Chapter 6
Common changes in pregnancy
In this chapter:
Changes in eating and sleeping..................................................................................... 73
Upset stomach (nausea) and
dislike of some foods . . . . . . . . . . . . . 73
Food cravings . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 74
Sleepiness . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 75
Difficulty sleeping . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 75
Burning or pain in the stomach or
between the breasts (heartburn) . . . . 74
Body changes and discomforts.....................................................................................76
Swollen breasts . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 76
Swollen feet . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 76
Swollen veins (varicose veins) . . . . . . . 76
Constipation
(difficulty passing stool) . . . . . . . . . . . 76
Hemorrhoids (piles) . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 77
Needing to urinate often . . . . . . . . . . . . 77
Discharge
(wetness from the vagina) . . . . . . . . . 77
Difficulty getting up and down . . . . . . 78
Shortness of breath . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 78
Feeling hot or sweating a lot . . . . . . . . . 78
The mask of pregnancy . . . . . . . . . . . . . 79
Purple spots on the skin . . . . . . . . . . . . 79
Aches and pains in the joints . . . . . . . . 79
Sudden pain in the side of
the lower belly . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 79
Cramps in early pregnancy . . . . . . . . . . 79
Baby’s kicks hurt the mother . . . . . . . . . 80
Back pain . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 80
Leg cramps . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 80
Headaches . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 81
Other pains . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 81
Changing feelings and emotions .................................................................................82
Sudden changes in feelings . . . . . . . . . . 82 Forgetfulness . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 83
Worry and fear . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 82 Feelings about sex . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 83
Strange dreams and nightmares . . . . . . 82
72