WHAT TO EXPECT IN PREGNANCY

Every pregnancy is different for every woman…women may experience all or very few of the symptoms

FIRST TRIMESTER  Period stops (sometimes you may still experience spotting)  Tender and enlarged breasts  Darkening of nipples  Unexpected mood changes (hormones!)  Feelings of excitement, anxiousness and fear  Fatigue (so exhausted…you are making a human!)

 Headaches  Frequent bathroom breaks  Morning sickness  Increased vaginal secretions  Lightheadedness  Shortness of breath

SECOND TRIMESTER

 Red inflamed gums  Less nausea  Less bladder pressure (your body has adjusted)  Less fatigue  Stuffy nose and nose bleeds (as a result of increased blood volume)  Quickening (feeling fluttering movements by the baby)  Emotions are more stable

 Lower back pain (adjusting to new weight)  Pubic pain (hips are preparing for birth)  Throbbing legs & varicose veins  Swelling of ankles, feet, hands & face  Constipation  Changes to skin pigmentation (brownish “tan” on face)  Line running from belly button to pubic area (Linea Negra)  Braxton hicks contractions

THIRD TRIMESTER

 Striae or stretch marks  Milk leaking from breasts  Dry itchy skin (it’s stretching!)  Increased fatigue & shortness of breath  Feelings of doubt & fear  Muscle cramping in legs  Feeling impatient

 Hemorrhoids  Heartburn  Sudden groin pain  Difficulty sleeping  Improved breathing (toward end when baby shifts down – this is called lightening)  Increased need to pee (pressure has moved down again)  Increase in braxton hicks contractions

EXAMPLES OF COMPLICATIONS DURING PREGNANCY Gestational Diabetes & Pre-Eclampsia

GESTATIONAL DIABETES:  Type of diabetes that almost always disappears after delivery  Diagnosed by a routine glucose-screening test late in the second trimester of the pregnancy

PREECLAMPSIA:  A type of high blood pressure  Also called “toxemia” or pregnancy induced-hypertension  Checked for during every visit

Pregnant women must immediately report:  Sudden weight gain  Puffiness in hands and face  Blurred vision  Severe headache

Left untreated can result in:  Eclampsia (a toxic condition in late pregnancy that is characterized by a sudden rise in blood pressure, excessive weight gain, swelling of legs, feet, hands, face, severe headache and problems with vision)  Convulsions  Coma  Permanent damage to the mother  Oxygen deprivation to fetus