13 Weeks Pregnant!

Wow. I can't believe I'm almost out of the first trimester. And the baby is the size of a jumbo shrimp. :) My 4 yr old always wants to know what size the baby is, so we go by foods. Last week it was a lime and this week it's a jumbo shrimp. :) But somehow at night-time, I look like it's a lot bigger! It's ridiculous. This always happens to me at this stage. After dinner (even though I don't eat a lot), my tummy gets so big, I look like I'm 5 months pregnant, at least! It's pretty funny.

Here's one thing I noticed this week - the estrogen has finally kicked in. And it's pretty cool that I'm aware of that. I wouldn't have known that a few months ago. How did I know it now?

I discovered a few months ago, that I am low estrogen. I used to be in a balanced hormone state, before I had kids (with maybe a touch more testosterone). But after I had Emma, I noticed a change. My breasts no longer got sore when I got my period and my periods were even heavier than before. Then when I got pregnant with Tailyn, my breasts barely got sore that first trimester (when they were extremely sore with Emma that first trimester).

And while I've always had a healthy sex drive, it got even "healthier" after my kids. :) I have never understood why women always complain that they just don't even want to have sex. That's never been an issue for me. And it often caused a lot of miscommunication between Brian and I and a lot of hurt feelings.

So, after I had Tailyn and I realized that I had lost a lot of my estrogen, I started taking a soy supplement. I immediately noticed a change in my period. It got lighter and the cramps were almost gone. I only needed one dose of advil, as opposed to around the clock advil basically. And I noticed a change in my sex drive as well. It just brought it back to a normal level.
And Brian and I's relationship improved.

So, when I got pregnant again, I stopped taking the soy supplement (USANA's Phytoestrin) because it has some root extracts that aren't safe for pregnancy. But I continued to eat my cereal with soy milk and drank some soy protein shakes, etc. I wanted to try to help my body boost it's estrogen level. Estrogen is very important when you are pregnant. It's what protects the baby during it's development.

During my first trimester, I noticed that my breasts didn't get sore at all and they stayed completely the same size, indicating that I had even less estrogen than I did with Tailyn. And my face was a mess with acne (which I often struggle with anyway). And my sex drive (while it was on hold during my several weeks of morning sickness), returned to it's normal state. In both of my other pregnancies, I did not want to have sex until at least 10 weeks or even after (I can't remember). I also really struggled with gaining weight. I know that's a strange thing to struggle with. But, I know it's important to put weight on in when you're pregnant.

So, in the last couple of weeks, I finally was able to put some weight on and all of the sudden, I noticed that my breasts were bigger and actually got a little sore! And my face was actually clearing up a little bit. All indications of a surge of estrogen.

I have no idea why, really, but just am proud that I am able to see changes in my body and know why they are taking place. For the first time in my life, I am listening to my body and understanding it. It's empowering and I really encourage anyone reading, to start learning more about our bodies and how they work.

11 Weeks Pregnant

I guess I better get a post in before I hit 12 weeks (tomorrow)! :) It's been a busy week. We just put a contract on a new house (new construction) this last weekend. Of course, there is a chance it won't be finished until October (our due date). Lovely! But my life is never uncomplicated, so of course, why should this be any different?

So, our house is on the market, which is so hard! Especially with a 21 month old and a 41/2 year old. And a dog that sheds like crazy (black hair!). I left him alone last week and came home to a spilled box of Fudge Brownie Mix that was all over our light tan carpet in the basement. Ugh! So, I had to spend an hour trying to get it clean. Thankfully, we had Bi-O-Kleen products to use. I was knee deep in the Bac-Out and felt perfectly safe being pregnant and using a cleaning product. It just made me so thankful to have safe cleaning products already in my home that I could use around me and my little kids running around trying to help. :) And it smells so good!

I've also spent time trying to figure out my digestive issues. I'm apparently pretty complicated. I can't seem to find too much of a pattern with foods that bother me and those that don't. It's been very hard to find foods that I can eat and that don't give me an upset stomach or too much gas. I believe I must have a yeast build-up in my intestines. And because of that, I have to be careful about eating too much sugar or high-glycemic foods. And when I say sugar, I'm not referring to refined sugar, but even cane sugar. But some of my foods do have a small amount of refined sugar in them. So, I'm taking a probiotic on a daily basis and also taking garlic, which acts as an anti-fungal and can help get rid of yeast. I'm also doing Zyme Prime Digestive Enzymes to help me digest any extra sugars or high-glycemic foods that I do eat before they reach the intestines and cause problems. So, hopefully, I can get his under control.

I seem to be a mystery though. We can't figure out why all of the sudden corn is bothering me. And corn is in so many things! Canola oil, corn starch, corn flour, etc. It's crazy. I never used to have a problem with popcorn or corn chips, until recently. So, I'm trying to figure out why I am now. It could be because the corn chips that I do eat are made with highly refined peanut oil, which is hydrogenated and chemically altered. And maybe why the popcorn was bothering me was because it was cooked in canola oil (which is also refined and chemically altered). See, it's hard to figure out! The great news is that I can use enzymes very successfully and still eat normally when I need to. Being pregnant, I have to eat, and of course, sometimes I really want popcorn. :) And sometimes, corn chips is the only thing that is available to me.

So, I know this is kind of a random post. But, you can see what I'm dealing with. And hopefully before too long, we can figure this out and heal my gut, so I can enjoy a normal life again. And maybe we can get my adult acne cleared up too, which we're still trying to figure out if it's connected to my gut. Almost everything is connected to the gut, so I'm not ruling it out. But, my acne also started getting worse right around when I got pregnant, which is when you have a surge in progesterone for the first trimester. So, we'll see if it gets better soon (your progesterone decreases after the first trimester).

Thanks for bearing with me!