I should have worn heels -- life at 5'3" - Post a comment

Jul. 25th, 2009

02:56 pm - The Good, The Bad, The Itchy

Today I turn 36 weeks. We have passed the point of no return. I'm no longer at risk for pre-term labor, because I'm term. So whenever these kids decide to show up, they are showing up. I can feel the finish line, or the final push (so-to-speak), not far off. Things are feeling different, and have been for a few days now. It's only a matter of time.

The Good: I just got back from the St. Helens Pool with Ken. Prego + Pool = BLISS! It was a little weird climbing into the pool at first. Well, first of all, I felt a little ridiculous squeezing my 9-month pregnant body into my pre-preggers bikini, but mostly I didn't care. I don't think the girls knew what to do with the new weightless sensation. I'm assuming that even though they are encased in fluid, it's still not quite weightless. They got VERY quiet for the first half hour of me paddling around on one of those foam noodles, despite Ken's attempts at trying to play with them. They did eventually offer up some tentative kicks that I interpreted as Morse code for WTF, Mom?! Me, I felt great! Better than I've felt in many weeks. I could almost forget about the 40 lbs I've packed on. Interesting note: I expected my belly to be more buoyant, but actually I sank rather easily. I guess that makes sense being that it's not fat I've put on but flesh and fluid. Kind of like ballast system in a submarine, I imagine. The hardest part was getting OUT of the pool, because a.) did I mention the bliss? and b.) as soon as I started up the steps I could feel the weight of gravity pulling my stomach toward the floor. Oy! I felt every one of those added pounds.

The Bad: It is hot as hell right now. Actually, today hasn't been too bad. But the last few days have just been miserable. We pretty much live in the cave when we're home - curtains drawn, A/C units full power, fans assisting. My hairless hobbit feet do not like this weather. But I shall keep the whining to a minimum. Fatigue is not made of fun either. Nor is inability to achieve normal range of motion. I could go on, but I shall spare you until I write my tell-all book "Twin Pregnancy, And the Stuff No One Ever Tells You About Until It's Too Late."

The Itchy, or PUPPS the Magic Rash: Speaking of the tell-all book, here a sneak preview of one of those fun preggo things no one ever mentioned until I was about to tear my own skin off. So in the third trimester, right around week 35, about 1% of women (usually with 1st pregnancy and/or twin pregnancy) suddenly develop a weird rash on their belly. In fact, one of the doctors I see called it "The Weird Rash of Pregnancy" and it doesn't go away until after giving birth - sometimes not for a couple weeks after birth. Official term is Pruritic Urticarial Papules and Plaques of Pregnancy (PUPPS). The docs don't know what causes it, but some have theorized that it may be an inflammatory response to all the stretching the skin has to endure, or that it may have to do with the presence of male fetal DNA. Since I'm have girls, and I've gotten it on the two places where my skin has stretched the most (my belly and my ankles), I'm inclined to agree with the former. Regardless, it is the most agonizing, torturous part of this pregnancy to date. And there's nothing to be done for it but put some steroid-y creams (baby-safe) on it that don't really do much to take away the itch anyway. Bleh! Secret tip: the one thing that I've found to relieve the itch at least temporarily is ice. It's a little difficult to ice the belly as the twins really don't like that, but on the feet and ankles it works. A cool pack (as opposed to an ice pack) works on the belly to some extent.

So one more bit of Good... by popular demand, the latest belly pic. This was taken today (week 36) just as we were leaving for the pool.