Alone In My Paranoia (aka 24ish Weeks or Maybe 25)
July 02, 2008
Whenever I start getting a little uppity regarding our division of household labor (why am I the only one who remembers that the child needs to go potty before we go somewhere? why do CERTAIN PEOPLE seem to think our diaper bag is a magical fount of ever-regenerating sippy cups and snacks?), Jason manages to schedule an extended business trip. Possibly for the sole purpose of watching my lose my shit from afar.
I have to take the garbage and recycling out? All the way to the curb? I have to...make dinner? Every night? Why aren't these dishes put away yet? Why hasn't someone done something about that weird smell in the bathroom? Noah, did I feed the cat already? Why is he meowing? I swear I fed him already. Noah, come on! YOU'RE SUPPOSED TO PAY ATTENTION TO THESE THINGS.
And it turns out that it's NOT a magic cell phone fairy who remembers to charge my phone for me every night. At least I'm pretty sure, unless she also had a conference to attend in Milwaukee this week. Maybe that's where the magic fairy who also remembers to buy milk went too.
***
Part of my flying solo this week involved taking Noah to my prenatal check-up this morning, and OH GOLLY GEE LET'S DO THAT AGAIN.
I shoved him on the little chair where you usually stash your pants and underwear, gave him a granola bar and a healthy dose of fear that if he DARED MOVE FROM THAT CHAIR TO TOUCH THE ELEVENTY BILLION DOLLAR ULTRASOUND MACHNE, God Himself would descend from heaven and take away his entire collection of spare buttons. He did not move from that chair, but then pitched such a fit in the waiting room over having to leave behind a basket of random beat-up Happy Meal prizes I could see the pupils of all the other waiting pregnant ladies dilate in terror.
I made sure to screech something about not going potty in the grocery store cart again as we left. Just because I am Mean.
***
I was shocked to learn that I'm at the point in this pregnancy where I go to the doctor every two weeks instead of four. This is alarming, since it seems to suggest that I will be having a baby soon. Somebody is not doing their math. I'll get Jason to look into it when he gets home.
My blood pressure is low -- really low -- and I'm constantly close to fainting. If I am not close to fainting, I am close to vomiting. I don't necessarily DO much fainting or vomiting (I find loosening the stays of my corset just a tad helps -- 17 inches IS a bit unrealistic at point, I suppose), but still. I feel rather delicate and Victorian, except for the hemorrhoids.
I always feel strange reporting my weight online, but with senility setting in fast (SERIOUSLY. DID I FEED THE CAT ALREADY OR NOT, PEOPLE? THIS IS NOT A DIFFICULT QUESTION.), I have to write this crap down somewhere, and my fingers are already ever-so-nicely positioned on the keyboard.
I'm not gaining weight. It's freaking me out. I gained one whopping pound since my last visit, which was the very first visit where I'd gained any weight at all (four pounds). So...I've gained...five pounds? Maybe six? At 24/25ish weeks? Doesn't that sound kind of freak-out-able worthy? My doctor is not concerned -- I guess my belly measurements are okay and the baby certainly looked fine at the ultrasound, but...I'm concerned. I keep telling myself that I must have put on a little weight in the early first trimester -- before the puking started and before my doctor started weighing me -- and kept it on, but my scale at home is not exactly wracking up the high scores either.
It's not for lack of trying -- we like to take Noah out for ice cream cones a couple nights a week, and it is understood that Mama Does Not Share Her Ice Cream. If I want a sausage McGriddle with hash browns, then goddammit, get in the car. Right now. Don't make me faint all over you or something.
I have no reason to question my doctor, except that he seems to be awfully old-school about pregnancy weight gain in the first place, and is almost congratulatory when he notes my chart. Uh. Yeah. I'm just gunning to get this fine ass into a maternity thong bikini over the holiday weekend. Sorry, fetus, Mama done got her priorities.
