Pregnancy glow: myth or reality

Today I was walking to the metro and a guy who walked passed me called me sexy.  I, of course, knew what he was talking about.  And because he didn’t look like a thug or bum I actually smiled inside.  

They say that after the survival of the first trimester, and in my case, the constant progesterone poisoning, vomiting, body aches, and never ending fatigue, I would come to see the light in the form of an inner glow that would stop passersby dead on their tracks. Hard to imagine that after feeling so sick and unpregnant there could be a period of respite and poise, where sex dreams are possible again and putting makeup is back on your daily tasks.

I told my husband I had noticed men staring lately.  Can they see the glow?  Maybe. Thanks to high progesterone levels, more blood is pumping through my veins, and my oil glands are in over drive contributing to that healthy glow.  But I call it ripeness.  I have now gained six pounds and in the present world of skinny bitches wearing the same outfits of leggings, boots and scarves, and looking like they burst out from a Vogue factory, ripeness is feminine, fresh and sensual.  But like everything, this is a fleeting period, a chance to get your bearings, feel the joy and spread the love your are harvesting inside you because then comes the stretch marks, the constipation and insomnia unlimited.  

Shopping for Maternity clothes

Today I’m three days shy of 13 weeks. I’m rounding off the despised first trimester. It wasn’t easy. There were moments I thought it would never end. Lying in bed nauseated up to my eyeballs and feeling so fatigued I found it impossible to keep my eyes open in the middle of the day is not something I want to go through again.

Slowly I’m grooving back into my old self. My appetite is back and my energy seems to be slowly returning. I even resumed my morning walks to the park so that I can eventually get back on an exercise routine. But what is really exciting and frustrating at the same time is not fitting into my old clothes. I’m not shy about showing, I’m just upset that my bottoms are getting stuck around my newly found hips. Since I never wore any loose clothing before, my snuggly fitting bottoms don’t fit me anymore. The exciting part of this is that I finally got to shop for my first batch of maternity clothes, especially suited for second trimester moms-to-be. And how expensive these specialty clothes can be! Don’t they know that you are already getting into debt with nursery stuff. Someone please pass the memo.

The Doctor will see you now

September 23^rd was our first prenatal appointment.  We were nervous.  All we wanted to see was a heartbeat.  We met our young doctor, and asked her many questions.  A due date was established as well as a food and exercise regime.  No soft cheeses, preferably no meat, unless it’s thoroughly cooked, no raw fish, sodas, no alcohol and only one cup of coffee a day.  I was to avoid salted foods and brace my sugar intake.  Ok I said, I can do those things.  With morning sickness raging on, I believe I have actually become malnourished.  Thankfully this will stop soon, as I’m well into the end of the 1^st trimester.

Then we went to the ultrasound room and I got into a paper robe.  There she inserted a huge ultrasound stick inside me and almost immediately we got our answer.  There he was floating and looking pensive.  She said he was moving a lot but my husband and I couldn’t detect any movements.  And then we heard the heartbeat.  “That whooshing sound?”  A very healthy one at that, she said.

With a picture in our hands we finally could start believing this was real.  There’s something inside me, fighting for its life.  This week the yolk sac is gone and he is producing his own blood cells.  His liver, intestines and kidneys are working.  His heart is beating fast and his diaphragm is formed.  What a miracle this is.  He survived his first three months!