Pregnancy and Things Expectant Mothers Should Know

I knew I was pregnant the moment it happened. Call it a sixth sense, call it a bodily knowledge, call it what you will but I knew and I took a pregnancy test within the week which confirmed my feelings. I was pregnant. This was first time. What was I in for? Who do I talk to? Would they scare me? Would they really help me? The first person I talked to, of course, was my mom. Congratulations were due all around too.

I asked my mother what to expect. She explained to me the morning sickness. The morning sickness she had at night instead. Yes, you can develop it at night so I don't know why they call it morning sickness except the fact that most women get it it in the morning.

I asked my sister and she told me about lugging around the large belly for almost 10 months. Not fitting into her regular clothes and how she knew right away that she was pregnant. She didn't know why but began to feel something different within a day or two of her last sexual encounter with her husband.

I didn't ask my aunt but she volunteered to tell me information that she felt I should know because it was gross, it would happen and she didn't want me to panic. She told me about the afterbirth that I would have to pass. How they put it on a scale, weigh it and check it. I asked check it for what? She said any other baby parts in case there was a twin and also to check it for abnormalities. I was grossed out but glad to know that this would happen so I wouldn't be scared when it happened.

As promised I got morning sickness. Also another thing that happened which is not the norm is that the pregnancy vitamins made me even sicker. Nowadays they will you that if they make you sick don't take them but they did't back then. I just stopped taking them and felt fine once the intial morning sickness was over.

As promised I outgrew all my clothing. I had to go buy sweatpants and shirts that were too huge for me normally to start covering my belly. Another myth, you don't have to buy expensive maternity clothes. Go buy sweatpants several sizes too large with a string so that you can loosen them as you get larger. Go into the men's department and buy 3X shirts that you can use for all your months of pregnancy and not have to pay outrageous prices at a maternity section. They can get extremely expensive. Of coure, if you are working during your pregnancy sweatpants and large shirts may not cover your wardrobe.

One thing I got experience in is don't listen to the woman next door birthing her baby screaming! It is not something that every woman does. I did not but her screaming put me in a panic so badly I told the doctor and nurses I was going home.

I had hemorroids. No one told me about them. I had many painful nights sitting with my knees cocked up and praying for the pain to go away although I was using what the doctor ordered.

I had labor pains for a whole day before the contractions became so bad that I couldn't time them. That was my cue to get to the hospital. Nobody told me that. That was something I had to learn on my own.

When your water breaks it is embaressing I was told. Mine didn't break. I thought something was wrong. It was because my baby's head was blocking the way. The doctor broke the sac and it still didn't come out. I also had to be cut. Nobody told me about that either. Then no one told me that I could tear either. These are all things I experienced.

But to this day...I don't recall the pain, the cutting or the tearing. All I remember is that I gave birth to a human child called a boy!