First Trimester of Pregnancy

My first trimester was amazing.

No morning sickness.

No headache.

No weird cravings whatsoever.

I still can focus on my work and still driving and sleeping comfortably on my back and switching positions with zero problem.

One thing for sure, I WAS TIRED AND SLEEPY that I just want to rest my head on my fluffy pillows 24/7.

Other than that, pregnancy was amazing! First trimester was good.

Except for the last one week before I entered second trimester.

Vomiting? Every morning, evening and night, yes.

Headache? One spoonful of it every evening, please.

Cravings? Not so much.

Allergic to certain smell or food? Nope. Nothing. Still surviving with any food.

Tired and sleepy? Lesser and lesser each day.

I was on week 17, my lower back pain started to occur. Was hospitalized and went through for physiotherapy for two weeks. I fell on my back, back in 2011, and somehow I fractured my coccyx (aka tail bone). The pain came back and said hello now, after 8 years, is because my pregnancy.

Well, throughout pregnancy, hormones affect a woman's muscles and joints. The hormones relaxin and progesterone relax muscles and loosen ligaments and joints, especially in the pelvic area. The extra weight and body changes in pregnancy along with these loosened joints and ligaments can cause discomfort and even lead to injury. As your uterus grows and becomes heavier, your center of gravity changes. This can lead to problems with balance and the potential for falls. The weight of your baby and weakening of belly muscles pulls your lower spine forward, adding strain to back muscles. Many women respond by leaning back in an awkward posture. This increases back strain and pain. (Link)

It is not normal to have this back pain early in your pregnancy, it should occur later in second trimester but it is a different case for me because of my previous injury. The pain comes early because the relaxin hormones is released that my muscles could not endure the pain that has been there for years.

Hence, intensive physio sessions.

I still need to apply AcuStop and Perskindol on my back until today and also to wear the pregnancy belt (yes, now as in first trimester). I have to apply hot pack and ice pack every day, twice a day to help ease on the pain.

My husband has been nothing but totally supportive and lovely as ever to help me get through this journey. I had to take sick leaves for bed rest and doctor keeps on giving me MC and ask me to rest.

My colleagues are very supportive and they help me get through my days by tackling some of my workload, which I truly appreciate. Thanks, guys.

At this point in life, despite this painful lower back, I am doing my best focusing on eating healthily for the baby, making sure that I did not miss the multivitamins that I have to take every night, think positively, listening to more Quran verses and also piano classical songs, read more and catching up on news, taking care of myself, try not to stress out so much especially with crazy traffics in KL.

I am doing my best to tackle everything at once. I need to practice this now as there is a new responsibility coming my way. A mother :)


Love, MA
x

I AM PREGNANT!

Being pregnant and knowing that you are pregnant are absolute no joke.

We certainly did not plan or expect this to happen but God knows best and He knows more than you do that you are ready for this next chapter in life.

Being born.

Growing up as a kid.

School.

Universities.

Graduated.

Job interviews.

Getting a new job.

Excited for having a long term relationship with someone who is finally serious with you and you also want him too.

Get engaged.

Being married.

Switching jobs.

And now, being PREGNANT.

God has a beautiful way to guide you through it all and here I am. With the weight of 59kg (previously I was 52kg before I got pregnant) and fluffier cheeks and fingers and toes, huge appetite, wanting to sleep all the time, back ache, vomiting and to have a husband who is extraordinarily nice even sometimes I got superbly moody (sometimes?), God is great.

Never in my life that I could be relaxing, lounging in my bedroom, on this king-sized bed, with Mozart/piano classical songs on Spotify running through my ears and perhaps my growing baby in this belly can hear it too, while blogging this, typing these words... that I am pregnant. With a smile on my face. Happy, motherly smile I would say.

How did I get the news? How did I find out that I am pregnant? Here I go...

