Pre-term mum to full-term tum

Sarah Keen - 6 Jun 16

I’m nearly 42 weeks pregnant with baby number two.

I’m a whale in desperate need of a crane to help me out of bed.

I’m at the point where I need a wee literally five minutes after the last one.

I have nailed my impression of an artic lorry doing a three point turn, as I roll to my side and push myself up from the bed, all the time wondering if it’s better to just lie still and hold it in for a little while longer.

I’ve got a three year old waking at midnight, every night, wanting to jump in the bed with me.

His “big boy bed” is boring. Sleeping with Mummy is much more fun – he can wake me up with a kiss, regale me with a story, and tell me he needs a wee at 3 am.

I’m absolutely exhausted!

But, in all bullshit free honesty, I wouldn’t change it for the world. You see, baby number one was born at 33 weeks, weighing 2lb 11oz. He was taken from me in theatre almost immediately to the Neonatal Intensive Care Unit (NICU), and I didn’t get to see him until 13 hours later.

My beautiful, stubborn, diva-esque, generous and loving son, George, is the reason I embrace and in fact love the changes (and challenges) that a full term pregnancy brings. Because with him, things were very different…

I never got to have a big, beautiful, full term belly – for months after his birth, I would cry when I saw one!

I never had the tiger stripes, which, to me (after the time), signalled a healthy baby finding its space in the world.

I never had the vomit inducing heartburn to remind me I was rapidly running out of belly space.

I never got to the point where I was too uncomfortable to get out of bed for a wee.

I never had the penguin waddle to proudly show the world he was ready to come out.

I never had a chance to really realise what my body was physically capable of.

I never had the opportunity to experience this first time round, to know what to dread the second time!

So while there are definitely moments where I’m wondering if this baby will ever come out. I love that it’s stayed inside for so long! I will keep reminding myself at every uncomfortable, unglamorous opportunity, that I am blessed to be this heavy, this out of breath, this pregnant.

It really is a gift. A blessing.

Mamas, we rock!

Sarah Keen

Sarah Keen is a chiropractor with a special interest in all things pregnancy, birth and babies. After having her first child prematurely, she delved deep into the idea of creating health from pre-conception, rather than waiting for problems to surface. She runs Lightbulb Chiropractic, a pregnancy & paediatric focused practice in Colchester, Essex. She also hosts the Pure Natural Pregnancy podcast.

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