Here's some Christmas spirit to start with:) I plan on doing a big photo shoot for Sawyer today due to upcoming holidays. I get involved with photography more and more and my editing skills as well as my sense of composition and proportion are getting better and better.
But here's what I want to make notes about. Being sick while expecting a baby or breastfeeding sucks so much. I am of that kind who trusts pills and takes them whenever needed. But pregnancy makes it impossible to take some antibiotics or aspirin and fight the cold in a couple days. I was sick only twice when pregnant, but God, it took me over two weeks to get over it. The first time I got this bad cold out of nowhere in April or so when I was about 5 months pregnant. I remember feeling so crappy. I had to go to work that day too. My whole body was aching and I was shivering. I called off but they couldn't find anyone to cover my shift at first. And since I am super responsible I showed up at work. The weather was super nasty. It was pouring rain, like really pouring. I got soaking wet 5 minutes after I left the house. The wind was crazy thus the umbrella was of no use either. The traffic was terrible. The thought of taking a train made me sick so I took a cab, even though I've been trying to catch one for 20 minutes or so since all of them were taken. Then we were stuck in a bad traffic. The only good thing I remember it was really warm inside. I took off my shoes and was trying to warm up my feet. I got to work about an hour late. My manager gave me a weird look and told me they were actually not expecting I would come. There was another person eventually coming in for me. I think I looked so pathetic that he offered to pay for my ride to work and back home. I didn't fight it) It took me about an hour though to finally reach for a cab company that could send me a free car. The weather was a real disaster and the traffic was still bad. I remember that evening at home I had a mild fever crying, rubbing tummy and apologizing to my baby for being such a bad mommy. I ended up calling my doctor to see what I should do about the fever. The stupid thermometer would show different temperature every time I was taking it, so I couldn't understand whether I start worrying about my condition or not. I called my husband many times being all freaked out and depressed. Poor hubby. Dealing with your pregnant, emotional, sensitive, and hormonal wife is not easy, I should give him a fat credit for that. My doctor though seemed pretty relaxed about it and just told me to drink lots of fluids, preferably hot, and take Tylenol to fight the fever. Since then Tylenol became my partner at fighting colds. I got better pretty soon. The temperature was gone right after I took a pill. That was my major concern, since, of course, I read all these horrifying stories on the internet about high risks for baby's life while having a fever and all these stories about ladies losing their babies because of that. This stupid habit of mine to browse for information online as soon as I get a question about my pregnancy/baby is something I wanna get rid of! Seriously! Don't ever do it! People post horrifying crazy stuff with mostly negative context. A pregnant lady shouldn't read that. Better grab a decent book on related topic or, even better, call your doctor. She is being paid for dealing with you, don't be shy like I was.
Anyways, the second time I got sick in July, about 30-32 weeks pregnant. That was real hell. I didn't have a fever, thank God, but I was a total mess. My body was aching, I had the worst headache ever, TERRIBLE sore throat, stuffed nose, no appetite. And it sucked big time since I couldn't take any medication. In my before pregnancy life I would have just gone straight for antibiotics, but that time under changed circumstances it wasn't an option. My doctor did a check up and told me the same thing I heard before - drink more fluids, gargle your throat with salt, rest, use saline spray for your nose. Also she suggested me to rinse my throat with Listerine couple times a day to kill the germs. I did all that praying for a quick recovery, but in the reality it took me over 2!!!!! weeks to finally get better. I felt completely miserable, especially considering that it was super hot outside and I had no idea at all where I got that stupid cold from. Probably the outdoor pool though, but whatever.
Recently I was sick again. This time I couldn't take any real medication cause I was breastfeeding. I ended up taking dome non-drowsy Dayquil though since I was scared of getting Sawyer sick. I was sneezing like crazy, coughing, feeling weak, having sore throat. I was trying to wear a mask when around the baby, but that thing on your face is so annoying and doesn't even let you breathe well. Plus I think I looked pretty scary to my baby with my whole face covered. The only reason he didn't get sick was probably cause I was breastfeeding him. My body while sick was supposed to produce antibodies to fight the illness and they are supposed to be shared with the baby through the breast milk. I am very glad and happy that Sawyer's immune system made it through my severe cold. I would have felt extremely guilty if I got my baby sick. He was sneezing a lot, but other than that he was okay. Also, I discovered such a good thing as an air humidifier. My hubby got it for me when I felt extremely weak and couldn't breathe through my nose. He got me the Vick's one, and it worked great for me. I used Tea Tree oil in combination with it since it's proved to be good for everything - disinfecting, killing germs, healing skin, fighting chest congestion and stuffed nose. I put a couple drops in this pocket on top of the humidifier and let it work for a couple hours in the bedroom. It's safe for babies too. When at the front room I would add a drop of the oil on top of my candle and light it to spread the scent around the room. I bet aroma lamp would work even better for that purpose, but I don't have one. Also I would put a couple drops of it inside of my mask to breathe the fumes in constantly. And for my nose I would add 1 drop of the oil to a little bit of Vaseline, mix it up and put it in my nose. Tea Tree oil is really doing miracles. I even use it on my face to treat pimples and it works perfect. In this case though I mix it with cream or lotion. Also, you can mix it up with some other oil, coconut is the best, and put it on your chest and upper back in case of coughing and chest congestion. There are many articles available online on this oil. My mom is mixing it with almond oil and applies it to her tonsils when having a sore throat. She says it helps after just 1 day of using. Worth of a try for sure. I would only advise you to apply a drop of Tea Tree oil on your skin first and wait up to 12 hours to make sure you are not allergic to it.
I plan on start taking either prenatals again or some other vitamins that are ok while breastfeeding, since I can't get sick for my baby's sake.
