h2g2 The Hitchhiker's Guide to the Galaxy: Earth Edition

You said it wasn't your normal doctor? Probably best to pop back when your normal ones back and get to see them. It must be horrible to have to put up with pain because of pregancy.

Do you get free prescriptions now you're pregant? If you don't then Gavision is much cheaper over the counter anyway.

Thanks for the s I need them. I didn't get much sleep last night so am not feeling my best and brightest in any case.

Yes, I get free prescriptions. I will buy it, it isn't like I can't afford it, it just annoyed me as part of the whole 'don't have time for this' attitude.

I don't know anything about sciatica - does it go away?

Sciatica just means 'pain along the area supplied by the Sciatic nerve' it can be caused by compression of the nerve route by arthritis, or it can 'one of those aches and pains that seem to come and go and just get better with use' much like back pain. You can take anti inflammorities that help you get over the pain and actually move - but if you are pregnant (or indeed if you had severe asthma that means you can't take it, or have a stomach ulcer). It's just a matter of gritting your teeth.

Being young and fit the chances of you having degenative arthritis are around zlich, none of the rare sorts of arthritis that affect young people start with Sciatica-like pain.

It is horrible running a clinic and having everyone turn up. When I was doing psychiatry I had 15 minutes each with the patients, and I was supposed to dictate letters to the GP and write in the notes in that time as well.(I always used to stay late and do them after clinic). It was ok if I'd seen them before because we'd already built up a relationships, but it was really difficult if we hadn't seem them before. They all had complex psychological needs, (obviously) and needed to talk. If you let one overun then everyone else is annoyed that they had to wait an hour or longer to be seen, at first I was always an hour behind.

But there are ways and means of giving everyone the time that they need, and even of closing a conversation and still making people feel that they've had their needs met. Sounds like that can't mange it very well.

At what point do you get yourself a Community Midwife?

I have the booking in appointment with the midwife next monday, 21st. J is coming too, apparently they quiz you on everything and give you lots of information, none of which I'll remember on my own.

Am quite looking forward to that really.

My 12 (and a half) week scan is on the 1st Sept. I need to get to that before I can breathe again.

*cuddle*

Have you investigated the options of massage and physio, Kelli? Perhaps Teuchter's rather fabulous Australian could help?

If you cannot have medication for aches and pains, then it seems possible that physical therapies might help, also consider yoga for pregnant ladies and pilates for pregnant ladies if you can find them.

By the way - I would put everything you have written here into a letter and send it to the practice manager. While I hear what Z says about drs being under time pressure, for him to tell you to go away because your time is up is, surely, not accceptable. And if it is acceptable to the practice, then I would consider changing practices.

Z and I have long and rather heated debates about the exact meaning of the word "service" in the phrase "national health service"



Ben

When I see the physio about my shoulder I'll get them to prod my sore buttock as well... Will have to check whether the one I end up with is an Aussie

Usually the practice is really good - I've always been very happy to see any of the normal doctors (aside from the one who said the practice as a whole doesn't believe in medical treatments for obesity, whatever NICE has to say on the matter). And it is in my village, and I really like the nurses there (who up until now were who I mostly saw).

The thing is, I don't tend to make appointments for every little niggle, but only when there is something properly wrong that I think they might actually treat (as opposed to tell me to rest, can do that without being told). That does tend to mean that when I do go in with a main problem I also end up asking about a list of niggles. Mind you, most of my 'niggles' this time were to do with finding out what is (nothing) and isn't (everything) safe to take during pregnancy which we are *told* to ask a doctor about, and quite a lot of time in the appointment was spent with the Dr looking stuff up in the BNF.

Am struggling with my phonephobia now as I think I basically have to arrange my physio and health insurance which is going to be a phone-intensive hour or so. Boy do I *hate* having to call people!

k

Wasn't there an edited entry just the other day about Sciatica? Ah yes, here it is: A12925091

Hang in there Kelli

Thanks Titania, I had forgotten that entry, although it seems to imply that sciatica is all about foot and ankle pain or numbness, which I don't have.

Yes, everything I've read so far suggests just putting up with it until it goes away *sigh*

- avoiding the shoulder

Most doctors are great, so I'm sorry you hit on one of the 'your wasting my time' ones - I had one of those at one point, and it was very frustrating, particularly since I'm a very rare visitor to the practice, so they can be pretty sure it's serious when I do turn up.

