Alhamdulillah I'm pregnant :-)

I am so glad to let you know that Alhamdulillah I am pregnant with my third baby and hope to meet my newborn in April Insha-Allah. I am hoping to share my experience as a pregnant mother of two on a regular basis up to my due date insha-Allah. I hope my posts will help all the sisters out there who are interested to know more about this great journey Insha-Allah. Please share your views through the comments section insha-Allah.

Alhamdulillah Allah (SWT) has blessed us with two children. Our son is 3 years old and our daughter is 20 months old. I am in my 20th weeks of pregnancy. Alhamdulillah up until now I haven’t really suffered many problems. I did go through usual morning sickness during first trimester a little though. Morning sickness is definitely a misleading name for this unpleasant side-effect of pregnancy. Around 80% of pregnant women suffer from nausea and not just in the mornings! Many women feel waves of nausea throughout the day and some feel sick all the time. Research shows it seems to hit a peak at around 9 to 10 weeks and generally starts to improve after the 14 week mark. Nobody really knows what causes it but experts believe high levels of circulating hormones are to blame.

As I am in my second trimester, I am not feeling that sick anymore alhamdulillah. To avoid feeling sick, it is very important to eat on a regular basis but not eating too much as that will definitely make you feel sick. It is better to eat a little amount of food and wait till the food is digested properly. Make sure you are not starving yourself as that will trigger more sickness. Snacking on healthy starchy carbohydrates such as wholemeal toast and sandwiches, bananas etc keeps blood sugar topped up and ensures your stomach is never completely empty. Sipping water or any other juice throughout the day can prevent dehydration. You need to get used to frequent trips to the loo as this is very common at this stage of pregnancy. This is caused by uterus expanding and pressing down on bladder. But don’t cut back on liquids as this only makes the problem worse and can also put you at risk of dehydration. It is recommended to drink eight glasses of water a day and practise pulling up pelvic floor muscles to control bladder. During my first trimester I also had frequent headaches which are quite normal and are thought to be caused by fluctuating hormones. I did try to avoid taking paracetamol but when it was quite unbearable I took two paracetamols to get rid of the headache.

With my first two pregnancies, I did not really experience cramp during the first and second trimesters but with this one I get frequent cramps. These shooting pains in the calves tend to get more frequent and painful as pregnancy progresses. When it happens, straighten your leg and foot and pull your toes towards your body to ease cramp or try walking about in bare feet on a cold floor. For me massaging the affected area helps a lot.

I have been having my vitamin supplements from the very beginning as I was also breastfeeding my daughter. It is highly recommended to take folic acid which is an essential B vitamin that can reduce the risk of baby developing a neural tube defect such as spina bifida (where a gap develops in the spine and damage to the central nervous system occurs) by up to 75 per cent. Ideally we are advised to take a supplement in the first three months before conception and then during the first three months of pregnancy. You can also get folic acid by eating foods such as leafy green vegetables, yeast extract, fruits and wholemeal bread and cereals. I love eating lots of broccoli and feel good thinking I am having quite a lot of folic acid insha-Allah. However, it is hard to get enough from diet so it is recommended that pregnant mothers should take a 400mcg supplement everyday. I have been having Pregnacare tablets.

During the first trimester sometimes I did feel quite exhausted as I also need to look after my two babies :-) but alhamdulillah having a quick nap can really help in feeling better. I try to have nap when my chlidren are having their one. Otherwise it is not really possible to sleep as they are most of the time with me :-) . Anyways, I am looking forward to meet my baby insha-Allah ! Sometimes I do feel a bit scared thinking about the labour pains! But I have decided not to think too much and stress myself . I am always asking Allah (SWT) to make it easy and quick for me and bless us with a healthy and good Muslim baby. Please do keep me in your duas. Jazakallah khairan!