I'm in a stable period with my pregnancy now. It took too long to get here.
I felt the baby's first movement on January 11, at around 1 am, when I couldn't fall asleep. I had just entered the stable period. Since then I would feel the baby move periodically. In the last week, I have felt it everyday I'm so happy to feel it everyday! But sometimes it hurts a lot when the baby kicks or punches. I heard it might hurt a lot during the 3rd trimester. Since it's only the second trimester, and it hurts, I worry about that.
My husband felt the baby move for the first time last Sunday. He said to me, "The baby was moving a lot, so you couldn't sleep very well, could you? " My baby has often woken me up. When the baby moves, it reminds me that he/she is healthy, so I can stand the pain.
Last Sunday was the first time I read a book to the baby. I read a snoopy book because I don't have any picture books. I was reading the book in English. I think that can help me study English, especially pronunciation. While I read the book, the baby started moving. I thought that the baby realized that I was reading to him/her. I'll read the book again.
In fact in thinking about it, at first, I believed my baby was a girl. But now I'm starting to think that the baby is a boy, because he is so active. I can't wait until next week when I can find out the baby's gender.
The following sentences are about morning sickness, my body changing, and so on.
My morning sickness started at 2 or 3 weeks. I thought it was jet lag or a cold. At that time my husband and I were considering getting health insurance, and that made us talk about when we planned to have a baby. Imagine my surprise when I found out I was pregnant Then I had to stay in bed all day for about 2 months. I was nauseous and I couldn't stand up. I thought it might be cerebral anemia. I suffered from constipation and frequent urination. When I had severe morning sickness, my husband was away in Chile for 1 month. And I survived
I had some problems with certain smells. It was too hard to smell shampoo, body soap, and detergent; I would often nauseous. It risked my life to take a bath. Human instincts are amazing. I think I unconsciously removed my baby from potentially harmful substances. In American apartments, usually washing machines are not in the homes. So, I have to go to the laundry room. It was too hard for me to deal with the smell in the laundry room.
My sense of taste has changed because of my new sensitivity to odors. First, I have not been able to smell alcohol. I feel like I could faint when I smell it. Second, it's been difficult for me to smell meat and I have found that I need to season meat before cooking it. Then I can eat it. Also, fish has been a problem. I don't like the smell and taste of fish. My Ob/gyn doctor says, "You should eat protein." So, I eat tofu a lot instead of meat. The above problems are still happening.
Since entering the stable period, I have new problems. Those are headaches, back pain and stomachaches. I am particularly deficient in Iron, so when I forgot to take my supplements, I sometimes can't stand up the next day and also I get a severe headache. In America, taking Iron, Folic Acid and DHA are especially good for pregnant women and fetuses. If pregnant women take DHA, the probability of asthma is decreased (I read about it in TIME). For your information, American supplements are very large. They are the same size as my first joint of my pinkie finger. I have to take 2 supplements per day. I choke them down.
About hospital: Compared with the Japanese medical system, the American one is terrible and expensive. It's OK if you have insurance, but if I pay out-of-pocket, it's dreadful. I paid out-of-pocket costs several times, but finally I switched to an insurance plan that covers pregnancy. That gave me relief. I don't get an ultra sound during every doctor visit, in contrast to Japan. The doctor only checks the baby's heart beat everytime. I can get an ultra sound only 3 times during the pregnancy. In the beginning, I needed to get some screening tests. I already got tested for downs syndrome, trisomy 18 and trisomy 21. If I want to get a test that screens for genetic problems, I can do that, too. Incidentally, I was surprised when I got my blood drawn and a ful vaccine, I felt no pain.
The language barrier: It's too hard for me to explain my condition in English because of the language barrier. But my doctor, who is a women, is so kind, and speaks easily and slowly so that I can totally understand what she says during the examinations. And it hasn't been a problem during the screening test since I can guess what I'm supposed to do. But I'm not good at making phone calls. When I have to call a receptionist or a doctor to solve a problem or make an appointment, I'm always nervous. If there is a translator, I can talk with him or her. So, it's OK. I was spotting at the end of December, so I had to call my doctor. At that time, I could understand what the doctor said even though we were talking on the phone. I think I pushed myself really hard so that I was finally able to do it. I'm getting used to talking in English.
I have suffered from many symptoms. My husband always helps me and he has been doing more housework. I appreciate him a lot. Now, I can focus entirely on the baby. (He said "You should do that". I was relieved to hear it.) Now, my husband is so busy and I'm feeling better, I think I'm supposed to return to all the normal activities I was doing before. (That's natural.) My husband is going to go to Chile for 1 month again and also Italy for 1 week. I'll go for it: being by myself and taking care of myself.
Recently, I'm getting better. I want to do things. I'll look for more activities. But I have a lot to do already. I often knit now. I have to translate a psychological book and write essays until the baby comes. I'll make an effort to do that. (It's hard for pregnant women to concentrate. And also I have back pain after studying. I'll work diligently at that.)
She is a really cute, smart, happy and funny girl!My husband was in Berkeley on her birthday. So, we had a small party with my family. We will have a birthday party with our family at the end of June.