Second Trimester – How Are You Feeling? New Weird Ailments?

For lots of women the first trimester symptoms are fairly well known, they might hit harder than you expect, but the nausea, sickness, exhaustion are expected and, to some degree, reassuring when you don’t have anything else to show you are pregnant (other than a test!).

Then things might pick up a bit and you start to feel a bit more back to yourself. Plus you might have heard that the second trimester is where you feel good – your energy comes back, you aren’t too uncomfortable yet. But it can come with some surprises!

There are so many changes happening in your body as your baby grows. It isn’t just about the visible changes to your body, it is working incredibly hard on the inside too with changes to the amount of blood, fluid, hormones. Your heart and lungs are working far harder than usual and blood is being diverted to your uterus and baby.

This isn’t designed to be a list of things to fear or look for. More to help you know what is common and what you might experience, because so many people notice something a bit weird in pregnancy, mention it to their midwife and are told ‘it’s just a pregnancy thing’. Which it usually us but always good to check if you are worried. And at the end I will mention a few things that always need to be checked.

Heartburn – when Gaviscon is never far from your reach! A combination of relaxin hormone and less space as baby grows means that a lot of women experience heartburn somewhere in their pregnancy. Relaxin can cause a relaxation at the top of the stomach allowing acid to move up and as your baby is growing they will be pushing your stomach and intestines up which can make things worse too.

You might find you need to be careful what you eat and when. Eating too late in the evening can lead to uncomfortable sleeping and if there are specific foods which trigger you, they might be best avoided for a little while.

Over the counter remedies are fine in pregnancy but speak to the pharmacist if you have any concerns. If you need it, you can get something prescribed from your GP.

Leg Cramps – these can have you screaming in the middle of the night! Aside from being a great chance to practice your breathing techniques, leg cramps can be really debilitating and disruptive to your sleep. There isn’t a quick fix for leg cramps. Stay hydrated during the day, keep up with your gentle exercise, try a warm bath before bed and do some calf stretches every day before bed.

If cramp strikes try and flex your toes towards your shin to gently stretch it out, massage the muscle if you can and when you are able have a little walk around. Sometimes your muscles can feel bruised and sore the next day. Again some gentle stretches might help but listen to your body and speak to your midwife is soreness persists.

Nasal Congestion and Nose Bleeds – this sometimes catches people out. They realise that they feel like they have had a blocked nose for weeks or months. Hormonal changes and increased blood flow are the culprits here and it is likely it will persist throughout your pregnancy. For congestion you can try saline sprays, de-humidifiers, propping your pillows a little more and see if it eases.

Nosebleeds can affect around 1 in 5 women in pregnancy and are again linked with increased blood volume and hormones. The majority are of no concern but if the bleeding persists for 20-30 minutes, you feel dizzy or unwell then seek help.

Ligament Pain – you probably learnt about the crampy ligament pains in your first trimester. They are common around 8 weeks and usually have people worrying something is wrong. Then it all calms down, but into the second trimester can come back. Your baby is growing rapidly and your uterus is keeping up which means the ligaments attached to it have to stretch a lot too. This is likely to feel crampy in your bump and can be uncomfortable for a few days. Just take it easy and listen to your body until it settles again. If the pain gets worse check in with your midwife or triage department.

Varicose Veins and Haemorrhoids – it isn’t the glamourous picture you were hoping for! More blood flow and pressure as your baby and the fluid weight grows can put more strain on your body resulting in varicose veins on your legs or around the vulva, or haemorrhoids. Pregnancy hormones relax the blood vessels which can also link in with varicose veins.

Make sure you stay active, elevate your legs where you can and if you need to you can wear support stockings to help your circulation. Throughout the day move regularly, try to avoid sitting for long periods to avoid blood pooling with gravity. Avoid tight or restrictive clothing – dress for comfort!

If you have haemorrhoids try to ensure you eat and drink to avoid constipation, don’t sit for long periods and you can ease discomfort with ice/cold to reduce swelling. It is worth mentioning to your GP/midwife/pharmacist as some over the counter creams might be helpful for you.

Skin – the growth of your tummy can impact on your skin as it stretches. For some, this leaves stretch marks or a darker line (linea nigra) down the tummy. Both usually fade after birth but can remain. Your skin might feel quite dry and itchy as it stretches. Using a moisturiser or oil can help you feel more comfortable. This can come in phases as your bump has some growth spurts!

If you have itching on your hands/feet or it becomes severe, contact your midwife or triage.

Tiredness – no doubt you experienced tiredness in your pregnancy but usually in the second trimester energy levels start to pick up again. You might even start to feel more normal! But as the second trimester moves towards the third many women start to feel tiredness creep back in. This is less about the exhaustive growing a baby of the first trimester and more about the hard work your body is doing just functioning now. Your heart and lungs are working harder, you are heavier and it is starting to get harder to move. You start to notice that you are slowing down and everything just seems a bit more challenging. On top of that you might have more disrupted sleep; bathroom trips, difficulty turning over, sleeping in less comfortable positions. Not to mention the crazy pregnancy dreams!

Embrace the energy while it is there but listen to your body when you need to.

As I am editing and adding the pictures I realise I haven't mentioned back ache and pelvic pain! They are often also a part of the second trimester but for this blog I was trying to keep to the more unexpected things.

I hope you have an easy ride through your pregnancy but now you are a little clearer on some of the things that can occur and make you wonder what is going on!

I have mentioned a few of the times to seek further help but the red flags to look for are severe or persistent abdominal pain, vaginal bleeding or fluid leakage, severe headache or vision changes, sudden significant swelling, fever, painful urination, chest pain/breathlessness, or reduced fetal movement. For any of these contact your maternity triage or A&E.

Beth x