swollen

Well, couldn't think of a cutesy or clever title for this post. Maybe because my feet, ankles and calves are so swollen that it's clouding the clever part of my brain.

I have to say, the swollen lower extremities is so far one of the most unpleasant parts of being pregnant. And these aren't just mildly swollen, people; these are just, well, ridiculous. I'd post a picture, but I'm not that brave. They truly are kind of disgusting. I can barely tie my shoes (like, I can't tie a bow, only a very tiny small knot) and my work shoes barely fit. I just take them off while I'm at my desk, and put them on to hobble to the bathroom.

To be fair, it's not this bad every day. I went to my childbirth class and breastfeeding class yesterday, so I was sitting in a little classroom for 5 hours. Then afterwards we went out to dinner; so, more sitting. So today I am paying the price. Tonight I'll go home and put my feet up really high for the entire night to hopefully remedy it.

I also usually wear compression stockings (I know; can you handle the sexiness???) to help out, but they were already so swollen this morning, that I didn't think it would help. You're supposed to put them on first thing in the morning before your feet get swollen.

It's kind of funny how cocky you can get about not having certain pregnancy symptoms, and how quickly you can be proven wrong. Like, I remember thinking "no stretchmarks yet! I just have a feeling I won't get any!" and then BAM! A few days later, they arrived. And they arrived with a vengeance. And just a few weeks ago, my mom asked if I had any swollen feet issues, because she had struggled with that in her pregnancies. "Nope!" was my blissfully ignorant answer. And then, BAM, BAM! Swollen feet, ankles, calves. So, lesson learned. Just because something is going one way during your pregnancy at that point in time, doesn't mean it can't quickly take a turn in the opposite direction!

Thanks for listening to my whining! I'm off to hobble to the bathroom. (Do you think they make Crocs that are acceptable for work?) And then tonight; many hours of blissful feet putting up.

~M