I feel like I am at the point in pregnancy where the weeks are beginning to blend together a bit, but that doesn’t mean I don’t notice new things or experience certain “firsts” as I enter each new week of pregnancy. Never have I felt more in tune or connected with my body than I have during my pregnancy, and it’s been pretty darn cool and also a bit unexpected. I could probably write a whole blog post about that particular topic, but for now, here’s a recap of week 32 of my pregnancy!
Note: All previous weekly updates and pregnancy/baby-related blog posts may be found on the Pregnancy/Baby page located at the top of this blog.
Baby Updates
Baby is 16.7 inches long and weighs about 3.75 pounds… about the size of a squash!
Weight Gained
At my 32-week prenatal appointment I was up 20 pounds. My belly is measuring about a week behind right now, but my doctor said that could easily change as the weeks progress.
Workouts
Workouts this week were lighter with a few more rest days than usual. I had to make more modifications and rest a lot toward the end of the week due to some pain in my left butt cheek that extends slightly into my lower back. Pain that I last week thought was forming in my hip seemed to grow at the very end of this week and intensify in the middle of my left buttocks. I’m pretty convinced it’s sciatic nerve pain. It’s pretty brutal right now (I am feeling a sharp pain in my butt up through my lower back every single time I take a step or move in a strange way) and I have an appointment with my OB/GYN about it on Monday. (<— Edited to add: As you know I write these blog posts at the end of each week and wait to publish them the following week. So, after my Monday appointment this week, I found out that the pain I am experiencing is, in fact, sciatic nerve pain which is likely due to how our baby is positioned right now. It is quite painful!)
Symptoms
I know this isn’t a symptom, but I am officially in the “very obviously pregnant” stage of pregnancy, because I feel like wherever I go right now people comment on my belly, ask me when I am due or congratulate me. My favorite was a guy at the gym who came up to me and said, “With that belly and this summer heat, I bet you’re dying to have that baby now.” Obviously he could tell I am living life as a sweaty mess these days!
I’m also starting to feel very aware of the extra weight I am carrying around. It’s a bit exhausting at times and I really do feel like I see pretty dramatic belly growth changes each week. I’ve looked at pictures of other women at 32 weeks and then looked at their belly pics at 40 weeks and it looks like there’s still a lot of growing to do in the third trimester. Buckle up, belly!
I feel like my appetite was raging this week, but I am still not able to eat very large portions without feeling stuffed. I’m keeping most of my meals on the smaller side, but just eating more frequently. The size of my breakfast, lunch and dinners have basically been the same size as my snacks!
I also had some light pain in my left hip/butt through most of the week that seemed to intensify greatly on Friday. It’s now incredibly painful to the point where I cannot walk without pain. Over the weekend, I reached out to some instructors at my gym to swap classes for the coming week so I’ll only be teaching classes where I’m instructing and not actually doing the workouts next week.
Food Aversions
None.
Food Cravings
- Sandwiches
- Watermelon and grapes
- Fruit-flavored candy
Sleep
Sleep is okay. Waking up a lot to pee and having a hard time getting really comfortable.
Looking Forward To…
Our hospital tour! I am dying to see the place where I will be delivering our baby and cannot wait for our tour on Tuesday evening.
Any Baby/Pregnancy-Related Purchases?
- Lampshade for the nursery
- Diaper Genie diaper pail
- Hooded bath towels
- Waterproof crib mattress pad
Belly Button In Or Out?
Popping out a little bit!
Feeling…
This week was a little rough for me. Though I still felt happy for the most part earlier in the week, on Saturday morning, I experienced some frustrations that overwhelmed me and resulted in some tears. I haven’t cried much at all during pregnancy other than happy tears at certain prenatal appointments, so the overflow of emotions was rather unexpected.
