Pregnancy is a time of enormous change and growth for both the mother and of course, the baby. Not only do we have the physical changes that we can see in our body such as an increase in size of the belly, increase in size of the breasts and extra weight gain but we also have some pretty significant changes going on inside the body.

Here we have 5 did you knows to explain the changes that will be going on side your pregnant body:

You have a 30% increase in blood going around your body

Your heart rate rises by 10-15 beats per minute

Lying on your back for too long after 16 weeks can put pressure on your vena cava,  which can cause some women to feel dizzy, nauseous or light headed when on their back for too long. This is because the vena cava is the large vein responsible for returning the body’s blood flow back to the heart and this blood flow return can be compromised in pregnant women when lying on their back for too long.
Your growing baby starts to squash all your organs as it fights for space in the abdomen. This can lead to a quicker feeling of fullness after eating, an increase in the frequency to urinate and feeling out of breath more easily as your diaphgram (breathing muscle) gets squashed up higher into your rib cage towards the end of the pregnancy.

The hormone relaxin in your system is responsible for relaxing the joints, in particular the pelvis, to allow the baby to come through. This can sometimes lead to pain in the front of your pubic bone commonly referred to as pubis symphysis pain. This occurs where the two sides of the pelvis meet at your pubic bone and can “rub” and cause friction due to the softening of the pelvis, leading to the pain.

Stay tuned for tips on how to move and eat well to ensure a healthy pregnancy.