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Childbirth Class Online - Class One

By Robin Elise Weiss, LCCE, About.com

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Pregnancy Adjustments

Full Term Pregnant Woman

Now that we've got the basics of pain under our belt, let's shift a bit and talk about pain in pregnancy.

Being pregnant is not the most comfortable condition to be in by any means. You have lots of body changes going on that you have no control over. You've got your stomach shrinking from the increasing size of the uterus. This means that you can't eat much at one sitting and that you are prone to heartburn.

You've got a wonderful growing baby who thinks it's a blast to punch your bladder, which means that you make frequent stops to the bathroom, only to find that it was a mere three drops of urine that sent you racing in that direction.

Your joints and ligaments are being bombarded with all sorts of hormones that will help you when it's time to give birth, but for the moment do nothing but make you waddle and feel like a Barbie® doll that someone has pulled the legs out side ways.

There are many things that you can do to stay comfortable towards the end of your pregnancy. One of the best thing is to stay mobile. This can mean a variety of things including regular exercise that you did before pregnancy, a series of special pregnancy exercises, or a combination of both. At the very least try to do some of the following pregnancy exercises every day. They will help to keep you limber and more comfortable.

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