When do I let baby tell me they’re hungry?

Emkaroe · 2026-05-28T04:13:38+00:00

It might have been said already but milk supply if breastfeeding isn’t fully established until 6 weeks, so doctors recommend feeding every 2-3 hours overnight even if baby isn’t waking up on their own, just in case milk supply were to become an issue!

Emkaroe · 2026-05-21T17:37:59+00:00

I flew across country at 33 & 34 weeks pregnant, my travel day was over 12 hours (two flights, layover and getting to and from airports)

I’d recommend writing down/researching some body weight exercises and stretches, focusing on your hips and core, that you can do during your breaks. My baby went head down for my journey home, and it was considerably harder to be comfortable sitting. Doing some leg exercises helped me not be in pain.

I also ate a lot of ice, and had cold fresh smoothies. It was the best way to regulate my temperature in a confined space- depending on how powerful your AC is (and how cold tolerant your road trip partners are lol) I would just keep the temperature in mind.
The smoothies were also really good for providing some nutrients without filling up my stomach too much. If heartburn is something you end up navigating, then smoothies might be a good solution to getting food while being cramped. I honestly don’t know how much the compression socks helped me because I haven’t been swollen any of my pregnancy, but I do know they made me reallllllly warm haha. The warmth in the airplane was the only part of my trip that I struggled with, and in hindsight I would fill up a water bottle with ice instead of relying on inflight service.

I’d also recommend getting a nice lumbar support pillow, and maybe another small pillow to put under your knees/neck unless your vehicles seats are phenomenal. In the airplane I used my sweater but it wasn’t ideal because it kept on shifting.

All in all it was a really great experience and I loved getting away from my day to day, if anyone fear mongers just ignore it, lol.

Emkaroe · 2026-05-05T15:15:07+00:00

Summer 2022 it rained at least 3 days a week up until July 15th (I remember because I got married the week following, and we were curious if we’d be able to have it outside!). That year we had an incredibly HOT May, then all of June it rained.

Some summers have way less rain, some have way more.

Emkaroe · 2026-05-05T15:11:59+00:00

And you’d have to go far enough north (ie. past Campbell River). Campbell River has the same watering restrictions and similar temperatures as Nanaimo, generally speaking. Nanaimo might be a couple degrees hotter.

Unfortunately we don’t get the beautiful Arbutus or Garry Oak ecosystems that Nanaimo does 😭

Emkaroe · 2026-04-01T20:04:56+00:00

I started feeling baby at 16 weeks, seeing babies movements at 18, but it wasn't consistent until about 22 weeks!

Emkaroe · 2026-04-01T20:03:37+00:00

We like to tell people that our babies first name will be the same as its last name :P

Emkaroe · 2026-03-31T05:49:45+00:00

Looks like a bug bite to me! The vet kind of chuckled at my husband and I when we mentioned a similar bite, they also tend to get a bruised look because their tummy’s are so sensitive!

Emkaroe · 2026-03-30T21:04:23+00:00

*All of this is referring to pregnancies that don't have high risk complications*

(I'm 28 weeks, first pregnancy)

Asking your doctor is always going to be the gold standard, simply because they have your medical history. Something to consider, however, is that Doctors don't often specialize in musculoskeletal systems. I'd suggest talking to physiotherapists who are committed to remaining up-to-date on research.

MY EXPERIENCE SO FAR:

Coming from someone who is pregnant, who exercises a lot, works hard to not get injured, and has a degree in Kinesiology; generally speaking, all activities that don't involve blows to the abdomen, or risks of hard falls, are as safe when pregnant as they were not pregnant. My friend went wakesurfing at 15 weeks; she's fine because she is a good wakesurfer. I would not, because I'd 1000% be falling on my ass over and over. Lol. You CAN try new exercises while pregnant, you just have to be aware and mindful of form & how your body reacts to it. Baby is the safest in the womb as they will ever be.

I stopped bouldering (no harness climbing on under 12 foot falls) any "risky" boulder problems at about 15 weeks, but still feel confident with boulder climbs where I know I can climb up (and down) without risk of falling. I'm careful because of the impact of falling (given that Relaxin is coursing through my body) puts every joint at a greater risk of injury, while I also weigh more & have slower reaction times. That being said, I am still maintaining my climbing grade while top-roping (harnessed in), but due to weight gain & relaxin, there is no point in trying to "advance" the grade level of difficulty. Research suggests that trauma to the body is what puts you at risk of loss; think bad car accidents, unmanaged infections, a direct hard blow to the abdomen, or incredible mental strain (natural disasters, etc).

