Thursday, January 19, 2017
How did you manage pregnancy symptoms at work? Share your stories!
Pregnancy is not an illness. It’s usually a joyful time in one’s life. But man, can it make you feel AWFUL. Morning sickness, fatigue, swelling, brain fog... Everyone experiences these things differently, but almost everyone is going to have something. Rare is the mom who can rosily exclaim “Gee, I felt WONDERFUL throughout my entire pregnancy!
Even in the same person, pregnancy can present differently. With Babyboy, I had very little nausea; rather, I had weird intense cravings for salty things (like sardines). So, when I learned I was pregnant with my second, I went out and bought cans and cans of sardines. Surprise! Not only did the mere whiff of sardines make me nauseated, that’s how I felt for the whole nine months.
“Morning sickness”, which, in my experience, can last all day, is different for everyone. It can mean queasiness, or hurling. I have friends who required admission for hyperemesis gravidarum. All the ginger tea and Zofran on the planet doesn’t help, sometimes.
I got through by only eating what I could tolerate: carbs. Sixty pounds later...
Swollen legs, incredible fatigue, brain fog... these are some of the other symptoms I experienced. I finagled "pregnancy parking" close by work at the end of my first pregnancy, when the summer heat made walking unbearable. I've heard of doctor-moms who managed to steal naps here and there... And for brain fog? I don't have any ideas what can help.
What about you? Share what symptoms you had, and how you managed them. The info can help another doctor-mom!
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Pregnancy...oh boy. My baby turns 1 tomorrow. I'm pondering a second...What symptom didn't I have?
ReplyDelete7 months of nausea - struggled with it for the first 12 weeks of pregnancy, then I couldn't take it any longer and took Diclegis which helped a ton. Could only eat carbs for the first trimester.
Burning tummy in the middle of the night - kept muffins on my night table.
SI joint dysfunction - started week 16, couldn't walk more than 1-2 blocks at a time. It improved after delivery, but I couldn't get back to my regular running routine. Eventually I went to PT and with some hip flexor/psoas stretches it improved.
Insomnia - second and third trimester. Would be awake from 1-4AM for 3 nights, then crash and sleep through the night for one night. Around this time, my clinic tried to increase my work hours. I ended up going on FMLA (using 1 hour per day) in order to continue with my regular clinic schedule.
Lower extremity swelling, a little gingivitis, acne, reflux, poor memory....I think I've forgotten the rest of the symptoms, lol.
Oh my, THANKS so much. This reminded me that I had had the SI joint dysfunction as well! I even needed PT and I totally forgot. I am sorry that you had to resort to using FMLA to keep your clinic schedule status quo, that's sad.
DeleteSince you asked... Diclectin for nausea, micro-naps at lunch when necessary, physio and massage therapy for SI joint dysfunction...
ReplyDeleteOK I have never even heard of Diclectin so this is good. And another SI joint pain sufferer...It's an epidemic!
DeleteFor sacroiliac joint dysfunction pain, we recommend a SI joint belt. Snacks in my coat at all times were a must. Hot months made me get a popsicle stick as a snack. I wore long compression tights all day to help with the calf fatigue and cramping. Hope that helps.
ReplyDeleteOK, never heard of an SI joint belt but wish I had. Compression stockings/ tights are great but not when it's hot out...
DeleteIntense skin itching necessitating 3am Aveeno baths (it worked!) with daughter. Bad back acne with my daughter requiring erythromycin. Reflux required prescription (at the time) Prilosec with daughter. Nausea so bad in first trimester with son I had saltines and Andes mints on hand constantly at work to try to prevent dry heaving at the scope (luckily no throwing up and I usually made it to the stairwell to dry heave alone). I had SI joint dysfunction also that became tear inducing after a week of bedrest when my son came early and required intense chiropractic work to recover. Nightly leg cramps, I guess due to electrolyte imbalance, that would wake me up in intense pain - I researched a physical foot stretch maneuver to extinguish the cramps. In our field of work, and society, we are taught to push through it, but it's not for the faint of heart.
ReplyDeleteWow, you've had it tough. Interesting that so many doc-moms have had the SI joint dysfunction and leg cramps- maybe from being on our feet so much?
DeleteI had intense sacro-iliac and pubic symphysis pain. I also got severe spasms of my piriformis and related muscles in compensation which was painful. My first pregnancy, when I was a fellow, I borrowed a wheeling stool and did most of the rounds sitting on it moving from outside room to room. I only stood up when we were actually in the patient rooms, and sat during all the presentations and plans (which took most of the time) as well as scooting myself between rooms. My second pregnancy it got much worse and I was in private practice, so I just swallowed my pride and used a cane everywhere outside of exam rooms. I did physical therapy both times but honestly, it didn't do much in either case until after I delivered, in which case it worked great to get me back to my normal self.
ReplyDeleteI also had horrible reflux, to the point in my second pregnancy where I would awaken at night panicked with half digested food feeling like it was in my airway. One night I actually apparently aspirated something because I woke up suddenly very SOB I had incredible SOB and CP and wheezing for days afterwards (yes, I did see my OB). I ended up having to take Zantac, sleep on a significant incline, and eat and drink nothing at all after 6 PM, as well as cut out anything spicy or tomato based or too greasy. Milk was really my friend during that time.
Holy moly. The stories keep getting more and more intense. You really suffered! That aspiration sounds like it could have been serious!
DeleteNausea throughout most of pregnancy. Migraines only when I'm pregnant but not bad enough to do anything about. SI dysfunction with both, relieved with PT/chiropractor. Acid reflux. Intense itching for the last 2 months due to cholestasis of pregnancy. Taking Zyrtec every day helped with this. With both pregnancies I had contractions q5 min or so from 34 weeks on. That was miserable. I just kept trucking along through it all. Staying busy helped keep my mind off my misery. With both I was induced at 37 weeks for the cholestasis so at least I had a definite end date. Pregnancy is not for the faint of heart!
ReplyDelete