5 Things I've Learnt Since Being Pregnant.

I thought it would be interesting to note down the 5 things I've learnt since being pregnant that I didn't realise before. Some you might think how did I not know?! But honestly unless you have been pregnant yourself, I bet you didn't know either.

YOU CAN'T LAY ON YOUR BACK

The reason you can't is because of a main vein that runs down your back. By laying flat on your back your heavy uterus etc weighs down on this vein therefore reducing blood flow to your baby. Now I've never slept on my back but as soon as someone told me I couldn't, that is literally all I wanted to do, especially when I had excruciating hip pain at night!

PREGNANCY IS NOT 9 MONTHS

Before I was pregnant, and I'm sure everyone is the same, I saw pregnancy as 9 months. It wasn't until I got pregnant that I realised that months don't come into it at all, you only see it as weeks. If ever anyone would ask how many months I was, I literally couldn't tell them. There are so many preconceptions we have about pregnancy that it's not until you go on the journey yourself, that you realise just how different it actually is.

RIB PAIN IS REAL

This was not something I had ever considered to be a problem. With pregnancy you expect the morning sickness at the start then after that I didn't really know of any other symptoms. My rib pain started quite early on in the second trimester and continued to be a 'pain.' I never realised just how painful it could be, I lost count of the amount of times I cried at the end of the day because I couldn't take the pain anymore.

EATING

My awareness of what I was eating came very quickly; I wasn't just feeding myself anymore, I had a little life inside me to consider. There are so many things I have eaten not for me but for the baby that I would never have eaten before. For example Walnuts, I was told were really good to eat, so I ate them, they are disgusting but I wasn't doing it for me.

ALL THE FEELINGS

The maternal protection instinct kicked in very quickly. I was aware early on it wasn't just me anymore. This can be daunting and overwhelming to think you will have this little person for the rest of your life. But honestly nothing will beat the feeling of the life you have created growing inside you, which you are reminded of everytime you feel them kick.

Thank you for reading

Love. Hx