On Saturday morning, I experienced a wide range of the not-so-pleasant pregnancy-related symptoms. I woke up and immediately experienced a shooting pain in my butt up through my lower back every time I took a step. Then nausea kicked in and I ended up puking in the bathroom for the first time in weeks. This was followed by a cramp in my foot that I couldn’t get to subside and then a cramp in my calf. Apparently it was just a lot for me to handle all at once and when Ryan got home from the gym, he found me sitting over the toilet after I had just thrown up, crying because I felt like I had no control over my body. Believe me, I know how lucky I am to be blessed with the ability to carry what we hope and pray every day is a healthy baby boy, but I want to be honest and open in these pregnancy recaps and sometimes there are some not-so-fun parts of pregnancy that surface, too. It can sometimes feel like my body is no longer mine because it isn’t. I’m sharing it with a little guy I already love so much and that really helps me keep everything in perspective. His little kicks bring me back to reality and help me realize the uncomfortable symptoms I may experience are so incredibly worth it.
The (what I later found out is sciatic nerve pain) pain in my butt and lower back is really, really tough and, hands down the most frustrating and limiting pregnancy symptom I’ve experienced to date. It’s discouraging to feel like I cannot even walk right now without limping around and I am hoping it will subside soon.
Any Movement?
Yes! I just love it! Whenever our little guy gives me a solid kick, I rub my belly and will also sometimes push back, which makes him push out on my belly again. It feels like a little game of back-and-forth and makes me smile! At our 32-week appointment, we learned that our baby is already head down which was great news and also made a lot of sense since I feel the strongest movements right along my belly button where his feet are kicking away.
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I had sciatic nerve pain in my first pregnancy and not much in my second, thankfully. The good news is that it really does go away when the baby comes! 🙂
I had the same pain in my hips and back and say a chiropractor on the regular during my pregnancy. He said see one actually helps with labor too, since everything is in Aline. Best of luck and you are doing great!
Hi Julie love this series! I recently had my baby girl and so it is fun to read about others experiences! Around the 30th week I too felt extremely full and had a hard time eating a lot at one sitting no matter how hungry I was… once your baby drops you will feel so much better. Also do not worry about measuring behind, especially in the last month or so baby’s size is hard to gauge (everyone carries differently.) I measured 3+ weeks behind my whole last month and my baby arrived a day early, super healthy and not at all under weight! The last weeks go by so fast- enjoy every moment!
I agree with the other responses about contacting your OBGYN and asking about chiropractor or massage therapy to relieve the sciatic nerve pain. My mom’s pain got so bad carrying me she had bed rest for a while! You have to watch massages, though, because some pressure points induce labor so be sure you go to a good massage therapist haha!
Woah, 32 weeks! You are getting close! You look great!
I had sciatic nerve pain when I was pregnant with my daughter; it was the WORST! I had to stick my butt out and walk like a duck to get any relief.
Oh, girl, I feel for you and am right there with you — I’m 33 weeks today (this is my 2nd pregnancy) and my sciatica started bothering me last week, too. I went from still being able to run 2-3 miles one day, to barely being able to walk the next day. At the advice of other women who have had this problem during pregnancy, I started going to a chiropractor (one who specializes in pregnant women), and after just the second appt this morning, I can tell it’s helping!! I’ve always been a little skeptical of the practice, but I was willing to try it. I’m also icing it and doing some hip exercises on an exercise ball. I was able to walk 40 min this morning, still in some pain, but not nearly as bad! I think the walking helped loosen my hips. This is just my two cents, I hope you are able to find some remedies that help you and here’s to hoping our little miracles will just shift a little and offer some relief! Also, the moment you hold your little one, all of this will become a very very distant memory as you’re overcome with love and joy. That’s what I keep reminding myself of. 🙂
Julie, you don’t have to justify not loving pregnancy one bit! I HATE being pregnant. I’ve done it twice and am a little over 8 weeks with my 3rd. I never enjoyed any of it. It’s so uncomfortable and the nausea and aches and pains that come along with it is just ridiculous. I cried every single day once I hit 39 weeks with my second baby because I just wanted her OUT! Somehow I forgot how miserable I was and decided to do it again a little over a year later! Sure sure, it’s a miracle and all but geez, it really sucks a lot too. Give yourself a break and know that it’s 100% ok to not love everyday and to complain A LOT! 🙂
Sorry to hear that you are having pain, I will say a prayer for you and your little baby!
