i am in my 26th week of pregnancy. nearing the last few days of being in the 2nd trimester. first off, that’s kind of crazy to believe, but on the other hand, i feel so ecstatic and ready!
these last few weeks especially have brought about some changes in pregnancy symptoms that i would like to share!
- i finally felt baby kick!! i have an anterior placenta, meaning that my placenta is in the front acting as an extra cushion (aka you can’t feel movements as soon). especially after eating a meal, baby is moving a ton. trevor has been able to feel it too & it’s such a wonderful feeling.
- i have started having braxton hicks contractions slightly. the first time i felt it i was around 22 weeks and my stomach for a couple days on and off was getting really tight and uncomfortable. it was new and so strange, but after chatting with my ob, i realized that’s what it was! these contractions have not been painful and are very common.
- i have been extremely out of breath. if you didn’t know, i teach third grade and we have to wear masks while teaching. the combination of wearing a mask and being pregnant makes me insanely out of breath and overheated. like, all i do is walk up the steps and i’m panting. it feels like i just did some hit workout but all i did was walk haha.
- at the start of the 2nd trimester, i was waking up about every 45 minutes consistently with leg & hip cramps. the pains are still occurring but now my body is waking up about every 1-3 hours fairly consistently. still annoying but at least it’s lessening.
- the best ever… stretch marks. i got a couple stretch marks right below my belly button pretty much right away. i’ve now gotten a few more. honestly, i don’t care that much but it’s weird having such bright, red lines on my stomach.
- my belly has grown exponentially in the last four weeks or so and it’s making it a bit more challenging to bend over and tie my shoes. whenever i bend over, it feels like the air is being sucked out of me. i guess trevor will have to start helping me put my shoes on soon hehe.
- congestion has been so real. i never knew this was a pregnancy symptom but it’s crazy how breathing through my nose, especially at night, has been much more difficult.
overall, this trimester has been wonderful. seeing the evidence in my body of this life inside of me and feeling baby move is amazing. but, i wouldn’t be telling the truth if i didn’t say i dealt with a lot of anxiety this trimester as well. with losing our first baby, i was very nervous about losing the baby again. even after we had hit the so-called “safe” part of pregnancy, i had fears of still birth and pre-term labor. i would find myself going to google for every symptom i had and that only led me down a path of being more worried. i would feel relieved after hearing baby’s heart rate or seeing baby at an ultrasound but then the four week wait until my next appointment just brought about more fear. i cried tears of worry and had many family and friends praying for me because i’m normally not an anxious person. but i truly feel like this is something i overcame! praise jesus!!
in 5 days i will officially be in the third trimester. looking forward to the day we can hold baby in our arms. 96 more days!! ❤
tia marie
tia marie 