bread. But then I want some and I haven’t made friends with them yet, and, well, it’s a pain. But I’m not pregnant, so it must be so much worse for you!! My sympathies!!!
Even if they were baking cookies, there is no guarantee your pregnant tummy could handle it… which probably doesn’t make you feel any better eh? The guy below us recently went through a phase of heavy, heavy pot smoking – our whole apartment stunk of skunk. It was gross – especially walking into our 2 year old daughter’s room in the morning and being hit by the smell!
We are moving.
I know the 3rd trimester FEELS like forever, but this too shall pass 🙂
Just so you know…the _instant_ the kid is born you will no longer be warm at all, but COLD! And I do sympathize….my kid #3 was born on Guam. What was I thinking?! 9 months of hot, hot, and hot!!!
Same issues with menopause! But it’s winter in MD, where I presently live, and menopause serves me well. 8^)
Women have SO MUCH to look forward to!! Ha!
The heartburn – I feel for ya girl. Only time in my life I’ve ever taken a Tums. And I took a lot of them! May your neighbor’s stove blow up – soon!
Awww, bless your heart (burn). You just go ahead and bitch. You’re more than entitled. Then go pet some yarn, it’ll make you feel better.
Oh third trimester is SO not my favorite. Big hugs to you!!!
Oh man! The smell thing! I have a really sensitive sense of smell to begin with, in pregnancy it was so much worse. And I hate the smells of my own cooking in my own house, I would go nuts over somebody else’s. Another reason not to get a condo.
Good luck with the heartburn. I used to swig the maalox or mylanta or whatever right from the bedstand while trying to sleep sitting up. You’re almost there! You go girl!
not so much longer. I have a must-have’s list for you, very small.
After my girl was born the things I really needed where;
Bassinet
Rubbing alcohol, cotton balls and rectal thermometer
Hamper!!
we seriously didn’t use anything else (blankets, diapers and cloths assumed!)
I never need a diaper jenie (target bags hung on the hamper worked fine) and she was mostly allergic to wipes the first 3 months… and she never cared about a wipes warmer when we did use them. You don’t even need a bottle warmer though it’s a nice to have… so much CRAP you don’t really need! I’m glad we didn’t buy too much tho now I have loads of bottles we have never used and I never had time to return.
Oh for diaper rash, Triple Paste is the BEST and the “baby bargains” book is a MUST on amazon.com
If you have any issues breast-feeding (if you choose to do that) please email me, I had some drama and maybe I could help ya and give ya some payback for that lendrum help you gave me. I would say enjoy this last “free” time but having been pregnant recently myself I know thats a load of shit, and everytime someone said “get as much sleep as you can now” as though I COULD sleep well or as though sleep is something you can “tank up” on… hah! GOOD LUCK!!
It’s very telling that I originally read this post title as “Sheepless.”
I’m 34 weeks along, and I’ve had trouble sleeping for months now. My midwives suggested Calms Forte & Valerian Root. I have both, and I try to take one or the other before I go to sleep at night. I still wake up to pee, but I’m groggier than I would normally be without them, so it doesn’t take as long to fall back asleep. You can even take 1 or 2 more when you wake up to pee.
Some nights nothing works, and I’m still up at 3 or 4 for hours. I just try to not get too upset by it, because that makes it worse for me, and it won’t change things. I just lie in bed and try to relax. Sometimes I’ve gotten up and done yoga, taken a warm shower, eaten cereal. I just never, EVER look at the clock!
Oh, and my heartburn was worse when I drank a lot of water before bed– maybe take your vitamins earlier? It’s helped me. (Sometimes I even think my vitamins made it harder for me to sleep at night. I try not to take my second dose past 5 or 6 now.)
Good luck.
Long time lurker, first time poster. I recently had stomach surgery and it resulted in the WORST HEARTBURN I have ever experienced. I delurked to recommend Tums Smoothies – they have been a life saver. I have no tolerance for chalky-tasting stomach medicine but I can use those Tums. Stick with the mint flavored ones. It’s like an after dinner mint that makes all my stomach troubles vanish in about 5 minutes.
Hope this helps!
Your photography just blows me away!!!
A few words on the last trimester – take the vitamin in the morning when you’re upright; use liquid antacid if you can – it coats better. I took it every night before bed. Also, prop yourself up higher.
The last month is not easy, but just think about the reward at the end!!! Such a miracle!
Your Jersey is showing!! Ice pops, classic.
