The Pregnancy Diary: Exhaustion Week 4 - 14
We're having a reprise! Baby Riggs #2 arrives mid-July 2019 and I hope to share some of my pregnancy stories not only to touch base with other mamas and future ones but also to have my stories to look back on.
First trimester. October 2018 - January 18, 2019
Utter exhaustion. Beyond ‘I need a nap’ or ‘*yawn* I’m tired.’ This was like being deliriously depleted of any energy at all for 3 months straight. There were many times I felt that I should not have driven a car, like the room was spinning after a rave night, and my face was puffy from being so tired. I’m not here to scare you- I’m here to share my experience with this pregnancy and we cannot forget- each pregnancy and person is different in how their bodies take on the challenge at any given stage.
I think I whined to my girlfriends the most. They understood and let me vent; after all there are 9 kids between the 4 of us. I felt guilty for telling my husband how tired I was. I thought he wouldn’t believe me or say I am overreacting. He is always supportive and understands but there is still that 'Mom guilt' which I didn't think would be real yet it is. Yes, I mentioned it a lot but I am not sure I really explained how bad it was. After one full day and night of being sick, I landed a few hours in the hospital for some liquids upon my doctor’s orders and was prescribed Diclegis by her…thank God. It took the edge off a ton but the tiredness was still there, if not slightly worse since it is known to make you drowsy. I began Googling everything I could. Was this type of exhaustion normal? Were there tricks to relieve it? Something I could do to banish it? Nope. Everything was the same: ‘tiredness is normal!’, ‘take a nap!’, ‘rest!’, ‘drink water!’. K. I can't do that at work, duh.
I’m trying to go to bed earlier but I fail. I make it a priority to sit with my husband and try to wind down because I love him so. I’m using face and eye masks daily before bed to get back my skin and decrease the tired puffiness. I’m trying to nap when Chloe does on the weekend but life doesn’t really let me do that. And then I feel guilty. That 'Mom Guilt' again. Wife guilt. Just plain ol' there-is-shit-to-do guilt.
Long whiny story short, I could not wait to be past this feeling. It felt as if it would never go away but I trusted that it would. In November, December, and half of January I just would daydream about being able to nap during the day and then get back to work, not feel guilty about sitting on the couch more often when I get home, and try to let everything go in order to rest my mind and body before I could start back up again. Beyond all of this I am more importantly incredibly grateful to be pregnant and be in a healthy stage of growing another little human. All of it is worth it in the end.
What was your pregnancy like? Did you experience this crazy tired feeling? Comment below to share your story!
