#parenticity

Week 21 - Skin Changes

When I found out I was pregnant one of my first stops was to the dermatologist. I had seen friends experience really bad acne breakouts during their pregnancies and I was worried this would happen to me. I had a great conversation with my dermatologist, a woman who has kids of her own, about what remedies I could use if I did end up breaking out. This all boils down to your own level of comfort. Some people want to go really all natural when they are pregnant and are worried about chemicals, so they switch lots of things. I have heard of people changing out their deodorant when pregnant, to those super natural kinds. I was not in this camp. I felt and was advised that, for example, a topical solution on your face, like salicylic acid (which is found in many face scrubs) would be used in such small amounts that it was fine. Honestly, my dermatologist told me she even thought an acne medicine like prescription strength Retin-A was ok to use, because it’s topical and used on such a small part of your body. I continued my regular skin care regimen and was really lucky not to have major acne problems in the end. But I think this is yet another example of why it’s really important that you be comfortable with your doctor or midwife and find someone whose philosophies match yours, so you can ask them about these types of problems and discuss possible solutions.

Week 18: ZOMG, There’s a Baby in There!

A lot of people forget themselves when they’re around a pregnant lady. They forget that there’s a person attached to that belly, and reach out to touch you without thinking. Some women welcome this, others can’t stand it. I’ve got a few tips to help you deal with it.

Week 11 - Pregnancy Food Cravings

You hear a lot about pregnancy food cravings, pickles and ice cream (eyeroll.) But what I didn’t realize, is it goes the other way too. There are foods you might usually love, or at least not mind, but suddenly now that you’re pregnant you can’t stand. I usually love eggs (Like Snooki), but when I was pregnant, I pretty much never wanted them. When you’re pregnant you have a heightened sense of smell, so that could be one reason.

Week 10 - The Babymoon

We went to Costa Rica and met up with a dear friend of mine and her husband for the first few days of our trip. I hadn't told her I was pregnant. When we got there and made our little announcement they said, "How far along are you? Well we're six weeks behind you." It made the vacation that much better.

You would have to be sleeping under a rock for the past few days to miss this one, but our friends at Buzz60 have you got covered with this short, informative little tidbit that's guaranteed to incite outrage from even the most docile of moms-to-be:

Triclosan, a chemical used in everything from antibacterial soaps to mouthwash, has been found to impair normal muscle function in animals and human heart cells. The study, conducted by University of California Davis, was published in the Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences.

YIKES! Are you as freaked out as we are?

Feel free to join in the conversation, and let us know what YOUR answers would be to these two VITAL questions: 1) Should antibacterial soaps and mouthwash contain an additional warning label for pregnant woman?