Sara Dobson
Rachel Henwood - Freelance WriterPregnancy - Whats really going on?
October 15th 2008 00:21
For women becoming a mother is a reality long before she is even showing. Suddenly blotchy marks are appearing on the skin, or you may feel so sick even chocolate is unappealing. And tired....so tired.
What causes all these feelings? Well there is a battle going in inside you, as your developing foetus ensures it has all the resources it needs to survive, leaving you to manage on what is left.
Getting Comfortable
Within two weeks of conception, the embryo clamps itself firmly to its mother’s uterine walls. After that, your darling sends out hormones that cause your artery walls to thin and your arteries to expand, this ensures they get all the nutrients they need delivered fast. Unfortunately, for you it means burst blood vessels and haemorrhoids (nobody ever explains those to you before you get pregnant).
Being good mothers that we are, our body also turns down our immune system to stop it from attacking the foreign bundle of cells developing in our uterus. For the baby it means they are not expelled from our bodies. For us it means we are more susceptible to every illness going around.
Oestrogen levels are on the rise, stopping our stomach from emptying too quickly, this is thought to be the cause of morning sickness. Good news is nausea is a very good sign of a viable pregnancy.
A friend of mine reckons that nausea is worse if you are carrying a girl vs. a boy, due to the oestrogen in the female foetus as well as your own increased levels. I am not sure if this is true, only having had one, so let me know if this has been your experience.
Gestational Diabetes
Why do some women suffer gestational diabetes? This is because your developing baby sends out proteins, which makes you resistant to insulin. You know what his means; your body has difficulty breaking down sugars, providing an absolute feast for your baby. Most women’s bodies automatically increase the levels of insulin they produce, but for those that cannot the result can be gestational diabetes. The good news is it can be tested for and treated, and it usually disappears after your darling is born.
High Blood Pressure
Well before those tantrums start, your little darling to be is already causing your blood pressure to rise. The developing foetus has such low blood pressure they need to rely on their mother to have high blood pressure to ensure they get the nutrients they need.
To do this, they send out a hormone called SFlt1, which makes it difficult for your body to repair old blood vessels, and create new ones. With all that additional blood flowing around and not enough vessels to carry it, your blood pressure starts to rise.
Smart kid, but not smart enough, women’s bodies respond by making a protein, which promotes blood vessel growth. However, for some women, usually those who are obese or already had high blood pressure or a possible genetic defect the result can be pre-eclampsia.
Your doctor will check your urine for proteins if they find it, it could be a sign your blood pressure is rising. If this happens they will monitor you closely, they may even suggest early delivery.
So there you have it, when you get pregnant you know that your little darling is going to take everything can from you, and all you can do is make sure you eat enough of the healthy stuff to ensure both of you get what you need throughout the pregnancy.
What causes all these feelings? Well there is a battle going in inside you, as your developing foetus ensures it has all the resources it needs to survive, leaving you to manage on what is left.
Getting Comfortable
Within two weeks of conception, the embryo clamps itself firmly to its mother’s uterine walls. After that, your darling sends out hormones that cause your artery walls to thin and your arteries to expand, this ensures they get all the nutrients they need delivered fast. Unfortunately, for you it means burst blood vessels and haemorrhoids (nobody ever explains those to you before you get pregnant).
Being good mothers that we are, our body also turns down our immune system to stop it from attacking the foreign bundle of cells developing in our uterus. For the baby it means they are not expelled from our bodies. For us it means we are more susceptible to every illness going around.
Oestrogen levels are on the rise, stopping our stomach from emptying too quickly, this is thought to be the cause of morning sickness. Good news is nausea is a very good sign of a viable pregnancy.
A friend of mine reckons that nausea is worse if you are carrying a girl vs. a boy, due to the oestrogen in the female foetus as well as your own increased levels. I am not sure if this is true, only having had one, so let me know if this has been your experience.
Gestational Diabetes
Why do some women suffer gestational diabetes? This is because your developing baby sends out proteins, which makes you resistant to insulin. You know what his means; your body has difficulty breaking down sugars, providing an absolute feast for your baby. Most women’s bodies automatically increase the levels of insulin they produce, but for those that cannot the result can be gestational diabetes. The good news is it can be tested for and treated, and it usually disappears after your darling is born.
High Blood Pressure
Well before those tantrums start, your little darling to be is already causing your blood pressure to rise. The developing foetus has such low blood pressure they need to rely on their mother to have high blood pressure to ensure they get the nutrients they need.
To do this, they send out a hormone called SFlt1, which makes it difficult for your body to repair old blood vessels, and create new ones. With all that additional blood flowing around and not enough vessels to carry it, your blood pressure starts to rise.
Smart kid, but not smart enough, women’s bodies respond by making a protein, which promotes blood vessel growth. However, for some women, usually those who are obese or already had high blood pressure or a possible genetic defect the result can be pre-eclampsia.
Your doctor will check your urine for proteins if they find it, it could be a sign your blood pressure is rising. If this happens they will monitor you closely, they may even suggest early delivery.
So there you have it, when you get pregnant you know that your little darling is going to take everything can from you, and all you can do is make sure you eat enough of the healthy stuff to ensure both of you get what you need throughout the pregnancy.
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