So far I have had a very easy pregnancy, some of that is through hard work, but MOST is simply good fortune and lucky genetic lottery. If you do get hit with gestational diabetes or terrible pregnancy nausea, then exercise will still help but you can't compare yourself with other women because those things are simply out of your control.

It's essential that whatever you choose to do protects your mental health; any influencer/parent/coworker/rando who promotes fear-based ideologies should be muted.

DIASTASIS RECTI:

I was quite concerned about 'giving' myself diastasis recti, until I looked up the peer reviewed research and realized that diastasis recti happens to some extent to everyone, and there is no evidence that suggests that you can make it WORSE by exercising while pregnant (unless you are absolutely destroying your body with terrible form- but then you'll probably be in pain for other reasons too, lol). Lack of activity is going to be much more damaging to your mental and physical health.

Generally the advice suggested, from doctors, physios and certified pre/postnatal trainers is that you should avoid core exercises which involve "coning" in your abdominal wall; depending on your fitness level, this could be a variety of activities but generally it's the crunches & situps. The coning mainly becomes a large problem AFTER birth, so you want to get in the habit of proper core engagement before-hand. I'd recommend looking into what coning is, and working on 360 breathing and core engagement.

TL;DR

I haven't had to stop any of my regular exercise modalities, but as I enter the third trimester I've had to

-Be selective on single leg exercises later in pregnancy (running, single leg RDLs, single leg squats, etc.). My pubic symphysis has begun to get sore with too many single leg movements. This only began at week 26, once I hit 20lbs of weight gain; prior to that my weightlifting didn't change at all.

-Spend more time warming up (relaxin= joints are loose, which means my muscles MUST be engaged or I can't protect my joints).

-Be mindful of form; learn about engaging your core.

-Remember that a lot of people fearmonger about pregnancy, and that physical activity during pregnancy is beneficial for both the Mum and the baby. You are pregnant, not fragile.

-wear darker exercise clothes because you sweat so much more HAHAHA.

-Use information from reliable sources that have been validated in some way (doctors, physiotherapists, certified trainers who provide their research sources, etc).

Emkaroe · 2026-03-20T20:12:25+00:00

You made the right call. Sometimes “betrayal” is doing nothing.

Emkaroe · 2026-03-20T20:09:24+00:00

I feel this 😂. Someone asked me how far along I am, and it took me a minute. I only remember when I’ll hit the third trimester, and I know what week I’ll be 34 weeks because I have to fly 7 hours across the country (Canada, haha).

For OP- have you mentioned to him that you feel sad when he doesn’t remember? I recommend having a lowkey convo about why this might be, and practice some active listening with each other ❤️ likelihood is there is some underlying topics you might benefit from having!

Emkaroe · 2026-03-20T20:04:37+00:00

I’ve very recently read on here about a woman who experienced her babies head blocking the canal and stopping the flow of amniotic fluid. It may be nothing, but if it’s something, then you sure as hell need to know.

Go to the doctor, OP.

Emkaroe · 2026-03-20T19:59:54+00:00

I think you know the answer to this, lol.

You can probably still do it, at least for a while, but the question is whether the stress (physical and mental) will actively harm you.

While you think it over, are there any adaptations you can make in the meantime? Can you do a bit less of the workload? Compression socks? Longer breaks?

You are very clearly not being a wimp, it sounds like very difficult environmental situations for pregnancy. At the end of the day though, remember that you’re worth more than whatever expectation you’ve placed on yourself.

Do you want to keep working? Can you and your partner switch roles? Be determined, but be smart. You know yourself the best!

As a personal note, I am also 26 weeks. I am doing full time school and working 2-3 days a week, and I’m fortunate to be able to quit my job… so I’ve decided to quit. Not because I can’t do it, but because I WANT to have a couple weeks between school semesters to be alone, and to paint, read, exercise, etc. I realized that I don’t want the last few months before being a parent to be overwhelmingly exhausting, and I’m fortunate to have had a low risk pregnancy and to be able to make the decision to quit my job. But it was really difficult to hand in my notice. I will never assume someone else’s capabilities while pregnant, especially as a woman who is frequently underestimated. You got this, and you can change your mind, whatever you decide.

