Second Trimester Pregnancy: Swelling

Transcript

And we know that with the changes in blood pressure and the changes in blood volume, there may be some increased swelling. You may feel bloated. You may have some bowel changes as the baby pushes on your bowel. You may have some cramping or even some constipation related to some of those hormone changes. And if you have swelling, for example, swelling in your feet, your ankles kind of below your knees, that can be worse if you’ve been on your feet for too long. So if it’s something that becomes uncomfortable or concerning for you, sometimes swelling can be an indicator of other health conditions in pregnancy like pregnancy induced, hypertension or preeclampsia. And if you have concerns, you definitely need to talk with your obstetrical care provider about that. But if it’s just general inconvenience, swelling, or feeling bloated, and you’re able to get off your feet and you’re able to rest, make sure you stay hydrated and you rest and you take care of yourself and you don’t stand for long periods, if you can avoid it. And when you get home, put your feet up a little bit over on your left side. So that gets your uterus off of your big blood vessels so the baby can still get as much oxygen as he or she needs, but elevate your feet a little bit, just to make yourself more comfortable. If you’ve had to be standing and you have some swelling in your lower legs.