Being pregnant changes you in a number of physical and emotional ways. Your mom is hopefully on hand to give you some much-needed support and tips on what to expect and how to cope with your changing body as your pregnancy takes shape.
There are also some physical changes that mom may not have told you about and in addition to finding out about some of the surprises you have in store that are connected to your body shape and development.
It may also be of interest to read a blog about a lot of the other aspects surrounding childbirth and pregnancy. This article has some great advice about breastfeeding, pregnancy and breast surgeries.
A few extra inches than you were expecting
One of the fundamental changes that a lot of women don’t always account for is that despite the obvious fact that you are going to put on weight with your pregnancy, body fat becomes more noticeable. Hello cellulite.
You may already have a few small dimples of fat on your bottom or your tummy which is fine, but these fat dimples tend to become more pronounced and seem to take up a larger area of your body than normal.
Pregnant fat creep is a common phenomenon and will happen to even the leanest and fittest of mums-to-be and for most of us, your body should return to its usual features and the dimples will go back to where they were before, a short while after birth.
Tummy troubles
Your tummy is clearly going to swell well beyond its normal proportions as your pregnancy progresses, but a good number of women are not aware that even after the baby has been born, your tummy will not go down immediately.
Your tummy will look smaller but it needs time to deflate and your uterus will take about a month to return to its normal size, so don’t panic if you still look like your pregnant for a few weeks after.
Support those breasts
Even if you think you have relatively small breasts, these will get bigger during pregnancy.
Every pregnant woman will experience the pleasure of carrying around milk-engorged breasts and there is a good chance that the milk-filled ducts will even cause your breasts to swell out sideways as well as out the front.
Make sure that you get proper supporting nursing / maternity bras that will not only feel much more comfortable, but they will also do the job of making sure that your breasts do not get a chance to lose their structural integrity.
Check out what we think is the most comfortable nursing bra.
Don’t neglect your legs
Remember to take into account the extra weight that your legs are having to carry around and support.
As a pregnant woman, you are producing more progesterone, which does the job of relaxing your blood vessels. There is a definite chance of getting varicose veins if you don’t wear support tights and take regular breaks by putting your feet up to relieve the weight from your legs.
The Fashionable Housewife recommends Mama Mio Lucky Legs Cooling Energizing Gel
Say goodbye to your old vagina!
It may not be a subject you want to address, but your private anatomy is basically going to change forever once you have had a baby.
A vaginal delivery will probably mean that your genital area won’t look quite the same as it did before, especially if you had a skin tear during the birth. The space inside your vagina will also be a little larger. You can regain muscle tone by doing kegel exercises daily, but be prepared to say goodbye to how things once were down there and learn to love your new look afterwards.
GUEST BLOGGER: Dr Robert Goldman is a Cosmetic Surgeon with a practice in Perth Western Australia and Cairns Queensland. Follow Dr Goldman on Google+.
