Swelling/Edema

I was a balloon from about 28 weeks on too! Frankly, I never really found anything that worked for me, but you can make sure you are cutting out nearly all salt (including hidden sodium in foods-- read your labels!), drinking tons (8-10 glasses a day) of water and/or non-caffenated beverages, and doing the legs-up-the-wall thing a couple times a day for no more than 5-7 minutes at a time. Also, staying off your feet/ out of the car as much as possible (hard with 2 at home, I know.)

If there is an upside to it, it's that you lose a TON of weight the week after the baby comes, lol!

You could wear thigh-high support stocking. They can be found at a medical supply store or on the internet. They can be difficult to pull on and make you warm in the summer, but the compression will decrease how swollen your legs are. They can also help prevent varicose veins. DO wear knee-high ones - they can put pressure on the blood vessels behind your knees and make the situation worse. Sit with your feet up whenever possible. You can also look for 'regular' thigh high stockings made with more than 20% lycra, they offer less support and compression, but are easier to put on and will not make you as hot. Also, make sure you are drinking at least 2 quarts of water/day. It seems contrary, but drinking more water can actually help relieve swelling.

Best of luck!!

I totally understand! My feet looked like sponges towards the end. Get yourself some cute maxi dresses and comfy shoes........Maybe some support garments (check out Spanx maternity). Elevate your legs when you can't take it anymore........

You'll make it! Good luck!

Congrats on your pregnancy, Stephanie! Did you know that alfalfa is a natural aid for fluid retention and swelling? Taking alfalfa supplements has helped many a pregnant mom in your situation :). Here's where to get one grown without any fungicides, growth regulators or chemicals...and no artificial preservatives (all stuff neither you nor baby needs!): http://solutionsforhealthylives.myshaklee.com/us/en/produ....
Blessings,
A.

i second the water, but what i found that helped too was laying on my back close to a wall and putting my legs/feet in the air leaning against the wall. So your body is shaped like an L. it sounds funny but my yoga teacher told me about it and it really helped reduce the swelling!

I was extremely swollen for the last couple of months w/ my 2nd. My midwife suggested that I eat watermelon & cucumbers since they're both natural diaretics. She also asked me to make sure that I was salting food to taste (and not avoiding it) since the water will "follow" the salt. She also encourged me to drink lots of water & go for regular walks, as well as do some swimming or water aerobics. Those things, along w/ elevation, helped to alleviate it, but it didn't go away entirely till about 4 or 5 days postpartum.
Hang in there! It'll be flip flop season soon! ;-)

it seems counter-intuitive, but drink lots of water! This way your body won't feel the need to retain all that water since you are keeping it so well hydrated. This seemed to work for me for my second pregnancy - i didn't want a repeat of the horrible swelling from my first pregnancy!

I had the same thing and it was pretty bad. My Dr. said it would take a couple of weeks after the delivery to go down. "A couple of weeks!!!", I thought. So, after I delivered I drank water like crazy and it was completely gone in a few days. I don't think you can really do anything to make it go away during pregnancy, unfortunately.