After enjoying the second trimester, it was time to enter the final trimester! I definitely remember feeling much heavier and slower during the third trimester with my first pregnancy and it was no different for my second pregnancy. Similar to other semesters, I did not have as much time to rest since I had to take care of Lex. Overall I still felt pretty good and I was still taking Lex to his playgroup and lifting him and all that, but there were definitely days where it was tougher.

At times my stomach would feel so stretched and distended, but it would usually feel more comfortable once the baby moves further back and is not pushing against my skin. As I got bigger and heavier I also started to walk a bit differently – it was definitely a waddle! The back pain that started around late second trimester was still there and it often happened when I was laying down and would go away when I shifted positions. I felt like my lower back and hip pain was more intense during this pregnancy. It was very uncomfortable constantly and I had to shift around and stretch a little to relieve it.

I also had way less energy and motivation to do any structured workouts. I seriously felt like just existing was already a workout! Walking around was getting tough and the back pain was very uncomfortable. I was still out and about quite a bit so that was good enough for me. I would also go to the pool with Lex and Jerry and floating around in those final weeks was very comfortable.

Apart from the discomfort, we still filled our days with lots of activities including ocean park, alpaca farms, and sport activities for lex. However, it was getting to the peak of summer and the hot weather was becoming quite unbearable for me. I felt quite light headed a few times during the outings so I knew I had to be more careful.

One special thing we had to organize was Lex’s second birthday! We invited some good friends

I had a small scare during 32 weeks as I felt a small amount of liquid come out. Since I did have premature rupture of membranes during my first pregnancy and it started my entire 36 hour ordeal before giving birth to Lex, I wanted to be extra cautious. I was pretty sure it was either pee or discharge but told my doctor anyway. He told me to put in a light pad and to monitor how wet it got after an hour. If it was very wet and odorless, I would have to go to Queen Mary (a public hospital) because I was only at 32 weeks and the baby would be too premature for a private hospital to deal with. I was pretty worried but luckily after an hour the pad was only slightly moist and it smelled like urine. I never thought I would be so happy about leaky urine! Both my doctor and the midwife feel like it is likely urine and that I should not have to worry about it, but to continue monitoring it anyways. Leaking urine during pregnancy (especially during the third trimester) is very common due to extra pressure on the bladder and also changing hormones, but given my past experience I think it is ALWAYS better to be safe that sorry. Premature rupture of membranes or leaking amniotic fluid can have very detrimental affects for your unborn baby and it is always better to be sure.

Another issue I had to deal with during my third trimester was a possible listeria scare. I had watery diarrhea on a Thursday and then slightly looser stool until Monday. I didn’t have to go multiple times a day and overall felt ok but was worried since it was going on for a few days. Listeria is also very scary because the symptoms can be extremely mild and some people don’t even know they have it! Untreated listeria can have terrible effects on your baby such as neurological disorders and even stillborn. I called up my doctor and he referred me to a family doctor. Apparently a blood PCR or stool test to properly diagnose whether I had listeria would take 1-2 weeks, which was ridiculous! I decided to just be extra safe and started the course of antibiotics without doing the tests. It’s not ideal that I have to take medications during my pregnancy but I rather be extra cautious, and the antibiotics prescribed are also totally safe for my pregnancy. It was frustrating as I have been mostly eating at home in the days leading up to my upset tummy, but I tried to be even more careful in the final few weeks before delivery.

The final weeks are truly so uncomfortable and I am so ready to not be pregnant!