Motherhood is no simple task, beginning from conception and onto birthing your child and then raising them. For those who have never experienced it, it may seem like an unreal experience that is surrounded by mystery.
If you have ever wondered what it would be like when you get pregnant or if you got pregnant, you are not alone. And while there are tons of resources across the web, nothing compares to first-hand experiences shared by those who are currently working in the trenches, so to speak.
Thankfully, as always, Reddit has us covered. In a very interesting Reddit post, one user posed the question, “Pregnant women of Reddit, what is something you wish you knew BEFORE you got pregnant?”
Many women came to respond, and the responses are surprising. Here are the 12 most notable responses.
1. GingerMau writes
This is mostly a 3rd-trimester thing, but when you are active and moving, it kinda rocks the baby to sleep.
But as soon as you lay down to go to sleep, the baby wakes up and starts kicking and spinning.
Might not be super common (?), but I knew a lot of other mothers who complained about this, too.
2. xTIGERxCUBx writes
The attention. I’m an introvert and I mostly try to keep to myself at work, but that’s impossible now. I was pretty small before I got pregnant, and I’m now 30 lbs heavier, so I’m showing. People from other departments come and ask me how I’m doing, how far along I am, when the baby is due, what the gender is if I’ve picked out a name, etc. It’s exhausting.
3. InfernalWedgie writes
I wish someone would have warned me about constipation. Corollary: I wish someone would have warned me that “fiber supplement” does not equal “stool softener.”
Today, we’re at 26 weeks gestation.
4. notgrass87 writes
During labor, the “water breaking” is not one rush of liquid. It’s continuous and can occur for several hours. it’s horrendous and messy and incredibly awful to deal with. It feels like peeing, but you have zero control over anything and if you tense up then everything is a much more painful and weird feeling.
Nobody ever told me that, and I was VERY surprised to find out for myself.
5. sm1020 writes
Hair loss! After I had my kid, I lost a ton of hair. I would pull fists full of hair during my showers. I thought there was something wrong with me because no one told me about this. Went to Google, totally normal, and it happens to everyone. It grows back eventually, and you’ll go through an awkward baby hair phase.
6. Shakenbake1811 writes
The stuff that stays with your body afterwards. I developed allergies after I had my second. My feet definitely got bigger. Hormones are no joke.
7. DuckMcQuakatron writes
How I’d get loads of random skin changes.
Skin tags, so many skin tags!
Moles growing into skin tags then dropping off, like WTF body
Sandpaper dry skin, which I still get from time to time, just this one patch on the back of my right hand
My facial skin changing from t-zone oily to t-zone flaky and never going back
My psoriasis on my scalp going away, this did come back but not as bad
Hair – so you stop shedding hair whilst pregnant, and you get really thick, lovely hair. A few weeks after birth, you start to lose all that extra hair. Literally handfuls will come out in the shower, and it’s really freaky
8. daviana_roze4257 writes
That morning sickness isn’t in the morning. And that I would be puking the whole time, not just in the beginning
Edited to add: not currently pregnant, just had horrible sickness that I will never forget and was eventually diagnosed with hyperemesis
9. DoxieBalls writes
That cravings aren’t just food. I craved dirt, particularly beach sand. The smell of the beach was excruciating, I just wanted to shovel handfuls into my mouth. I never ate dirt or sand, and the craving went away when baby was born.
A friend of a friend told me she craved freshly poured asphalt, so in a way I’m glad my craving was just dirt.
Edit: my top comment is about wanting to eat dirt. Cool.
I know it’s called pica and a deficiency. I took iron and a prenatal, however I had a super hard time eating after the morning sickness wore off. Had no desire to eat whatsoever. Except dirt.
10. tibbymoon writes
The sickest joke of all: you stop being able to sleep way before the baby gets here. Everyone loves to tell me to “sleep now while I can” but pregnancy leads to unexplained insomnia, and I’m a total wreck already.
11. Obi-rice-a-roni writes
Lochia, it’s basically the biggest “period” ever as your body expels the leftovers from carrying a baby, and it can go on for weeks. I will never forget being told that I might pass clots as big as a tennis ball and that was normal. So gross.
Also, babies in the womb can have hiccups. Hiccups are weird enough when they’re your own, it’s bizarre to feel someone else’s.
12. chrisP__bacon writes
Baby kicks don’t feel like butterflies. They feel like something crawled across your skin quickly; but from the inside