r/PregnancyUK

I’m currently 18+6 with my first and I’m basically giving myself the ick telling people I’m pregnant??
I told my family and close friends super early and told work after the 12 week scan. Other than that I can’t make myself tell anyone!
I work a job that is very social and I end up seeing a lot of the same people each week and I know they would be really delighted to hear the news but I can’t bring myself to say anything!
It feels awkward to just bring up casually, but also awkward to announce in a big way. It’s really starting to become obvious so I can’t hide it for much longer.
I feel like we hear a lot from people about how they told their family and friends they were pregnant but how did you handle the casual acquaintances and other colleagues who you didnt necessarily work with every day??

Hello, I have my first scan on Thursday (beyond excited), i wondered how many scan photos do we get given and do they cost money? I obviously want to keep one and we have a photo frame to give to my step daughter which a scan photo will go in as part of our announcement to her, my MIL would like one and so would my dad.

Also what should I wear? Just loose trousers?

Thank you.

Edit to add: i am in Edinburgh Scotland and my scan will be in the centre in Leith.

I’m 19 weeks today and have my 20-week anatomy scan next week. I also had a private scan recently to help with some anxiety, which helped a lot.

I spoke to my midwife, who advised that I could start feeling movement anywhere between 16–24 weeks, which I know is quite a broad timeframe!

I know people describe those first movements as tiny bubbles or flutters, but I’m quite aware of my body and I’m pretty certain any “bubbles” I’ve felt so far have been gas or normal digestive movements 🥲

Would love to hear everyone’s experiences: when did you first feel movement, and what did it actually feel like? (For a very impatient FTM!)

Hi! Sorry if the title doesn't make sense I'm a bit tired and I've got baby puree for brains at the minute lol.

Basically I'm 34 weeks pregnant with my 3rd, I had inductions with my last two and both of those times the midwife broke my waters. With this pregnancy I don't think I'm going to get induced or have my waters break by a midwife so honestly I don't know what to expect, I feel like a first time mum.

What does it feel like when your waters break? How fast does labour start after your waters break?, I know with my second it was instant but that was with help with balloons and hormone gel.

I know everyone's pregnancy is different but it would really help my anxious ass to read some postive stories or read some good advice lol. Thankyou in advance ☺️

Hi everyone,

I'm 6 weeks pregnant and trying to stay calm, but I'm really worried about miscarriage. I've been reading forums, and I know people mostly post when something goes wrong, so it sometimes feels far more common than it really is.

I'd love to hear from the ladies who had smooth, uneventful pregnancies. How did you get through the early weeks, and what helped with the worry?

Thank you, it would mean a lot to hear some good stories. 💛

Hi all, I’m just wanting to see if others have experienced heart palpitations in pregnancy?

I’m confused as my midwife says they’re not normal at all, but when reading official medical websites online it says they can be completely normal.

I’m 17 weeks and sometimes I can hear my heartbeat really loud but at a normal rate, other times it’s like my heart is beating out of my chest. It’s usually if I get up quickly or when I wake up, but sometimes can be if I’m just sitting. It goes fairly quickly and I’m never dizzy, faint or have chest pains. My iron levels are good too, so no issue there. My midwife advised the next time I get them, to go to hospital for an ECG. They usually go within a minute, so I’m not sure how that would work. But naturally I’m now panicking something is really wrong.

I will try get an ECG the next time, but wondered if others experienced this?

38+2 on Thursday -
So on Thursday I ended up with a damn haemorrhoid. It got bigger overnight and by Friday morning I was in tears to my boyfriend’s Mum. I ended up managing to get an urgent GP appointment (praise the lord) which I was so grateful for, as it was a Friday and I didn’t want to go untreated over the weekend.
The GP took one look and said “oh yeh that is a big one” and prescribed me Scheriproct. I started using the ointment on Friday afternoon. I spent all day Saturday laying in bed on my side as that’s the only way I could be semi-comfortable.
I was determined not to be bed bound on Sunday too, so I made myself get up and find a good position to sit in. I also managed to get some Epsom salts and have a shallow bath, laid on my side, which did bring some relief and safe to say the swelling has actually gone down a bit too. The pain is subsiding and the swelling is continuously going down now. I do keep noticing bleeding, not heavy but enough to go onto a panty liner and when I wipe too..
Now we’re at Monday, I’m 39 weeks pregnant tomorrow and now also have a trapped neck nerve because I’ve been trying, over the last few days, to track the development of the butt grape. So now I’m in bed not due to butt grape pain but instead my neck. Why me🫣🥲
When will this end 😅

What symptoms did you have before u went into labour? FTM here

I apologise for this stream of consciousness but it’s feeling good to just type this all out.

Warning that if mentions of complication worries or time taken to conceive are triggers for you, feel more than free to stop here 🙂

I am 6 weeks along and dear god is the 1st trimester stressful! Im sure plenty of people will relate to this part, but I just can’t stop hyper fixating on every single thing that could go wrong!

Cramp that sometimes pops up on left side- could be an ect0pic. Got a tummy bug everyone and their nans has caught this time of year- must monitor my temp constantly to make sure it’s not dangerous and ensure I’m constantly drinking water etc etc…
I can either be the most chill laid back person someone knows or the biggest stress head- no inbetween! But pregnancy and no doubt the raging hormones is bringing the worst out of me!

