Pregnancy - Week 16

Week 16 is coming to a close. Over all, I've had a VERY easy pregnancy. I am one of the approximately 25-30% of women without morning sickness. The entire first trimester, I was waiting for it. Most women in my pregnancy group were hit full force with all day sickness between 6 weeks and 8 weeks. When those weeks came and went, I was told "just wait, it'll come soon".

I started this pregnancy at low-normal weight, just riding the cuff between under and normal BMI. After my pregnancy was confirmed (at only 3 weeks and 2 days!), I was worried about getting sick and losing weight (and then losing baby, although I have no evidence to support that fear). So I told myself there were no food restrictions because I was just balancing out the inevitable morning sickness that was lurking around the corner. Alas, the closest I came to morning sickness was not liking the smell of my husband's daily bacon and egg breakfast sandwich for roughly one week. Even then, it didn't make me nauseous....I just didn't like it the way a normal person likes the smell of bacon.

Week 16 has been no different, considerably easier for me than most women experience. Common experiences during this time are:

• Round ligament pain

• Insomnia

• Frequent urination, though not as bad as first trimester as uterus moves up and off the bladder

• Cramping due to uterine growth spurts

• Increased vaginal discharge, known as leukorrhea

• Heartburn

• Increased hunger

• Constipation

• Backaches

• Bleeding gums or bloody nose

I can say I have experienced all of this except bleeding gums and bloody nose, but not to any point that it has been uncomfortable or extreme...except for one night of round ligament pain. My round ligament pain was so severe on my right side (it is common for it to be worse on the right) that I Googled "round ligament pain or appendicitis". The number of results alone eased my fears...it's a very common question for Dr. Google. Given that I was hungry enough to be eating a yogurt while I searched this (you typically don't want to eat if you have appendicitis), I closed my search and went on with my evening.

Other, less common symptoms, that I am dealing with:

• UTIs

• Symphysis pubis dysfunction (SPD)

UTIs are more common in pregnancy due to the pressure of the growing uterus against the bladder and urethra. It is also more common for them to be asymptomatic in pregnancy, which can be dangerous because untreated UTI's can lead to more serious kidney infection. I am one of these asymptomatic cases. At my first prenatal appointment with my normal OBGYN (I was seen earlier in pregnancy by a Reproductive Endocrinologist), I found out through their standard urine screening that I had a UTI. They prescribed Macrobid and I went about my life. Roughly 2 days after I finished that round of antibiotics, I began spotting and my fears of miscarriage resurfaced. They saw me immediately to check on baby, did a follow up urine sample to make sure my UTI was gone, and low and behold - it wasn't. I was put on a second round of Macrobid. The day I finished my second round of antibiotics, I noticed I wasn't urinating as frequently. Then 2 days later, I was back to waking up 3 times in the night and thought it would be best to get tested again despite no other symptoms. Sure enough, my UTI culture came back positive for a 3rd time. I'm currently on a 3rd antibiotic, fingers crossed this one does the trick.

Symphysis pubis dysfunction (don't ask me how to pronounce it) is usually not an issue until later in the third trimester. Unfortunately, I began experiencing it as early as roughly 10 weeks. One of the hormones your body releases during pregnancy is cleverly named Relaxin. Any guesses what this hormone does? Well, if you couldn't guess, it relaxes your ligaments to allow for expansion and easier birth. I have a congenital spine defect known as "block vertebrae" which has caused my hips to be uneven in my normal non-pregnant state of being. The additional relaxin and misalignment leads to increased inflammation in the symphysis pubis, essentially your pubic bone for us non-doctors, which really just feels like constant dull pain in my vagina (TMI!). It means that I'm waddling like I'm 8 months pregnant already. The "cure" is physical therapy and being careful with certain movements. I've been doing a variety of exercises to try to strengthen my pelvic floor, which has helped marginally.

Finally, I am pretty certain that I am feeling baby move as well at this point. These early movements are known as "quickening" and feel like a tiny little knock or bubble popping in my uterus. At week 16, the top of the uterus is roughly half-way between pelvic bone and belly button, which is right where I'm feeling these tiny movements.

There are a lot of factors that go into when you'll actually feel baby move, especially if you're a first time mom. Some of these factors are:

• Position of the placenta in the uterus

• Baby's size relative to gestational age

• How much cushioning you have (fat/fluid)

• Your sensitivity level

When the placenta attaches to the front wall of the uterus (i.e., the part up against your belly instead of your back), it is known as an anterior placenta. If you have an anterior placenta, you're less likely to feel baby move early and may not feel anything until 22+ weeks. When the placenta attaches to the back wall, posterior, you may feel baby as early as 13-14 weeks although it's more likely you won't feel much until 16-18 weeks. I know from my ultrasounds that the placenta is posterior, baby is measuring slightly ahead, and I am particularly sensitive to my body.

My stats at this point:

• Gained 8 pounds

• Up 2 cup sizes and had to buy new bras

• I can still run! Just not as long/much. I was doing 3 miles/5x a week and now I do about 1 mile and then walk the rest (it's also just too hot for me).

• I asked hubby if I looked fat or pregnant, and he said without hesitation "definitely pregnant"