8160.The Mother of All Pregnancy Books An All-Canadian Guide to Conception, Birth and Everything in Between by Ann Douglas

Author:Ann Douglas [Douglas, Ann]
Language: eng
Format: epub
Published: 0101-01-01T00:00:00+00:00

t h e c o m p l a i n t d e p a r t m e n t

2 7 9

th week of pregnancy, you may experience some extreme ten-

derness in the belly button area. This is caused by the pressure

of the expanding uterus on your belly button. The tenderness

tends to subside as your belly grows, so this is one thing you can

strike off the complaint list sooner rather than later.

Bleeding gums

Even if you’re not usually a card-carrying member of the Inter-

national Order of Daily Flossers, you might want to think about

taking out a membership for at least the duration of your preg-

nancy. Pregnant women often develop a condition called preg-

nancy gingivitis, characterized by inflamed and sensitive gums

that bleed more easily than usual. In addition to flossing daily

and brushing your teeth after every meal using a gentle-bristled

toothbrush, you should plan to take the following steps to min-

imize pregnancy gingivitis:

• See your dentist at least once during your pregnancy. Having

the buildup of plaque that collects at the bottom of your teeth

scraped off can help to reduce the severity of your symptoms.

• Rinse your mouth with antiseptic mouthwash several times a

day. That will help to keep your mouth sparkling clean.

• Choose foods such as fruit and vegetables that are rich in vit-

amin C—something that helps to promote healthy gums.

F A C T S A N D F I G U R E S

Don’t be alarmed if you develop tiny nodules on your gums that

tend to bleed easily. These nodules—known as pyogenic granulomas (pregnancy tumours)—are harmless, non-cancerous growths. They usually dis-

appear on their own after you give birth, but if they’re causing you a lot of grief in the meantime, your dentist can remove them.

2 8 0

t h e m o t h e r o f a l l p r e g n a n c y b o o k s

Bleeding and spotting

Any type of vaginal bleeding can be worrisome during pregnancy,

but sometimes the light bleeding or spotting you experience is

completely harmless and not a symptom of an impending mis-

carriage. About seven days after conception (when you’re three

weeks pregnant, counting from the first day of your last men-

strual period), you may experience a bit of light bleeding or spot-

ting as the fertilized embryo first implants itself in the uterine wall

(“implantation bleeding”). Light bleeding can also occur if the

cervix happens to get bumped during intercourse or accidentally

grazed during a pelvic exam. While you should always report any

vaginal bleeding or spotting to your caregiver, there’s generally less

cause for concern if the bleeding is very light (unless, of course,

you’re experiencing cramping at the same time, in which case you

could be experiencing a miscarriage or placental abruption, or if

you have developed placenta previa). (See Chapter  for a more

detailed discussion of bleeding during pregnancy.)

Braxton Hicks contractions

This is the name given to the irregular contractions that occur

during the last half of pregnancy. (Just a quick bit of pregnancy

trivia: The contractions are named after John Braxton Hicks,

M.D., the British doctor who first described them back in .

Download

Copyright Disclaimer:
This site does not store any files on its server. We only index and link to content provided by other sites. Please contact the content providers to delete copyright contents if any and email us, we'll remove relevant links or contents immediately.