Surprising Pregnancy Symptoms

marks and puffy ankles. But we're not here today to cover what you already expect to expect, those standard symptoms exhaustively covered in movies and books and TV commercials. We're here to talk about what you might not expect when you're expecting, symptoms that might take you by surprise, but that are actually more common in a normal pregnancy than you might think. Because Mama, trust me on this. You

are not alone, and I'm not alone either. I'm here with Emma, and we're going to talk first about our strangest pregnancy symptoms. Now, for me, that's easy because I was surprised by absolutely everything that happened to my body because I hadn't written what to expect when You're expecting yet, So if anything, I stressed more about those classic symptoms that I expected but didn't have, like mourning sickness. They didn't have mourning sickness, So I assume something was terribly

wrong with my pregnancy. I didn't, you know, have constipation or heartburn. You're basically a unicorn. That's what they call me. Unicorn. Here I am with the constipation. I didn't prove my entire pregnancy. Insomnia, metal mouth, food aversions, exhaustion, anxiety. Where do I stop? And that was just the first day. Yeah, that was the first day. You had me on speed dial, but you still had symptoms that took you by surprise. Yeah.

It keeps you on your toes, it really does. It's the gift that keeps on giving, at least for nine months. And then we got postpartum symptoms. That's another day. Hemorrhoids

coming back. Because between us we only have four pregnancies, and we we wanted to cast a wider net, so we went straight to the source to find out what you didn't expect when you were expecting, and we got on earful from the mom's on what to expect, including some symptoms that I actually don't currently have, and what to expect when you're expecting, but that I'm going to have to ask. How you are you guys are writing

this book for her? Yeah, work in progress. So we got a variety of cravings that went way beyond the pickles and ice cream. We had a mom craving peanut butter and jelly and tuna so p B J and T. A mom who literally blended v H juice with Rocky Road ice cream, hot cheetos dipped in a tella which sounds curiously weirdly good. Um, ground black pepper, and coffee, and also on her cereal. We also got a versions, um you know. Of course the usual suspects like I

had a terrible chicken aversion. I think you did too. Um, coffee erasion is super common, even for moms with with a coffee jones. And then we got some strange ones like Rice, Who's going to argue with Rice, but this Rice suddenly couldn't eat Rice. One mom actually told me that she was repulsed by banana peals. She could handle eating bananas, but her husband had to peel them for her. And then hides the peel immediately, so that was very

sweet of her husband. I have to say, Gramatic, let's take a quick break and when we come back, the most surprising pregnancy symptoms. You don't expect, why they happen, and what you can do about them. So pregnancy doesn't number in your body in expected ways like you're growing belly, and in not so expected ways like that backney. So many random symptoms, but they all have one thing in common. Emma, what do you think that thing is? Hormones? Good guess,

shot in the dark. Hormones. So many random symptoms, one explanation, hormones. I feel like for me, it was almost like puberty again. Like I had a lot of acne. I had a lot of backney. It's almost like you're going through puberty again, but not the period part, not the period, just the PMS. Let's break down symptoms by trimester, so you know what to expect, even with the most unexpected symptoms. In the first trimester, you know to expect. You know, sore breasts, exhaustion, nausea,

food aversion, lots of emotions. But there are some surprising ones. So Mom, tell me more about metal mouth because I had it. I feel like a lot of people have experienced it. If you're not expecting it, it's very um surprising, yes, unsettling, to say the least. Moms have described it to me as if you're sucking on loose change, so it gives all your food kind of a flinty flavor. It's usually limited to the first trimester. Some moms have said they

had it throughout their pregnancy. It's often associated with morning sickness, so if you're extra queasy, you might have more metal mouth. Some things that can help, or brushing your tongue or scraping it now, that is if you don't gag when you're scraping your tongue and throw up. Also, because throwing up while brushing your teeth, that's another unexpected pregnancy symptom

but common. Changing your prenatal vitaminute. Talk to your doctor about changing your prenatal to one that's more absorbable, because otherwise it could be those heavy metals that are in the prenatal supplement like copper and chromium that are giving you that That makes sense that aftertaste, rinsing with a mixture of baking soda and water neutralizes pH levels that could help, and anything acidic can help, Like those lemons and those pickles you were craving anyway, That steps up

