"I didn't know I was pregnant..." - Page 2

[crittersmom]

My mom didn't know with both me and my sister until she was in labor.She was in college when she had me and was home for Spring break.My grandmother ( who was a nurse and worked in L&D so would have known what a pregnant mama looks like) said my mom came out of the bathroom asking what the heck was wrong and her water had broken with lots of meconium.I was a scary delivery.With my sister I remember, since I was 8 years old and she never showed at all.One of our Aunts was visiting and shared a bed with her and never noticed either.It was another shock.My mom was also in the Navy and they test women before transfers and it never came up + and she had a period the whole time.
I am also a mama who doesn't know, at least at first.My first I thought I had the flu and it was just really kicking my butt.Then I started having the most horrid pain in my breasts and thought that was crazy but after 3 weeks of flu I finally figured I should take a test.I was on BCP and had my period until 5 months.I do get huge at the end even though I only gain 20 lbs, so I can't go all the way to D day. My 2nd I was TTC so I knew right away and I was horridly sick too.My 3rd I had been testing cuz I wanted to make sure I could have fun at the block party.
My fourth baby I didn't know until I was 19 and a half weeks.We had moved cross country and I was staying with my mom and I was doing so much driving here and there and taking care of the kids and everything else that I never noticed.I also thought that finally tandem nursing was working for me since usually my period starts up right way.I never got sick and I usually have HG during my pregnancies.I do remember movement but I put it off as phantom movement.The day that I went in to find out the due date, was the first day I couldn't fasten my pants, usually I'm out of normal clothes by 8 weeks.I felt so foolish at that checkup since the Dr took one look at my belly and guesstimated right away how far along I was.I still feel all kinds of embarrassed at not knowing by #4.It wouldn't have been hidden for long since I really popped out after 20 weeks.
I now test every month just in case since hormonal BC doesn't work for me.I really wish I knew why I didn't get sick last time because my body is sure making up for it this time.

[mbhf]

i think if it's just totally not on your radar, it is completely possible that you wouldn't know. my dh and i never used any sort of birth control up until right before i got pregnant. i did not want to have a baby while he is gone (he's navy) so we were preventing, though admittedly not with the most reliable method. with all of my other kids, i've just known. i've taken a test, but it's never been a surprise when i get a positive or a negative. this time, i was super sick (as usual) for a couple of weeks before it occured to me that i might be pregnant. i even told my dh that i thought something might be really wrong with me. the thought honestly never crossed my mind until my 5yo put his hand on my belly and told me i had a baby in there. i laughed for a minute but then got to thinking about when my period should have been. after i found out i was pregnant it all made sense, the throwing up, tiredness, coffee tasting terrible, crying at the drop of a hat, all classic pregnancy symptoms but it just never crossed my mind. if my 5yo hadn't said anything, i probably would have gone to the doctor, but just because i was so sick. if i hadn't been sick who knows what would have happened?

as for showing, i've been big and round with all but my first, but with #4 we didn't tell anyone until i was past 20 weeks, i think i told my parents in july and she was born in october, so i was pretty pregnant. they were the last ones to know and i did not look pregnant until after the secret was out, when suddenly i looked like i was about to pop. so i can definitely see not showing, too.

[CraftyMcGluestick]

Originally Posted by Just1More

I'd be happy to have a baby that way someday...

Probably not happening. I know I'm pg a week before I can test. All 4 times. I just know.

I am really glad I know, so I hope I'm not jinxing myself here, but I wish that, too! Thinking of going this whole time without peeing constantly, feeling restless in any sleeping position, feeling exhausting, being sick, having heartburn, fitting into my regular clothes...oh that seems dreamy. Also, to be able to go to an amusement park or out to lunch or on a picnic when you're full term: NICE.

I don't know about y'all, but I have to say that being pregnant has definitely NOT been my favorite. I love my babe and know he'll be worth it, but Lord have Mercy! I will be so ready for it to be over...and not in a restaurant bathroom!

[Kelly1101]

Originally Posted by CraftyMcGluestick

I am really glad I know, so I hope I'm not jinxing myself here, but I wish that, too! Thinking of going this whole time without peeing constantly, feeling restless in any sleeping position, feeling exhausting, being sick, having heartburn, fitting into my regular clothes...oh that seems dreamy. Also, to be able to go to an amusement park or out to lunch or on a picnic when you're full term: NICE.

I don't know about y'all, but I have to say that being pregnant has definitely NOT been my favorite. I love my babe and know he'll be worth it, but Lord have Mercy! I will be so ready for it to be over...and not in a restaurant bathroom!

Maybe it's a boy thing.

With my first I was this dreamy glowing pregnant chick who felt awesome all the time.

This time, pretty much what you said.

