Extremely Emotional

Just cry when you feel like crying, don't hold it back...you are pregnant and have every reason to feel emotional. I was on bed rest the last few weeks of my pregnancy with severe pitted edema. I was pretty emotional, a friend of mine told me to rent really sappy movies and just cry...it always made me feel great to get it all out. Don't dwell on it...just let it out!! Some mothers and mothers to be think by showing their emotional sensitivity they are admitting they are fragile and inadequate...well you are, and that is okay.

Cry! Really, watch an emotional movie or read a book that wells you up. This way all those tears will flow and you will feel so much better after you cry.

You are completely normal, first of all. It is an exciting but emotional journey, and roller-coaster moods are common, partly due to raging hormones and partly due to just thinking about what's coming. Some people say that all the emotions and all the discomfort in the last month of pregnancy are just to get you looking forward to the birth experience! Try to pamper yourself, give yourself some space, do what you can to reduce stress in other areas of your life, and give in to the moods if you have to, without feeling guilty. The days are cold and snowy sometimes, but they are getting longer, and having a baby in the spring is great - even if you are up at 4:30 am, so are the birds. Try to get a little sun now if you can - seasonal affective disorder happens to a lot of people in the winter, and absorbing a little sunlight is beneficial. There are news stories out about this - it's hard because so little of your skin is exposed in the winter - but if there is a mild-ish day and you can get in a walk without gloves and just get your hands and face exposed to the sun, it can help. There are also massage therapists who specialize in pregnancy massages - see if you can treat yourself. Or take yourself to a movie - I used to do this and it helped enormously! I would go to the first showing when only a handful of people were there - I didn't have to talk to anyone, even my husband, and I could just sit in the dark and escape.

Good luck!

Unfortunatly hormones get the best of you, and every pregnant women. Just think of how close you are to meeting your beautiful son. Trust me it is all worth it. If you have to cry then just do it. Best of luck to you.

Congratulations on your expectations! Having been there many times, I have a great suggestion, Rent a few real sappy chick-flicks (tis the season), pop a bowl of popcorn (go easy on the salt) and allow yourself a good tear festival. This gets everything out and I felt refreshed for a while. Don't let anyone laugh at you for being emotional. You are doing a very hard job and your body is working overtime. If you feel like laughing, laugh. If you feel like crying, cry. p.s. Don't watch any action or thrillers, they only cause anxiety to build up. Good luck!

Hi C. - during my first pregnancy, I didn't experience much in the way of emotional fluctuations. HOWEVER, I am 9 months pregnant with my second and my husband must feel that I have multiple personalities by now. I have been sweet, murderous!, teary, angry, irritable, sad, happy ... you get the picture. Try not to judge yourself and treat yourself like you would your best friend. It will pass and you will laugh about it in retrospection. There is a homeopathic remedy that may help you emotionally called Rescue Remedy made by Bach Flower Essences. You can purchase it on-line or at a Whole Foods or natural health store. It's purely homeopathic and non-herbal so it is completely safe. It usually works for calming and levelling things emotionally. Wishing you all the best.

You poor thing. Been there!!! Go with the flow, cry if you want to cry. I always found, the 1st tri I was so sick I was miserable. The 2nd tri was fantastic, I felt so much better had so much energy and was glowing (so I was told). The 3rd tri was good at first. Towards the end I was so tired. Miserable cause even the maternity clothes werent fitting. It was such a job lugging that belly around. Here is my crying story.

I went to a b-day party in the afternoon, only a couple ours, I can remember coming home, going in my bedroom alone and just crying and crying. I was about 37 weeks along, and I just didnt know how I was to make another 3 weeks (or 5 weeks I tend to go overdue). I just couldnt do it anymore. My belly was just weighing me down, literally, I felt like I had to put my hands under my belly when I walked. It was uncomfortable to sit or stand or lay down, I just couldnt do it anymore!!! But I did!!!!!!!!!!!! And it all turned out fine.

Just hang in there........ We have all been thru it. You'll do just fine...... The sun will be out tommorrow!!
Best of Luck on your new little one!!

OMG C., you just brought back some memories from only about a year and a half ago. My daughter is now 16 months old. Anyways, when I was pregnant I would cry at the drop of the hat. What an emotional rollecoster. I would cry at hallmark commercials, I would cry if my husband looked at me the wrong way. It's just all the hormones. I mean do you realise what is happening to your body? So don't fret girlfriend just try to ride it out it will soon be over and then you will be crying over how beatiful your little boy is and how amazed you are that this little person came out of you. Isn't it amazing?
I hope your hubby is there for you to support you and get you what ever you need, ice cream etc... My hubby didnt really know how to handle my emotional episodes, or the bitchy ones, but he always ran to the store every time I needed my Ben and Jerry's.

Good Luck.