saliva production and that washes away the metal taste. But on the flip side, when you're making extra saliva anyway, it could be too much of a good thing. That could make you gag and throw up. Emma, you were this spit girl, right, I was this spit girl, okay, and no place to put it. Stop. You're triggering me to make puns and jokes. I can't stop this. Move along. So um one thing that helps. I don't know if

you try this. Actually you took gum a lot. I do, because whenever I get like queasy, I have issues with that. Um gum actually really helps. It does help with the metal mouth as well, truly helpful. It can help with constipation too. Doesn't help me, And chewing gum can help dry your mouth out when there's too much spit in it. Um the same, brushing with a minty toothpaste can help

with that too. Okay, But what about that? Like incessant pounding in the ear is okay, So it's another unrelated part of the body, your ear, Like you don't give birth through your ear. Baby doesn't grow inside of their thankfully, but some moms actually get a pounding feeling in their ear, almost like their heart is beating in their ear, or they might get Tonight's you know, that ringing sensation in your ear, And it's super common during pregnancy, and that's

because of the increased blood fall of pregnancy. It's also due to guess what, hormones. I love a good hormone. It can also be related to ear infection and sinus infections, which are more common during pregnancy, especially because you're extra stuffy, but because it could also be a sign of higher blood pressure, you should always report any kind of pounding or bringing in your ear to your doctor or midwife. What about heart palpitations, Like I have that in my

normal everyday life because I'm just a stress case. But like when you're pregnant, well, just like with the ear pounding, your blood flow is increased and there are changes in

your circulatory system. Your blood volume actually increases almost fifty when you're pregnant, and your heart rate goes up about and you become kind of hyper aware of it, and some people become more hyper with it than others, and you might feel like a fluttering or extra beats, or or your heart is always pounding or racing, or or sometimes like it feels like you you're skipping beats. Now, first thing, I hear this from so many moms and they get panicky and stressed out about it. Always check

with your doctor. It could be a sign of anemia if it happens in the second half of pregnancy. That's from an increased need for red blood cells. That's common. Um it could be anxiety, Like you said, I'm an anxiety, panic attacks, you get the pounding heart. That could be a sign of a thyroid condition. Less likely something something Yeah, something else that you have. Um or it could be something else that needs further investigation, and that's why you

should always speak to your doctor about it. Okay, So let's scedattle to the second trimester, because you know that's kind of like the Golden age, right right, which is also known as the best trimester. Women often get their energy back, the nausea hopefully settles down a little bit, your appetite comes back, you're a whole new woman. But there are new symptoms that are common in that second trimester. Yeah, there are lots of new ones. And most of them,

you know, you probably expect. Most of them are keepers. You've got your heartburn, your extra gas, sometimes smelly leg cramps, had a lot of leg cramps, growing pains. You've got the round ligament pain. It's that tugging pan on either side. And I got freaked out about that and I called you. I was like, why is my stomach her? Everybody gets

freaked out about it. It's just not a great place to have pain when you're pregnant, you know, just not Yeah, but there are a lot more symptoms that you probably didn't expect in this otherwise awesome trimester. Your nose goes through a lot. Your nose does know that you're pregnant. All those mucous membranes all over your body swell and

that includes in your nose, and it makes your nose stuffy. Um. It makes you more prone to post nasal drip, and that's especially at night, to that post nasal drip cough, and even to snoring that can happen to um. You should always talk with your doctor if you're snoring, because sometimes it is something that needs to be monitored. For the most part, it's just part for the pregnancy course. That and the increased blood flow makes nosebleeds more common

as you experienced emma and harder to control. One thing that could help is using sailings right and also eating more vitamin sea rich foods because that strengthens your capillaries. Also, sleeping propped up, that helps for hartburn, it helps for stuffy nose, and it's just play more comfortable. Now, this one sounds bad, But pregnancy tumors in your mouth, what