I have been having this sore breasts for like a month now and I told my husband about it that he wanted to bring me to see a doctor for a checkup but I said no, every single time. Because I was in denial. I thought it was breast cancer or something. It hurts so bad that it grows and I can feel that it is tight and hard. But never in my mind I would think that it is one of the symptoms of pregnancy. I do not have a regular menstrual cycle so not having my period during that month was just a normal day for me.

A month goes by.

I was at work, it was almost lunch time. I called my husband and told him that I think I should go for a checkup because it hurts like hell. He picked me up from work, I asked for a time off and went to the clinic I usually go to. Told my doctor about it and she said, "I think we should go for a urine test." Still, I haven't had a single clue that I was pregnant. I thought it was something else.

Peed in a small jar. Passed it to the nurse.

5 minutes later. Doctor calls my name. Both husband and I entered the consultation room.

"You see these two lines???"

I looked at my husband, staring at him with my eyes wide open.

"No, doctor. What does these two lines means?". Because ladies and gentlemen, I have never done any pregnancy test before so I do not know what is that stick doing with lines.

"These two lines means, you are pregnant! Congratulations!"

My eyes were wide open, swear to God it looked like my eyeballs are gonna fall out. I looked at my husband again, then the doctor started to explain things, pills, vitamins, dieting, this and that but everything was blur for me. I kept looking at the stick with two lines.

"I'm pregnant? Seriously? There is an actual human being inside me right now?"

So the doctor started asking me when was my last period, I said I don't know because I never keep track on it, never really count the days and what not, never bothers about getting pregnant and all because I just thought that it won't happen to me, yet.

So, folic acid once a day.

Calcium and some multivitamins. Iron. Vitamin C and B3.

It was (& still is!) surreal knowing that I am pregnant.

Out from the clinic, my husband hugged me tightly, "We are going to be parents!"

I was still in shocked and I was laughing scarily, both laughing and crying at the same time. I asked my husband thousands of questions, "Do you think I can be a mom? Like a good mom? Like I mean, really good mom? Do you think I have what it takes?"

That is what I did when I freaked out. I tend to ask millions questions that I know I won't give them time to actually answer me. Those questions were meant for myself, that I just said it out loud.

Back in the office.

Immediately told my teammates because I freaked out. Of course with a smile on my face but... on the inside... it was more than just freaking out. Overwhelming. And I just couldn't remember how the rest of the day went. Maybe I fell asleep in my husband's arms or maybe I cried myself to sleep, I don't know. LOL!

Well, there you go.

A little bit of an introduction of my pregnancy journey.

Day one of knowing there is an actual person inside me.

Alhamdulillah. God is great.

I am truly blessed. No joke. X

2nd Wedding Anniversary

11 November 2017

Two years ago

Married to the most lovable man on Earth

I am blessed

Thank you for making me happier each and every day

Thank you for being the best husband one could ever have

Thank you

& I love you

x

Public Toilet Etiquette

I don't usually post in my blog about daily complaints I have in my life, but when I do, I either must've been so pissed or I have done things to make it better but nope, IT DOES NOT GET ANY BETTER.

From the title itself (see above and come back here), you are well-noted that this girl must have been through a lot the fact that she wants to talk about what happens in the ladies room? The answer is, HELL YES.

Let me simplify this for you, you don't just go in, do your business and go out. No, you thought wrong. There is an art to it. There is a way or shall I say, civilized ways to do it. I don't ask for red carpet or a bow before you want to pee, but there are a lot more than just peeing and pooping.

When you are sharing things in public places, just respect these two things; OTHER PEOPLE'S PRIVATE SPACES & THINGS AROUND YOU.

1. Let's say there are 4 to 10 toilet booths/stalls in each washroom, and all of them are empty (available), please don't go beside the occupied booth. Have some manners. Understand the concept of people's invisible bubbles and spaces.