I started this pregnancy at a healthy weight (just woefully saggy and out of shape, as my Wii now informs me), and considered it to be a major accomplishment that I didn't lose weight in the first trimester again. I indulge my cravings with gusto but mostly eat pretty healthy -- we're very into unprocessed local foods direct from the farmer, which oh man, I never realized how delicious fruits and vegetables can be when they actually TASTE LIKE WHAT THEY ARE. Part of me is ready to embark on a non-doctor-prescribed regime of protein shakes and Ensure, while another part of me wants to just chill out and let my body do whatever it's doing, which I guess is rerouting all that ice cream directly to the kicking, squirming little parasite.
I just...really want the little parasite to be okay. I kind of like him, you know.
PS: Okay, look. I just checked the trash can and there IS an empty can of cat food, but do you think it's from last night or this morning? He seems hungry, but I also think he might be fucking with me.
I think the cat is taking advantage of you! Really! And hey, as a mom of 2, I think that if your doctor is okay with everything that's a good sign.
Well, I can't offer any really good advice about the weight gain because my experience is all about freaking out at my girth and the boinging springs that popped out whenever I stepped on the scale. But I do believe that you should trust your instincts, and protein shakes and ensure are not going to hurt anything, so what's the harm?
As for the cat? If he's hungry enough he can go catch a rodent or something, whatever. You've got bigger fish to fry.
And fried fish is nice and fattening!
Eh, give the cat a(nother) can. At least someone in the house might gain weight. ;)
I'm sure you're fine. And it's a good sign that your doctor isn't freaking out.
Your belly is too cute!
Don't sweat the weight, you look great. And if the doc says the baby's fine, you gotta trust it. Of course a few extra milkshakes can't hurt, if you can keep them down!
As for the cat - well, I doubt you'll lose it with one skipped meal.
Don't you hate it when the hubs is gone and blows to hell all that really good "they'd be lost without me" feeling?
Sign me up for looking like you if/when I get pregnant (in the waaaaay far off future). Throw those flats in, too. Kthanx.
Also, I say feed the cat again...at least someone in your house should be putting on some weight.
I had the same weight thing when I was pregnant. At around 32 weeks my measurements were suddenly way behind (27 cm) so I was put on an eating program. Soy protein powder added to everything and lots of raw nuts and avocado did the trick.
And Milwaukee. Huh. That's where my husband always escapes to as well. Must be a conspiracy to get us to realize that they DO some shit around the house.
The cat is playing you trying to score an extra snack.
As for the weight gain, at 32 weeks I can't really figure out why my rear needs to get any bigger at this point.
I understand that you are worried, but your body has a plan that includes weight free ice cream consumption ... not every woman can say that.
I didn't gain any weight for the first 30 weeks. then OH MY HOLY HELL, did it ever catch up to me. took me 18months to loose what I put on in ten weeks (ok and maybe some post-partum-breast-feeding induced fits of eating an entire box of donuts) My doctor wasn't worried eventhough I was was. the baby was doing well,I should have left well-enough alone, but no. I started to eat more and snack mor (mostly healthy - mostly) to try to put on weight (OMG, pregnancy logic - WTF?!?!) and well - eventually I gained the "expected" amount. It just kinda blew everyone away how I did it ALL in a mere ten weeks. my saggy, streachted out belly is still like "hey, lets not ever do THAT again, mm'kay?" So basically - dont' freak over it, if the docotr is happy, and the baby is happy, just try to relax. easier said than done, I know. but trust me you DO NOT want to end up like me and gain 30lbs in ten weeks - for realz. :)
I gained 41 pounds with Asher (FORTY. ONE.) and he was still a midget baby who was absolutely swamped by preemie clothes and diapers. Apparently the uterus and reproductive organs are completely separate entities from the rest of the body and can be real non-conformist bitches. If you trust your doctor on everything else, you probably can trust him on this.
Now, on to the important things: cute shorts. I'm in the market for some - are they new and where did you get them?