Two suggestions:
For the quesies – take one can of 7-Up (not diet, regular) and put a pinch of salt in there. YES, salt. Sip. It really does work.
For the heartburn – I had SEVERE heartburn with my daughter. The ONLY thing that worked was ICE CREAM (yeah, like I needed an excuse to eat that). Not flavored – just vanilla. I would eat a small bowl of that before bed and no more heartburn.
Beats popping pills.
HOpe this helps.
have you ever heard of lampe berger?
we got one as a wedding gift and it’s great for getting rid of cooking smelliness! you can get scented fuel that leaves your room with a very light fragrance (we have grapefruit!),but if smell is not what you want it actually comes with a small bottle of unscented fuel. it really does work! check it out here:
http://www.lampeberger.com/catalog.aspx
good luck! 🙂
You’ll get back at those smelly, noisy neighbours when you come home with a newborn who wakes them up a couple times a night!
I’m sorry you’re so uncomfortable. Maybe you’re tired of random internet strangers offering medical advice, but I want to suggest you find a good chiropractor – my chiro will move my stomach back into its proper position if it gets torqued. Some of the symptoms of an out-of-place stomach are nausea and heartburn, and that simple adjustment makes a huge difference. I had to have that done just about every other week during pregnancy, since the darn kids pushed it out of place.
Just a suggestion. I hope it works if you decide to give it a try.
So sorry about the neighbors’ stinks! I have a sensitive nose to start with, and when I was pregnant it was a thousand times worse, so I really know what you mean and feel for you! Does eating a piece of bread or some soda crackers help to soak up the acid for you? It might help, along with the antacids.
Hope you’re feeling better soon – hang in there!
I am feeling for you. When I was pregnant with my son, I had terrible heartburn starting in the 5th month. It was literally every single night, and I learned to sleep sitting up (which didn’t help completely, just enough to make me not kill myself).
If the heartburn sticks around, give sleeping upright a few chances – it took almost a week for me but I actually started sleeping pretty well that way. I mean, as well as you can be expected to sleep when you have to go to the bathroom every 2 hours.
Delurking to totally sympathize with you on the heartburn thing – when I was pregnant, I would wake up gasping and choking from the acid reflux. Peanuts seemed to make it particularly bad. It wasn’t the burning so much as the *breathing it in* that freaked me out. And the prescription stuff my OB suggested would only reduce the acid, not the reflux. Lame. If I were prone to such behavior, this is probably the only pregnancy thing that I’ll ever hold over my child’s head: “I almost drowned in my sleep because of you!”
When my sister was pregnant, someone recommended papaya to her for heartburn. Apparently there is some enzyme in it that relieves things. I think it helped her. Worth a try, and I guess fruit is better than pills any day.
My first pregnancy was a piece of cake, mostly, but I had 8 months of heartburn with Miss B. Ginger tea helped. (Yeah, I know I’m not supposed to tell you that, but it did.) Hope you feel better.
I just entered the second trimester, and I have heartburn ALL THE TIME. It doesn’t matter what I eat, if I elevate or not, it just doesn’t go away. Tums and a little milk helps a bit, but not long term. Mostly I just live with it.
You got lucky with the skin issues – I broke out all the time during the first three months. I’m jealous!
I had heartburn the entire time, but I’m told that m y daughters awesome hair comes from those months of heartburn 😉 (she’s 4 months and wearing clips to keep the hair out of her eyes. You can not see her scalp. Her hair is the first thing people comment on when they see her. She has more hair than my 7 year old.) I guess I can be grateful to the heartburn 😉
Btw: breastmilk is awesome for everything, rash, stuffy noses, blocked tear ducts,… put some breastmilk on it and it’ll be gone in a day. Also: No washing and sterilizing bottles, no crying hungry baby while you’re in the grocery store or wherever, no getting up in the middle of the night to fix a bottle… And let’s not forget: cleavage! Finally, no more A-cups for me 😉
Major sympathy vibes. I’m in a building with central air, so yeah I get to share the smells of many people. And even when they are nice smells, it still gets you on overload when you can’t get away. And fire alarm – dude, totally hear you.
My sympathy on the sleeplessness. And empathy! I am 5 months pregnant and I have been very lucky at avoiding most nasty symptoms, but I have been having the WORST SLEEPS of my life! Can’t fall asleep, can’t stay asleep, can’t get back to sleep. Good luck with this new development…
I don’t blame you for being cranky–you have every right! Do you share a wall with your neighbors? If so, some of the smells might be coming through your wall sockets. There are special blockers you can get for those. Worth a try. I used them in my last apartment and it helped.
