We’re back with a pregnancy update episode! And I can't believe I’m already recording this for the third trimester. It feels like just yesterday I found out I was pregnant. In this episode, I’m sharing all about what the third trimester has been like. If you’re looking for a positive pregnancy podcast episode, this will be that. Nothing in here to scare you! But, I am sharing some ups and downs.
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Gestational Diabetes Testing
I kicked off the third trimester with the gestational diabetes test, which is really not fun. This is the test where you drink a gross (depending on who you ask) drink with a lot of sugar in it. Then you wait 1 hour before having your blood drawn to see how your body reacts to the sugar.
I went for my one hour screening and had the lime flavor, which I thought was really awful! My levels came back as “failing” the test and I had to go back for additional tests.
The second time, you do what they call a 3 hour test. This isn’t an entirely accurate name because you are really at the office for longer than 3 hours. I learned that every doctor’s office does these tests so differently. But thankfully I PASSED this one! Really, I had a lot of peace around the whole situation by the end.
One great thing that came out of this was that I have now spent a lot of time in the facility where I plan to give birth. So I was able to walk around there and really make myself feel at home and I think I will feel much more comfortable now going in for my birth.
Listen to the full episode to hear me talk about the negative culture around gestational diabetes including the language that is used when talking about testing. I learned a lot from the research I did and there are a ton of resources available to women who deal with this during pregnancy. If you have dealt with this, remember that this is not your fault!
Sciatica:
Another defining health issue from the third trimester was a horrible case of sciatica for about four weeks. Two of those weeks I could barely walk and the other two it was slowly going away.
Sciatica can happen outside of pregnancy also but is common during pregnancy based on the baby’s position as well as other factors.
For me, the pain went down my left leg. The farther down your leg the nerve is hurting, the worse you feel. The more you can get the pain concentrated towards your spine, the better you will feel. This came on pretty strong for me, and at first, I thought I pulled a muscle. I had no idea what sciatica was. It got worse and worse until the pain was excruciating.
Some people have this pain until they deliver their baby, but mine went away! I tried almost everything I heard about that could help it. I’m not sure what it actually was that solved it for me but this is what I did:
- TENS machine
- Alternating hot/cold compresses
- Resting intensely for a few days with almost no walking, then intentionally walking even though it hurt
- Chiropractor
- Sciatica yoga videos on Youtube
- PT stretches
- Swimming
- Sitting properly with good posture
- PRAYER.
Baby Showers
I had two baby showers that both happened back-to-back weekends in the third trimester! I actually loved having them back-to-back weekends because it was easier to plan around them. They both were scheduled for after my template launch and course launch, and generally speaking when I was winding down in the business, which was perfect.
One was back in my hometown at the church I grew up at. It was actually the same weekend, in the same room at the same church that I had my wedding shower in 6 years earlier, thrown by many of the same women. That was really awesome and totally unplanned.
I had another shower in Nashville that was a fun one where everyone comes and stays for a while. We played games and I opened presents in front of everyone. I seriously felt so loved and it was just fun!!
Choosing A Baby Name
We did officially pick our baby boy’s name! We have known the first name for a while but were not sure about the middle name and it took us a while to officially decide on it.
We actually won’t be sharing his name publicly until he has been born. It’s fun having it be something just for us to know right now and then we will share it with everyone when he’s born!
The only hint we are giving people is that his first name starts with a ‘C’! If you’re pregnant and don’t want people to give their opinions on your name, it is fine to not tell anyone until they arrive!
Business Wins!
I had two launches in my third trimester in my business. I launched two amazing new website templates to EM Shop! If you missed them, you can check them out here!
I also launched Booked Out Designer again! There were lots of launches I had more energy and felt better during the Booked Out Designer launch because I had horrible sciatica during the template launch. But the great thing about launches is that most of the work is done before launch week anyway.
Maternity Leave Plans
I have been planning maternity leave for a while and feel really prepared. I have a coaching call next week with my Booked Out Designer course students, but besides that, I’m done with meetings and podcast interviews. I also do not have any open client projects and won’t be taking any until next year.
It feels so good and so well-timed. I’m in nesting mode and haven’t wanted to work as much, which has not been true for most of my pregnancy.
I’ve had a great year in business so far, both in revenue and profits, but also with just getting a lot of big things done. Projects I never thought I would be doing while pregnant and I’m so grateful that I have felt well enough to do those things during this year.
There is a more coming on maternity leave later but here is a summary of my plans:
- I’m starting my leave slowly and have been tapering down my hours
- I am starting my leave before my due date.
- I have batched podcast content for a few months
- I plan to still show up on Instagram with baby snuggles and business content
- My team is still working so customer support will still be happening
- I plan to stay active in my Booked Out Designer community
That’s it for the third trimester recap! This pregnancy has been such a great experience for me and I feel so blessed and grateful for that. I hope you have enjoyed following along on this journey with me!
Episodes Mentioned:
#107 Pregnancy Announcement with my husband
Links Mentioned:
Listen to the Breakthrough Brand Podcast
Connect with Elizabeth on Instagram
1st Trimester Product Must Haves
2nd Trimester Product Must Haves
3rd Trimester Product Must Haves
Gender Reveal Photoshoot + Party Recap
34 Week Maternity Photoshoot Recap (+ outfit links!)
Gestational Diabetes Instagram Account
