Body Changes During Pregnancy

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More Body Changes to Expect
Breast Changes
Your breasts begin readying themselves from the first days of pregnancy. For some, these changes are simply that - differences that are interesting, but don't affect life in any significant, life-altering fashion. For others, breast changes cause discomfort.

Tender and sometimes down right painful breasts are another lovely "joy" which pregnant women experience. Breasts may tingle, swell, feel sore or tender, and have a heightened sensitivity to touch. A patient once told me that if her husband so much as looked at her breasts she wanted to cry. She was that uncomfortable.

As if that weren't enough to deal with, it's not just that your mammary (milk producing) glands are enlarging. You're also developing fat in the breasts. Your breasts may grow a complete cup size. The problem is this: all this growing may be accompanied by pretty intense itching and stretch marks, due to the expansion of skin. Not a great place to itch during that important meeting.

If you don't enjoy the breast sensations you experience in the first trimester, you can take comfort in knowing that you'll probably be uncomfortable for a few weeks. The increase in size will stay with you throughout your pregnancy, but the sensitivities will lessen.

What to Expect
Breasts increase in size due to fat buildup.

A bluish web of tiny veins appear just below the skin as blood flow increases.

The size of milk glands increases in preparation for breast feeding.

Nipples and the areas around them may darken or increase in size. (Totally normal.)

Small glands around the nipple produce an oily substance to keep the area soft.

Expect some leakage by the end of the 1st trimester. This fluid is called colostrum and it indicates that the breasts are preparing to produce milk.

Expect the colostrum to change color and texture from thick yellow to an almost clear, thin fluid.

Some women don't experience any leakage. This is not an indication that breastfeeding will be a problem.

Skin and Hair Problems
Just when you thought your skin problems were a thing of the past, pregnancy breakouts may bring your teenage dermatology issues right back into your life. If you're pimple free right now and wonder if you'll stay that way, here's an interesting little bit of info. If you're prone to period-related pimples, you're more likely to experience pregnancy- related pimples. Helpful? Well, it's true.

What causes these eruptions in expecting moms? Hormones, hormones, and more hormones, together with heat, stress, and overactive sebaceous glands (the glands the secrete oils to lubricate the skin..

Unless you were a severe acne sufferer during adolescence, chances are your bad skin will go away around the same time as your morning sickness does. Until then, there's always makeup for the self-conscious. (Hey, who isn't? )

In the end, a few zits and red blotches are a small problem. Any mom would willingly face a few pimples in the mirror for the opportunity of being a mom. Those blemishes go away. Love is the ultimate cover-up.

Note: Doctors do not support the use of acne medications for pregnant women. There are ingredients in some acne treatments which may be very harmful to developing babies. Talk to your doctor. A lot!

Frequent Urination
Two out of three first trimester moms-to-be report an increase in urination. It's not simply because they're drinking a lot of water to keep themselves and baby hydrated - though sometimes that's part of it. The real cause? Just as the external you will change in response to pregnancy, the inside changes too. Organs shift to accommodate your growing uterus and your growing baby.

Your uterus, otherwise known as baby's home, moves forward to a position directly over the bladder. What happens when something presses on your bladder? You probably already know the answer to that question. All those extra trips to the bathroom? Thank your nomadic uterus. It's applying pressure, which causes you to urinate more frequently. Since it's pressing on the bladder, the bladder is not able to hold as much liquid as it did pre-pregnancy.

Like a nervous traveler who takes note of all the emergency exits on an airplane, expecting moms usually know where all the public restrooms are at the mall. At the grocery store. Pretty much everywhere. Remember this when you're no longer pregnant and are traveling with your little one during toilet training time. In urgent need of a potty? Just look for a pregnant woman and ask directions.

In the second trimester, you'll visit the ladies' room less frequency. Until baby's head presses down on your bladder at the end of the third trimester, at which time your familiarity with the locations of all those public bathrooms will come in handy once again.

Call your doctor when:

• You experience burning, tingling, or back pain during urination. It's normal to urinate frequently, not normal for the process to be irritating or painful.

• You feel overwhelmingly strong urges to urinate - as in right now!

• Blood appears in the urine.

• You run a fever.

• You lose bladder control.

Don't Forget to Kegel
Kegel exercises strengthen the muscles surrounding the openings of the vagina, anus and urethra - the muscles that enable us to 'hold it' until we can find a bathroom. Very important to social interaction.

Also very important in the maintenance of bladder control and may lower the need for an episiotomy (a procedure to expand the vagina during birth).

You can do Kegels anywhere - even in front of the Board of Directors. Squeeze the muscles you use to stop the flow of urine. You'll also feel these same muscles tighten the anus and vagina at the same time.

Squeeze these muscles & hold for 10 seconds.

Release & repeat.

Do this 10 to 20 times a day for improved bladder control.