Oh, the heartburn! I had that with my son and it was awful:( Papaya enzyme did help if I remembered to take it on a regular basis. Also, Tums smoothies were a lifesaver when I needed antacid. Mostly because they didn’t taste like crap. Also, I found that if I ate and had a glass of milk right before bed I didn’t wake up in the night with heartburn as much.
Ugh-I’m at 5 months right now and the sleepless thing SUCKS too. I bought one of those weird snoogle pillows because everything was achy and it seems like it will work once I figure out the best position.
I had really bad acid reflux before pregnancy (it seems like the only thing that has gone away) and I just want to tell you that my gastro doctor told me that Tums are actually really counterproductive for acid. Apparently it just eliminates the acid (but doesn’t shut down the acid making pumps like pepcid or the prescription stuff), and your stomach ends up making even more acid to compensate.
Feel better!
I’m so sorry you’re feeling awful. Buck up lil’ camper. Good thing I am 3000 MILES AWAY FROM YOU or I’d get a fist to the head for that one. I do hope the heartburn goes away. bleh.
I think it’s great you’re doing what you’re doing. Because, I think it will take a million years for me to be grown up enough to have kids and that’s more than my lifespan. We’re enjoying being the crazy bohemian (HAHAHAHAHA, not exactly) aunt and uncle.
Nothing I tell ya again Nothing is worse than the smell of your husband’s golf bag when your pregnant
okay this is gonna sound really weird but my mom passed this on to me when i had wicked heartburn during my first pregnancy and it worked so give it a go if you like. get a container of yogurt, scoop out a spoonful or two. in a while (day or so?) some liquid (yogurt water?) will collect in the container where you scooped out the previous spoonfuls. drink that yogurt water. really, it worked for me–maybe just having my mom say it would did the trick…whatever the case, feel well.
Oh, Heavens! I had horrible heartburn with Girlie, who is not almost 20. It was THAT bad. And I puked all the same..even in the parking lot at the hospital. But I DID have fun raising my babies (23 and almost 20). In fact, the heartburn was worse than the labor. All 37 hours of it was a breeze, since I can vividly remember the heartburn and barely can remember the labor. (I do, however, vividly remember MOST of the past 20 years.)
My Girlie. She’s a keeper.
I hear you. Yes I had heartburn. I slept in my husband’s lazyboy and watched a lot of late night Elvis movies.
Suellen is very astute. I agree with the vitamin with breakfast. And Renee is right about the stinky neighbors waiting for the surprise of a crying baby. Just imagine how your beautiful baby smells will infringe on their cooking.
I remember that time in my life. . . twice. At least you look beautiful, even though you feel cruddy at times! 🙂
When my sister was pregnant with her first child, she called me crying one afternoon because she “couldn’t leave the house.” I asked her why and she responded, “I’m afraid I’m going to injure someone with the flames shooting out of my CHEST!!!” I thought that was sooooo funny until I was pregnant. Heartburn was a daily occurance. What helped me was a spoonful of creamy peanut butter. Of course I stunk like peanuts after that, but I didn’t care. I began sleeping in a recliner or really propped-up on our couch so that I wasn’t laying on my back.
The other rotten thing that happened to me was that the taste and smell of the toothpaste that we were using made me throw-up. Let’s think, what do you want to do after throwing-up??? That’s right, brush your teeth to rid yourself of that stanky taste; but wait it will make you ill again. After testing numerous brand I finally discovered one that didn’t make me ill. To this day, the smell of my original toothpaste makes me feel ill.
On the plus side, someday you will be smiling happily at thoughts of your own pregnancy trials and tribulations while enjoying your beautiful child. One day you will even be able to share your wacky pregnancy stories with others and find them quite amusing.
Hope you feel better soon.
Diane
Not to totally annoy you, but my upright air cleaner from Wal-Mart (HEPA, “permanent” vacuumable filter, made by Therapure) is absolutely worth its weight in gold.
Take your Pepcid, dear. 🙂
I am in my fourth month. One of the worst things about pregnancy is the increased sensitivity to smells. I nearly died flying back and forth to Texas to visit my brother, from all of the offensive odors coming from my airplane seat neighbors. I can only imagine what you are going through with those cooking neighbors!
Heartburn…yeah, been there. Babies were born with lots of hair. I second the recommendation to take those pills in the morning and if they pills really begin to bother you (they had too much iron for me) Flintstone chewables are a good substitute. Also, try not to eat late in the evening and definitely keep your head elevated at night. Tums are your friend.
