3 Things You Will Likely Experience during Your Second Trimester of Pregnancy
During your second trimester of pregnancy, you will experience even more changes with your body and with your baby than you did during the first three months. This article will discuss 3 things you can expect during your second trimester of pregnancy and some ways to handle them.
Fetal Movement
Most pregnant women will feel their baby move between 16–25 weeks of pregnancy, so you can expect to feel your baby during your second trimester. The feeling of your baby moving is initially described as butterflies in your stomach, and it grows stronger and more noticeable as your baby gets bigger in size. You will start to notice your stomach moving as your baby moves, and you can feel exactly where your baby is located in your womb. This is a very rewarding and comforting part of pregnancy because you have the wonderful opportunity to feel your unborn child and have the comfort of knowing that he or she is growing and healthy inside of you.
Increased Urination
As your baby and your uterus grow in size, this puts more pressure on your bladder. With this constant pressure on your bladder, it is no surprise that you are going to need to urinate a lot more than usual. Also, as your baby moves around, then may kick your bladder or lay on your bladder, which may actually cause you to wet yourself a small amount. No need to worry though, this is completely normal. The best way to handle this is to simply use the bathroom whenever you feel the urge to avoid any leaking. This means that you will want to stay close to a restroom as often as possible, plan ahead for long car trips, and be prepared to get up several times during the night to use the toilet.
Increased Heartburn
If you had morning sickness and food aversions during your first trimester of pregnancy, a lot of these will subside during your second trimester. You will likely get your appetite back in full force and might begin to notice strong heartburn after eating. While heartburn is sometimes unavoidable during pregnancy, there are certain things that you can do to try and decrease the discomfort you feel. Try to eat several small meals each day rather than eating a large amount of food at one time. You will also want to try and avoid spicy, acidic, and fried foods like jalapeños, hot salsa, citrus fruits, french fries, fried chicken, etc. If you still have heartburn when avoiding all of these foods, you should take a chewable antacid or some other acid reducer with the okay from an OB GYN.
If you have any more questions or concerns about your second trimester symptoms, contact a doctor from an establishment like Mile High OB GYN for advice.