Hello lovelies,
Hope all you pregnant princesses are keeping well.
This is a quick post with a few tips I have picked up on how to deal with the leg swelling which is all too common in pregnancy, especially the third trimester. As you know, if you read my blog, I got sunburned on my legs last month and due to that I got quite swollen and painful legs, ended up in the hospital and sent on my way with a few tips to help ease it. Whoops!
Who knew that your skin becomes crazy sensitive when pregnant?
Anyway, first things first; its super important when pregnant to remember to rest and put your legs UP! Up high! Ideally your legs should be above heart level and supported the length of the leg- by that, I mean to not have your ankles resting on a table and nothing under the rest of your legs- this gives a 'bowed' effect to the back of your knees and leads to other issues. Personally, I found that lying down with my legs up on the wall worked best as they are extremly elevated, supported, and it doesnt take too long for this to reduce swelling. I also like to lay in bed with pillows under my legs, not all night, but for the hour im on my phone before going to sleep (we all do it) is the perfect amount of time.
Ideally, try to avoid crossing your legs/ ankles as Im doing here, tut tut!
Secondly, a big one; Drinking water! I know we're all tired of hearing this one, but theres a good reason for it. Our bodies are made up 50-65% water, which is HUGE! We need to keep these water supplies replenished or we'll get dehydrated and start holding onto water which means bloating and swelling. Drinking enough can help to alleviate swelling overnight by hydrating muscles and flushing body waste.
Water also helps to regulate body temperature, which came in handy for me when I got sunburned and my body temperature was all over the place
And finally, Keep moving! Its so important to keep yourself moving during pregnancy, as I talked about in previous posts the hormone relaxin is at work causing our body functions to slow down by 30%, which includes waste removal from the body. Lucky us, huh? If youre unable to get out for a walk or are working in a sedentary job, simple stretches and movements can be just as helpful. So when youre sitting at your desk, or in front of the telly, you can still help prevent and reduce swelling by bending and stretching your feet 30 times, and opening and closing your fists 30 times. You can also circle and rotate your ankles and wrists 10 times each direction. This just helps to get the blood pumping and keeps the joints mobile.
Even after a few hours of standing, your legs can swell. You can easily tell you're swollen if you've been wearing socks. Just fab!
I hope this will help some of you who are suffering with swollen legs and hands. Anyone out-swelled their wedding bands yet? Im still wearing mine thankfully, but they do get a bit stuck at night time.
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Chat to you soon, Conni xoxo
