By Sharon Robinson, The Hadassah Medical Center
So you are pregnant, what now? Other than becoming “fatter,” there are so many new things occurring that it can make your head spin.
Your body undergoes an enormous amount of change to accommodate and provide for the new being that is inside you and must be sustained and provided for until it exits your body.
Changes to your body during pregnancy are termed “physiological changes,” and there are many during pregnancy. The good news is that virtually all of these changes reverse themselves either during the course of the pregnancy or following the pregnancy.
The other good news is that, even though the physiological changes may not exactly be fun, they are completely normal and nothing to fear as there is very good reason for all of these changes as well as them being a very small price to pay for what is waiting for you at the end of this adventure.
We have already mentioned one physiological change –- the growth of your stomach. This is obviously to make room for your new companion. As the fetus draws its nutrition from the mother, it requires the mother to eat more so as to sustain both herself and the fetus. The baby gains weight, and so the mother’s stomach gets larger and she weighs more.
Approximately half of pregnant women suffer from morning sickness that may involve vomiting and nausea. Although called morning sickness it may occur at any time of the day. Thankfully, morning sickness is usually temporary and often passes after the first trimester.
The most common cause of morning sickness is the body being flooded with estrogen to help the body cope with the changes it is undergoing. There are medications -– both conventional and alternative — that can reduce the effects of morning sickness.
Changes to the musculoskeletal structure of the woman also occur that enable the body to walk more easily with the additional load that it now bears. These changes affect the gait and posture of the woman. Similarly, a woman’s legs and feet may swell due to fluid retention and weight gain.
Blood volume and plasma increase by 40-50 percent, resulting in increases in heart rate, cardiac output, and stroke volume. Platelet concentration decrease though which can result in anemia. Once again, all these changes are natural and a coping device for the complex changes the body is in the process of assimilating.
Another physiological change is growth in breast size. Breasts grow as they prepare to undertake their important role of feeding the baby once it as left the security of your body. Beasts usually grow one to two cup sizes during pregnancy but may grow even more.
Numerous other physiological changes occur during pregnancy; some visible, some not. Almost all changes, within normal parameters, are necessary. If you feel something is not “normal,” contact your doctor. Nature does all it can to prepare you and your body for the miracle of childbirth and it doesn’t leave anything to chance.
Sharon Robinson is a member of the marketing team at the Hadassah Medical Center in Jerusalem, a university based medical institution, with a dedicated service for international patients. Visit to fiind about ivf treatments and more information on physiological changes during pregnancy.