I think a lot of my problem comes down to how quickly I got pregnant in the first place (ironically from “trying” early due to a fear of struggling to conceive!). It’s making me feel it’s too good to be true, I don’t “deserve” an easy healthy pregnancy and something is bound to go wrong.

And as a side effect of me becoming pregnant so imminently, I had a lot of surplus tests leftover that I’ve been using compulsively to monitor how quick the line turns and how dark. Im annoyed as I thought I used my last one as a ritual to ditch this habit as I know it’s useless at the 6 week mark, but I found one more in my cupboard! Make it stop!

And secondly I think I’ve just been scaremongered by stats and horror stories.

Just very anxiously awaiting the first appointment which can’t come soon enough however it goes! I just wish I was one of those people who is joyful and happy all along their pregnancy and not worrying about every little thing- especially things that haven’t even happened. It’s stopping me getting attached in order to protect myself but in reality it’s like it’s doing anything but

Hi everyone, I’m currently 21 weeks pregnant and work in a fish and chip shop, I only do short hours at a time (3-4) and usually do double shifts, since early pregnancy iv struggled working in the shop, it makes me faint, dizzy, and feel sick. Iv had to drop some of my double shifts due to how it makes me feel, plus I need naps during the day still and don’t have time on my double shifts. I thought I would get better the further along I got, but I’m still struggling with getting dizzy and really light headed which then creates like a fuzz in my brain for awhile after. What can I do? I eat snacks, drink lots of water, leave windows open and a fan for circulation, I sit down when I can. Any advice? I want to work as long as I can but can’t handle feeling so awful after every shift I do. Thankyou for reading x

Hi all, I'm FTM currently 27 weeks pregnant. Before I found out I was pregnant my husband and I were in the middle of buying a house. Once we found out the lovely news I started saving money because I knew I will need something to keep me going during maternity leave. My plan originally was to take the full 52 weeks (ordinary and additional mat leave) but now I'm not so sure. Based on my maths if I take 52 weeks off I will definitely run out of money and struggle to cope in the last 3 months. My husband's salary won't be enough to cover all expenses. So I was thinking to just take off 6 months instead of the full year that way I will have enough money to cover expenses during my mat leave and will have extra left over for my baby. I'm the eldest daughter and I came from a low income household I saw the stresses of having little money in the house and I took on a lot of it at a young age to make sure I wasn't a financial burden on anyone. I don't want my daughter to ever feel that she's the greatest gift I could ever ask for. So if it means I have to cut my leave in half for her to be comfortable then I will.

But I'm a little worried about one thing. Is 6 months enough time to recover from giving birth and going back to work? My intention will be to go in the office once a week when I go back. I was hoping to share this in case anyone else has taken the 6 months off and went back to work. How was it for you? What helped you get back into the swing of things?

I’ve know I am pregnant for just over a week and only me and my husband know! We are having an early scan this week so hopefully everything will be ok. It doesn’t feel so real at the moment and for a serial yapper it’s hard to keep it in 🤣! Not sure how far along we are at the moment as my cycles are all over the place. Just wanted to get this off my chest so I can share I’m pregnant with internet strangers.

I am 6 weeks pregnant and I have a toddler who just turned 1 last month ago. He is a boob addict. The only way he naps and goes to bed is through breastfeeding him. I tried various formulas, bottles, sippy cups and even cows milk but nothing works. He only wants boobs to sleep. Now that iam pregnant, I want to know how I can wean him from the boob. I tried weaning him for days trying to put him to sleep without milk but he would crying non stop for hours. With all the nausea and fatigue I honestly can’t deal with him hysterically crying during naps and bedtime because he falls asleep so easily with the boob. What happens if I continue feeding him ? Will that affect my growing baby ? Will he wean on his own after a few months?
Any tips and suggestions will be appreciated.

Just a quick public service announcement. M&S Zamli dates are the nicest you can get. I’ve tried them all! In case anyone else is on the dates pre-birth…

This is more of a rant on my part, I’ve started having mild on and off contractions on Friday morning at 37weeks plus 2, and was told by triage I’m in early labour with my cervix starting to soften but still firmly shut and can take a couple of days for FTM to go into active labour.

I went back into triage on Sunday since contractions were more regular in the evening and was told I was 1cm dilated but my cervix was still facing backwards. I was given a sweep without consent and I also had to tell the midwife to stop more than twice before she actually listened because of all the pain.

I have since lost my mucus plug and today I’ve been having stronger contractions all day from 9am every two to three minutes lasting about 45 secs to a minute… I thought surely that must mean I’m ready to go!

I went into an appointment I had at the hospital with a consultant due to having an LGA baby and they called triage and asked them to assess me and give me an induction because it’s been 5 days of early labour at this point, to which they said they have no beds! I proceeded to spend most of my day there in a corridor crying whilst listening to the midwives divvy up beds and argue over who gets priority etc which made for a very stressful environment. I was checked 3 hours later and told I am still 1cm dilated but my cervix is forward facing now so they gave me some oramorph and sent me home.

I am thankful for the medication because I really need some rest after a day of contractions and no reprieve but I keep getting told the only reason I’m not getting induced is because they don’t have beds and to try again tomorrow. It’s been so exhausting mentally and physically and I’m so ready for this to be over. What happens if my waters break and there’s still no bed? I don’t understand this but I guess I just have to wait a little longer.