Let your physician know, especially if it continues after the birth of your son. You don't want to go through post-partum depression. FYI: Research has been finding that emotions can be linked to nutritional deficiencies. Depression can be linked to deficiencies in vitamin D and magnesium for two. It's winter (low levels of sun = low levels of vitamin D produced by your skin), your baby is growing bones. Could be a possibility. Exercise helps with depression too. It's harder at the 3rd trimester. Discuss that wiht your doctor. Good luck. Have fun! If things are hard when you have the baby, ask for help!

When I was expecting my first baby and about that far along my husband came home for lunch one day to find me sitting on the kitchen floor crying. He freaked out and asked me what happened. In tears I told him the truth. The cats wouldn't leave me alone. They meowed at me half the morning and even when I put them out they meowed at the door. I'm sure it had nothing to do with our 2 cats. Pregnancy is kind of funny that way.

I was so fortunate that both of my pregnancies were wonderful. I never had any of the "icky" side-effects. I had minor nausea with both (less with the first); other than that, both pregnancies were "cake-walks". My emotions were over the moon! I had waited and prayed for 17 years to become a mommy, so I was nothing but ecstatic during my first; shocked with the second. I would also have been ecstatic with the second, except I was in a job that I hated.

The funniest thing I found was how much I loved BEING pregnant. You know how a lot of women, by the 8th month, are all "I can't wait for it to be OVER!!!" I wasn't like that. I only wanted it to be over so that I could finally see my little darling(s). The being pregnant part I was totally OK with.

One other thing: it annoyed me so much that so many women felt like they had to share all of the horror stories of newborns: colic, midnight feedings, lack of sleep, etc. Not one single person bothered to tell me how much FUN a baby was! So, I'm telling you...watching your baby grow & develop, seeing his reactions to things, etc. will be just about the most fun thing you can ever imagine. My girls are now 5 and almost 3 (2/28) and they are STILL so much fun!

Hi C.,
Yup, been there. I called them "mommy meltdowns" and they can be totally unexplainable! You just simply feel off and like crying. My son is almost 6 months old and I remember the meltdowns I had, only a few so they seemed so out of sorts for me. I was so lucky to be working at a birthing facility with midwives while pregnant, so they all reasurred me it was OK and normal because of the emotions of almost being a new mom and because of the hormones. Just let it out, laugh about how abserd it it, and know you are normal. I had one in Wal-Mart by the lobster tank,,, although it had nothing to do with the lobters, people probably thought I was some crazy pregnant lady crying over the "caged" animals. So go have yourself a good cry, tomorrow you'll feel better.... PROMISE!

Hi C.,

I think you need to give yourself the freedom to experience what it is you are feeling. You are growing a human being and that's not easy! My son will be 16 this May but every week, usually on the weekends because I had an 8:30 - 5 p.m. job then, I used to have a really good crying session for myself. I just needed to and it always made me feel better. Now that I'm older and in menopause, I think it's definitely hormonal, but still, if it releases tension I think it's okay to have your emotional moments.
Best wishes for a happy, healthy baby and a short, uncomplicated labor.
D.

It is a very emotional time! For help staying on an even keel I would suggest learning a stress reduction technique. Meditation, self hypnosis (there are tapes), Rekki and Falun Dafa are all very helpful. Taking time for yourself each morning will help getting through the day.

You, your baby & your husband will benefit.

C.,
I know exactly what you are going through. I'm 33 weeks along with my first son. My pregnancy has been pretty uneventful so far. I haven't really had much morning sickness or weird cravings. However, last weekend I got so sad. There were a few things that triggered it but no matter how I tried to rationalize things it didn't matter. I just wanted to cry. My husband tried to comfort me and I even laughed a few times because I knew it probably had a lot to do with the hormones. Unfortunately crying didn't necessarily make me feel better. All this week I've been pretty sad, worried, and stressed about everything we have left to do and buy. I don't have any family that lives in town (except my loving husband) so I sometimes feel like I don't have a lot of support. If I think about it logically I know we will be ok. It could be worse; I could be a single mom with no help at all! But no matter how many times I tell myself that it doesn't always help. It's gotten to the point where I can't sleep because I'm so fixated on the situation. And the thing that makes me more sad is that I feel like I should be excited, happy, and enjoying what is to come. We are excited and I can't wait to meet my son so I'm sure a lot of it is the hormones. Anyway, I just wanted you to know you're not alone and I'm sure this is all perfectly normal. I'm sure when our bundles of joy are here we'll be laughing at how irrational we were. There is a light at the end of the tunnel. I'm certain! Good luck with the rest of your pregnancy!

Hi there, I have a nine month old son, but when I was pregnant I can remember my husband coming over to the couch where I was sitting and asked me if I wanted to have a turkey sandwich for lunch....I started balling right after he asked me and then he said "whats wrong"? I replied nothing, I guess I'm just emotional. Then he asked if I wanted to have chips with my sandwich....well I burst into tears once again.

Once I calmed down a bit, we were both laughing about it. Pregnancy makes you an emotional wreck..like it or not.:) Best of luck with you and your little man coming in May.