Pregnancy - 30 Weeks

Since this summer, I have been absent (again) from this blog. Primarily, I would say it is because being pregnant and post-WLS has been challenging. Honestly, challenging. I have been very good at my eating choices, most of the time. But, there have been moments or days, where a cup of cereal with milk sounds like an outstanding choice or "just one cookie" won't hurt. There have been days where I literally have to talk to myself out loud to "walk away" from the kitchen, given my state of mind. But, mostly, it has been a balanced approach. One thing that truly helped was going to my bariatric dietitian. She was really realistic and plainly said, "you need to eat, so that you can grow a baby." Clearly, this was not a mandate to blow any strategy I currently had, but it was a realistic reminder that during pregnancy, you are growing a baby. Growing another human being inside of your body. Another thing that has greatly helped is exercise - I just feel better when I have exercised. I had been doing a lot of swimming, but then with a pinched nerve, I migrated to Aqua Jogging or literally, running in the water with a lot of squats. I cannot express the help this has been to my joints, swelling, varicose veins, and overall mental health. Exercise works, and despite my panic each time the scale goes up at the OB's office, I know that it is better than it would have been without the exercise. Yet, I still get moments of terror that somehow I am going slip and suddenly be over 300 pounds. But, then I take a breath. And, another. And, one more.