Monday, April 11, 2011

My Vegan Pregnancy: Part 3

Well, I am 16 weeks and 5 days pregnant today.  This is pretty significant for me, because with my last (omnivore) pregnancy, it was only here that I was ending my severe food aversions and constant nausea.  While I felt like I had pretty bad "morning" sickness this time, in retrospect, I was able to eat a LOT more.  During my first pregnancy, I would eat breakfast and just hope that I could eat again at some other part of the day.

This time, maybe because I also had to feed a toddler, I ate three meals a day through my whole first trimester.  I am still having tummy troubles after I eat, and am not as regular as I'd like to be, but I am able to eat complete meals- what a nice change!

During my last pregnancy, by 16 weeks I had lost 15lbs.  This wasn't horrible, but it's certainly not the goal while growing another human.  This time, my starting weight was 15lbs lighter than my previous prepregnancy weight, and I haven't lost more than a lb or two which I've already gained back, so I'm right where I started.  The baby is only a few ounces, plus some placenta and amniotic fluid, so it's completely fine to have not put on weight yet.  Because I started out overweight, it's not dangerous for me to not gain until midway through my second trimester.

I think the biggest difference between my last pregnancy and this pregnancy in regards to eating enough is that my big food aversions are no longer a part of my diet.  Eggs, chicken, and fish no longer smell up my house when I eat.  I can remember going downstairs into our family room and hiding while my husband would cook chicken for us during my first pregnancy.  I could still smell it cooking from there and I would dry heave at the faint smell.  Now when I cook, most of the smells are good to me, and I've become an adaptive enough chef that I can alter recipes to exclude certain items when I'm having an aversion.  Sometimes the smell of onions or beans or kale bother me, but it hasn't been consistent.

In addition to my steady lack of growth, the baby is measuring exactly to the date when it should, so that's great.  We have our "anatomy scan" ultrasound in three weeks, so we'll see again then how each particular limb and the major organs are growing.  I've requested a B12 blood test when they do some other tests at 28 weeks, and my midwife suggested a vitamin D test as well because in Alaska nearly everyone needs more D.  I have just switched midwives to one who will attend my home birth, and so after seeing two midwives I'm pleased to say that neither had any concerns about a vegan pregnancy.  In talking to me, neither even felt the need to suggest changes in my diet.  They both said that a balanced vegan diet gave them no cause for worry.  What a great reassurance, especially when you see silly stories in the media about previously vegan starlets giving up their vegan ways "for their baby."  It's a shame that an innocent unborn child takes the blame for animals to be harmed.

3 comments:

  1. Im so very glad your pregnancy is going along so well and that you are having few aversions to worry about and juggle. :) I saw on Yahoo the starlett you are refering too and it is pretty sad- and sadder still that its being spun as if thats the noble thing to do. People always as me if I will be veg when I am pregnant, we dont need anything else putting ideas out there about how a vegan pregancy is anything less than healthy (when done correctly, obviously!)

    Okay, I have a question for you and it is kinda off topic, and I hope doesnt bother you. I know you might not be an expert on this topic and thats fine- I just dont have anyone who knows enough about it to understand why I am so worried. I have this friend with CF. I have known her since Jr High and she is very dear to me. She just turned 26 and the other day annouced that she was suprised to learn she is pregnant. She'd tried ot concieve for years but hadnt been able to and just assumed she couldnt. So she wasnt at all prepared to learn she was pregnant. None the less, she and her boy friend are very happy about it and want to keep the baby. Im happy for them, I really am, but everythhing I know about CF and pregnancy says its a really bad idea. :-( I know she has a TPN, and that should help with getting enough nutrition for her and the baby, but she is just so frail, I dont know how she will make it through this pregancy in one piece. I want to be supportive of her. Ive congratulated her and told her I love her. I really belive that this is her choice to make and if she wants to use her body to make a baby, then that is the right choice for her life, and a beautiful thing at that! I still worry though. Not about what kind of mother she will be or anything, she is GREAT with kids and has a big heart, I just worry about the physical stuff. Do you know anything about CF and pregancy that might put my mind at ease? She lives 3,000 miles away now, so I cannot be a physical help to her, but I want to at least be an emotional support, one who she wont fear hearing "I told you it was a bad idea!" if things start to get really tough...

    Anyways, like I say I dont know if you know anything about this topic, but my husband (whose cousin even has CF!) knows nothing about it or why I am so scared for my friend. IDK...sorry if this bothers you at all, I hope it doesnt.

    -Zealia

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  2. Z,
    That is amazing news for your friend because many CF women have a very hard time conceiving. I don't know a lot about it or the complications/precautions, but I do know a great resource. www.cysticfibrosis.com has a forum section on their site and has a specific forum related to pregnancy. I spent some time on that forum when we were trying to conceive and then when we did get pregnant, but found that most of the board regulars are women who have gone through pregnancy or are trying to conceive and very knowledgabe about CF and pregnancy. They were very supportive and helpful, and happy to answer questions for someone with a friend in a situation or for people going through it. It was a pretty active forum a few years ago when we were trying, although there weren't really any other non-CF moms who had CF partners, so I didn't really get a lot for myself from the board. I would highly suggest that forum. If she already sees a specialist, I'm sure he/she will be able to work with her through the pregnancy. It's not simple or easy, but with all the support and information we have today, CF adults are doing more than anyone could have imagined even 20 years ago.

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  3. Wow, Erin that is AWESOME! Thank you for that website suggestion! I will check it out and I will tell my friend about it too. :) Im glad a site like that exists, I do know being able to have chidren is rare for people with CF, so I think its a miricle she became pregnant, so maybe it is meant to be. I also think its wonderful that the technology exists to help couples like you and your husband concieve, its so cool. Anyways, thank you again for the recomendation! Have a great day!

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