Makcik Pregger series: Summary of 1st trimester

Just came back from monthly check-up at SDMC (used to be known as SJMC). I am now 18 weeks pregger. I have to admit that every time I see the tiny baby on the monitor, I'm still amazed. Looking at the clear image of the baby's vertebrae and beating heart always leave me with mixed feelings. I decided not to go for the 4D or 3D scan as I don't plan to bond with the baby too soon. At 18 weeks, the risk is still high. Even at 24 weeks, no mother-to-be dares to declare that it's totally safe and everything is guaranteed to turn out okay. There's just too much possibilities in each pregnancy. Each woman has unique experience and every pregnancy is not the same.

This time, I'm pregnant at a ripe age of 35 (almost 35 lah, birthday will be in early July). The experience is totally different from the first two. I was 27 and 28 during the respective pregnancies. My gynae has warned me many times to conceive before I turn 35 but I had too many reasons not to back then. First was the extra few (denial mode) kg I had to lose, then there was my high cholesterol and high BP problem.

Well, as Allah always knows best, I conceived last December when I least expected it. It was a hectic month both at work and at home. Perhaps my ex-boss's theory was right; it's easier to conceive when you're under a certain amount of pressure.

The most obvious challenge during the first trimester was fighting the fatigue. By 10.30pm every night, I would just lie flat on the bed - out of energy. My gynae's explanation made a lot of sense. When I was younger, my metabolic rate was high. So, when I got pregnant at the age of 27 I didn't really notice the rise in metabolic rate. Once a woman reaches 30, her metabolic rate decreases dramatically especially when one decides to become a couch potato. So, a few weeks after conceiving, a 35 years old woman starts to get tired easily. In my case, I started to feel it after my 6th week. I don't have energy to cook, clean or even watch TV after 10pm. And we're talking about 'me' who actually went to gym at least twice a week (quite) regularly.

I was lucky I didn't have any nausea or vomiting during the first trimester. One of my team mates who got pregnant a week ahead of me is still serving her 'bed-rest sentence'. Bed-rest is not fun at all. It's like serving house-arrest. You can't work, can't play, can't shop, can't eat much and definitely not advised to have s3x.

My first 14 weeks was spent enjoying food; I was having cravings every morning. It was fun and my friends who are trying hard to lose weight were so jealous of me. I craved for so many things: pulut panggang, sambal tempoyak, KFC, Mozza burger, nasi dagang, ayam percik and many more. If I craved for the food in the morning, I'd make sure I got it before the night ended. So I spent my mornings planning for my lunch, and the afternoons planning for dinner.

But the fun ended after my 14th week when the gynae prescribed me Sangoba1on. This multivit was supposed to make me have more appetite but it was having an adverse effect on me. Not only that, everything I ate tasted bad. Maybe my tongue was affected, I don't know. When I discussed with my gynae, she suspected it's just coincidental, and I have to continue taking it.... *sigh*

Besides that, I am currently losing weight. I've lost 2 kgs since I conceived. My BP reading has also gone down. It used to be 150/110 back in Aug 08 and now it's 120/80. I told you God always has better plans for us. The rise in metabolic rate must have helped in lowering my cholesterol level, I think. So, does that mean I have to get pregnant every year? Oh noooooo!

One very important fact: I will have to undergo C-sect again as my bone structure doesn't support normal birth. It's going to be damn expensive, I know. We're in the midst of global economic recession, tapi jangan haraplah hospital-hospital ni akan menurunkan harga ubat, consultancy dan kos pembedahan. BTW, the blood test alone costed me about RM254!