Two Week Wait

Every woman has had the dreadful experience of the "two week wait." Two week wait refers to the time between your ovulation and your scheduled menstruation.  For those eagerly awaiting a pregnancy or nail biting over the outcome of an"oopsie," those two weeks can feel like they drag on foreeeeeeeeeeeevvveeerrrrr. If you're anything like me, those two weeks are full of magnified self examination of both physical and emotional symptoms. I would search for the tiniest clue to see if Aunt Flow was truly on her way or if the first little signs of our very own Baby Bear were peeking through.

Here is the thing.... While, it may seem impossible, putting it out of your mind is the best thing you can do. Very, very early pregnancy symptoms and menstruation symptoms are exactly the same. No women's PMS is the same every month and no women's early pregnancy symptoms are the same every pregnancy.  They are both your body's response to a surge of very similar female hormones. There are tons of articles detailing the "Very Early Signs of Pregnancy." They include: Bloating, Cramps, Discharge, blah, blah, blah... Get me drift? Hello! You just described PMS. And those early pregnancy tests... Sheesh! Even if you get a negative result, you're not going to believe it until your period arrives. So why waste the money and heartache?

My family relied on fertility treatments to get our Little Bear here and in our arms.  Fertility treatments certainly take the fun out of "making a baby." They are very scheduled, regimented, sometimes painful, and expensive.  We made 10 attempts before getting our positive test and let me tell you, it was the time I "stopped caring" and quit self examining that I had a successful try. I literally said to myself, "I can't keep planning my life around this." I am someone who springs into action right away, so I made a major job change, enjoyed caffeine again, and bought new clothes (in my current size) all while completely ignoring my body.

I swear to you.... it was after those two weeks I found out I was pregnant. And, ironically I knew I was pregnant because I had a complete absence of any symptoms.

My point of this entry is more for the Mama Bears. You are not alone. That two week wait is crazy for any woman and something we rarely ever talk about.  It takes time to make perfect, don't give up and don't drive yourself crazy with micromanaging your own body.