Losing the Joy in Sleeping :(

19 weeks

Hip pain--arrrrgh! This was one symptom of pregnancy I was unaware of until a couple weeks ago. I started having pain in my hips while sleeping at about 16 weeks. At first I thought it might be due to my early morning walks with the dogs. Then, I thought it must be the firmness of our new Tempurpedic mattress. The pain went from being sporadic to consistent over the last couple weeks. I've been waking about every 15-30 minutes switching sides to relieve the pain (since you're not allowed to be on your back after week 16).  I asked my friend, Mandy, if she experienced pain in her hips during pregnancy and she assured me it was normal.  After looking for solutions online I learned about some of the causes of this discomfort: "The primary culprit is relaxin, a hormone that helps give the ligaments in your pelvic area the flexibility they will need for the birth process" (Vann). This doctor lists other reasons for the pain to include "Muscle stretching between the 18th and 24th week as your baby (and belly) grows, and the growing uterus pressing on your nerves, resulting in pain that may affect your thigh as well (often referred to as sciatica)." And this pain is supposed to get worse once you enter the third trimester--yay! Some of the tips online suggest sleeping with a pregnancy pillow or a regular pillow between your legs, stretching before bed, taking long walks, and swimming.  Last night before bed, I did a 20-minute hip-opener workout from a yoga DVD and slept with a pillow between my legs.  I felt MUCH more comfortable sleeping last night and only had to switch sides a couple times.  The other not-so-fun part of sleeping is getting up to pee several times a night. Last night was a good night since I only had to pee three times in the middle of the night. I was under the impression that that started in your third trimester, but not so! I guess all this waking up during the night is good preparation for when the baby arrives! Here's to hoping you're sleeping better than me!!!

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