Are we there yet?

I've had a pretty uneventful pregnancy so far - which I'm grateful for.  I was pretty nauseous during the first 12 weeks, but I was never super pukey.  The second trimester was a breeze.  The third trimester has been pretty peachy, too.  That is, until this week.

Granted, I'm not on bedrest.  I don't have any complications.  I'm not at risk - or so it seems - for pre-term labor or preeclampsia or any of the super scary things.  And I'm not overly uncomfortable yet.  I mean, my oldest sister gave birth to quadruplets, so seriously, what do I have to complain about, right?

Here's my complaint.  My limbs keep falling asleep.  You know, when your foot falls asleep and you get that pins and needles feeling?  Yep.  Like that.  Except it happens all the time now.  And it's my feet, my legs, and the worst - my arms and hands.  It feels like all of the blood in my arm has been sucked out by a vampire - it's heavy, and dull, and achy, until I move it, and then it's like a million little ice picks up and down my arm.  It sucks!  And it always happens at night while I'm sleeping, waking me up.  I'm a super heavy sleeper, so for this to wake me up is profound.  I also have a fondness for sleeping, as you know, so this is a big bummer for me.  Big bummer.  I haven't slept past 4am in a week now, and haven't had a night that didn't involve some tossing and turning in...well, weeks. 

I called the nurse yesterday and all of this is normal, and it all has to do with being pregnant.  She explained that my blood volume has increased by 50%, so my circulation system is working overtime.  But I'm also experiencing swelling, which is making it more difficult for that blood to get everywhere, so if I stay in one position for too long my limbs fall asleep.  It also causes a bit of carpal tunnel, which I've noticed this week, too, along with dizziness and the risk of fainting.

Fun, huh?

At my office visit a month or so ago, my nurse midwife said that she thought I had probably 8-10 good weeks left.  She's close - that was about six weeks ago.  Her take is that it's a good thing that pregnant women start to feel more uncomfortable as labor gets closer.  It makes you ready to end this phase and move on to the next.  Especially for women - like me - who kind of enjoy the whole pregnancy thing.  Well, let's just say, I'm starting to turn that corner.

7 weeks, 1 day and counting...