9 Month Pregnant

We are seeing a shift in the mid life crisis today. The New York Magazine has coined the phrase “grups” to describe the current middle aged population that tries to fill the generation gap. There is a sound reason for the generation gap. We probably shouldn’t try to fill it. The term grup is derived from an episode of Star Trek in which Captain Kirk and his crew find themselves on a planet run by kids. There are no adults in sight. (By the way if you know the episode I’m talking about you may be having a mid life crisis yourself). In the episode the kids create the term “grup” to refer to the adult crew visiting their child-filled planet. The word is a clever combination of the term “grown-ups” that seems to be a popular way to help us look at ourselves differently. The individuals entering the mid life crisis age are currently referred to as grups because of their inescapable desire to hold on to technology. Nothing is more aggravating than an adolescent who can show an adult how to run an ipod. (If you are wondering what an ipod is then you may be having a mid life crisis of a different kind). However, the younger generation is basically wired to work these kinds of gadgets. You may know a grup. You may even be a grup without knowing it. I got my wake-up call when I was expecting my daughter. The doctor mentioned something about advanced maternal age and I almost smacked him. How dare he? This is my first pregnancy from my first marriage. Okay, so I married when I was 34 but, still. I didn’t realize that I would be the oldest mom at daycare. I didn’t know that I was supposed to be tending to teens instead of toddlers. I was not aware that I should be in mid life crisis. Maybe this is the problem. Maybe my late start in married life is my mid life crisis. I should be sporting a “soccer mom” necklace but the idea makes me totally gag. For real. I guess that I should be listening to the oldies station but it depresses me. When did Elton John enter the realm of the oldies? Oh well, the mid life crisis has snuck up on me. I probably should forget going to the System of a Down concert I’ve been looking forward to attending. I should also back away from the ipod, too. I don’t know how to work those things anyway.

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Multivitamins

Multivitamins Most of us are able to obtain our nutritional needs through our diet, but there are times throughout our lives that we may need multivitamins. Pregnancy is a good example; a woman’s body goes through a number of tremendous changes during this time; health care providers prescribe prenatal multivitamins to make sure the mother and developing fetus get all the required nutrients. Childhood is another period that multivitamins may be recommended. Most children’s diets are less than optimal, picky finicky eaters especially. Children’s multivitamins are made so that kids will eat them, like candy. Though it’s not a good thing to let your children eat at will. One a day will do! Multivitamins are essential for people who cannot get enough of the required nutrients through their regular dietary intake. Times of illness and incapacitation usually require extra supplementation also, because the body is healing and the nutritional requirements are greater. The elderly have greater dietary needs as well, and they are usually not able to fulfill them through diet alone, requiring multivitamins, in addition to calcium, magnesium, vitamin C, and vitamin D. Multivitamins are essential to anyone who has a chronic disease, a genetic condition, or who find themselves in some type of medical crisis. The use of multivitamins in these types of situations should be overseen by a physician or other qualified health care professional, and recommended doses should not be exceeded. Some vitamins can have interactions with prescription medications, such as Coumadin or Warfarin and vitamin K. It is important to let your health care provider know of all medications and supplements you are using and how much you take. Multivitamins are readily available and reasonably priced; most are available without a prescription, and are available in various forms as well, such as capsules, powders, liquids, and tablets, some of which are chewable, like vitamin C. Always read the labels, and take only as recommended; most multivitamins should be taken with food, or they could cause stomach upset. If you notice any type of reaction, stop taking the multivitamins immediately and notify your health care provider. It may be that you just can’t take that specific brand of multivitamins, so don’t rule out taking any type of vitamin. Multivitamins without extra additives and ingredients are usually best because they are better digested and are more easily absorbed by the body. If you’re not sure what type of multivitamins you need, you can also consult the pharmacist or nutritionist at the place of purchase. They will be glad to answer any of your questions. To your health!

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Early Pregnancy Testing

Early Pregnancy Testing After years of trying unsuccessfully to conceive a child, I am the queen of early pregnancy testing. I know that science tells us that early pregnancy testing is not always accurate, but who has the patience to wait weeks before finding out if they are carrying a little bundle of joy? My doctor frowns on early pregnancy testing. He told me that it takes about two weeks after you conceive to accumulate enough HCG for a test to give a positive result. By his calculations, early pregnancy testing is just a waste of money. Maybe he is right, but I just can’t help myself and I give into the early pregnancy testing bug every time. I order pregnancy tests online by the case. I keep them in my bathroom so that I can satisfy my early pregnancy testing whim any time I feel like it. Early pregnancy testing can be extremely frustrating. The three minutes it takes for a line to show up can seem like hours. I try to follow the early pregnancy testing directions. I try to wait for three minutes before I look at the test to see if I am pregnant. Oh, who am I kidding? Every time I give into the urge for early pregnancy testing, I end up sitting on the bathroom counter, holding the test in my hand for the entire three minutes, verbally willing a line to show up. When the three minutes have gone by, I stand there, twisting the test to every angle imaginable. I hold it at arms length. I put it right up to my nose. I squint my eyes, hoping that the blur it creates will show me an early pregnancy testing line. I examine each shadow and I have even been known to rip apart an early pregnancy testing kit to see if the line is more visible outside the casing. Yes, I know. I have it bad. I am suffering from EPTS. (Early Pregnancy Testing Syndrome) I have even been known to dig an hour old test out of the trash just to see if a line somehow snuck onto it. When I finally did get pregnant, I couldn’t believe that I was really seeing a line. I went through five more early pregnancy testing kits before I believed that I was pregnant. I had spent so many years with negative pregnancy results that I didn’t know a positive result when I saw it.

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Large Clothing

Maternity wear is often over-priced and many mothers-to-be opt to buy large clothing rather than clothes made specifically for pregnancy. For some reason, once an item has the “maternity” label attached to it, it becomes pricy. Buying regular clothes in larger sizes is a good alternative for some thrifty ladies. The hunt for the clothes can be tricky. Finding large clothing is not difficult but finding large clothing that looks good can be a challenge. There are certain things to look for when trying to dress your pregnant self. First of all, some clothes have to be designed as maternity wear in order for them to look right. There is no getting around it. You have to invest in nice maternity pants. There are many cute and comfortable maternity pants and very cute maternity jeans available. Buying large clothing does not come into play when it comes to your pants. Your underwear is another story. You can easily get away with buying large clothing when it comes to undergarments. Choose panties that fit under your baby belly and larger sized bras. Many nursing mothers insist on buying nursing bras. Don’t bother. Most of the nursing bras have no support and they are not always easy to unfasten. I have found nice bras in stores that carry large clothing that provide much more support than regular nursing bras. I also didn’t have to fuss with the difficult clasps that are supposed to make things easier. Women automatically think that they need to find the right maternity shirts but you can really get away with buying big shirts instead. My favorite shirt that I wore throughout my pregnancy was not a maternity shirt at all. I found it among large clothing in a discount store at a fraction of the price. I also found my husband’s large clothing to be very helpful. I had a winter pregnancy which really helped my search. I found oversized sweaters and big button down shirts in our closet. My husband didn’t really miss them and I had comfortable outfits to wear around the house. When you are expecting, you want to invest in a few good pairs of maternity pants. The rest of your wardrobe can consist of large clothing. This includes your hospital robe. Nothing is more annoying and more uncomfortable than maternity night gowns. Look for sleepwear in large clothing sections of your favorite store.