Or wait, SKIRT? Is that a skirt?
I'm delurking to say that my best friend gained a total of something like 7 ridiculous lbs while pregnant with her fourth (you read it right) child. She had a beautiful healthy 8 lb 7 oz baby. Don't sweat it. You're probably way busier this time chasing after Noah.
I had my kids in the days when a 10 lb. weight gain was the optimum and I gained almost 50 with each one (even though they gave me diet pills!!1!) and my doctor raged at me at every visit and it was not fun. Much better to be not gaining much and the doctor says it's okay.
P.S. My doctor also used to smoke while talking to me. Times have changed.
I must be gaining it all for you -- since I went from 173 to 190 over the course of 5 weeks.
gulp.
My cat are smart. I feed him every evening precisely at 8 PM. (He starts meowing at 7:45.) When my husband gets home from work a few hours later, the cat is all, "Meow? Meow! Feed me! Crazy lady is trying to starve me! Meowmeowmeow!" It's the feline version of If Mom Says No, Go Ask Dad.
When I checked into the hospital to deliver, I weighed 6 pounds less than pre-pregnancy. I gained three pounds one month, but then promptly lost it and then more in the 7th month. My dr. didn't worry about it much, as the measurements/ultrasounds all looked fine. I delived a healthy 7lb 10oz boy and one week after giving birth I weighed 15 pounds less than before pregnant. I just kept losing it, and am now (6 months later) as thin as I was in high school. It's awesome! I was overweight to start with though - 219 when I found out I was pregnant...213 at delivery and currently 155. I would worry if your dr. was worried. But he isn't, so don't :o)
You look amazing.
Why is it that when my husband goes away I pick up his responsibilities too, but when I go away not one thing outside of his responsibilities has been done when I return? And I'm not even pregnant.
Sound familiar?
The cat knows you've got pregnancy brain. Doesn't Max weigh more than Ceiba? I'd make him chill-but I'm mean.
With my second, I gained very little weight, even with a daily ice cream cone. Don't worry about it too much. Tivo needs the calcium, so keep up on the ice cream!
If my family's dalmation could trick us into feeding her twice, I'm sure your cat is doing the same.
Also! I knew someone who LOST weight during much of her pregnancy...and you actually LOOK pregnant (unlike she did) so...in my *ahem* oh-so-very-medical(ha!) opinion, you are probably just fine.
But maybe eat more mcgriddles, just in case :)
I don't know, I'm currently 27 weeks and my belly is probably just slightly more protruding than yours. I think you're safe for now (at my 24 week appt. I'd gained ~9 lbs from my original weight), plus I think the belly measurement is what doctors really get their panties in a twist about, so if that looks good they're happy. I say keep eating healthy and keep augmenting your diet w/ice cream and McDonald's breakfast products whenever you feel like it (this pregnancy I'm partial to sausage egg mcmuffins myself)!
Oh, and because I forgot to add context to my original comment--I'd say we're about the same body type, though you probably are a little skinnier than I :).
Having never been pregnant I have nothing to say about that, but I do have cats! And dogs! And mine are all about lying to try to get more food. If my husband feeds them and then leaves and I come home they will absolutely pretend they're on the brink and maybe possibly haven't eaten in days even!
I am not proud of this, but I gained 55 pounds during my pregnancy. Fifty-fuckin'-five pounds. It was not fun (I cried almost every day from the nasty comments), and I hope to never do it again. I hate my post-baby body, and that shape of a mother blog can bite my ass. Yes, I'll take some cream with that cup of bitter, please.
I gained 35 lbs with my first and 18 with my second, and my doctor was always kind of complimentary about it, too. Meanwhile, my mother was freaking out. But my second was only 1 oz. smaller than the first (and they were both over 8 lbs, not lightweights), but he was also born 10 days earlier (he wasn't early, my daughter was a week late). So if your doctor isn't worried, I wouldn't be, either:)
You look super cute!
