Body Brutality

July 23.

Yesterday was a day abundant with physical torture. Luckily for me I have a fairly high pain threshold but let me be honest, yesterday really tested my endurance. I decided to walk to my midwife appointment with Kristin, and aim to burn off a few useless pounds of unnecessary weight that I've lovingly deposited on my once petite behind. Right off the get go that decision proved to be far more challenging then I had expected it to be.

It hadn't occurred to me that if my body was 30 pounds heavier that my legs would not be used to the extra weight, but I quickly found out that 30 pounds makes a huge difference on the muscles that have to carry it around. Within five minutes of walking my calves started to scream angry threats of abandonment, but I powered on knowing that they'd hush up once they got use to the burn. But just as they started to adapt all that extra weight started to bare down on my sciatic nerve.

If you've never experienced a pinched sciatic nerve then consider yourself lucky. It starts in you pelvic region some where near your hip and behind your butt cheek, sending a piercing pain that vibrates down your thigh and into your foot. I thought that maybe if I powered through it the pain would subside... I was so very wrong. The further I walked the worse it became but I'm stubborn and maybe a little bit stupid because I decided to continue on by foot and ignore the pain. There are clients at my office who deal with that pain on an every day basis. I thought of them, and how they have to live with the pain and decided to suck it up, move ahead, and not complain. Oh but what a relief once I arrived at Kristin's office!

Kristin and I had a good visit together as usual. You are now 25 weeks and 4 days old, according to their due date contraption hickey. But I know better. I know the day you were conceived so in fact you are exactly 24 weeks and 1 day old. As far as they can tell you are head down and swimming in plenty of amniotic fluid, so you have lots of play room.

Later that night, feeling exhausted from my tormenting walk, I took a nice long shower and went to bed only to be abruptly and most rudely awakened by the worst leg spasm to have ever reaped havoc on mankind. I can't prove that fact but I am certain it is true.

I woke up screaming. Daddy practically jumped out of bed in sheer panic but I coaxed him back forcefully with my tortured screams and somehow managing to word "Oh God! CRAMP!" You're poor father, still delirious with sleep and panic, thought I must be miscarrying again and started to rub my belly in a circular motion while soothingly attempting to tell me "shhhh, it's ok, it's ok" but it was NOT ok! The pain in my leg became excruciating, the dog was barking madly, and daddy was rubbing my belly! "My LEG! It's in my LEG! Make it stop! AH! God make it stop!" was all I had to say for your father to quickly understand exactly what was happening. But this time his massaging my calf didn't work at all.

Suddenly my mother's voice was in my head reminding me "walk around when your leg cramps" So I jumped out of bed and walked out of the room. Your father stood there dumbfounded, sheets and pillows scattered around him as I silently walked away. "Where are you going?" He asked, confused. "My mom told me to walk on it" And thankfully, she was right. As soon as my feet hit the ground the pain subsided. What a ridiculous amount of pain to experience for NO reason at ALL! And all I had to do was walk? Weird.

I crawled back into bed laughing at the insanity that had just occurred. I'm certain I woke up our neighbours. My throat hurt! If my throat hurt from hollering how could the neighbours NOT have heard me? Maybe if I'm lucky they blamed it on the cats that sit outside our windows crying out in heat in the dead of the night. Regardless I curled up next to your father, still giggling, when he said "Maybe if you hadn't walked a marathon today that wouldn't have happened!" Hmmm... he could be right but I won't admit it.