The Thing I Hate Most About Recovering from Miscarriage

There are plenty of things that suck a lot about having a miscarriage.

One of the most annoying things I have found is the symptoms that hang around making you still feel “pregnant” even though you know you’re not (there is this cruel kind of trick where the pregnancy hormones hang around for a few weeks, so even if you did a test it would still say you were pregnant).

I was lucky this time around, when I went in for a D&C a few days ago, my anaesthetist asked if I still had any symptoms. I mentioned I still felt a bit sick in the afternoons, so he popped some anti-nausea in my drip so I wouldn’t have to deal with that for the rest of the day (how cool is he??)

I was telling Sam how considerate I thought that was when I came out of theatre, and he said I should have asked what else was on the menu… HA!

But the thing that really bugs me the most is that you still look pregnant for a while after as well. As in, the belly takes ages to go away, and the boobs are swollen and still hurt for a while too. It’s like carrying around a constant reminder of what you’ve just lost.

You would think going in to winter it wouldn’t matter so much, because it’s a lot easier to hide when you’re out in public, except… we’re off to Broome in a weeks time, where I think I would really like to enjoy sunning myself by the pool for a few hours each day.

Unfortunately, there isn’t going to be anywhere for that belly to hide inside that bathing suit.

So, my goal for this week is to try my hardest to get myself looking and feeling back to “normal”.

I know, there is nothing I can really do to flush those hormones out any quicker than they would naturally go, but I think what I can do is spend the week eating as healthy as possible and doing some light exercise too.

I know, some people are probably thinking that there’s already so much pressure in society for ladies to look a certain way and I shouldn’t be promoting a specific body type etc etc.

But, from my point of view, I categorise being happy with how your body looks as part of the process of setting goals, feeling good from a health and wellness perspective and feeling a sense of achievement when you hit the fitness level you set out to achieve.

Just like certian body types shouldn’t be shamed, ladies who like to look fit and feel healthy shouldn’t be shamed for having those goals either.

Before you say “take it easy” and “don’t work out too hard”… don’t worry.

I’m not an idiot. I know I can’t just launch into intense cardio and ab workouts straight away.

I did talk to my OB about exercise options the first time around and he basically just said get back into it. I did experience some pain and discomfort, but he pretty much just said that’s to be expected to some extent and that in some ways it’s just part of the healing process…

So, I started out with a 1 hour walk on Friday (first day I was able to leave the house), did RPM on Saturday morning (I love that, because you can just pop the handle bars up so there’s no pressure on the abs and just smash it out) and my goal for the rest of the week is to do:

Step on Monday (I’ll take it easy)

Jogging on Tuesday

RPM on Wednesday (I could do body attack but I think it’s best not to tempt myself with burpies and jump tucks… lol!)

PACE on Thursday (just a shorter more intense version of RPM)

Body Attack on Friday (I know, I said I wasn’t going to do attack but…I figure I’ll be feeling much better by then and I’ll just take it easy… it’s only a half class)

RPM on Saturday

And then I think I can have a break on Sunday.

I may or may not make all those classes depending on how I’m feeling, but I’m going to give it a go.

At the very least, I can feel like I’ve made an effort and be satisfied that I’m back on the road to feeling “normal” again.

The hardest part is going to be limiting my snacks to fruit and nuts… (and not the chocolate variety!)