Swelling... :(
 

I've managed to avoid most of the trials of pregnancy so far, but just this
week my hands and feet have started to swell up. My hands really hurt,
esp. at night, and I can't see the bones on my feet anymore. :P My
midwife told me 2 weeks ago that a little swelling is fine (something
about it indicating good fluid levels?? can't remember) -- but I feel like
I have sausages instead of hands and feet now! Is there anything I can do
about it, and is it bad? I've got another apt. on Tuesday so I'll ask
then, but I thought I'd ask you all in the meantime.

Em
baby boy, due Nov. 18

Em,

I started experiencing a great bit of swelling a couple of weeks ago, when I
was 5 1/2 months along. You're right, it's very uncomfortable, especially
in my hands! My ankle bones would disappear and I would have "cankles"
(calfs with no ankles, as a friend of mine calls them). I was troubled that
I was swelling up so early in pregnancy and called my doctor's office. They
said that since my blood pressure has remained really good, they weren't
concerned about pre-eclampsia in me. They also told me that some women
swell earlier than others, but as long as my blood pressure remains within
normal ranges, I was fine.

I found that drinking lots of water and avoiding salty foods helps a great
deal. Also, elevate your feet as much as possible and avoid prolonged
sitting. Sometimes this is hard for me because I have a computer job, but I
try to get up and move as much as possible during the day (not a problem
since I'm always going to the bathroom from all the water I'm drinking!).
Good luck!

lisa
micksmom
27 months old
Baby boy 2 due 2-8-05

Em said:

Is there anything I can do
about it,

Keeping your feet up, taking regular naps, drinking more fluids, increasing
protein intake, taking baths . . . these are all things I have read, and some
of them hae helped me.

and is it bad?

It CAN be an indicator of pre-eclampsia, but it is also a regular and normal
part of most pregnancies. With my first pregnancy I began to swell at four or
five months and remained ridiculously swollen throughout the pregnancy, with
BPs around 100/60 the whole time. There's just no telling.


Leslie

Emily (2/4/91)
Jake (1/27/94)
Teddy (2/15/95)
William (3/5/01 -- VBA3C, 13 lbs. 5 oz.)
and Lorelei, expected 11/2/04

"Children come trailing clouds of glory from God, which is their home."
~ William Wordsworth

"Leslie" wrote in message
...
Em said:

Is there anything I can do
about it,

Keeping your feet up, taking regular naps, drinking more fluids,
increasing
protein intake, taking baths . . . these are all things I have read, and
some
of them hae helped me.

Also, elevating the parts that are swelling. I have a lot of swelling in my
fingers (I think because since I'm on bedrest often my hands are lower than
most of the rest of me), and elevating them really does help. Oh, and
according to my specialist, you should NOT reduce your salt intake-if you
crave or want salt, your body probably needs it, and too little sodium is a
much bigger problem than a little fluid retention (or in my case, a LOT of
fluid retention!)

and is it bad?

It CAN be an indicator of pre-eclampsia, but it is also a regular and
normal
part of most pregnancies. With my first pregnancy I began to swell at
four or
five months and remained ridiculously swollen throughout the pregnancy,
with
BPs around 100/60 the whole time. There's just no telling.

If you have swelling in your face and hands, that's supposed to be more
likely to indicate PE than swelling in the legs, and if you have "pitting
edema"-where if you press down over your shin bone you get a dent which
lasts a little while, that can also be a sign, but in absense of other
signs, it's probably nothing.

Other signs to watch for:
BP over 140/90, or at least a 15 point rise in diastolic over what is normal
for you. According to my peri, most of the time the machines in pharmacies
are pretty well calibrated, so if you're concerned, you can check it there
if you don't have a home meter-even then, BP can change quickly, so if it's
high, usually waiting even 15 minutes will show a change. My peri doesn't
see a need for me to call unless it stays high for at least 4-6 hours at a
time.

Unexplained migraine-type headaches, especially if you're seeing spots,
lights, or having visual distortions.

Upper abdominal pain which doesn't go away when you change positions or
move.

