If you’re pregnant, you probably already know that there are so many lovely side effects of growing a human being inside of your body. Some are cute, like little kicks in your ribs. Some…like vomiting every meal straight back into the toilet…well, not so much.

But, alas, there is hope. You can enjoy pregnancy! While some women will naturally enjoy it more than others, here is some of my humble advice to help you do the best you can through any trial this little babe may bring you.

Acid Reflux & Heartburn:

DON’T eat all the tums. It will make it better for a bit, but your body will become addicted quickly, only increasing your heartburn. They also have questionable ingredients in them that could be harmful to your baby. It’s totally fine to keep some in your purse for those just in case moments when the burn is killing you, but when you’re able, go for some more natural ways to relieve the pain.

• Drink lots & lots of water. Water washes down the acid as it comes. Cold water, in particular, will help bring relief to the burning sensation.
• Chew gum! Peppermint helps soothe the burning, & any kind of gum will help your mouth produce more saliva. Saliva neutralizes stomach acid.
• Eat natural antacids: bananas, crackers, almonds, apples, grapes, black licorice, and peppermint flavored things are great to keep in your purse & around your house for when things get rough.
• Keep a package of crackers & a glass of water or milk by your bed for night-time episodes.
• Sit up. Don’t try to lie down, exercise, or do any bending over for about half an hour after eating anything. That crap will come right back up before you know it. However, even when we try our best, sometimes that baby decides to use his little foot to shove your food from 5 hours ago right back up your esophagus. If you just can’t sleep, try sitting in a lazy boy or against the wall of your bed for a while until things calm down. Sometimes just an extra pillow or two can do the trick.
• Drink milk. Although I recommend water first, sometimes a glass of warm milk will do the trick too. For some people, dairy can actually make things worse. See what works for you!
• Give in to a soda. This is bad pregnant lady advice, I know. In fact, soda doesn’t help out your reflux at all! It could possibly make it worse. But, if you are absolutely miserable and nothing is helping (because that definitely happens) treat yourself to an ice cold soda & don’t feel guilty about it. It will make your sore throat feel better for a little while.

Back Pain:

You are bound to get back pain no matter what size you or your baby is. I experienced a ton of lower back pain during the middle of my pregnancy, but as soon as the baby turned it went away! But you don’t just have to deal with it. If you make the right moves, you can completely get rid of the pain.

• Get a massage. I know, it’s easier said than done. Some of us are poor. Some of us don’t have a mom, sibling, friend or husband who would delight in giving us a back massage. But when someone asks you how they can help, grab their hands and put them on your lower back, and say “push here!” 😉 Any pressure can help though, including self-massage with a ball, an apple, or anything else hard that you can use.
• Get on your hands & knees. Throughout my whole pregnancy, if I ever had that searing lower back pain, I put my back parallel to the ground. Don’t worry about how silly you look. If you are in public, take a second to put your hands on your knees and straighten your back out. If possible, find a private bathroom or bedroom and get on all fours. Gravity pulls the baby away from your back & will give instant relief. Rocking your pelvis back and forth will also give a soothing massage.
• Do prenatal yoga. In fact, as soon as you know you are pregnant, start doing it regularly. They will use moves that will prepare your body for labor, and some that will be very helpful to relieve pain during labor! Yoga will open your pelvis, gently help stretch your ligaments, help you to relax (which ultimately makes for a happier baby!), relieve swelling/tension/cramping/pain, and help prevent blood clotting in your legs!
• Have good posture. Keeping your back straight will prevent a lot of that lower back pain. I know how tempting it is to recline when you are exhausted, but this will increase your back pain tremendously. Reclining also encourages the baby into an anterior facing position, which will increase your chances of having horrendous back labor. Keep your back straight, or lean forward as much as possible. Once the baby’s face is towards your back you will have almost no back pain. This is the ideal position for labor, so start doing this as early as you can in pregnancy.

Round Ligament Pain

In the beginning of pregnancy, there’s this sneaky little thing called “round ligament pain” that basically feels like you’re dying. Personally, it was worse than any menstrual cramps I had ever experienced. I called the office and they said it was completely normal. Unless you start bleeding, there’s nothing to worry about. If you’ve never been pregnant before, your uterus has never been stretched before. It simply has to expand to make room for the baby.

