Looking back on the past 34 weeks, I really can’t complain too much. No morning sickness, no food aversions, no headaches, etc. Just a growing belly.
With that being said, a growing pregnant belly can and does pose a couple of challenges – lower back pain and swollen feet/ankles being two big ones. Both of which are super common and nothing to write home about if you know what I mean.
Before I share more about a couple of products that are truly helping to alleviate my back pain and swelling, please note that any and all symptoms should be discussed with your doctor. Pregnancy is not the time to self-diagnose.
Swollen Pregnancy Feet
Ok, so I didn’t self-diagnose, but when my feet first started swelling, I did ask Vishnu what he thought. He said to bring it up at my next prenatal appointment and to start wearing compression socks in the meantime. Of course, me being me, I didn’t rush to Amazon to buy said socks. When I was still complaining about the on again off again swelling, Vishnu took matters into his own hands and bought me not one, not two, but SIX pairs of socks!
While they’re definitely not super stylish, I can honestly say that these socks have alleviated my swollen feet and ankles. Trust me, I’ve put the compression socks theory to the test. For example, I forgot to take them with me to Atlanta and my feet were swollen for the duration of my trip. Not fun at all! I didn’t make that mistake when we went to Scottsdale and took all six pairs with me! Annnnd…no swollen feet…at all! Similar situations have happened locally where I sometimes forget to wear the socks, and I end up with elephant feet. But take the same situation + compression socks and no swelling. Good call, Vishnu, good call!
Pregnancy Back Pain
My back pain started fairly early on but usually only reared its ugly head at night. I tried everything to help lower the pain and increase my sleep – a pregnancy pillow, extra regular pillows…everything.
Once again, Vishnu told me to talk to my doctor about the pain and also suggested that I start wearing a maternity belt in the meantime. What a genius! This belt helps with my nighttime back pain and also helps alleviate the pain that’s started popping up while doing normal household things. In fact, I don’t think I could’ve made it through our move without it. While my body ached afterwards, my back was ok!
I have a feeling this belt is going to be my BFF for the next 6ish weeks as my nighttime back pain starts to dissipate (it’s actually getting better!) and my daytime back pain revs up.
All I can say is HOME STRETCHHHHHHHHHHHH! We’re almost at the finish line!
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