Well it's obvious someone or something is eating the cat food. And since you're not gaining any weight and Max has always looked rather portly, I think that you could safely rule yourself out as a suspect. I know that doesn't answer the question at hand, but it's a step in the right direction, no?
You're FINE! The baby is FINE! Seriously, I think you're both Just Fine.
I ended up gaining A LOT of weight when I was pregnant, and I clearly remember that at 20-some-odd weeks I was 10 pounds up. I think 5 pounds is (again) fine.
That bump is growing. And it's adorable. There's no doubt about that part.
My normal and pregnant b/p is 95/65. However, at my checkup 2 wks ago I scored a mighty 140/105. That was at 32 wks. I'm now on the 'lay down lots' plan. Suckage.
My husband will go as far as to step OVER the trash on the way out of the door, even if I put the bag to block the door!
Wait, you're supposed to be on a SCHEDULE to feed the cats? I just fill the food bowl up whenever I see that it's empty. Which, come to think of it, must be why I have a 17-pounder and a 14-pounder on my hands. (No really, I weighed them.) It's taken this post to make me see that dude, my cats are totally playing me.
Damn the cat! Fry it up with some soy sauce and rice, and a side of broccoli. Then it'll shut the eff up and you'll have another meal. Two birds, one stone, SCORE!
I put on 4. Stinking. Pounds. until I was at 28 weeks. Then I exploded into a mass of pregnancy. As long as the baby is fine, it doesn't matter how much weight you don't put on. Blah blah blah. Enjoy it, it'll be less work later on!
The solution to the Great Cat Feeding dilemma. How irritating is your cat? I have a cat that might approach me, maybe touch my foot lightly with a paw to say "I'm sick and in pain and maybe dying. Could we go to the vet, if it isn't too much trouble, please?" I have another cat that digs his claws into my leg while I'm peeing, because as he sees it, I could be petting him while I go. Needless to say, the first cat gets fed because I can't bear the thought of it being hungry and too embarrassed to ask, and the second cat gets fed because I value my life and my limbs. :)
Cat misses Jason. I'm gaining the weight for you. See if taking fish oil (pasteurized) capsules helps your brain.
Not that you asked or anything.
I only gained a few pounds -- 15? maybe total? -- with my second last year, and had the crazy low BP as well. Most of the weight was at the end. I think I topped out at 135 or 140.
I think the toddler at home pretty well negates all the burritos. As long as the little nugget is growing (and he is, just fine, right?) you'll be that much closer when he's born.
Handy tip for epidural time with low BP -- throw your legs in the air when you just don't care. The blood will rush back to the placenta and your brain.
Ask me how I know.
Not that I have any experience, but I would think that if your doctor is okay with your weight gain/lack thereof, I wouldn't worry too much about it. As for the cat, I'm sure he's just trying to get more food..
I am on the you'll be fine wagon. You can see a noticable difference in your belly since the last belly shot.
I think the cat is messing with you.
I also have the opposite problem. I am 13 weeks tomorrow (whoo hoo!) and have already gained 9 pounds. I am terrified of my next Dr' visit on Tuesday, but keep telling myself that it's just that hungry hungry parasite I am feeding. I can't very well starve my child can I? It's not like he's a cat!
THAT is the cutest pregnant belly EVER, and I would KILL to not gain weight when I get pregnant, so as long as the pros aren't worried... don't sweat it! :)
Aw, little babalah v2.0 is looking adorable! Your bump, 'tis fantastic. Actually, I'm jealous. You always seem to have the most perfect, round, beautiful pregnant belly ever. When Noah was getting all huge in there, you looked FANTASTIC, even if you felt huge.
Really, I wouldn't worry too much about your weight. You are eating healthily (gosh, is that a word?) and he is obviously growing. If your doctor isn't worried, I wouldn't be worried.
