[steph6467]

Hi Ladies.. I'm so glad I found this forum. This is my first time visiting and I'm sure you will all be so knowledgable!

I'm 6 weeks pregnant with my fourth child. My third son is 16 months old and still nurses about 6 times a day. This is the first time I've nursed while pregnant.

With my first preg, I had very little morning sickness, but quite a few food aversions. With my second preg, I had the same food aversions, but more morning sickness. By my third, I had severe food aversions and was throwing up several times a day during the peak of my morning sickness.

Now that I'm expecting my fourth, I've had no morning sickness at all. If I didn't have a positive test to prove it, I wouldn't know I was pregnant. I am starting to get sore nipples all of a sudden, though, so I guess that is my only real "sign" that I'm pregnant.

Anyway, I'm a little nervous about the lack of morning sickness. As uncomfortable as being ill is, it is very reassuring that the pregnancy is progressing. Is this common for moms who are pregnant and breastfeeding? Is it because my hormone levels aren't fluctuating as much (already higher from bfing?)

Thanks for any info or personal experience.

Steph
edd 2/11 w #4

 

[Mommiska]

Hi Steph - welcome to Mothering! And congrats on your pregnancy.

I know that with my third pregnancy, I had some morning sickness around 6-7 weeks, but very little compared to my first two pregnancies. And the morning sickness completely went away for 2-3 weeks, before returning and staying until I was 17-18 weeks pregnant or so.

I remember being very worried when the morning sickness disappeared, but everything was fine. DS is now 9 months old!

I think pregnancies can just be very different, although I know how worrying it can be when things don't go the way they have in the past...

 

[Lousli]

I'm having the exact same problem! Very little, virtually no m/s, my breasts are a little tender, and don't seem any bigger, excpet for that + test, I wouldn't even know. In fact, it is really stressing me out, especially today. There isn't anything I can do except wait, and tomorrow I'll be having an ultrasound in my mom's office after work. I'm just hoping that everything turns out fine and we seat a heartbeat. If we do, I will be able to relax for a while. I never thought I'd be saying this, but I wish I would just feel like barfing!

 

[foreverinbluejeans]

Not having morning sickness doesn't mean your pregnancy may be in danger. The notion that morning sickness is a sign of a healthy pregnancy is a theory at best and may have developed because people want to make women who have morning sickness feel a little better.

Some people say that miscarriage is God's way of ending a pregnancy that would have produced a disabled child. Does God terminate pregnancies? Why doesn't he terminate all pregnancies that produce disabled children? We look for ways to make sense of our universe and things we can't control.

We need to be more careful about what we say. There is no reason at all to be concerned when a mother doesn't have morning sickness. No morning sickness - enjoy your good fortune! Stress hormones can cross the placenta - don't worry be happy! Other than not smoking (or being exposed to environmental tobacco smoke), there isn't much scientific evidence of things a woman can do to prevent miscarriage once she knows she is pregnant.

 

[Lousli]

I should have clarified. It was not the lack of m/s which had me worried, it was the feeling that it had diminished/gone away. Everything I have ever read says that loss of pregnancy symptoms can be a sign of miscarriage. When it is early enough in the pregnancy that there is no fetal movement, it is hard not to worry that everything might not be okay.

Also, I don't think that miscarriage is God's way of terminating deformed/disabled children, but that's probably b/c I don't believe in God. Studies have shown that many, many early miscarriages are of fetuses that are genetically problematic. I think people tell women this for a reason, because it is true, and also to reassure them that it was not in any way their fault.

 

[steph6467]

Lesley, I'm sorry we're in the same "worry boat"! I look forward to hearing your u/s results.. please post!

I also am aware that m/s doesn't necessarily equal healthy pregnancy, and if this were my *first* pregnancy, I'd be less concerned (well, maybe not.. but for the sake of arguement). It's just that there was a clear pattern/ progression with my previous pregnancies, so I thought I knew how my body reacted to rising hormone levels. The fact that it's NOT reacting tells me either: 1- hormone levels are not rising properly or 2- for some reason my body is reacting differently. I'd obviously like to believe it's 2, but I'm concerned about 1. The only difference between this pregnancy and the others is that I'm breastfeeding. I was just wondering if my hormones already being different than "normal" might cause less morning sickness and general feelings of pregnancy (a.k.a. progesterone poisoning.. lol)

I also know that if I'm going to miscarry, I'm going to miscarry. There's nothing I did to cause nor anything I can do to prevent. However, I'd rather know I was miscarrying at 6.5 weeks rather than have a "missed" m/c and go on thinking for another month or more that I'm going to have a baby. All the more time to get attached to the idea and spread it around to my family and friends.

I'm thinking of calling my midwife if I don't start "feeling pregnant" in the next few days.

Steph

 

[Lousli]

Things looked great on the ultrasound! We saw a heartbeat. And I've actually had a few more symptoms the past 2-3 days. So I guess they are coming and going. I've gotten a little nausea, lots of round ligament pains, and exhaustion.

Steph, I wish you the best with your pregnancy. I think it is possible to have very different symptoms each time around. But if you're concerned, call your midwife, maybe she could do an ultrasound and reasssure you.