Oh my word, I feel like you just described my past 6-8 weeks. I’ve been complaining of TERRIBLE lower back aches for weeks now, primarily on one side, so bad that I feel like I’m constantly limping around because if I bare weight on my right side it feels like my back is just going to buckle under me! Especially at night when I wake up to pee in the middle of the night – the first 1 or 2 steps I take HAVE to be supported by the bed or else I seriously might fall over it hurts so bad!!
Same!! It’s awful! I’m so sorry you’re experiencing something similar.
Aw, Julie- sorry to hear about the rougher week! Sciatic pain can be so frustrating and limiting- have you tried myofascial release on your piriformis or gentle piriformis stretching? That has helped a lot of my pre/post-natal clients that have gone through this before, and am hoping that can offer you at least a little bit of relief! Thanks for being so real and sharing your ups and downs through all of this- it’s why we all appreciate you!
Sorry about the sciatica! Had it a few times and it sucked! A friend of mine used a special band to help relieve it during her pregnancy. You might want to check that out 🙂
Sciatic nerve pain is the worst! I’m not sure if this would be helpful with the baby sitting on it from the inside, and you might already know this! But my partner had dealt with sciatica for years, until someone at the gym recommended using a deep tissue massage ball. He uses it like a foam roller but directly on his left butt cheek every single night. He takes it on business trips, too. Life changer! Here is a link to the one that i think he uses, but they are probably lots of effective ones.
http://www.roguefitness.com/mobilitywod-super-nova-2-0
After suffering for months with deep glute pain while pregnant I finally saw a physical therapist and she helped realign my SI joint and the baby and it was amazing!! Now I make an appt every time the pain starts to come back. I thought it was just something I had to suffer through with pregnancy but it turns out all that relaxin hormone makes it easy for joints to move, for the good and the bad. Maybe worth a try? Good luck! And just because you are blessed to carry a baby doesn’t mean you should feel guilty about complaining, pregnancy and labor are no joke and can be miserable. Every person experiences it differently and there is nothing wrong with wishing the bad symptoms would go away! There are lots of things people are blessed to have, friends, family, a job, a house, etc., but that doesn’t mean they can’t complain about them. Nothing in life is perfect.
I have chronic sciatic nerve pain — every day for 2 years and counting — but no baby 🙂
So I just wanted to say I’m sorry that’s happening to you!!
Probably not doable at all while 8 months pregnant, but rolling out my glues with a lacrosse ball and deep hip flexor stretching helps me.
Yuck on the sciatica pain!! I had some back pain with my second pregnancy and the chiropractor worked wonders – hope you get some relief soon!
That sandwich looks like a dream. Gimme.
I recommend seeing a chiropractor (that can work with pregnant women) – they can make all the difference with the nerve pain you’re having.
When I was pregnant I had TERRIBLE sciatic nerve issues. We ended up getting a new mattress and it helped immediately. So if your mattress is kind of old you may want to look into a new mattress! I hope it gets better for you – I remember how horribly painful that was.