• Drink tons of water. Being dehydrated can amp up the cramping like you wouldn’t believe!
• Take a deep breath & relax. Staying relaxed, well-rested and hydrated is about all you can do to help this out.
• Remember that this is GOOD pain. It means that your body is making room for the little human you are creating. Knowing there is a purpose for the pain is always helpful.
• Don’t make sudden movements. For the first couple of months, you are going to continue stretching. Occasionally sudden movements can cause some sharp pains up and down your sides. It’s nothing to worry about, but something you can try to avoid.

Insomnia

“Oh, your body is just preparing you for when your baby doesn’t sleep all night.”

If you haven’t heard this lovely advice yet, you will soon. Personally, I call B.S. Your body is exhausted, and you seriously need your sleep. Really…you are cooking a baby! I slept like a baby myself during my entire pregnancy. I’m talking 9-12 hours a night of blissful, un-interrupted sleep. Be comforted: IT IS POSSIBLE.

• Drink tons of water during the day, but hold off about an hour before bed. If you’re still thirsty after pounding it down all day, a sip or two should be fine. But be very careful with your liquid intake the hour before you go to bed!
• Pee right before you fall asleep. Doesn’t matter how tired you are – GO PEE! You can never be too safe when you are pregnant.
• Keep it cool. Don’t wear any unnecessary clothing items (which could end up irritating you during the night anyways), keep a fan blowing on you, & make sure the thermostat is down low! Throughout the pregnancy, my night-wear decreased piece by piece until I was spending each night buck naked & coverless under a fan on high speed (and our thermostat at 65!). I may have frozen my husband for 10 months…but I was sleeping great!
• Get comfy in whatever ways you need to. Most women swear by their pregnancy pillows. I personally never needed one. It wouldn’t have fit well in our bed, and the more pillows I had the more uncomfortable I was. Figure out what works for you! All the way until the end, I liked to have no covers, no pillows, no clothes…there was less to bother me that way. Figure out how to keep yourself the least bothered at night, and you will sleep much deeper.
• Work hard. As a cleaning lady, I was doing physical labor for around 4-8 hours a day, every day. By the time I finally made it to bed at night, it didn’t matter how badly I needed to pee, or how hard that baby kicked, I was OUT! When I quit working a month before my due date, I still made sure to get up in the morning, stay active & social (at least my mind if my body was too exhausted), and do as much physical activity as I could handle.
• Don’t take naps. I know how exhausting it is being a baby-maker. It’s okay to take a lot of breaks! Lay down for five minutes here and there. Do some yoga. Take a bath. Read a book. Resting is necessary! But sleeping is not. If you are sleeping during the day, you are messing up your own sleep schedule. Resist the urge. You’ll be much happier when you fall into bed exhausted at the end of the day instead of wide-eyed and ready to party. 🙂
• Keep a nightlight in the bathroom. By the time you get to the third trimester, it is almost impossible to NOT take a bathroom break at night. I occasionally got by sleeping all night, but I would barely be able to walk in the morning. It’s just part of the preggo life. But keep the bathroom dimly lit to keep yourself from waking up fully. And for the love of all that is good, resist the temptation to eat a snack, check your phone, or switch the laundry in the middle of the night. If you keep the bathroom trips short & dark with your eyes half open, you will be able to fall back asleep much easier!
• Keep all necessities in arms reach of your bed. You’ll want kleenex, a water bottle, gatorade, cough drops, gum, lotion, tums, crackers, medicine…whatever you could possibly need in the middle of the night (besides a bathroom. *sigh*). If you can reach for it in the dark instead of going on a midnight hunt through the house, you’re much less likely to need it in the first place (that’s just the way it is).

UTI’s

UTI’s. Untimely. Torturous. Irritating.

Heaven only knows why, but for some reason these bladder-busting infections are way more common when you are pregnant. Most women will at least get one mild UTI during their pregnancy. But don’t go running to the hospital for antibiotics. There are ways to fix it all on your own!

If you don’t know how to diagnose yourself with a UTI…it’s pretty simple. The most common sign is burning when you pee & intensely feeling like you have to go immediately after you just went (a different sensation than the typical “pregnant lady bladder”). Some people also experience cloudy or weird smelling urine, cramps/pain in the abdominal area, or fever.

It’s pretty easy to tell if you have a UTI, so you should be able to avoid getting to the point of intense pain. Watch for them throughout your pregnancy, & at the first sign of an infection, start doing these things (or do them the entire pregnancy just in case!). The best thing about your bladder is that it you can find immediate relief if you only do the right things.

