Another week has flown past. My belly has certainly now popped out now, and I would assume that most people would now think that I’m pregnant and not just fat. Last Friday night I had terrible cramps in my calf muscles, worse in my left leg than my right. It’s horrible to wake up with such cramps! I’m hoping that this doesn’t become a regular thing.
Info from Birth.com.au
Your baby has grown to be about 30 cm long from head to toe and approximately 700 grams in weight. Your baby may now be big enough for others to feel your belly and sense them kicking and stretching! Babies at 24 weeks have been noted to increase their breathing patterns (by expanding their lungs with amniotic fluid), after their mothers eat, especially if the food contains sugar! Your baby’s lungs now start to produce a substance called surfactant, which lines their lungs and assists them to breathe after birth. Even so, babies born as early as 24 weeks (or less) only have a very small chance of survival.
Breathlessness. Many women complain of feeling breathless during pregnancy. This is very normal and will usually come and go. You can be short of breath even while sitting and having a normal conversation. You don’t have to exert yourself at all!
Palpitations. This is a feeling that your heart is ‘racing’ or beating strongly and rapidly in your chest. Palpitations are very common during pregnancy, due to the extra workload on the heart pumping up to 50% more blood volume around your body. Palpitations can be felt for no apparent reason, but may be associated with exercising, being stressed, feeling anxious or excited. However they usually subside on their own after a few minutes or less. Palpitations may also be associated with feeling breathless. NOTE: Occasionally palpitations can indicate a heart condition. If you are concerned that they are not going away and you are feeling unwell, contact your caregiver.
Many women have fantastic or scary dreams during their pregnancy. These may involve being abandoned or losing your partner, giving birth to a baby who has an abnormality, having a ‘painless’ birth and discovering the sex of your child, or experiencing an out of control situation. The things you dream about are not likely to merge into reality when the time comes, but they may reflect some unconscious concerns you have.
Lying on your back. During the later months of pregnancy (after about 24 to 28 weeks), a few women find that if they lie flat on their back for a few minutes or more, they start to feel light-headed, dizzy and possibly breathless and nauseated. This can happen because the growing baby is placing pressure on one of the major blood vessels, called the vena cava. However, not every pregnant woman experiences this. Usually by lying on your right or left side, sitting in an upright position, or even in a semi-upright position you can avoid vena-caval compression.
Leg cramps in pregnancy is a sign you are deficient in something.. um… calcium and magnesium I think…. if you are interested I can also my natropath/doula friend and find for sure for you.