Wednesday, July 16, 2008

aches and pains

This pregnancy is mostly the same as with my daughter, but for some reason, more aches and pains. Physical, not mental, though there are plenty of the latter, too.

I've been telling people recently that with my daughter's pregnancy, I did yoga twice a week, swam twice a week, walked home from work nearly every day - and, um, this time around? With a toddler? None of that. Even though I could be going to the gym every single day since I am not working, I'm just not exercising.

I'm known for loving shoes, and I wore nearly all my shoes throughout that pregnancy, most of which had 2 inch heels. This time around, being home, I'm wearing flip flops and going barefoot, and I think that is having a serious impact. My legs ache all the time. I wake up in the morning with stiff and sore legs. So now I'm thinknig I have to start wearing my tennis shoes with orthotic inserts. And I am really not enjoying the thought of that. I left stylish a long way back, but I'm not quite ready to completely surrender. I think a lot about getting a job and having to dress professionally every day and I wonder if I could physically handle that. I think with my daughter's pregnancy, I just kept doing what I was always doing, so it was fine. But this time, the thought of having to readjust to professional attire and shoes makes me cringe. Though I desperately want to have to suffer through it rather than continue barefoot and pregnant.

I did chat with the doctor last week about my hip issues. It's not sciatica, which is the nerve down the back of your leg, but definitely another nerve issue. My right hip goes numb. Mostly when laying on my right or left sides, but in some seated positions it starts tingling and I lose all feeling in a area about the size of my palm. The doctor gave me the oh so helpful just one of the lovely side effects of pregnancy answers, so I'm stuck. Sleeping, especially falling asleep, is miserable when you can't lie on your stomach, left side, or right side. Or back. I sleep sort of on my back, with a pillow shoved under my right hip/side to keep me a little off kilter.

And mentally? This has been a hard week, not pregnancy related but the marriage, the (not) working, the everything else. I don't know why. Just off kilter myself.

So, have you noticed your body slowing down as you've gotten older? Any more aches and pains that didn't used to be there?

3 comments:

CLC said...

Yes to all of the questions above. It sucks getting older. I feel EVERYTHING now. And mentally I still feel 15. So it's very hard to reconcile.

Hope you feel better.

Unknown said...

I definitely noticed more aches and pains with pregnancy #2. My theory (I'm not a medical person) is that things were still somewhat "taut" with #1 but with #2, supporting ligaments had been stretched out by #1 and the baby's weight was impinging on nerves and muscles more than the first time. For some reason my upper back and shoulders had a lot of problems with numbness and pain, no doubt due to posture. Fortunately things were OK after the baby was born, though my shoulders get sore more easily from ordinary stress or bad posture than they did before.

Momma Trish said...

My hip issues never went away, post pregnancy....hope you don't have that experience....