[AustinMom]

All of this really has to make you wonder why women dread the 'pain' of birth so much, especially when it's just early labor. Now, I know early labor can very well be excruciating, but these women sometimes make it past transition and through pushing without knowing what is going on. Makes you think that the 'fear of pain' and the 'fear of birth' actually has a HUGE impact on how women truly perceive birth to be so psychologically they think it's going to be hell, so it is, even after the first contraction.

Me, no, I knew I was preg, big belly, nausea, sleep issues, heartburn, contrax, baby kicks, etc. Same thing with this one too. So for me, no, I don't see not knowing as reality for me. But it'd be nice to hold on to the fact that birth doesn't have to be as crazy out of this world painful as what is usually pushed on us through society.

Personally, I think that if I was having contrax and birthing a baby and NOT knowing that I WAS birthing a baby, would be scarier than anything and would there fore cause MORE pain, but maybe it's the 'over-education-of false-education' that causes us to produce more adrenaline and make birth harder?

Curious on thoughts.....

[MaerynPearl]

I have IBS and I must tell you... some of my attacks are very comparable to or even WORSE than even transition was for me.

Perhaps I'm blessed to have easy labors, perhaps I'm cursed to have painful IBS... but if I don't get an epidural or drugged up every time I have to go potty... I don't personally see the point of it in childbirth?

Anyway, my point is... some of my IBS attacks have felt EXTREMELY like childbirth (which scares the pee out of you when you are 6 months along and going through one) so I totally see how they wouldn't know it was labor if they didn't know they were pregnant. Which is also how I understand why so many surprise babies happen in bathrooms! Even hospital bathrooms... but really, even in labor you hear all the time from women saying the most comfortable spot for them was on the toilet!

[JTA Mom]

Well, a few women went to the bathroom. And like Maeryn, I have flare ups that are extremely painful, especially is there's any dairy involved.

Most of them though went to the hospital thinking something was seriously wrong with the amount of pain they were in, so I wouldn't chalk up all the pain of childbirth with expectations.

That said, labor pains are pretty manageable. They come in waves and they are productive. For me, it's similar to running. There are painful parts to it but I'm making progress, so it's not for nothing. Unlike, say, a migraine. Which is so not productive.

I didn't get an epi with ds1, but I didn't realize I was in labor until I was in transition, and there's no way I could have stood still long enough for any pain relief (and I was at home). With ds2 I got an epi at 10hrs of pitocin induced labor (due to pre-e). Pitocin is horrible. You feel like you are in transition waaaaaaaay before you really are. I never got completely numb though--it just took the edge off. And only numbed my left leg completely.

Ami

[xekomaya]

Originally Posted by Kelly1101

Maybe it's a boy thing.

With my first I was this dreamy glowing pregnant chick who felt awesome all the time.

This time, pretty much what you said.

I think you're on to something! My first pregnancy with my son was miserable - i was in maternity clothes by 8 weeks, I threw up multiple times a day from 7 weeks right to 36-37 weeks and I could barely walk with the way he crushed my pelvis.

This time I'm having a girl - I climbed a mountain 2 weeks ago including a scramble to the top and I was still wearing my (one size up) non-maternity jeans yesterday.

[Just1More]

I dunno. I seem to be the opposite with girls and boys. I feel pretty good this pregnancy, and both girl pregnancies just wiped me out. My son's wasn't a big deal. I tilled our garden with a shovel at 8 months pregnant with him...

So, I think this baby is boy because I feel good.

[InDaPhunk]

Originally Posted by luv-my-boys

I always thouht how could not know until we knew someone who this happened too. She was a co-worker of DH, now I saw her may a wk before hand at a company picnic and let me tell you I still dont see how anyone would have thought that 125ish lb lady was 9 months pg!!! DH came home one day saying that the ambulance had to pick her up because of severe pain and everyone thought it was her appendix...ummm nope it was a 7lb baby!!! Everyone was shocked the next day at work to say the least.

Me on the other hand I know this cant happen because I get soooooo sick with hyperemesis within days of getting pg usually before a test tells me.

I get hyperemesis, too, and therefore I watch this show pea green with envy the entire time. I can barely function while pg and they're barely affected .

[cjarvis]

So for all these ladies giving birth to babies in a public restroom...ewww. Did they catch the baby, did they figure it out before the baby crowned? Just seems so crazy to me.

[CraftyMcGluestick]

Originally Posted by cjarvis

So for all these ladies giving birth to babies in a public restroom...ewww. Did they catch the baby, did they figure it out before the baby crowned? Just seems so crazy to me.

I have only seen a couple of episodes, but one lady's baby landed on the restroom floor of a handicapped stall of a bathroom at Six Flags theme park!!! She didn't even pick him up because she thought he was dead and she was so stunned.

Another lady's baby also landed in the toilet and the husband fished her out and resuscitated her. CRAZY!

Is it strange that I think I could totally feel the difference between a giant person coming out of my vagina and...ANYthing coming out of my anus? Or am I misguided here?

[MaerynPearl]

Originally Posted by CraftyMcGluestick

Is it strange that I think I could totally feel the difference between a giant person coming out of my vagina and...ANYthing coming out of my anus? Or am I misguided here?