If we could take the back pain on your behalf, we would.

Scitatica is no fun... One trick I tried when pregnant was this - to stretch the buttock and thigh muscles to give more room for the nerve. Or something .

Find yourself a door opening. Lie down straight through - half of you in one room, the other half in the other room. Scoot as close to the door frame as possible.

Now lift the leg furthest away from the frame. Let the leg cross over and 'rest' the foot up against the wall. Try to relax the muscles (Ha! I know it hurts!) for a little while. If it hurts too much, slide your body 'north' - head further away from wall/door, until foot can rest against wall without too much pain.

Hope it helps!

Sounds like a glut stretch Milla - thanks! I haven't really been exercising much since falling preggers,as I'm just too tired to even *contemplate* going to the gym, let alone actually doing anything once I got there. Your post has made me realise that I ought to be carrying on with the stretches, even if I don't do the exercise session afterwards -

*tilts head, trying to figure out what Milla just said*

Hmmm, lie down on your back I assume, not stomache?

Straight knee or bent?

Rest the foot against the wall? Wouldn't it rest against the door frame?

I do a similar stretch (at least I think it is similar!) by lying on my back with knees bent. Lift left leg and place the left ankle on the right knee. Then reach around the right thigh with your hands and pull it towards your body so that the right foot also comes off of the floor. Should feel the stretch on the outside of the left thigh and the left buttock.

That sound like it is stretching the same thing Milla?

I couldn't resist googling a bit, and came across this page that looks interesting:

http://www.spine-health.com/topics/conserv/preg/preg01.html

Dear Kelli, I have been here off and on for quite a while. I finally feel like I can contribute something of value.

A couple of years ago I went through a course to get certified to do massage on pregnant women. If you can afford it, it can be very beneficial to receive massage, especially during your last trimester. The course I took does not recommend positioning on your face even with pregnancy pillows during massage because of problems with pressure on the vagus nerve and stress to the uterine ligaments. But there are very good side lying positions using pillows and bolsters. I have worked with several clients who were pregnant, and it was a most wonderful sort of work for me to do, to get to participate in the miracle of pregnancy.

But I digress. The spinal health site looks to have some very nice stretches. There are a couple of others that I use myself and recommend to any of my clients who have sciatica, and they seem to really help.

First stretch: Lie on your back with both knees bent, feet flat on floor. Cross your right leg over your left knee, with your right ankle resting just above the knee. Now support your left knee with both hands and pull it towards your chest, along with the leg and ankle that are resting on it. Pull until you feel a nice stretch in your buttock area, breathe, hold for a couple of seconds and release the stretch. Repeat a few times. Switch legs and stretch the other side.

Second stretch: You need a belt or robe tie or soft rope for this one. Lie flat on the floor. Put your right foot in the rope like a stirrup. Taking both ends of the rope (or belt), wrap it around the outside of your ankle, under the leg and to the inside. Hold both ends of the rope with your left hand. Raise your leg about 4 or 5 inches above the floor, and then, supporting the move with the rope, pull your right leg across your left one until you feel a nice stretch happening in your backside. Use the rope to give yourself a little extra stretch. Return your leg to the floor. Repeat a few times. Switch legs and stretch the other side.

Good luck and hope your back feels better soon. If I was over there, I'd volunteer to come over and give you a nice rub. I'm thinking really hard. Mmmm. Feel that nice stroke along your shoulder and neck?

I know that you are very tired. It takes a LOT of energy to grow a baby, and you are cleaning metabolic products for two in addition to breathing for two and eating for two. But, your midwife will tell you that you need to get some exercise. Labor and delivery are HARD WORK (I guess that's why they call it labor?) and it will be to your benefit if you are at least sort of in shape for it. So try to get a little walking in every day. You may find that it actually helps the energy level.

Blessings to you

Hi hmh, I think that first stretch is the same as the one I described earlier isn't it? Will try to understand the second one and have a go at that too.

