Min & Max

The most frustrating thing about sprog carrying is my major drop in energy levels and inability to exercise like I was doing until the sickness and fatigue struck at 6 weeks.

My old pre-sprog routine was:

Monday - boxercise (45 minutes of high level cardio, punching a bag 'til your ams feel like they're gonna fall off and hundreds of sit-ups. push-ups, lunges and squats)
Tuesday - yoga (1 hour of not so much just lying around on the floor like people think)
Wednesday - running, weights etc (10-12 minutes running on the treadmill followed by a series of arm weights, walking lunges, sit-ups and squats - totalling about 45 mins)
Thursday - yoga (1 hour)
Saturday or Sunday - swimming at gym (a minimum of 22 lengths, an average of 28-30, and my best was 40 - done when I was already about 3 weeks pregnant! Time spent in the pool averaged 40 to 55 mins)

Now:
Tuesday - yoga (1 hour of pretty much just lying around on the floor while other people do the class)
Thursday - yoga (1 hour - see above)
Saturday or Sunday - swimming at gym (so far my maximum has been 12 whole lengths and time spent in the pool averages 15 minutes... quite sad and pathetic)

This is not a vanity issue - my lower back is already in constant pain (the only way I can control my birth defect is to exercise).

I also have NO stomach muscles left - it hurts when I sneeze!

So... even though it might bankrupt us, I really want to try go to Preggi Bellies - my body will thank me in the long run I'm sure.

It ain't heavy, it's my sprog!

I always wondered if I would FEEL pregnant (obviously at some point it starts to kick and you get all big and stuff - but I mean before all that).

The answer is yes. But it's not what I expected...

I feel a heaviness in my lower abdomen (ok, I guess it's my uterus) - mostly when I walk. Considering sprog is still only a few centimetres, this is weird.

My pregnant friend Ingrid describes it best: "You feel like your ovaries are about to drop out of you!"

To me it feels like I swallowed half a brick and it's sitting on top of my bladder! Not fun.

There's more truth to come soon... watch this space.

Some funnies...

This one's called "What all women want" ;>

This one is even funnier if you know that the most selective Caesarians IN THE WORLD take place in Joburg's northern suburbs (i.e. Sandton and surrounds)

A better idea of a 12 week sprog

12 weeks... and STILL vomit-free!

All is looking well - baby is developing perfectly!

I'm still nauseas if I don't take my magic pills, and am soooo tired all the time. Damn this progesterone!

Sprog is now 5.56cm long. The freaky looking 'eyes' on the right of the first pic is actually its brain! We know it will be very clever... ;>

This scan didn't come out as good as sprog looked on the screen. It was moving around like crazy, kicking a leg and waving an arm (yes it has arms and legs now - woohoo!).

The doc said next time we can bring a video camera to record the movement - so we will, and then hopefully we can get some good still shots from that...

You are what you eat

I always imagined that when I became pregnant I would eat really healthily. I didn't count on the fact that I would have NO say in it! My body is no longer my own - and the sprog don't like vegetables or salad... or chicken. I can sometimes stomach some red meat and fish, but these days I mostly eat:

* Cheese and tomato sandwiches
* Peanut butter sandwiches
* Eggs
* Sweetcorn
* Bananas
* Chocolate
* Ice-cream
* Cereal (mostly Coco Pops) - and not only for breakfast, but also often around 10pm at night!

Not much green stuff in that lot. In fact, it's all rather yellow and brown.

The latest craving is for Cheas Naks (a cheesier version of Nik Naks). These are corn chips that have so much artificial colourant they turn your mouth and fingers bright orange. I can only imagine what they do to my insides - and it's made me have visions of giving birth to a bright orange Radiant Baby (Keith Haring style)!!!

The smell thing again

It is SO bizarre how the sprog affects your sense of smell! It's not just about hyper-sensitivity... things actually don't smell as they should.

Last night Justin and I were watching TV and he said he was going to make some coffee. When he got back to the lounge, all I could smell was a weird herb-like smell. I assumed he'd changed his mind and made Cup-a-Soup.

I said, "Your soup's making me nauseas."

He looked at me like I was mad and said, "It's coffee."

I swear I could not smell coffee at all! Weird...

Nature might just be the cure!

After a week of relief the nausea returned last Thursday. The pills the doctor gave me (Asic) don't work so well, and have a really bad side effect - they make me VERY sleepy... an effect that lasts so long that even if I take them at 8pm at night I'm still nodding off late the next morning!

I asked him about something homeopathic and he said none of them work but I can try if I want. I know how close-minded most doctors are about homeopathy, so I went to my local chemist and was lucky enough to find a pharmacist who had just moved there from Weleda Pharmacies.

She recommended something called Moton, which is for travel sickness and morning sickness.

And it seems to be working! I feel MUCH better.

"They mostly come at night... mostly."

Anyone who's a sci-fi fan and has watched 'Aliens' will recognise the title of this post. The little girl, Newt, says that line to Sigourney Weaver about the alien creatures that she has been hiding from.

The little alien inside me makes the nausea mostly come at night now... mostly. It's a relief to not have it so bad ALL day anymore, but about an hour after dinner I feel really awful.

Night sickness - yuk.

Am also much more tired these days - still haven't managed to get to gym to walk or swim, but have been doing some light yoga once a week. Quite a step down from my old exercise routine!