Life
The media constantly shows us beautiful, smiling, goddess-like pregnant women with perfectly round, high baby bumps (like little basketballs under their form-fitting maternity shirts). I realize that some lucky people actually do look and feel great during pregnancy, but I am not one of those people. For me, pregnancy was and is miserable, and my bump definitely didn't look like a ball. You see, there are struggles only pregnant women who carry "low" truly know, and as one of those women I can assure you: I know them all.
For example, when you carry low it's impossible to find maternity clothes that fit. It seemed like nothing could make its way over my low, wide bump, which meant I unintentionally bared my midriff to the non-pregnant world around me. This last time I gave up trying to find maternity clothes entirely, and pretty much wore yoga pants and baggy shirts during my last two trimesters. Carrying "low" also caused me to be really uncomfortable for most of my pregnancy, as if there was a bowling ball resting on my pelvis and/or bladder for what seemed like 38 months.
To make matters worse, it seems like everyone always had something to say about the way I carried my babies. No, stranger in the grocery store, I haven't dropped, you can't tell the gender or sex of my baby by looking at my bump, and yes, I am waddling. I don't want to hear about it. For me, pregnancy was not beautiful at all, and I'll tell you a secret: it doesn't have to be. The best part of pregnancy is that it doesn't last forever, even if you're carrying low and it feels like it will.
Everyone Thinks They Know The Sex Of Your Baby
No, complete stranger rudely staring at my belly, you can't tell what kind of reproductive anatomy, or eventual gender identity, my baby will have by the way I am carrying. And, besides, that bump is attached to my freaking body. Please stop looking and commenting about it. You are making me super uncomfortable.
You Feel Like You Have A Bowling Ball Between Your Legs
The last few months of pregnancy is super uncomfortable anyway, but when you carry low it feels like your baby's head is resting on your pelvis when you walk. Ouch.
You Constantly Pee Your Pants
I peed every time I sneezed, vomited, coughed, jumped, and felt like I was going to pee whenever I stood up. When you carry low, baby uses your bladder as a pillow (and occasionally a punching bag).
You Feel So Much Pressure
I could have sworn that even my smallest baby weighed a ton, all because there was so much pressure put on my pelvis, belly, and lower back. You would think that it would have made delivery easier, but no.
Your Maternity Clothes Don't Fit
You know you are carrying low when nothing fits. The seam of every and any maternity pant, that's supposed to rest below your belly, lands a few inches higher and all of your maternity shirts fit you like crop tops, exposing your growing stretch marks to the free world. Not cool.
It Feels Like Lightening Strikes Your Cervix
You know you are carrying low when your baby literally reaches out and touches or kicks your cervix. It felt like I was being struck by lightening from the inside.
You Can't Reach The Pedals Of Your Car
I carried so low, and my belly was so huge, that I could choose to drive with the steering wheel pressed against my belly or with my feet reaching the pedals, but not both. I also stopped fitting into restaurant booths, through some doorways, and comfortably at my desk.
Everyone Thinks They Know When You Will Deliver
No, my baby hasn't "dropped" yet, I'm just carrying low. I wished I would go into labor pretty much every single day of my entire third trimester, just because I was so uncomfortable. Please don't speculate about when I will deliver. It's not nice to get a pregnant person's hopes up.
You Waddle When You Walk
During each of my pregnancies I reached a point where I couldn't walk without waddling. I also started wearing a support belt to support my growing belly, which kind of helped with the pain until I totally outgrew it.
You Constantly Think You're In Labor
The pain and pressure was so bad at times that I constantly thought I was in labor. Nope. Just carrying low. Damn.