I am just too tired to exercise at the moment, but apparently this exhaustion will back off a bit when the placenta starts to take over some of the work I'm doing right now, so I'll get back to it then - hopefully just in a couple of weeks. I've tried exercising first thing in the morning - the exercise is fine but I'm wiped out by lunchtime and can't work in the afternoon. If I exercise at lunchtime I am too tired to safely drive myself home, and by the evening I want a nap so am too tired to try to exercise then. Even swimming seems very hard, it was difficult enough not being able to use my arms but the pain in my leg means I can't kick either so that is pretty much out.

I *will not* feel bad about not exercising during this three months though - it is difficult after doing so much for such a long time, but it is just not a realistic proposition until I get a little energy back. I know my body quite well, and recognise when I can push it and when I can't. Just the thought that I have to do the shopping tomorrow is enough, and I was so tired during my last shop that I burst into tears in sainsburys! For some reason the fresh pasta set me off

I will do my stretching again though - that isn't too energy sapping and will be good for me

Oh and I'll definitely lok into getting a good massage when I'm in the third trimester - wonder if J could go on a course this autumn...? he has already booked himself on a bricklaying course (*looks very worried about what *that* means*) - I could switch it...

kelli, part of the exhaustion is the fact that you are building that placenta. There is a lot of tissue there that needs to be built. Takes energy to do that. Right now your heart is increasing the output of blood, by the 27th week you will have increased the output by 20 - 30%. Your heart rate increases about 10-15%, and the total volume of blood in your entire body will increase from 30-50%. It is no wonder that you feel tired. Just to do your every day stuff takes a LOT of ENERGY. No doubt you are taking care of yourself well. You DO know your body, and I don't want you to feel like there's some broad on the other side of the ocean giving you orders.

Here, some nice . No caffeine in it, just a little relaxing chamomile. That might be something you could try to help you sleep. Only... there's that kidney thing going on. . .mmm maybe not. If you can stand it, peppermint tea is good for settling the stomach, but there are lots of people who don't like it at all.

Even though the placenta will take care of delivering nutrients to the baby, and separating the metabolic wastes from the baby's blood, you will still have to digest all those nutrients, and your kidneys will still have to filter them out of your blood once they get there from the placenta. More energy expenditure from you.

Your kidneys are busy increasing the blood flow in them, it ultimately will be 35% higher, and the filtration increases by 40%. Again, energy intensive. Plus lots of trips to the bathroom...

The hormones that are running around in your blood stream are fierce right now, too. Numerous ones doing different jobs and in quantities that are mind boggling. It is no wonder that you at the drop of the hat. Pasta is a new one for me, though. Just think, in about 5 or 10 years you are going to have some great stories to tell. I have heard that at that distance and perspective, they start to be quite amusing.

Quite often there are classes in massage for couples. J would probably be able to learn it - I mean, its no more technical than bricklaying, really, and quite a lot less physically demanding.

> For some reason the fresh pasta set me off

I cry when I look at fresh pasta too. It's more a sort of joyful sobbing noise, actually. "You mean I can eat that?"

All those stretches sound like a really good idea. I was going to recommend (until I saw the stretches) what I do for my lower back pain... Right above the kidneys, and right below the floating ribs, there's a spot to the left and right of the spine. I reach it by making a fist and putting it behind my back, and jamming a knuckle into the spot. It's kind of a hole. I know when I've reached it because pressure on that spot hurts like heck. Not a bad hurting, more of a "My god, that's sore." I can wiggle it around and break up nitrogen bubbles that form in the muscles around that spot. It gives me a lot of mobility, and weirdly the pain in my left leg down to the ankle goes away. For a little while.

When I was really having problems with it, I refrained from sitting down at all. I stood up as much as possible, then when my legs were too tired, stood on my knees. When I got home I slept on my stomach, and put an ice pack on my lower back (around the spot I mentioned earlier.) I know you aren't supposed to be sleeping on your stomach later in your pregnancy, but it might be okay now.

I suppose I should go read the article on sciatica now! Good luck with the back, Kelli!

Finally wandering over this way...

About the only advice I can think of is to not do what I did--I managed to get myself dehydrated badly enough to need 2 bags of saline through an IV, without vomiting and such. The whole story's here-- F74902?thread=238192 but the point is that I didn't take into account that I needed to drink more since my blood volume was increasing, and I was peeing more. Didn't hurt Faith a bit, but gave Tom and I a rather worrying day.