Lesson 5: You are pregnant NOT disabled

It's a VERY common misconception that pregnant women can no longer function in society because it's too hard on them....BOGUS.

There are many things you need to be carefull of when pregnant, here is an AMAZING link that talks about all the things that you just fine and all the things you should be careful about:
http://pregnant.thebump.com/pregnancy/is-it-safe.aspx

Your body is going through many many changes and your ligaments are a lot softer as your body constantly readjusts for baby (that's why you're crampy and a lot more sore than normal) BUT this doesn't mean that you have to stop living your life. You can ask any doctor and they will tell you, if you worked out prior to being pregnant even if you were doing a program where you lifted weights, you can keep doing that. As long as you're not training for World's Strongest Woman....then you are FINE.

Now there are some VERY IMPORTANT things to remember:

1.) Don't over do it. When your body tells you you're tired, even if you could have done a  lot more pre-pregnancy STOP. Your body is working in overtime 24hrs a day so when it says "I'm tired" you're tired.

2.) Don't be the hero. If someone is moving or you need some heavy boxes lifted at work. Don't be afraid to ask someone to do it. If you haven't talked to your doctor about what weight restrictions are off limits than play it safe ALWAYS.

3.) If you have to question it, DON'T DO IT. You have those tiny little gut feelings for a reason, to me they are our mommy sensors practicing for when baby is here. Again as I said above, there is nothing wrong with asking for help.

Please trust me on this, as you well know by now people are going to be acting like you're in a body cast or just had your torso ripped open and won't want you to help or do anything that they feel is too strenuous. If this really bothers you then make sure you state that you are still the same person, yes you are carrying very precious cargo now BUT it's good for the baby when you exercise. If it doesn't bother you at all and you want to test the waters of having people wait on you (when your belly gets too big to even pick things up off the floor, you're going to wish you had people by your side at all times), then DON'T BE ASHAMED OF IT. Pregnancy is the only time when we can get away with almost anything, I'm not saying use it as an excuse, but there are times when you will feel so sick you're just trying to make it through the day, and days where you feel so "belly heavy," especially towards the end that you will appreciate people rushing to help you. TAKE THE HELP but don't grow lazy, 9 months of being lazy can lead to an extremely bad habit forming.

Here is what I tell myself. "I am pregnant, not disabled. I know my limits and I don't need to be anyone except my child's hero. Her safety is what is most important and if I am down she is down so why push it."

If someone offers to help me up off the ground I take it. If someone offers to take a heavy load out to my car I tell them how much I would appreciate it, and finally, if someone tells me "Oh don't lift that!" and I know very well that that 5lb load will not cause me to go into labor and will not tear anything I simply pick it up anyway, smile and say "hey, I am pregnant, not disabled. I know my limits and a tiny little thing like this...it's nothing."