what's happening with up? Yeah, it sounds terrible. It's easier to pronounce than pyogenic grand new loma's um They are red raw bumps, kind of an overgrowth of tissue that can show up on your gung sometimes between your teeth, and yes, you can thank your hormones. These little pregnancy tumors in your mouth can bleed. They're completely harmless. They're super annoying, and if they're really bothersome, then you can check in with your doctor or your dentist because it's

possible to have them removed. But that's actually another good reason to see your dentist for cleaning strough your pregnancy, because another unexpected symptom of pregnancy might be bleeding gums. If you have ginger vitis due to pregnancy hormones. Like I said, the gift that keeps on giving. Ye what about hair in all the wrong places? I asked you

about this when I was pregnant with Lennox. But I also feel like I didn't have as much like hair when I was pregnant, so you know, I gained some loose, gained some losing. Exactly, you hold onto all the hair on your head during your pregnancy, so you don't do the normal shedding, and you do that about four months postpartum. But you might get hair in unexpected places like the fur belly. You can get hair on your chinny chin chin, on your breasts, like around your areola um some notice

less hair, and on their legs like you did. One mom told me that her eyebrows started growing blonde pairs and she was a brunette. Okay, so let's talk about skin. I was also getting a lot of rashes, and I

feel like I also got like skin tags. Yea, So pregnant skin is sensitive skin um across the board, so you could get heat rash sounds like something babies get, but actually your metabolism is way up, so you're overheating and you can get the heat rash, especially in places where you've been growing, which is pretty much everywhere, maybe under your breast, between your thighs, anywhere where skin is rubbing.

Now you might have sensitivities. This could be surprising too, to all kinds of products that never bothered you before, your standard products. So if that happens, you should say unscented and as natural as you can wear cotton loose clothing. It's more breathable, so you're less likely to get heat rash. What about that constant itching, there's so much itching. Yeah, there's a lot of itching during pregnancy. You're itching to have that baby, guess. Pregnant bellies are always itchy bellies.

That's from all the stretching that your skin is doing. Your skin gets really dry and itchy, so drink lots of water, rub on that lotion. It's probably not going to prevent stretch marks, but it does help with dry skin. Remember, stretch marks are more a matter of genetics, so you can thank your mom or not thank your mom for having them. Thanks mom. Some mom's get red itchy hands and feet. That's also hormone, so keep your hands out and feet out of hot water. That's a very good

reason for your partner to do all the dishes. I can't, my hands are red right. But itching without a rash definitely checking with your doctor um or midwife because that could be a sign of a complication in the second and third trimester. And of course itching in the crotch can signal an infection, so check with your doc. So where cotton underpants, Maybe eat a lower sugar diet and take a probiotic. So we talked about cravings. What about craving ice? I didn't always say it had to specifically

be gas station ice. She sent her husband to the gas station every night for ice. But yeah, a craving for everything cold is super common, especially in the first timester because you foods that are cold, you don't smell them as much. If you're seriously craving chewing ice, you have to check with your doctor or midwife because it could be a sign that your iron stores are low. Um. That happens to most moms, you know, in the second

half of pregnancy. Now, another sign of iron deficiency is craving things that are not foods, So maybe gasoline tar, mud, downy, fabric softener, cement. Just wanting to sniff them is one thing, but if you're really feeling like you want to taste them, then absolutely check in with your doctor. And now the third trimester the big and you're feeling like a big cohuna.

When you get much bigger, the constant need to pee comes roaring back, and then you have trouble sleeping, and the dreams you have when you finally fall asleep are just getting more bizarre. And then you're tired all over again. And then there's the back ache, and there's the unexpected pleasures like I'm not even going to try to pronounce. This is all on you, girlfriend, I'm gonna give it a go. It's paritic, urticarryl populos and plaques of pregnancy.

