The Sile Seoige pregnancy diary: The indignity of... a pregnancy head cold

In a nutshell: at 32 weeks the crazy dreams continue; baby is using my ribs as a punch bag, AND I got my first proper head cold in eight months of pregnancy.

Atchoo! I had lots of lovely plans to catch up with friends and family last weekend when I went home to the West, but it all went out the window as I was floored with a nasty cold that has lingered all week long. So instead of going out, I stayed in my dressing gown, was minded by my momma, went through over two boxes of tissues and tried a number of natural/safe to take when pregnant remedies to blast it.

Being pregnant and not being able to take much isn’t fun, but hey, it could be a lot worse. It’s true what they say though: it takes twice as long to get over a cold when you’re expecting so if you find yourself in a similar situation, rest as much as you possibly can. Sleep, put the feet up, take probiotics, and get plenty of fluids into ya!

My top three Do’s for this week…
1) Vitamins and minerals
In the third trimester your nutritional needs change and increase. While it’s beneficial to take a good quality multivitamin throughout your pregnancy, the tiny human growing inside you puts extra demands on your body in the final weeks. With your baby growing at a rapid rate, it’s important for you to stay hydrated. The energy used by your bundle during this time may lead you to overheat or get dehydrated, especially during the warmer days so drink plenty of water. Foods and/or pregnancy suitable supplements which include calcium and magnesium are also a must for baby’s bone development as it’s now that the bones are hardening. Protein and Omega-3 fatty acids are also important for the baby’s continuing brain and eye development which is growing faster than ever. And apparently, 70 percent of calories your baby receives during this time goes into brain development so it really is important to include good sources of essential fatty acids in your diet. Plus there is also a theory that essential fats in your diet may help prevent stretch marks so yet another reason to include plenty of good food sources like seeds, nuts and oily fish during these crucial weeks.

2) Date night
A lot of my friends who are also parents have been telling me how important it is to go out with your partner while you can, so we’ve been taking their advice as much as is possible: dinner out, cinema, even simply going for a walk together. More and more the reality of how life will change in a few weeks is dawning on me so it’s important to try and enjoy the flexibility and freedom while we can, as the focus will naturally shift to bundle when he or she decides to arrive.

3) Hospital Bag
The thought of all I have yet to do: practice the hypobirthing techniques for labour; write up our birth preferences; make sure to exercise and eat well; get a car seat and know how to fit it correctly; finish the house renovations, and learn about minding a tiny human in a few weeks! It can all feel overwhelming at times, especially as it feels like time is speeding up. But this week I felt a great sense of achievement as I started to get my hospital bag ready.

Luckily, there is so much information online on what to bring but it can still be tricky, especially if you’re someone like me to which ‘packing light’ doesn’t come naturally. But I found some brilliant Irish companies online - thestorkbox.ie and memammab.com are just two fab examples - that take the stress out of it for you.

That’s it for now, next week I’ll be sharing my wish of labouring in The Coombe’s birthing pool... and the onset of heartburn!

Big love, 
Síle xxx 
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The Sile Seoige pregnancy diary: The indignity of… a pregnancy head cold

In a nutshell: at 32 weeks the crazy dreams continue; baby is using my ribs as a punch bag, AND I got my first proper head cold in eight months of pregnancy.