My Pregnancy Enjoyment Guide

I was going to name this my pregnancy survival guide, but I figured that name needed some revamping! Despite the challenges many women face as they grow a little one, the process is quite incredible and should be enjoyed..... but that's a lot easier to do when you're not nauseous and or saying goodbye to everything you've attempted to eat or drink :-D. So, here are some things that I've found that may increase your enjoyment as well! With this baby I have been sick to my stomach since day 1 (which told me this was a boy long before the Dr. did), and I had to have emergency surgery to remove an ovary in week 5 or so which knocked me out for a good month... and I'm still recovering... turns out incisions healing while your body is stretching doesn't help so much, and my husband had to leave me and 4 children under 5 for almost 2 months right about the time I was back on my feet. Needless to say something had to give, as my old anti-nausea tricks weren't helping, so I turned to Facebook and asked friends and family for unusual remedies. The following is what keeps me going and enjoying life and baby's little kicks and movements each day:

1/ Comes from the book of me.... STAY HYDRATED. Easier said than done. I don't know about you, but water and I aren't the
best of friends when my stomach wants nothing to do with ANYTHING. However, I found my 32oz water bottle that I've lugged around for a few years and it's been my constant companion. I try to fill and drink it twice before my husband comes home for lunch and at least one after... and if I end up blowing that plan, well, then I have to drink more at night and suffer the wrath of waking up to hit the bathroom. The reason my bottle was retired is because I have to normally mix a little juice with my water to keep it down and I didn't want to defile my water bottle (it seriously wreaks if you keep that up). Anyway! The latest trick is to add a drop or two of lemon oil from my Family Physician's kit that I talked about in last post and viola! Water I can keep down and has some extra cleansing power, and it doesn't make my bottle gross. Even if you have to try a teaspoon at a time you need hydration... it's quite cyclical. If your'e dehydrated your body will be nauseous and when you try to hydrate the body will reject it because it's dehydrated. Nice huh?

2/Another from the book of me.... EXERCISE. Yes, I'm a crazy person. Do I have to mention that so frequently? I guess this is for the benefit of new readers :-D. I was prepping for a triathlon that I would have raced at 9 weeks pregnant, but instead found myself recovering from surgery.... and have since gained 30lbs! Umm... yah, so while I know it'll all come off later it certainly doesn't help now. I gain all the weight in my upper leg/hip area and carrying that around is rough. Thankfully I've had the stamina to pull out my Mom's Into Fitness DVD's and alternating between my 2nd trimester cardio/weight section and yoga
plus a mile walk Mon-Sat, I've found MORE ENERGY, and of course MORE ENDURANCE and STRENGTH. The thing I really like about these DVD's is that Lindsay set it up so that regardless of what stage you're at within your trimester you can find modifications that work for you, and you don't feel pressured! She really helps you figure out how to be safe and do things properly, which is big! And of course my favorite is that she reminds mom's that studies show that WOMEN WHO HAVE HAD CHILDREN CAN GET IN BETTER SHAPE THEN WOMEN WHO HAVEN'T. Here's the link for the set of videos I have, it walks you through trimesters 1-3 and has a post-natal work out. I've used this for the last two babies, LOVE IT! So pull out your shoes (I wear Vibram Five Fingers) and do something. I like that exercise helps with aches/pains and releases tension in places that cause your typical low back pain etc. (Oh, and I take 2 months off after baby before training for races, so it helps to stay in good shape now.... I have a triathlon in April, hopefully a couple Ragnar's and my "hmm... I've just had a baby... now how to get the weight off?" goal is a marathon for my birthday.... so staying in shape now really helps that lag post baby. I set goals of races to finish to stay motivated. I know none of you have problems getting motivated! :-). Seriously, give it a try, it's great and your husband will love you for it. There are enough hours in the day, promise! I'll even walk you through it personally.)

3/A tip from the oils and everythingdoterra.com. There's an oil blend called DigestZen and it kills heartburn in about 2 seconds. I keep my whole collection next to me every night and if my chest/throat is burning I know a drop or two of DigestZen will help me get back to sleep without pain! It's a beautiful thing :-). Previous pregnancies I've gotten up and had a bowl of cereal. It's an acceptable fix, but this one is super efficient and keeps me in bed so my body isn't any more restless than usual.

4/A few friends/family chimed in to tell me about sea bands... seriously, how did I not know about these earlier?? I have 3 boys, all of which I had the pleasure of 9 months of nausea and vomiting with. With boy #4 I haven't been nauseous over the last month and a half while wearing these. I actually bought Psi Bands after I figured out how well these worked for me, (Psi Bands are the cuter version of sea bands). I bought mine off of Amazon for $11, there was an unexpected discount when I checked out, woohoo! I hear some hospitals carry them, especially ones that have cancer treatment centers. The whole idea is accu-pressure. Yes, I've had pain in my wrists with the little balls going into them and yes my wrists sometimes hurt, but yes, it's totally worth it!

5/My cousin suggested corn on the cob. She was really sick with her first and couldn't eat anything. Her husband ended up getting some corn after an hour trip to the store turned fail and my cousin was crying because the thought of anything made
her sick..... and she ended up eating both bags of corn and sent him back for more. Her doctor said at the next visit that it wasn't a coincidence, that there had been studies that showed corn on the cob helping nausea. I bought a big bag of frozen corn on the cob. It's easy to cook and I hold it down and even enjoyably quite well.

6/I tried this out of family/friend suggestions and it worked, but since my homeopathic 'cures' work I haven't used it since, but perhaps it'll help you. Many chimed in to say that Unisom worked great (I bought the Walmart equivalent that was quite a bit cheaper and it worked like they said). For nausea you take just a tiny sliver of the pill, and then of course if you take more it's a sleep aid and approved for use while pregnant. So, that was a two in one. I used the sliver method a bit and used it to sleep a couple nights that I was really beat and needing the rest.

7/A friend email me about refried beans. I haven't tried this in it's entirety, but with all of my children I have CRAVED mexican food like crazy and it settled my tummy. I always try to keep a good stash of pinto beans so I can mashed them up for some burrito good-ness! Anyway, here's a blog you can look at that has more info on that: http://littleprairiehomeschool.blogspot.com/2011/06/beans-cure-for-morning-sickness-no.html

8/Vitamin B6.... You know, some women praise the stuff, and I do have some... but I don't see much difference when I use it personally. Just figured I'd throw it out there for yah!

Anyway, I hope if your'e growing a little one, have in the past, or are thinking of it in the future that maybe some of these ideas will help you! It goes by so quickly, the reward is so great, and the amnesia (at least with me, and stated in a bible passage my husband found) is very strong! :-D.