I am not a doctor, nor have I ever been pregnant, by my friend who is a wee bitty thing didn't gain a pound, and in fact lost weight at first, until she hit about 7 months. In fact, if she hadn't ever told anyone she was pregnant, none of us would have known until that last month or so, when she suddenly looked like she swallowed a soccer ball overnight. She still managed to birth a perfectly healthy 8 pounder, though, so, based upon that anecdotal evidence, I say everything is a-okay. Plus, you know, that doctor guy said everything was fine too.
I'm just a few weeks (days? I don't know anymore) ahead of you, and I've gained a whopping 3 pounds. At my last ultrasound the baby weighed a little over a pound. My doctor did a little dance for me as my weight gain is from the baby and baby related stuff and not because I'm doing the "I'm pregnant so let me eat it" routine which I figured WOULD be my game plan.
Like everyone else, if the doctor is happy, you should be too!
And in Milwaukee? Tell him to hit up Summerfest!
well, I'm pregnant right along with you... Almost 25 weeks. And I'm at the other end of the weight spectrum. I started this pregnancy at 5'8" and 157 lbs. Now, almost 25 weeks later I weighed 188 lbs this morning... sigh...
all that matters is that we're having healthy babies.
PS - I found out I'm having a boy, and pretty much freaking out about it. I already have a girl (almost 4) and have no idea what to do with a boy. If you could ever post on how wonderful boys are, and the great things they do, it'd be greatly reassuring!
thanks~
Hi, did I write this post? I swear I could have written this post (except I don't have a kid yet, and my husband doesn't travel for work)
We're due at the same time. I didn't eat for the first three months, I lost 10 lbs, and STILL haven't gained it all back yet. I'm still under my pre-preg weight, and wondering what gives. Not that I want to be the size of a cow, but you know...
Um, you kind of have the cutest pregnant belly ever.
Siamese cats are natural manipulators. Do not trust. To combat pregnancy brain: take a Sharpie and label the cat food. Write the day of the week that you will feed it to the cat on the can. That way you know if the Thursday can is not opened and it's Thursday, then the cat needs to be fed. This only works if you are aware of what day it is, though.
I gained 40 some odd lbs when pregnant with my son. I don't really know where I started, because I tried not to look at the scale, and my doctor only tutted at me one time when I gained like 10 lbs in one month. But I did gain most of it towards the end.
Oh, I love that someone else is freaking out about this, because I've felt obnoxious and lonely (always a fun conversation) over here. I'm at 29 weeks with our first, and, while I've put on some weight, I'm constantly feeling like it's not enough. Plus, it doesn't help when someone tells you you're tiny for being due in September, and someone else guesses that you're two MONTHS less pregnant than you actually are -- both within 24 hours. But, if I was you, the two things that would reassure me are that you do have a real, honest-to-goodness baby bump and that everything was A-OK on the ultrasound. (Oh, and PS: You look kind of amazing, jerkface.) Paranoia's a bitch, huh? :)
The cat's probably playing you, but what can it hurt to feed him just in case? Worst case, kitty gets a sympathy belly.
Oh man, I remember when I was going in for pre-natal appts and big 'ole pregges women would come in with 1-2 more kids and it totally FREAKED me out!!! Way to go! :) Smile :)
That's the trouble with laid-back doctors. I almost WANT them to freak out over me, just so I can tell them that no, thanks, I'm fine, really, nothing to see here, move along. But when THEY say that I'm fine? Why, then I feel the need to do the freaking out. For some reason, I guess I think someone needs to be freaking out about me at all times.
You're fine and you look adorable. Just eat when you're hungry and stop worrying. :)
At 21 weeks, I have gained a grand total of -10 pounds. I lost 10 in the first/start of second trimesters and have yet to manage to gain everything.
My OB is pretty young and she isn't worried about my lack of poundage either.
I'm beginning to think that this whole "you should have gained X pounds by now" in the pregnancy books is total bullshit as are all guidelines about weight in pregnancy.