Tag: insomnia
I’m Not Fat, Baby on Board
I was lucky to be pregnant during winter, no hot sticky summer nights to contend with my already uncomfortable pregnancy insomnia. Being naturally warmer when pregnant was a blessing throughout the colder months! Although it did have its downside when it came to my daily commute.
I found travelling to and from work at rush hour in the hustle and bustle of London city and grappling for space to protect my bump from being knocked, became more difficult the larger my bump grew. Wearing a winter coat and scarf disguised my delicate situation.
Fellow tube and train travellers weren’t aware of my desperate need to sit down, to give my legs a break from the weight bearing down on them and to provide me with stability when the tube or train lurched around a corner or stopped abruptly.
My previously pregnant friends recommended I wear a badge on my coat that clearly said I was pregnant (and in the nicest possible way, could you therefore please give up your seat). They had done it and told me it worked! Secretly, I scoffed at the idea of wearing a badge. The last time I wore a badge I was 5 years old and declaring to the world it was my Birthday!
But it’s NOT a silly idea. It’s highly practical and pleasantly polite (with the bonus being you don’t need to engage in a needless conversation with a stranger as they’ll know instantly that you’re pregnant).
Pregnant & Not Sleeping?
Someone should have warned me. I’m a complete and utter sucker when it comes to sleep. Without it, I’m cranky and disheveled. With it, I’m sweet as pie and able to conquer the world.
I knew that when the time came and I was holding my baby in my arms, sleep would be a distant memory. But nobody told me it would be taken away before I even had my baby in my arms!
Sleep was confiscated from me when I was feeling huge and dealing with the rush of pregnancy hormones.
Insomnia in the third trimester has to be your body’s way of getting you ready for motherhood, for those days when your baby decides it doesn’t want to nod off to sleepy land.
I found it hard enough not being able to sleep on my stomach, let alone having no chance of sleeping on my back due to the weight of my belly. That only left me with two choices – the left side or the right side. I felt I was being seriously hard done by.
Something had to alleviate the boredom of my two sleeping options, especially with the uncomfortable position these left me in with my ever expanding belly.
I’d heard there were pillows to help take the weight off your belly and distribute it more evenly across your legs. The most popular of these being the DreamGenii Maternity Support Pillow
I just had to have it, anything that would buy me more precious sleep was surely worth it’s weight in gold.
And it was. Not only did this genius pillow provide the support my body needed in bed so that I could relax and enjoy a longer slumber, I’ve also used it as a breast-feeding pillow since my baby has been born. Despite being a little pricey for a pillow, it’s been worth it.
I recommend this as an extremely effective sleep-aid when pregnant and as a useful pillow for you and baby in the following months when feeding your baby for the comfort of you both.
