That’s me!

Some people seem to love being pregnant.  They report seeing a glow in their skin and fullness in their hair, a spring in their step, a special warm feeling as they grow life inside them while they smugly fulfil their evolutionary purpose.  I tend to think those women are either lying or recounting their pregnancy in retrospect with a sprinkling of false memory syndrome brought on by the passage of time! However, I think its only fair to acknowledge that not everyone feels the same.  It’s a bit of a taboo to say that you don’t love being pregnant, people automatically assume that you are ungrateful, that you don’t “deserve to be pregnant” and that you are being disrespectful to those who are trying to or are sadly unable to get pregnant. But, being someone who doesn’t “Love” being pregnant, I think its ok to admit that too!

For some women, their dislike of being pregnant is related to being afflicted with every pregnancy-related symptom known to man.  Morning Sickness or even Hyperemisis Gravidarum (which can lead to hospitalisation and a stint on a drip) haunts many women for a seemingly never ending 12 weeks. For others it can last until 16 or 17 weeks, and for a small minority, it does not end until the birth of their baby.

SPD, Sciatica or general back ache are other relatively common problems that can range from twinges when you turn in bed at night, to being confined to a wheelchair for the remainder of the pregnancy.

Carpel Tunnel Syndrome, Restless Leg Syndrome, pins and needles and other aches and pains can make the last few months of pregnancy unbearable as there is no satisfactory cure for these ailments.

Piles and Constipation hound the average pregnant lady/woman from the first weeks of pregnancy and the former visitor is often reluctant to back off even after the birth!

Swelling- on the face, ankles, and hands is very common in the last trimester and can be upsetting if you are forced to remove your wedding ring and buy bigger shoes for your expanding and sore feet.

Depression or anxiety are not so common, but nonetheless debilitating for many women/ladies who are unable to enjoy any of their pregnancy and have trouble with sleeping and leading a normal life.

Medical problems like Pre-Eclampsia and Obstetric Cholestasis can be not only worrying and upsetting if they lead to hospitalisation, but also terrifying if they develop into life threatening situations.

However, whilst you may be lucky and have a very straight-forward and problem-free pregnancy, you still (like me) may not enjoy being pregnant.  Apart from nausea and extreme tiredness for the first trimester and then hideous self-inflicted indigestion brought on daily by over-consumption of toast, my last pregnancy, and this one so far (touch wood) have been free of any problems or major symptoms.  I was blessed with normal blood pressure, a small bump, little weight gain, no back pain, few problems sleeping, no waddling, no piles, no swelling… But yet, I still do not like being pregnant.

Whilst I am overjoyed and consider myself extremely blessed to have had one baby and now to be carrying another, I do not like being pregnant and here is why…..

Everyday I feel like I am operating at only 80% capacity – in terms of both energy and brain power! I am not especially tired or mentally challenged, I just feel weary!  I feel out of sorts and I don’t feel like my usual self, more like a faded version of the person I normally am!

I miss my 7 o clock glass of wine, and begrudge my husband having a drink or five when he gets home from work.  I find drunken friends unfunny and boring.  In fact, I have found that pregnancy makes me watch how much the people I know drink- and it disgusts me!  And anyone who knows me will testify that this is very out of character – as I am normally the one propping up the bar at the end of an evening! I LOVE drinking!

I am annoyed that my palate and appetite have altered now so that I am no longer able to recognise what it is that I want to eat and often find myself pushing my food away after one bite.  I wander the super market aisles trying to find something that I want to eat.  Toast, Yum Yums and Macdonalds are my fail-safe options, but they all seem to leave a foul taste in my mouth!

I hardly have a bump yet I cannot get comfortable on the sofa.  If I lie on my back in bed I feel like I want to vomit, yet lying on my side all night makes me feel like I am going to get bed sores!  Standing on the tube or train makes me feel sick, yet noone will offer me a seat as I don’t have a proper bump – I just look lardy! And even if they did offer me a seat, I can’t take it as I have a toddler in a buggy with me!

In short, pregnancy turns me into a grinch!

But come back to me in 4 months time, when it will all be over and as before – completely, totally, without question WORTH IT!!  With a sprinkling of false memory syndrome, provided by mother nature, pregnancy will soon seem like a distant and miraculous dream.

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