• Drink loads of water. I’m talking chug a 32 oz. tumbler every hour. Be strict about your water intake. I promise, you will find immediate relief the next time you pee! If you are drinking an overabundance of water, it flushes out the infection as it tries to keep up with your water intake. Drink, drink, drink & drink some more.
• Add some lemon to that water. The acid from the lemon will kill the bacteria growing in your bladder. Eating citrus fruits will help too, but if you keep several freshly squeezed slices of lemon in that giant tumbler of water I just mentioned, you will feel instant relief.
• Take cranberry supplements. I heard it from my grandma & I ignored it. I heard it from my mom & I ignored it. The doctor refused me antibiotics because my urine didn’t have any sign of a UTI the particular day that I went (even though I know I had one…I had just been chugging my water. It was helping…but I knew there was still traces of infection because the burn acted up the second I stopped drinking water.) When I complained to my mother about the doctor not giving me medicine, she bought me a bottle of cranberry pills and made me take them. Within the week, the UTI was completely gone, never to return! Google and the doctor say cranberry doesn’t work. Who knows. Maybe an old wives tale actually does the trick!

Morning Sickness

Ahhh, the unavoidable thing that nobody likes to think about….puking. I’ve never been much of a puker. In fact, I can actually remember each individual time I have thrown up in my entire life. I want to take the time to apologize to all of you precious momma’s who spend all day, every day of their first trimester (or even your whole pregnancy! <3) stuck to the edge of the toilet bowl.

That being said, NO, I did not struggle with any vomiting during my pregnancy. I threw up once from taking a certain nasty tasting medication (that gag reflex was real!), & a few different times when I got the stomach flu & food poisoning. Beyond that, I did well.

Unfortunately, there’s not much you can do about the vomiting besides drinking your chicken broth, sprite & crackers. If it gets severe, you will have to get medication from your doctor. However, there IS something you can do about that constant nausea! That’s where I can help.

• Drink water. Tons and tons of water. (This could basically be a cure-all for pregnancy symptoms. So just do it.) Vomiting is going to completely dehydrate you. If nothing else, water is the least disgusting thing to throw up & far better than dry heaving. Stay hydrated.
• Bring crackers wherever you go. I also loved gentle granola bars, nuts & gum. Wherever I went, my purse was stocked with tummy calming snacks. There is nothing worse than sitting in a meeting, a church service, or in your car an hour from home and feeling that nausea rise…and you have NOTHING to help! My mother’s precious advice was this: “If you can’t eat anything else during your first trimester, eat saltines. You’ll get stopped up, and you might gain some weight. But that baby needs you to be eating something.” I took her at her word, and I spent weeks eating chicken broth & boxes upon boxes of saltines.
• Drink gatorade & soda. If you’ve been vomiting, stock up on the gatorade to help you stay hydrated. If you are just sickeningly nauseous at all hours of the day, don’t feel bad about drinking soda. The bubbles will help immensely. Sprite or caffeine-free Root Beer are probably your best options in that first trimester (as too much caffeine could be harmful to that little nugget inside of you.)

Depression

Everyone talks about postpartum depression & the baby blues. What nobody told me about was the PRENATAL depression & pregnancy blues. I was so unprepared for the hormonal shock my body was going to send me into the moment I conceived. Although a surprise, we did want a baby. I had been testing every month since we got married! I wanted that little baby inside of me! So, why all of the sudden was I depressed about it?

My biggest regret of my pregnancy was the hormonal funk I was in for practically four months. I was nasty to my husband (and everyone else lucky enough to be graced by my presence), ran away from relationships, & spent my alone moments sulking. I felt completely detached from the world & was so afraid I was going to hate this baby for changing my life. Eventually I pulled myself together. But here are some of the things I wish I would have done sooner.

• Acknowledge your negative emotions. It’s okay that you feel the way that you do. Don’t feel guilty. Instead, write down every negative thought that you have right now. Look at that list closely, and ponder through each one and why you might feel that way. Some of them may be practical, & then you can do something about it! Some of them will not be practical, & you’re going to have to let time take care of those worries.
• Write a letter to your baby. I wrote a letter to my baby when I was in the most depressing state. I told him that I was angry I was pregnant & I was scared I wouldn’t love him. Your kid doesn’t ever have to read this…but doing this switched something in my brain, and I realized that I was a mother! Sometimes your brain just needs time to process reality.
• Start planning. Get on pinterest & go to town! Make to-do lists for 9 months down the road. Start working on your baby room. Ask people for hand-me-down baby clothes. Work on your baby registries. Nothing will lift your spirits more than doing the fun things to get ready for the baby.
• Talk to someone who knows. If you have a mom, a friend, or sister who has had a baby, they most likely will understand. Even if they didn’t experience the same thing, they know what those raging hormones are like! Just ask them to listen & be there for you. It will help tremendously to know that you are not crazy & you are not alone.

