Preparedness is a personal trait that I'm quite proud of. So it would follow suit that in the months leading up to two huge life changes (moving abroad and having a child) I did A LOT of preparing...lots of reading, research, list/schedule making, organizing, and getting advice from others. Those preparations, I believe, have helped our family make a smooth transition into what could have been a train wreck of life changes! Arthur gets some serious credit here too...he is my favorite travel buddy, a solid voice of reason, a constant source of encouragement, a savvy problem solver, and (of course) the best dang husband/daddy ever...sorry...I got distracted.
Anyway, the thing I did not prepare for was the chronic pain and loss of mobility that came with Symphysis Pubis Dysfunction (SPD). At 15 weeks the pain of my jeans pressing on my pubic bone left me in tears...I wasn't even showing yet. I began buying maternity pants two sizes too big but even those were painful. By 20 weeks I was wearing mostly leggings and dresses. At 24 weeks I begged a flight attendant to let me sleep on the floor of the plane during a 10hr flight because sitting for so long made my hips burn with pain and caused muscle spasms in my back. At 28 weeks I was in pain 24/7. I couldn't walk, sit, sleep, or stand without being in the worst pain of my life. Because I was pregnant I refused to take any pain medication.
When I shared my pain with my midwife in the states she said, "Pregnancy is supposed to be uncomfortable." But when I broke down in front of my new midwife in Norway she knew this was not normal and immediately referred me to a chiropractor and physical therapist. I was told I had SPD (called "bekkenløsning" here) and that it would most likely go away immediately after labor.
The last two weeks of pregnancy are the worst for any women and I was no exception. I had begun to consider begging for an induction so I'm very thankful Alexander came on his due date! But I knew the very next day after labor that I had not made a spontaneous recovery. I continued to have all the same symptoms but now I had a baby to care for!
I was completely unprepared for the emotional toll that came with the pain and loss of mobility. As an athlete, I had learned to push my body to get results. Now I was being told every single movement I made contributed to the pain intensifying and that the best thing I could do was remain as immobile as possible...oh and absolutely no lifting. Ok...I can do that pregnant but tell me how I'm supposed to be on bed rest and not lift my beautiful newborn baby!?
I've been told by my orthopedist (one of the 6 medical professionals I've been referred to so far) that I shouldn't run for 6-12 months. Run!? As much as I want to run I'd settle for just a walk. To walk around the mall. To walk my son around the neighborhood. To explore this beautiful country. But I've found that usually, anything more than walking around the house takes me several days to recover. It's absolutely maddening. I've gone from someone who was active and independent to sedentary and dependent. I am desperate to just lace up my running shoes and run all my frustrations out but I can't.
There are positives in all this...Arthur takes incredible care of me, my son is happy and healthy, and other than these dysfunctional hips I am healthy too. I try to have faith that there is an end in sight and to take life day by day. I am so thankful for the prayers and concern. This sucks but I will get through it! I'm looking forward to training for a half marathon, maybe even a triathlon, once this is all behind me.
And (because I'm so good at preparing) I'm planning on getting some kind of snarky yet triumphant tattoo on these rotten hips of mine to celebrate overcoming all that they put me through!
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