Stay healthy, dress up warm, try to stay away from sick people.
XOXO
But here's what I want to make notes about. Being sick while expecting a baby or breastfeeding sucks so much. I am of that kind who trusts pills and takes them whenever needed. But pregnancy makes it impossible to take some antibiotics or aspirin and fight the cold in a couple days. I was sick only twice when pregnant, but God, it took me over two weeks to get over it. The first time I got this bad cold out of nowhere in April or so when I was about 5 months pregnant. I remember feeling so crappy. I had to go to work that day too. My whole body was aching and I was shivering. I called off but they couldn't find anyone to cover my shift at first. And since I am super responsible I showed up at work. The weather was super nasty. It was pouring rain, like really pouring. I got soaking wet 5 minutes after I left the house. The wind was crazy thus the umbrella was of no use either. The traffic was terrible. The thought of taking a train made me sick so I took a cab, even though I've been trying to catch one for 20 minutes or so since all of them were taken. Then we were stuck in a bad traffic. The only good thing I remember it was really warm inside. I took off my shoes and was trying to warm up my feet. I got to work about an hour late. My manager gave me a weird look and told me they were actually not expecting I would come. There was another person eventually coming in for me. I think I looked so pathetic that he offered to pay for my ride to work and back home. I didn't fight it) It took me about an hour though to finally reach for a cab company that could send me a free car. The weather was a real disaster and the traffic was still bad. I remember that evening at home I had a mild fever crying, rubbing tummy and apologizing to my baby for being such a bad mommy. I ended up calling my doctor to see what I should do about the fever. The stupid thermometer would show different temperature every time I was taking it, so I couldn't understand whether I start worrying about my condition or not. I called my husband many times being all freaked out and depressed. Poor hubby. Dealing with your pregnant, emotional, sensitive, and hormonal wife is not easy, I should give him a fat credit for that. My doctor though seemed pretty relaxed about it and just told me to drink lots of fluids, preferably hot, and take Tylenol to fight the fever. Since then Tylenol became my partner at fighting colds. I got better pretty soon. The temperature was gone right after I took a pill. That was my major concern, since, of course, I read all these horrifying stories on the internet about high risks for baby's life while having a fever and all these stories about ladies losing their babies because of that. This stupid habit of mine to browse for information online as soon as I get a question about my pregnancy/baby is something I wanna get rid of! Seriously! Don't ever do it! People post horrifying crazy stuff with mostly negative context. A pregnant lady shouldn't read that. Better grab a decent book on related topic or, even better, call your doctor. She is being paid for dealing with you, don't be shy like I was.
Anyways, the second time I got sick in July, about 30-32 weeks pregnant. That was real hell. I didn't have a fever, thank God, but I was a total mess. My body was aching, I had the worst headache ever, TERRIBLE sore throat, stuffed nose, no appetite. And it sucked big time since I couldn't take any medication. In my before pregnancy life I would have just gone straight for antibiotics, but that time under changed circumstances it wasn't an option. My doctor did a check up and told me the same thing I heard before - drink more fluids, gargle your throat with salt, rest, use saline spray for your nose. Also she suggested me to rinse my throat with Listerine couple times a day to kill the germs. I did all that praying for a quick recovery, but in the reality it took me over 2!!!!! weeks to finally get better. I felt completely miserable, especially considering that it was super hot outside and I had no idea at all where I got that stupid cold from. Probably the outdoor pool though, but whatever.
Recently I was sick again. This time I couldn't take any real medication cause I was breastfeeding. I ended up taking dome non-drowsy Dayquil though since I was scared of getting Sawyer sick. I was sneezing like crazy, coughing, feeling weak, having sore throat. I was trying to wear a mask when around the baby, but that thing on your face is so annoying and doesn't even let you breathe well. Plus I think I looked pretty scary to my baby with my whole face covered. The only reason he didn't get sick was probably cause I was breastfeeding him. My body while sick was supposed to produce antibodies to fight the illness and they are supposed to be shared with the baby through the breast milk. I am very glad and happy that Sawyer's immune system made it through my severe cold. I would have felt extremely guilty if I got my baby sick. He was sneezing a lot, but other than that he was okay. Also, I discovered such a good thing as an air humidifier. My hubby got it for me when I felt extremely weak and couldn't breathe through my nose. He got me the Vick's one, and it worked great for me. I used Tea Tree oil in combination with it since it's proved to be good for everything - disinfecting, killing germs, healing skin, fighting chest congestion and stuffed nose. I put a couple drops in this pocket on top of the humidifier and let it work for a couple hours in the bedroom. It's safe for babies too. When at the front room I would add a drop of the oil on top of my candle and light it to spread the scent around the room. I bet aroma lamp would work even better for that purpose, but I don't have one. Also I would put a couple drops of it inside of my mask to breathe the fumes in constantly. And for my nose I would add 1 drop of the oil to a little bit of Vaseline, mix it up and put it in my nose. Tea Tree oil is really doing miracles. I even use it on my face to treat pimples and it works perfect. In this case though I mix it with cream or lotion. Also, you can mix it up with some other oil, coconut is the best, and put it on your chest and upper back in case of coughing and chest congestion. There are many articles available online on this oil. My mom is mixing it with almond oil and applies it to her tonsils when having a sore throat. She says it helps after just 1 day of using. Worth of a try for sure. I would only advise you to apply a drop of Tea Tree oil on your skin first and wait up to 12 hours to make sure you are not allergic to it.
I plan on start taking either prenatals again or some other vitamins that are ok while breastfeeding, since I can't get sick for my baby's sake.
Stay healthy, dress up warm, try to stay away from sick people.
XOXO