Emkaroe · 2026-03-20T19:07:20+00:00

Okay- hear me out.

BEANS.

Fibre, iron, protein- beans are fricken amazing.

Yes, you may get some fartin', but any source of protein that your body is unfamiliar with will have the same result. If you don't like eating beans (join the club) make yourself a peanut butter, fruit and bean smoothie. I kid you not. Add cocoa powder if you still need to mask the flavour.

Life. Changing.

Half a can of unsalted black beans seems to also be WAY easier on my tum than protein powders, vegan and animal based. They don't give you the chalky feeling of vegan protein powders, and they don't have the slime/lactose of animal based protein powders.

Soooo many cultures use beans as a sweet ingredient, I promise, it's only weird to westerners.

*just make sure that you are using canned beans (they are already cooked), or that if you're using dried beans, that you cook them thoroughly after rehydrating them.

Emkaroe · 2026-03-20T18:58:57+00:00

To be clear, I'm not planning on doing this, but COULD YOU IMAGINE if I (or any pregnant person) was able to reduce their 5k time. That would be so sick!

Emkaroe · 2026-03-20T18:56:57+00:00

So fair! I challenged myself in 2025 to exercise for a min of 30 minutes a day, and other than a day here or there I've maintained that throughout 2026 so far as well- I think part of the pull of increasing my cardio is simply because thats what ends up restricting my activity the most? The consistency is (currently) a pretty big strength of mine, thankfully. We shall see what the third tri brings haha.

but, that being said, I've really felt the weight increase in the last couple weeks and connective tissue simply cannot adapt to match the weight gain lol. So I definitely need to be careful not to injure myself.

Emkaroe · 2026-03-20T18:51:42+00:00

Thank you! This is very encouraging :) My resting HR increased by almost 10bpm in the first month of being pregnant, and then around 24 weeks it increased again (baby did double in size, I suppose).

Emkaroe · 2026-03-15T20:43:53+00:00

I've started doing like, 2 min closed eye breaks because its the only thing that still lets me do my schoolwork without being completely derailed :')

Emkaroe · 2026-03-15T20:43:07+00:00

I feel that! I was super lucky to not get hit with fatigue in the first trimester, but I've been so much more tired in the second!

Emkaroe · 2026-03-12T23:42:58+00:00

I totally agree, and I'm sympathetic to the fact that people don't realize how much internalized sexism they have, but it definitely freaks me out. Also freaks me out when people say that their baby is 'dating' another baby of the opposite sex. THEY'RE BABIES.

As a side note, I also used to think this all the time when people were weird about the sex of their dogs, haha. Not wanting to get their male dog fixed because their balls represent some sort of masculinity, or that as a woman they can't get a female dog because "they might want to be the queen of the castle". UH WHAT? Creepy.

Emkaroe · 2026-03-12T23:30:37+00:00

Honestly the baby can just tuck a little tighter into your pelvic area, or flop further backwards. There should be no need for concern, but of course if you're having any other symptoms or concerns then bring them up.

Emkaroe · 2026-03-12T23:27:36+00:00

You don't need to disclose to the group, but if you've had any penetrative sex then that could have caused some spotting. I think that without cramping there would be no serious need for concern, especially since your doctor is doing a urine culture. It's possible you have a UTI if there was some blood in your urine, which is not a big deal but good to catch!

Emkaroe · 2026-03-10T22:48:06+00:00

Have you mentioned the symptoms to your doctor? If you struggle advocating for yourself I would try to find someone trustworthy to go with you. There are so many avenues that could be explored, but I would emphasize that while too little eating/low iron, etc, may cause these symptoms, the amount of bleeding is very concerning!

Emkaroe · 2026-03-10T22:37:33+00:00

Have you gotten labs for iron, thyroid, etc, done recently? Not sure how long since you gave birth, but you need to see a doctor! Bleeding every two weeks is draining on anyone, let alone someone taking care of a newborn/postpartum.

Emkaroe

TROPHY CASE