Here are their responses:
“I was surprised that a lot of women don’t share some of the more grizzly side effects or symptoms of pregnancy such as varicose veins and flatulence.”
“I wasn’t surprised when my shoes size went up during pregnancy (due to swelling) but I was surprised when my shoe size never went back to normal. My poor beautiful shoe collection!”
“I was surprised that I really enjoyed being pregnant. I never had any of the symptoms and felt fine the whole time. I’d always heard everyone say that they felt sick or really tired but pregnancy suited me. I felt better than ever and my migraines even went away.”
“To be honest, I hadn’t done much research and not a lot of my friends had babies yet so most of my pregnancy was a surprise.”
“I was so thirsty all the time!”
“The comments from both people I know and strangers. People are so weirdly opinionated about pregnancy and made comments about how I was carrying or how my bump looked.”
“Throughout my pregnancy I was so nervous of labour. As soon as I got the positive pregnancy test my mind immediately started focussing on the how I would get the baby out of me and I was terrified. I had to keep repeating “it is normal, women have been doing it for thousands of years and if you need an epidural or help it is nothing to be ashamed of.”
“I was surprised how quickly I could tell I was pregnant, even before the test confirmed it I was tired, thirsty had headaches and then the penny dropped!”
“There was so much information and you are given so many resources. You want to use the time to prepare but you can easily be overwhelmed.”
“I didn’t have as much time to stress about pregnancy and birth with my second child because I was so busy caring for my first child. It was a completely different experience and you have an inner confidence that everything will be ok.”
A note from Midwife Kylie Marston:
Everyone’s bodies are different and will be different during pregnancy, It is helpful to share these stories to help our mums prepare but just remember that you could experience something very different on your journey.