Can you say that three times fast? It's absolutely not dangerous. It's seriously uncomfortable, though, it's itchy red bumps that can pop up or I guess pop up usually in the third timester sometimes in your stretch marks, sometimes on your thighs, your arms, your butt. Good idea to show it to your doctor, your midwife, and if it's really miserable, a topical medication might help, or an antihistamine, but don't self treat. Here's what I still do. But I did it all

the time when I was pregnant. I pee a little when I laugh, like especially if I pick up my toddler when I really have to pee, well, trickle, trickle, or you hear the water running. Yeah, there's just a lot. So yeah, bladder control, it's something you don't fully appreciate until it's gone. And say that. So it's the weight of your uterus and your baby pressing on your bladder and that gives your bladder less breathing room. But it's

also the wear and tear on your perineal muscles. Tone them and keep them for life by doing yes your key goals, use them or lose them. That's what they say. I did not follow that sage advice mom, so yet. So now I have a lot of bladder issues. Oh my gosh. You know it's one thing that really I had a lot of issues with carpal tunnel. Yeah, I mean, anyone can get carpal tunnel, but pregnant women are especially

blessed in a particular department. It's because the carpal tunnel in your wrists becomes swollen like the rest of your body, and you might have numbness, tingling, burning in pain. It might just be in your hand, in certain fingers, and or in your wrists, or could radiate all the way up your arm if you're really lucky. It's definitely worse at night, and that's because the extra fluids um in your feet and legs are redistributed to the rest of

your body, and that includes your hands. The best thing you didn't do at night is sleep with your hands on a separate pillow. Give them their own pillow. Definitely don't sleep on your hands, because it's gonna make it worse. Some people find that wearing a wrist brace helps. The only thing with that is others find that it's more uncomfortable than the carpal tunnel itself to wear the brace all the time, and you really have to wear it

consistently for it to work. It doesn't hurt to step up hydration because extra water does help flush out extra fluids. There's something else that's that's very surprising, or it could be very surprising, and that has to do with all the swelling in your hands. Is um that you're suddenly dropping everything. You're clumsy you're like butter fingers. You just can't get a grip, Emma, did you have that? What I did? But I actually wanted to address something kind

of in the carpal tunnel realm. I had horrible RLS. I had restless leg syndrome at night, to the point where I couldn't sleep. But I had never heard of this because I kept googling and googling restless arms syndrome where I had it in my arms and it was so I wanted to like pull my hair out. It

was so bad and nothing helped. And I know, like magnesium is recommended for that, Yeah, it is, but it was horrible, horrible, Well it's it's also recommended for leg crams such are another pregnancy plus knowing you, of course you couldn't just contain it's your legs, the restless leg syndrome. Have play my arms on the to your arms as left.

Sometimes checking your diet to see if maybe there's some correlation to something you've been eating or not eating, so you run a diet check, but also mentioned it to the doctor or see if they have any suggestions whether you should take some magnesium or try a magnesium spray. One of the symptoms that surprised most people is lightning crotch. Mom, I had it. What is this? I mean it lightning crotch. It sounds like it could be fun, but it's so

not fun. This is sharp, sudden, shooting pain in your vagina. Some people describe it as being stabbed in your vagina. It strikes really suddenly, like lightning. It can knock you off your feet. It can take your breath away. Nobody knows exactly what causes it, but it could be that extra blood flow, it could be baby pressing on a nerve. And yes, lightning can strike twice and more. Fortunately it goes away quickly. It's just that sharpshooting pain and then

it resolves. Just pray it doesn't happen when you're in the middle of a zoom presentation. That would be special. I think we've discovered that every pregnancy is different. But now you do know this. You are not alone. We are all on this crazy ride together. You'll get through it. Who baby love, my baby love. I need you, Oh how I need you. Thanks for listening. Remember I'm always here for you. What to expect is always here for you. We're all in this together for more on what you

heard on today's episode. Visit what to Expect dot com slash podcasts. You can also check out what to Expect when You're Expecting, What to Expect the First Year, and the What to Expect app. And we want to hear from you. Connect with us on our community message board or on our social media. You can find I MEE at Heidie Murkoff and Emma at Emma Being wt E and of course at What to Expect. Baby Love is performed by Riley Peterer. What to Expect is a production

of I Heart Radio. From more shows from I Heart Radio, check out the I Heart Radio app, Apple podcast, or wherever you listen to your favorite shows. In my arms right, don't you stay? Neja Neja Baby Baby