Navigating Pregnancy as an Overweight Mom: A Personal Journey

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Just moments after my doctor closed the incision from my Cesarean, she leaned in with a warm smile that could brighten anyone’s day. “Don’t worry,” she said in her charming French accent, “The incision is very low. You’ll be able to wear a bikini.”

“Thank goodness!” I chuckled sarcastically to myself. “What would I do without my bikini?” Out loud, though, I responded, “Doc, you knew me before I got pregnant. I wasn’t donning a bikini then, and trust me, I won’t be after either.”

When I first pondered pregnancy, I was a size 22/24. Even without a medical degree, I recognized that carrying a baby at that size wasn’t the healthiest choice. So, I kicked it into high gear, joining a fitness program and shedding 42 pounds. Despite my efforts, I still ended up at size 16/18, which, according to my OB, meant I should only gain 10-15 pounds during pregnancy. My excitement was instantly deflated.

As my pregnancy progressed, my body craved — no, demanded — brownie sundaes, and I treated myself to one each day. We’re talking about a brownie the size of a deck of cards, topped with a single scoop of vanilla ice cream. Most of the time, I tried to stick to a healthier diet, but those daily indulgences felt necessary. Each week, as the scale inched upward, my OB would ask about my eating habits. I was honest, sharing my balanced diet and my sweet treat. “Why not just have a bite of a brownie?” she suggested one day.

“Doc,” I replied, “I’m doing my best, but I’m definitely going to enjoy my brownie.”

“How about just an eighth of a brownie?” she asked.

Seriously? Who eats an eighth of a brownie?

During my second trimester, my husband and I took to walking in the mall, where I found myself window shopping. I glanced at my reflection while peering into Victoria’s Secret and thought, “HOLY COW! I’m huge!” At five months along, I didn’t look like a glowing mom-to-be; I just looked like a waddling marshmallow. I didn’t show until I was seven months pregnant, which made it easy to hide my pregnancy at work. To my coworkers, it simply looked like I had been indulging a bit too much with Ben & Jerry.

Fast forward to a scorching August day, 40 weeks pregnant, I was waddling through the grocery store preparing for a family picnic. I felt a mix of pitying stares from other women, and one even came up to me, saying, “Oh, sweetheart, you look so uncomfortable. I remember when I was pregnant with twins.”

In that moment, I broke down right in the condiment aisle, sobbing, “It’s just one baby! I’m not having twins. I’m just fat!” My husband had to apologize profusely as the poor woman hurried away.

Okay, maybe I was a bit dramatic, but I was hot, exhausted, and overwhelmed. The day had already been rough, with two different people suggesting I was pregnant with twins.

Despite warnings about the risks of being overweight during pregnancy, my experience wasn’t as dire as I had anticipated. I watched friends who were slimmer struggle with infertility, while I sailed through. I saw fit colleagues develop gestational diabetes, yet I didn’t face that issue. Sure, I went eight days overdue and had a C-section, but I recovered quickly without complications.

My son was a healthy 8 pounds and 15 ounces, and the next morning, I was eager to step on the scale, expecting to lose around 12 pounds from the baby, amniotic fluid, and placenta. But surprise! I actually gained two pounds. Apparently, I forgot about the IV fluids that had my body looking like a puffy balloon.

In the end, all three of my babies were adorable little chubsters with tiny rolls and rosy cheeks. Turns out, a bigger mom often means bigger babies, and those bigger babies tend to sleep through the night sooner. By nine weeks, all three of mine were sleeping twelve-hour stretches. Even though it’s been seven months since my last baby and I still look like I’m six months along, I’m heading off for a solid eight hours of sleep while my sweet chubby girl snoozes in her crib.

And you know what? That feels a lot better than being skinny ever could.

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