Seven Weeks Pregnant
Between having family staying for the weekend, followed by an overnight trip to Sydney with the girls to renew M’s Italian passport, it’s been a busy week! Now that we’re back at home though, we’re feeling that we are settling into the new house and into normal life again. We even had one day with no commitments in the afternoon or evening, something unheard of for possibly months! So we went on a family outing to Fisherman’s Bay and had a lovely time ❤️
That sinking feeling...
Once you’ve experienced pregnancy loss it never leaves you. One day this week I went to the bathroom for a bowel movement, wiped pretty absent-mindedly as I had my mind on other things, and saw blood... That heart-stopping moment where you go back and wipe really carefully to assess exactly where the blood is coming from... (Could be a cut, could be haemorrhoids, could be...) Thankfully it clearly wasn’t pregnancy-related, but even though my brain knew that, I couldn’t help myself checking really carefully the next few times I went to the bathroom. After that little shake-up, I actually appreciated the nausea for the rest of the day!!
What symptoms am I feeling?
I kind of expected to hit my first trimester exhausted phase by now, but so far to be honest I’ve felt reasonably normal. It’s more the nausea that’s been knocking me around a bit, but even that has been mild, usually settles if I eat, and definitely isn’t constant, though daily. I’ve been chatting with mums who experience hyperemesis gravidarum (HG) in pregnancy (severe nausea and vomiting which can last well beyond first trimester, for some even the whole pregnancy). Often they’ll need medication to manage their symptoms, and it takes a huge toll mentally as well as physically. I can’t even imagine that level of sickness, WHILE also experiencing “normal” pregnancy symptoms and often having older kids/work/other commitments you feel responsible for. These women are so courageous!!
In more general terms in pregnancy this week, mum’s blood supply increases to keep up with the demands of her body and her baby, and this can be noticed sometimes with more evident veins. She can also experience low blood pressure which can lead to feeling dizzy or lightheaded -- but it’s also perfectly normal not to be aware of these changes.
How has baby been developing this week?
Baby is now around 5mm long (CRL), with a big head in proportion to the body. The facial features are developing, lower jaw, upper jaw, head, forehead and eyes around the large brain. Arms and legs are developing, as are internal organs such as stomach, kidneys and bowel. The heart is also continuing to develop and is now forming chambers while continuing to beat.
What am I doing to prepare?
Just trying to get back to normal! I haven’t managed to get back into regular exercise since the craziness with the house move and AAAALL the things, but I’m optimistic that next week will be the week, and am looking forward to adding in the mobility exercises my physio gave me for pregnancy!
A favourite resource:
Book a Midwife provides bulk-billed Telehealth appointments Australia-wide with a midwife right throughout pregnancy and up to 6 weeks postpartum. This fantastic service helps to fill in a gap in the system where mums don’t always have access to continuity of care -- especially mums who are deemed moderate to high risk, who if anything have more need of continuity! Free to mums since it’s bulk-billed, and means you always have someone you can ask for a second opinion, talk through weird stuff that’s happening that you don’t understand, and book in to chat with same day or in a matter of days rather than having to wait weeks till your next hospital/clinic appointment. What’s not to love?!
And that’s it for this week! 🌿💛
[Image credit: Baby hand photo by Tembinkosi Sikupela on Unsplash]