Bloating

You know when you start to get really excited that you are showing…and then you remember you haven’t pooped in a week? I did that a lot.

Or maybe it isn’t poop. Maybe it’s the fact that your freaking hormones are causing excessive bloating in every region of your body that used to be skinny.

Whatever the reason…there is hope.

• Water is your best friend. Dehydration = water retention = swelling/bloating. Need I say more?
• Water + Lemon = bloating killer. 
• Don’t eat crap food. You know what I mean. Junk food is your biggest enemy. Of course, if you’re having morning sickness….sometimes you just have to eat what you have to eat. But do your best.
• Eat foods with water in them. Fruit & veggies are really the only foods full of water. So eat them. Basically, if you’re loading your body with water, you will begin to get rid of water (because you will have too much in your body!). This is a good thing.

Constipation

This is a tough one. You’re going to battle it through your entire pregnancy. Except, maybe at the end when you might have raging diarrhea for a month. But trust me, you will NOT be complaining about that when the time comes! It will be a welcome relief.

So the doctor will tell you a list of constipation relieving medications that you cannot take during pregnancy, & you’re going to think you will never poop again. Relax, it will happen. Oh yeah…and….

• Relax! Stress can definitely make you constipated. A lot of the reasoning behind 1st trimester constipation is stress. Do some yoga, take a nap, get used to the baby thing, & you will go again.
• Chug that water. I can’t repeat it too many times. A gallon a day is a good goal to aim for by the end of your pregnancy. If you aren’t drinking, you will not be pooping.
• Eat fiber (basically, don’t eat crap). You will get really tired of hearing this from the doctor. Really, really tired. But do your best. I was diagnosed with Irritable Bowel Syndrome as a child, so nothing really works for me. When the doctor suggested fiber, I began eating 80-100% of the daily recommendation every day just to prove them wrong. And I was right. It did nothing for me. But if you were a normal pooper before pregnancy, fiber will help you.
• Calm down on the carbs. Carbs always have & always will be my favorite thing to consume. I love them. With all my heart. But the harsh reality is that carbs = constipation. If you are eating more roughage, you’re going to be pooping better. Too much meat can also stop you up. Try to get plenty of fruits, veggies, seeds, & nuts alongside of your meats, breads & indulgences.
• Don’t rely on medications. Many laxatives & stool softeners cause contractions of the bowels, which can in turn cause uterine contractions (which you do NOT want if you aren’t very near your due date!) If you must take something, I highly recommend Miralax. It is gentle & effective. But any type of chemical medication to induce bowel movements will only cause your gut bacteria to become adjusted to the forced movements & softening. Turn to medications last.
• Take a probiotic supplement. No doctor in my life had ever told me to take a probiotic. I ended up taking one during my 2nd trimester because I read that the baby gets his gut bacteria from you when he passes through the birth canal. I had no idea that it would make me completely regular! If you have had trouble you whole life, try probiotics. Your life might be changed. If you’re pooping just fine? Take probiotics for your baby’s sake.

Stretch Marks, Acne & Rashes

I had always heard that there’s a glow that comes with pregnancy & that I would get awesome hair and skin. However, that was not my experience. It’s crazy what those hormones can do to your skin. I experienced a different skin problem each month it seemed like.

The hormonal surge of the 1st trimester brought me a lovely rash across my nose that didn’t go away for months! Come the 2nd trimester, I had acne everywhere. I had pimples popping up in several places that I had never had one, even in the height of my teenage years! And by the end of the 3rd, my stomach had decided to become a textured road map.