2. Same goes to the washing basin/sinks. Just go somewhere else. There are always available sinks in there. People doesn't want to sniff you. God knows what you smell like and you don't want other people to smell you too. You are standing way too close with your wet hands and the water might splashes the person beside you and they do not like that. So keep your distance. AT ALL TIMES.

3. Know how to queue if the booths/stalls are all occupied. If you live in Malaysia, especially if you go to Suria KLCC, people do not queue in front of the toilet booth's door. We queue before the booth starts. So just be a lady and queue like the rest of us. If you see nobody's queuing in front of the door, don't be a hero and try to do it because you might get scolded.

4. I know that some of us don't really do business in there. If you did, I know it should be long done, but you are taking too much time in there due to phone usage. I know you have been scrolling around your Facebook and Instagram and there's nothing coming out from your system anymore but little that you know (and how selfish you have been), people actually needed it more than you do. So please mind others.

5. Tissue matter. Well, try your damn best not to wet the whole tissue roll with your wet hands because simple, it is plain disgusting. Bring that tissue roll home because nobody wants to use it anymore, just you.

6. Squatting on a seating toilet. This is the most common issue and I am freakin sick and tired with this. Well there are some of us does not know how to sit on a toilet seat, maybe because either you are from the third-world country or you are disgusted with the idea of sharing bum-prints with strangers. Let's say you are either one of these two, please go to the squat-style toilet OR lift up the toilet seat and squat without the seat OR take off your bloody shoes and wipe it back! Do you know that your shoe-prints are more disgusting than people's butt? So please, kampung people. I beg of you, be civilized.

7. Sit on the toilet seat nicely and properly. I noticed there are some who doesn't want to sit on the toilet seat due to germophobe but please think that your pee and shit are way more than just germs/bacteria. Sometimes there are pee/poop stains. Check before you leave the toilet and see if there is any stain on the toilet, and clean it up before you go. It is not that hard, unless you leave it for days then yeah...

8. Try your best not to wet the floor. I don't understand why some of you like to wet the whole booth area. I mean, you just want to wash one or two places on your body and everything should go down the toilet bowl, not the floor.

9. I noticed this a lot that MANY OF YOU slams the door (toilet booth's door). Once you swing them open, you just smash it against the sharing wall and slams it again when you close it, and when you are done with your business, you slams it open and just let the door slams back without you holding it before it closes. I mean, why? Why, bitches? What are you so mad about that you just want to slams things? Is it because of your diarrhea? Or constipation? Or did you lose your job or your mom never taught you to respect public's facilities? Just, DON'T. SLAM. THINGS. Teach your kids that so that they won't be like you.

10. Learn how to flush down your things. People don't want to see it. You may be proud of what came out of you but honestly, you are the most disgusting person on Earth. If you encounter a problem with the flush that your things just float around and too stubborn to go down for a sewage treatment, ask the cleaner or the management to help you out with it. Don't just leave and let people see it. And no, covering the toilet seat is not a way out. BE RESPONSIBLE OF YOUR OWN SHIT. Make sure to look twice if its gone or not. You know what I mean.

11. Women & their things. You know what I'm talking about. Not all washroom provides the blue bin in every booth/stall so be a proper lady and wrap it nicely with a tissue or two and dump it at the bin outside the booth. The bin should always be there unless you are too stupid to see it. Just wrap it nicely (with a bow if you like), like wrapping a present for Christmas, to put it under a Christmas tree. Wrap it tight and good so that it won't come out even the cleaner is trying to clean it up. Let's say if you are in a situation where the bin is full, don't just shove it there. Ask the cleaner to clear the bin. Yes, it's their job to always make way for new rubbish/trash in there and to make sure that it is always tidy and clean and smells good, but you should make it easier for them.

Take this as your new motto to live in a civilized world with civilized people:

HIDUP JANGAN MENYUSAHKAN ORANG LAIN.

Let us create a better future and a better toilet experience. Cheers to pee/poop in peace! Woohoo!