Friday 9 December 2016

December Madness!

Madness, in the sense that everyone is shopping! People are spending an average of 20 minutes queuing for their Christmas purchases. The shops are full of tinsel and wrapping paper, Christmas bargains and hoards of people.

If heavily pregnant one often feels claustrophobic in crowds. The feeling of people brushing against your pregnant belly as they pass can make you feel really odd. My advise is DON'T go shopping after 3PM, especially at weekends.  If you do venture out make sure that you can see an exit close by so that you can escape if you need to. 

Escape to a cafe and put your feet up to reduce the swelling. During the later months of pregnancy you are prone to ankle, leg and foot swelling, especially at the end of the day after a busy day walking around in the humidity of Singapore.  So FEET UP! 

Why do you have swelling in pregnancy?
As your baby grows, your womb (uterus) puts pressure on the blood vessels in your pelvis. This particularly affects the large vein on your right-hand side which receives blood from your lower limbs (inferior vena cava). This pressure slows blood circulation in the area and causes the blood to pool. 
Pressure from this trapped blood forces water down and out through tiny vessels (capillaries), and into the tissues of your feet and ankles. This water is normally absorbed by your body, but because you're pregnant, you retain more water, which adds to the swelling.

You can help reduce the swelling by not standing for long periods, wearing comfy shoes, no straps that will dig into your feet when they swell, and as said, put your feet up above the level of your heart for 30 -60 minutes a day.

HOWEVER if as well as swelling of your ankles feet legs and hands you have bad headaches, or see flashing lights before your eyes with blurry vision, pain below your ribs or vomiting then SEE YOUR DR. IMMEDIATELY this could be PRE-ECLAMPSIA a rare, serious condition of the mother in the 3rd trimester of pregnancy.

MERRY CHRISTMAS and a HAPPY NEW YEAR 2017 to you all. 
May all your labour and births be clam and gentle.





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