• Stay hydrated. If your skin is hydrated, it will be less likely to get dry & flaky, or greasy & pimply.
• Don’t over clean your skin. The hormones of pregnancy make your skin much more sensitive than ever before. I know it’s tempting, but don’t try to scrub away the rashes or pimples that you might get. Clean gently when you shower, & otherwise try not to worry about them.
• Stop using face makeup. Feel free to doll up your eyes, but keep that face & neck free of any sticky, chemical-laden goo. Not only will this keep baby from direct contact with whatever chemicals might be inside that makeup, it will keep your overly-sensitive preggo mommy pores from breaking out even more than they already are.
• Use coconut oil. I keep a mason jar with whipped coconut oil in our bathroom cabinet. After every shower, I lather it all over my belly, boobs, hips, thighs, & face. Coconut oil is antibacterial (acne gone!), it makes your skin soft & supple, it promotes healing for scars & stretch marks, and it will even out a face that is too dry OR too greasy (I know that’s hard to believe, but research it. It’s a real thing).

Cravings & Weight Gain

You’ve heard all the stories.

“I gained 80 pounds with my first baby and it never came off!”

“My strongest craving was dipping brussels sprouts right into a can of cold tuna.”

“I ate a whole cake every day of my pregnancy and I never looked the same again.”

What’s a woman to do with those hormones raging through her poor, baby-making factory of a body? How do we stop ourselves from gaining those 100 pounds that chocolate cake keeps calling us to?

• Take your prenatal vitamins. Your first step of defense is to make sure you are getting all the nutrients you need. This will keep your body from craving things that have a certain nutrient in it that you do need, but many other things that you don’t need.
• Eat a variety of foods. If you’re constantly feeding your body with a variety of healthy foods & nutrients, once again, you are more likely to not have intense cravings of any sort.
• Good cravings? Listen to them. I always thought it would be like “that time of the month” cravings, but pregnancy cravings were so much worse. I literally would have walked barefoot through the snow for Subway during my pregnancy, because it was the only thing I wanted to eat. I figured I needed the meat, dairy & veggies so I let myself have Subway as many times as my body told me to get it. There is always a possibility that your body really is trying to send you a message.
• Bad cravings? Decipher & alter them. The intensity of baby cravings can be almost impossible to say no to. So, figure out what it is about this certain “sinful food” that your body needs or wants. Is it because that ice cream is so chocolatey? Indulge in dark chocolate covered almonds instead. Is it the salty crunch of those delightfully greasy potato chips? Grab some baked chips instead. Is it the sweet warmth of that grande caramel latte? Make your own at home & use lower-calorie ingredients.
• Make a plan. Though no one really knows why, pregnant women get cravings. It’s just something that happens. Say no to what you can, and if you feel that the impulse is too strong, then let yourself indulge. Decide how, when, & where you will feed your indulgence (for instance, keeping it in your kitchen cupboard is a bad idea). If it’s a certain fast-food restaurant, maybe you can go once a week. If it’s something that must be kept in your home, tell your partner to check the container and keep you accountable.
• Weigh yourself regularly. You are going to gain weight, but stay aware of how much & how quickly it is piling on. You don’t want to be shocked every time you go to the doctor.
• Remember where that weight is coming from. Remember that you are growing a human. You have bigger breasts, tons of amniotic fluid, your body is storing fat that it needs in order to breastfeed, & you are probably storing water in other places in your body as well. During pregnancy, weight gain is good. If you don’t gain enough, your baby could suffer the consequences. Don’t let the internet, the doctor, or a friend tell you otherwise.
• You are not going to fit the status quote. Oh, your friend gained 15 pounds? Good for her. You’re not your friend. Yes, the doctor will give you a recommendation of weight gain depending on your BMI when you got pregnant. Yes, they will also tell you how much weight you should be gaining each week of pregnancy. However, I remain convinced that these perfect numbers are not reality. I gained the bulk of my weight (50%) in only two months of my pregnancy. The doctor’s freaked out, but my baby and my body were doing what they wanted to do. I know that because I was being extremely careful with my diet during that time, as well as physically exerting myself for work. I won’t say that I did amazing with my weight all the way throughout the pregnancy, because I didn’t. The doctor recommended 25, and I gained 45. Whoops. But it’s not the end of the world. It will come off if you put your mind to it. Don’t let yourself feel guilty & obsessed over the number on the scale. Your body is going to gain at the rate that it is comfortable with. I do wish I would have been more careful, especially towards the end when I gave up on eating healthy…but I also wish I wouldn’t have obsessed over making the doctor’s happy, because in the end it really didn’t matter.

Leg Cramping & Sciatica

This is one thing that I definitely did not expect about pregnancy. One night, I woke up with shooting pains down my leg and I had no idea what was going on! I then recalled feeling some sharp pains in my lower back earlier that day while mopping.

The doctor informed me that sciatica is extremely common during pregnancy because the baby loves to sit on that particular nerve. She said the best way to stop it from hurting is to keep good posture.