I think the up at night, uncomfortable, not quite rested bit in the third trimester is to get you ready for when the baby is born. Keep it in perspective (ha) and know that it is not much longer and the results are well worth the discomfort.
I fell you on the heartburn- by the second trimester I was taking about 20 Tums a day, and sleeping sitting up completely. It totally goes away as soon as that baby is out, though!
Good luck!
I hear you about smells! When we lived in an apartment, there was a smoker next door and the smell would seep in through the ventilation…ugh…to have to smell anything that you don’t choose to is so annoying!
Take Care! (try slipping cookie recipes under their door?)
Papaya pills were the only thing that worked for my pregnancy heartburn — and they were magical. Looked and tasted like chewable vitamins. Back in the day we had to get them at a health food store, but I think any market with a good vitamin section has them now.
Hon you’re in the homestretch now. The only advice I have is once you get to the point where you think you can’t take it anymore. You’ll have the baby, really:D
GH is kind of good at the moment no? I’m loving Diane and Alexis as Thelma and Louise.
For heartburn and indigestion, use ginger, such as tea, paul newman ginger mints, candied ginger. Eat less at night, but drink a glass of whole milk and have some yogurt. It helps to settle things. There isn’t much you can do until Baby comes, but ginger helps. Those over-the-counter things aren’t helpful because they actually cause the acid that gives you the heartburn. (sorry) Acidophilus works too. You can buy tablets (strawberry is best) and chew on them throughout the day. I know everybody gives advice, but I do speak from lots of experience. Louise
Oh crap I missed the contest. wah wah wah
just preparing you 😉 Sure hope you feel better and I’ll throw in a big wish for the neighbors to move. Very. Far. Away.
I feel for you, too! Late pregnancy was the only time I suffered from heartburn and leg cramps (oops, maybe I shouldn’t have mentioned that second one).
At least they’re not permanent conditions!
I hear ya on the smells thing. I hate strong odors of any sort. I hope some of the above suggestions work for you.
I cannot recommend the papaya pills enough. I have 4 kids and that’s almost the only thing I miss about being pregnant — getting to take papaya pills.
I had bad reflux the last three pregnancies. I took a lot of Tums, but sometimes MINT is what aggravates it, so if that happens to you, try the fruit flavors instead.
The reflux will disappear the moment the baby is out. 🙂
Have you seen the new Febreze candles? Might be worth a try. Sorry about the neighbors.
the only, only thing for acid reflux during my pregnancies: gaviscon. ugh. i don’t even like to type it.
Hey! hang in there – sorry about the smells – I’ve never been pregnant, but my aunt was last year and we could hardly go anywhere to eat, she was so sensitive to smells!
Also, I’m knitting up Oblique right now too! Coincidence 🙂 I love reading your blog – feel better soon 🙂
Looks like we have some cold weather heading our way (I’m in CT). That should help with the cooling off and you can always eat snow for heartburn. (ewww…)
Anyways, as my husband says “If you don’t have milk and eggs when it snows out, you die!” so make sure you join the mad rush to the grocery store.
I feel for you. you sound as miserable as I was the night the heat went on in the hospital. I was there for 2 months b/c of preterm labor and didn’t want to give up my room for fear that I might not get it back again. I spent the night extremely hot and sweaty. and then the nurse WOULDN’T SHUT UP after my 4 am dose of medication and let me go back to sleep. I feel for you.
the 3rd trimester is when your body prepares you for the lack of sleep that is on its way to you. Amazingly, you get used to it, and can function better than you would expect on interrupted sleep.
sorry about the puking and cooking smells.
oh, if you ever have that other pregnancy (and post pregnancy) issue, I have an amazing granola recipe I can share with you. Its really good, and it WORKS.
Oh I am so sorry you are uncomfortable and tired. Will you promise to take naps whenever you can fit them in?
I’m so sorry you’re having reflux and suffering the odors of your stinky neighbors.
This is going to sound lame, but when I have bedtime reflux I suck on a peppermint and that usually relieves it. I mean, I can go to sleep with the peppermint lodged in my cheek and its dissolved in a few hours. But it really does get rid of the icky taste and keeps the stuff from burping up.
Also, I just can’t eat anything after 6:00 or so in the evening or I get bedtime reflux.
Good luck finding a solution to your problems, and know it will be worth it when your baby is born! Peace!