I’m so sorry you’ve been experiencing that dang sciatica nerve pain. I, too, have been dealing with that on and off during this pregnancy, and you’re right, it’s so rough and really debilitating! Mine will be really bad for a couple weeks and then subside for a couple weeks and then come back again, so I’m thinking it just depends on where/how my little one is sitting in there. I’ve heard from several others that seeing a chiropractor can help, so I’ve considered that if it continues to get worse. I hope this next week is better for you!! xoxo
Not sure about yours Ashely, but from your description Julie it doesn’t sound like sciatic nerve pain. An ob/gyn, a primary care etc aren’t really trained on the details of diagnosing orthopedic stuff and tend to lump everything as sciatica. Sciatic nerve pain tends to occur in all positions and travel more down the leg. This sounds more like a sacroiliac problem. Super super common in pregnancy. The joint connects your lower back and hip. With hormones causing the laxity of the ligaments and weight of the belly you can get more movement than you should. The hallmark sign of sacroiliac pain is pain withy transitions (sit to stand, stairs), and walking. They make a lot of support braces that can provide stability to the joint that your ligaments aren’t providing right now. I can’t make an official diagnosis over the Internet obviously but I see this a lot at my job as a physical therapist & getting a brace is number one for my patients and many of them can be pain free
I had sciatic nerve pain too, and I know it is super tough! I would sometimes collapse when I was walking, and the pain was awful! You are getting so close though, and I hope that pain subsides!
Oh goodness, I had the SAME sciatic pain when I was pregnant, starting around 16 weeks. It was horrendous and I seriously started having the worst pregnant waddle because of it! Thankfully, once he flipped it lessened, and once he dropped it was almost gone. I did a LOT of stretching, and it kind of helped. I thought walking it out would help, but it often made it worse the next day, so keep that in mind! Pools and water felt AMAZING, though.
I love that you keep these pregnancy posts “real”! I also struggled with the feeling of being out of control of my body. It is definitely worth it in the end, but sometimes it is difficult.
I’m almost 39 weeks now. no sciatica pain thank God! I do see I chiro every week ( well I work for her) not only can chiros help with low back/sciatica pain, but research shows that women who see I chiro during pregnancy will cut their labor in half!!!! I dont know about you but I’d love to have a short labor. I’d really incaurage you to seek out a local chiro!!!
I also have had those days when you feel your body isn’t your own! it’s crazy to think there is a small human inside!
I’m so sorry you’re hurting! I wanted to pass along a post from another blogger, Katie at BowerPower. She had pains that she thought was sciatica, but later found it to be something else related to pregnancy. Anyways, the link is
http://www.bowerpowerblog.com/2015/05/dear-sciatica-im-sorry/
If that doesn’t work just google “bower power dear sciatica”.
I think you’ll find it interesting. Katie is always entertaining.
~Suzanne B.
Ouch! When I was pregnant I went to the chiropractor regularly and more often closer to my due date. It really kept aches and pains to a minimum. Hope you get some relief soon!
I got sciatic nerve pain at 6-8 weeks pregnant and had to stop running then! I was so frustrated because I was an avid recreational runner (aka I wasn’t super fast but ran regularly). I took a prenatal yoga class to try to help it and turns out there was a PT in the class and she and the instructor recommended a particular PT. I went to him (and it was mostly covered by insurance which was a bonus) and with his exercises and massages it got better!! I was amazed and stopped doing the exercises because I felt better and it came right back. It finally went away for me (even without doing the exercises) in 3rd tri but I do think it’s very related to the way baby is positioned. So anyways, may want to investigate visiting a PT or chiropractor (but find a good one who does prenatal). Your dr can give you a referral if you need one. Sounds like you are as frustrated as I was and I am so glad someone told me about it as I don’t think my Drs would have said anything.
Julie, I just want to thank you for your honesty about your pregnancy, the good and the bad. My husband and I have been married for almost 4 years now and now that I have graduated from law school and he will be done next year, we have started to think about our next steps. We are starting to think about buying a house and having kids in the next few years and seeing you do those things is inspirational to me! I read through your posts and think, I can do this! So thank you!
Look into pelvic girdle pain as well. I had bery similar stmptoms and even little things like pushing a grocery cart put me in excruciating pain. The symptoms are similar to sciatic pain, but very different at the same time. Hope you start to feel better!
Have you tried getting a prenatal massage yet? I got one and it helped SO MUCH!