Unfortunately, my job called for bending over almost constantly, so my sciatic nerve was almost always pinched,  & my legs always numb and tingling. You can’t do much to prevent these cramps from the pinched nerves, but you can make them feel better.

• Have good posture. I couldn’t keep this one religiously, but if you can, do! It will make your life so much easier.
• Do prenatal yoga. I got so good at some of these moves that I had them memorized, and I could perform some version of them no matter where I was. I noticed a significant difference in my pain anytime that I was slacking on my yoga routines.
• Stretch out your legs. If you’re in the middle of a peaceful sleep when the sciatic nerve decides to get you, flex your toes & stretch those legs out before you go back to sleep. But…
• Never point your toes while stretching! I don’t know why, but it hurts like hell. During pregnancy, your ligaments are all extremely relaxed & stretchy. Don’t point your toes. Just trust me.
• Take a warm bath to relax your muscles & relieve the tension.

Stuffy & Bloody Nose

One of the most irritating symptoms I experienced during the 2nd trimester was a constant stuffy nose. Not runny. I used up multiple boxes of kleenex per week & could not sleep without gagging. It was rough. I did have some bloody noses, but not nearly as often as some girls do.

So, who’s the culprit here? Oh, right. It’s that 50% increase of blood flow. What to do about it? Well, not a whole lot…

• Try vapor rub. I slathered that all over my chest, neck and around the rim of each nostril every night before I went to sleep. It’s not really recommended by doctors…but it helped me to at least make it through the night without gagging on my own snot.
• Take a hot shower. The steam will help loosen things up & relive the blocked nasal passages.
• Keep a humidifier running in your bedroom. 
• Sea salt spray. 
• Elevate your head while you are sleeping. It won’t get rid of the snot, but it will provide a bit of relief so you can sleep better.
• Keep a “snot relief supply” stash next to where you sleep. Vicks vapor rub, petroleum jelly for chapped nose/lips, kleenex, sea salt spray, & anything else that you need for quick relief during the night.

Shortness Of Breath

Unfortunately, as the little nugget inside of you continues to take up more and more space, your organs have less and less room to function properly. Thus your heartburn, inability to eat a properly sized meal, lightning pains in your bladder, waddling, & all those other fun things are just part of the deal. All you can really do is accept that you must slow down during this season of your life. Take it easy! 

Pelvic & Hip Pain

Towards the end of pregnancy, a lot of women experience pain in their pelvis & hips. It’s super unfortunate and painful! You may experience a general bruised feeling around the entire pelvis, sharp jolting pains through your crotch/thigh area, or both. These uncomfortable sensations are caused by the baby descending lower, lying directly on your hip bones, & your pelvis and hips opening up for baby to come out.

• Get an exercise ball. Replacing your normal chair with an exercise ball can provide great relief for your lower back, hips and pelvis. Roll around in any way that feels comfortable! Essentially, sitting with the support of the ball relieves your back from any pressure, while forcing you to sit with proper posture. Rolling your hips around also helps tremendously with opening up & making room for baby.
• Do prenatal yoga. Regularly opening up your hips & getting the baby off your back will do wonders.

Swelling

• Do prenatal yoga. Once again, yoga will do so much for you! Regularly stretching out & moving will help your blood flow through your appendages evenly, which will, in turn, regulate your swelling.
• Drink water. Swelling is caused by your body holding onto fluids. This happens during pregnancy because your body wants to be sure you will have enough water for your baby. The more you drink, the less your body will try to retain for an emergency.
• Keep active & rest. If you sit around all the time, you will swell. If you move all day and never sit down, you will swell. Take time to walk around and stretch, and then take your time to rest and elevate your feet.
• Epsom salt. Take a hot bath filled with epsom salt. The salts can help pull some of the fluid out of your body, and it’s also a great way to relax when you’re exhausted from lugging that babe around all day!
• Drink lemon. When my mother told me to try this, I thought she was crazy. But it worked! The acid in the lemon pulls out fluids that are stuck. I tried to drink a whole lemon each day, but any lemon will be helpful.
• Move your feet. At random times during the day, I tried to stick my legs out and circle my feet around 10-20 times each. I definitely saw a difference afterwards. Anything you can do to remind your blood to circulate will be beneficial.
• Massage. Get some nice lotion and massage those feet and legs. Better yet…have someone else do it for you! Once again, circulation is key.

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