The pressure gets so intense down there you seriously cant tell where its coming out, just that it is. Basically, it makes you go numb.

For many of us, something comes out of both holes... but most moms never even know it because they honestly can not feel it come out... and well trained nurses/midwives clean it up before you ever even notice. I had to ask my mom if I did when in labor with my son, and yes, I did. But I did not know it until I asked!

[echospiritwarrior]

I would have had a really hard time believing this stuff too until it happened to a friend's daughter. Same as so many of these women, she was on birth control, had regular periods, thought there was something intestinal going on, finally one day BAM her sister had to take her into the hospital and she was in labor! I certainly can't imagine making THAT phone call from the hospital!!!

[HeatherB]

I like watching the show because, well, it's more natural birth than most on TV. I just watched an episode where the mom felt tons of pressure, kicked off her pants, and went to hands and knees - having no idea that she was pushing out a baby. I loved how her body knew what to do even when she didn't know what was happening. In her situation, she was 46 (?) and had a tubal ligation, so she had NO expectation of being pregnant.

My mom had a tubal ages ago, and did, apparently, get pg and miscarry afterwards. I've had dreams in this pregnancy that she was due with twins (and I was wondering if she'd use my MW, too, now that she's such a fan of home birth - but she was somewhat concerned about her age and twins and bad history with previous labors!). In fact, I've dreamed that my sister, my mom, and I were ALL pregnant at the same time. If mom did get pg again (extraordinarily unlikely, especially given her age of 55), she would absolutely chalk up symptoms to other things. She's got so many OTHER issues now, that anything bizarre would fit in with those. So I can see it happening, especially in that scenario of the older woman.

[LizzyBNY]

Originally Posted by HeatherB

I like watching the show because, well, it's more natural birth than most on TV. I just watched an episode where the mom felt tons of pressure, kicked off her pants, and went to hands and knees - having no idea that she was pushing out a baby. I loved how her body knew what to do even when she didn't know what was happening. In her situation, she was 46 (?) and had a tubal ligation, so she had NO expectation of being pregnant.

I saw that one last night too. I loved dad for catching the baby avoiding the baby hits the floor while everyone stand there like an idiot moment that happens far too often on this show. Also they named the baby Hunter " because he snuck up on us"

[Masel]

We joke that I'll end up on that show. I fit the profile. Large, history of irregular periods and infertility. When I did get pregnant after 11 years of no BC it was with a bit of help (IUI). My pregnancy had few of the typical side effects and I gained only a little weight. Much of the hormonal stuff could totally be attributed to my wacky endocrine system. The give away was that I looked like a bowling ball with stick arms and legs but if I gained weight and it balanced out the belly... who knows. I like to think I'd just know but now that I'm 39 I'll have a host of premenapausal symptoms to blame symptoms on.

[Stitches]

My MIL went 3 months without knowing she was pregnant with her first. She went to her doctor for her annual checkup and he said, 'um, you're kinda pregnant' and she had no idea! She didn't have a single symptom. Wish I could have sailed through my first trimester like that! I would assume that if she hadn't gone to the doctor she would have figured it out eventually, although she didn't show until she was 7 months along either. I really can't relate!

I'll admit, I love watching this show, it's so hard to wrap my head around the idea of that happening.

[journeymom]

Originally Posted by MaerynPearl

The pressure gets so intense down there you seriously cant tell where its coming out, just that it is. Basically, it makes you go numb.

For many of us, something comes out of both holes... but most moms never even know it because they honestly can not feel it come out... and well trained nurses/midwives clean it up before you ever even notice. I had to ask my mom if I did when in labor with my son, and yes, I did. But I did not know it until I asked!

I had no idea this could happen until after dc#1 was born, and I could have gone the rest of my life never knowing that I'd p**ed on the delivery table.

[Smokering]

Am I the only one who finds this show oddly specific? Doesn't the title kinda give away the plot... every week? TV is weird.

I wonder whether the mental shock of going from childless to parent (or parent of one to parent of two, etc), frantically reviewing the last 9 months to remember what you'd eaten and drunk, having to come up with a baby name off the cuff, and all that jazz, would outweigh the benefits of having symptomless pregnancies, gaining very little weight, not stressing about the pregnancy/labour/birth, and so on. I think I'd prefer some advance warning, but then... I hated pregnancy. And I don't drink, like coffee, smoke, do drugs, take prescription meds or do extreme sports, so I probably wouldn't do anything terrifically unsafe in the average 9-month period. And I do remember finding out about DD at six weeks and thinking "That's AAAAGES away!", so - maybe if I found out at 5 months? That'd be nice.

I only found out about DD due to an accident - I was exposed to chicken pox and someone said "You're not pregnant, are you?", so I tested. I got sick shortly after that so I would probably have found out eventually, but it was still rather a random way to find out (and not very pleasant).