Hey Julie,
I’m sorry to hear about the pain. I’m a Physical Therapy student about to graduate and I can’t help but wonder if your piriformis is tight and that’s causing the pain. I just finished treating a woman who is pregnant and having the same symptoms as you are experiencing. Turns out the piriformis muscle was causing the pain and with some muscle release and stretching her pain went away completely. I know some people have mentioned seeing a chiropractor, but I would advise against it. You have a lot of relaxin in your body and doing a joint manipulation on an already lax joint may create a permanent laxity which will cause you problems in the future. It’s better to do targeted nerve glides (if it is the nerve) and myofascial release (read massage) to the affected muscles.
You could try doing a figure four stretch (look up piriformis stretch online, there’s a lot of examples) and try holding them 3x30s. Someone also mentioned that your pelvis may not be aligned correctly which is definitely possible. a PT could do a supine to sit test to look at the rotation of your pelvis and to a muscle energy technique to correct if it is rotated.
We don’t often see nerve pain that radiates back up to the back, it typically radiates down from the back into the legs. Best of luck with it!
Thank you so much for sharing this! I have an appointment with a physical therapist next week and am REALLY hoping it helps! I have so, so much respect for physical therapists especially after seeing how much Ryan’s PT has helped him with his ACL recovery. She’s incredible!
Although I didn’t experience nerve pain or nausea, I do know about that out-of-control feeling. I think I was right around 32 weeks & found myself in a fink one Saturday. I just wanted to cry & felt overwhelmed for no reason. Up until that point, I hadn’t thought the pregnancy hormones were affecting me, but in the 3rd tri I noticed them more. You’re doing awesome!
Your honesty is so refreshing. Especially for those of us considering having a baby!
I am a physical therapist and for your sciatic pain I highly suggest a prenatal massage. I think it helps if you find a masseuse who has experienced pregnancy to understand the difference between the average body and a pregnant one. I hope your pain subsides! I had herniated discs in the past and I know how mentally draining it can be when all of a suddenly your mobility is limited- sometimes it’s not the pain that’s the worst part but how it impacts what you can do! I’m hoping for the best for you.
I highly recommend asking your doc about physical therapy. I had terrible sciatica during my last pregnancy, and it really helped!
Instead of a diaper genie, you might want to look into an Ubbi diaper pail. It doesn’t require special bags, we just use the scented regular trash bags, and it is made of metal so it doesn’t hold smells.
http://ubbiworld.com
I didn’t experience any sciatic pain until like 6mo pp, but ouchies. Hope he shifts positions and goes away. Being pregnant was pretty awesome. I do miss the games of kick the elbows during boring meetings, ha, but he’s a lot more fun now. He amazes me every day with the things he does. So fun watching him explore and learn.
Ah, you’re 32 weeks? I am only 19 weeks right now, and my belly is looking like yours! I had sciatica-type pain in my first trimester, believe it or not but it went away. Hopefully it won’t come back, because it was very hard to get up and walk around with it.
Sciatic pain is abs. a pain in the ass.
It’s hard…motherhood is hard too. There are going to be plenty of days where there will be tears but your baby boy will make it all better!
I haven’t been keeping up with your posts – have you done any prenatal yoga classes? What about prenatal massage? That might give some relief for the sciatic pain. Unfortunately it’s probably going to keep cropping up for the rest of the pregnancy. Yes, it will go away when the baby is born, but your attention will also be on recovering overall too, so take the good with the bad!
Another suggestion–what about a pregnancy belt? It might take the pressure off your back. I used the babies r us one for my twin pregnancy and i think it helped. My sciatic bothered me a bit as did my lower back.
Glad everything is still going great!!
Yoga stretches for sciatic pain!! I was to the point I could barely walk and started doing basic yoga stretches from you tube. Within 3 to 4 days no pain at all. If I stop for a few days the pain comes back. I had the pain i my right butt cheeck. Im not sure if someone else has already given this advice but it was a lifesaver for me.