Urine which is brownish or reddish (really gross, I know)-dark yellow is
usually a result of not enough fluids, and just means drink more water.

producing almost NO urine, even though you're drinking a lot of water.

Any of these are worth a call to the OB or midwife, even if it's after
hours-and if you're not seeing one or more of them, it's probably not PE.

I found that drinking lots of water and avoiding salty foods helps a great
deal.


Avoiding salt in pregnancy is not advised. Pregnant women need salt. Limiting
salt can actually cause preeclampsia.


Sandy
Mama to
Josephine 4/28/01
Ian 9/28/02
and someone new edd 1/20/05

Well, speaking only for myself, I found that if I eliminate overly salty
foods--processed foods have enormous quantities of sodium added to them--it
helps me tremendously. I honestly doubt that I'm harming myself or the baby
by elimnating processed foods, fast foods or baked ham, which have proven
in me to trigger swelling. Just my opinion....

lisa
micksmom
27 months old
baby boy 2 due 2-8-05



"Sandy" wrote in message
...
I found that drinking lots of water and avoiding salty foods helps a great
deal.


Avoiding salt in pregnancy is not advised. Pregnant women need salt.
Limiting
salt can actually cause preeclampsia.


Sandy
Mama to
Josephine 4/28/01
Ian 9/28/02
and someone new edd 1/20/05

..
"karlisa" wrote in message
. com...
Well, speaking only for myself, I found that if I eliminate overly salty
foods--processed foods have enormous quantities of sodium added to
them--it
helps me tremendously. I honestly doubt that I'm harming myself or the
baby
by elimnating processed foods, fast foods or baked ham, which have proven
in me to trigger swelling. Just my opinion....

The Pre-eclampsia foundation consulting doctors recommends avoiding
processed foods, as does my perinatologist (and many of them are listeria
concerns anyway). The problem comes when the mother just plain avoids salt
or sodium, because too little sodium can actually make PE more likely.

The general diet recommendation is more a whole-foods type diet, with salt
added to taste.

lisa
micksmom
27 months old
baby boy 2 due 2-8-05



"Sandy" wrote in message
...
I found that drinking lots of water and avoiding salty foods helps a
great
deal.


Avoiding salt in pregnancy is not advised. Pregnant women need salt.
Limiting
salt can actually cause preeclampsia.


Sandy
Mama to
Josephine 4/28/01
Ian 9/28/02
and someone new edd 1/20/05

Cankles... LOL what an apt description!!! I'll definitely start drinking
more, thanks for the tip. :)


Em
baby boy, due Nov. 18

Whenever DH and I go on walks, I always end up raising my hands in the air
to drain them out. He thinks it looks like he's sticking me up... ;)

Thanks for the tips!!

Em
baby boy, due Nov. 18

In message
outparenting.com,
emilymr writes
I've managed to avoid most of the trials of pregnancy so far, but just this
week my hands and feet have started to swell up. My hands really hurt,
esp. at night, and I can't see the bones on my feet anymore. :P My
midwife told me 2 weeks ago that a little swelling is fine (something
about it indicating good fluid levels?? can't remember) -- but I feel like
I have sausages instead of hands and feet now! Is there anything I can do
about it, and is it bad? I've got another apt. on Tuesday so I'll ask
then, but I thought I'd ask you all in the meantime.

I've found pelvic rocks can be helpful for foot swelling. You get down
on all fours, arch your back up so your pelvis is tucked in, arch your
back down so your pelvis is sticking out, repeat - described as like
wagging a tail up and down instead of side-to-side. The idea is that it
gets your uterus forwards and relieves the pressure on the tops of your
legs. The book I read recommended 3 sets of 40 at intervals during the
day, and 80 before going to bed. I never manage that many, but I've
found that the ones I do really do seem to help.

This isn't much help for the hand swelling, of course. Try the
suggestions other people have mentioned and keep trying to massage them,
as well - might get some of the fluid off. Hope this helps!


All the best,

Sarah

--
"I once requested an urgent admission for a homeopath who had become depressed
and taken a massive underdose" - Phil Peverley