The bad

37 weeks, 3 days. :)

In continuing my posts of the good, the bad and the surprising ugly of this pregnancy (check out yesterday for the good), today is the bad.

I will preface this post of the bad side of pregnancy by saying I don't think I had a very hard pregnancy. I wasn't sick for months on end, I did not have gestational diabetes, preeclampsia, or other major chronic medical issues. The critter appears healthy. So overall, I'm pretty happy with the way things have gone so far.

Buuuuut...well, some things have been sort of sucky. It's true, and I'm not gonna sugar-coat it for you. So here we go, my top 3 bad parts of being pregnant.

1. Bedrest. Ok, this isn't a pregnancy symptom, but I was only on bedrest because I was pregnant. So it counts. And truly, bedrest sucks big time. I was on bedrest twice during this pregnancy. First time, from 7 to 12-ish weeks, after bleeding from a sub-chorionic hemorrhage (SCH). Scary as all hell. Bedrest in the first tri was not as bad, I was so tired from first tri fatigue anyway, and so scared to lose the critter, I was happy to stay home. The second time was following pre-term labor, from 33 to 36 weeks. Third tri bedrest sucks big time. I was big and uncomfortable lying down, and had the nesting instinct in full force. But I could not do anything, and it was an exercise in frustration, crankiness and boredom. Hated it. And I will also note, I was on "modified" bedrest, so I was at home, able to get up to go to the bathroom, and shower. I do not know how women survive on strict bedrest, or who are hospitalized. I take my hat off to you, it must suck even more.

2. The heat I radiate. Hot damn, it has been a hot 9+ months. I was never a warm person before, I was always the one who needed an extra layer and a scarf. Not these days. We have kept the house cooler, and Mr. P will be in full flannel PJs, slippers, and a robe, while I'm in a thin t-shirt and shorts. It is not like being on the evil Depot Lupron, with hot flashes, this is more like a constant smolder. Being pregnant in the summer sucks, and of course, this summer and fall were one of the warmest on record here. Ugh. I miss feeling chilled. And don't get me started on the sweating. I'm like a greased pig.

3. Sleeping on my side. Or should I say, sleeping in weird positions. God, how I miss sleeping on my back. I began training myself to sleep on my side around 12 weeks, and got a huge u-shaped body pillow to support me. While I highly recommend a body pillow, it still sucks to sleep in an unnatural position. And sleeping on my side while pregnant hurts the hell out of my hips. I am woken up not only to pee 100 times a night, but also by my aching hips. If only I could sleep on my back for a bit, ease the pressure on my hips. It is one of the top things I often think of when I think "Only 2 more weeks til I can..."

So those are my top three bad things. Sure, I had some minor heartburn, but not too bad or frequent (the good side of a breech baby). Yeah, my feet and legs are swollen, but it doesn't really hurt or bother me much. My balance sucks, and getting up from a reclining or sitting position can be a very interesting endeavor, but it is sort of funny too. Mr. P calls me Tippy Turtle. So I can't really complain.

The surprising things to come....