How Much Pressure Can a Pregnant Belly Take?

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How Much Pressure Can a Pregnant Belly Take?

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Most mothers will spend a lot of time rubbing and coddling their pregnant belly. Right from the time, it starts to form into a beautiful little bump.

At that time, you’ll feel all kinds of sensations to go along with it. A pregnant belly grows at a rate faster than we can seem to keep up with.

Unsurprisingly your baby is growing even faster than what you see from the outside. Your body is working hard to fill your uterus up with amniotic fluids, a healthy placenta, and a cute little baby too.

There’s a little baby eco-system happening the entire time you’re pregnant. Keeping that environment safe is a mother’s biggest priority.

Accidents happen though and you might experience a bump to your belly too hard at some point. When it happens, the confidence you’ve held about keeping your baby safe might feel compromised.

You might stop dead in your tracks wondering if your baby will be okay, especially if you’re a mom to other small children or a dog mom.

That’s probably why you’re reading this article at all, to figure out how much pressure your growing belly can handle without causing harm to the fetus in your womb?

Accidents Happen and Can Cause You To Question If Your Fetus Is Okay

Going through the daily motions while you aren’t pregnant is already tough enough. We knock things over, trip, and have accidents sometimes.

But, triple fold this for a pregnant woman who has a growing belly and even less equilibrium that stable. You have yourself a mountain of accidents waiting to happen, if you’ve fall during pregnancy here is what to keep in mind.

A Fall or Forceful Blow to the Belly in the First Trimester of Pregnancy

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During the first trimester, your baby is well protected in your womb. There’s amniotic fluid starting to fill in around your belly and the placenta is just beginning to form.

You aren’t likely to cause any harm to your baby at this time if you fall or lay on your belly. Even if someone knocks into your belly forcefully, you should be okay.

There are 5 layers of muscles in the stomach holding the uterus in place. Your body is designed to protect and nourish your baby from all outside factors.

Second or Third Trimester Falls and Pressure

During the second or third trimester, you mighty experience trauma to your fetus if you have a forceful blow to your belly. If you fall on your belly, there can be blood from your growing fetus expelled during the fall or even placental abruption.

Placental abruption happens when the placenta is completely detached from the uterus wall. This causes a wide array of problems and even drives the doctors to deliver a baby early via C-Section.

On the less extreme side, placental abruption can be healed with bed rest, but you always need to be seen by a professional when the placenta abrupts.

Symptoms of placental abruption include bleeding, contractions, and pain in the back. This can happen at any point in the last 12 weeks of pregnancy.

Any time you believe you’re experiencing placental abruption, you should seek assistance from a doctor to advise better what to do. It’s very important to seek medical advice as soon as you feel this has happened to treat it as quickly as possible.

My Pregnant Belly Got Hit Fairly Hard What Should I Do Now

As your baby grows inside your womb, it might feel as though it consumes everything in its path. You end up hitting the counters, steering wheel, and everything else in its surroundings.

What are the implications of your pregnant belly getting hit, you ask?

While it will feel like your pregnant belly has hit just about everything in its path, you can rest assured that your baby is fairly safe while in your womb. You don’t have to stress about every contact your belly has with the outer world.

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Toddlers jump on their mamma’s belly’s all the time and younger sibling turns out to be alright. Amazingly, a mother’s body is designed to protect her growing fetus, at all costs.

Many women have fallen on their belly’s to the dismay of serious injury yet turned out to be perfectly okay in the end.

Even more so, the amniotic fluid surrounding your fetus keeps them sort of bobbing around in there, providing much protection from where your belly has been impacted.

My Toddler Likes to Give Extra Big Hugs Can this Hurt My Baby

One thing I had to really teach my three and five-year-old when I was pregnant was the importance of walking slowly over toward mommy for those bear hugs I love.

The force of a 20-40lb toddler isn’t enough to hurt your baby if they run and jump on you by accident. You don’t want it to happen all the time though, for sake of your muscles that are stretching.

The only thing that could possibly cause injury to your fetus from your toddlers is if they begin throwing a tantrum – those tantrum kicks and hits could harm your baby.

Teach your toddler that mommy’s belly and body is going through a lot at this time.

Try saying something along the lines of “Mommy loves when we roll around and play together, but our baby is too small to play like that just yet” or during a fit try saying “Honey I know you’re upset, but mommy will have to leave this area if you don’t stop kicking and hitting, our baby could get hurt in mommy’s tummy”.

Anytime that my toddlers threw a fit and I explained to them how fragile our baby was in my belly, they generally listened up about their little brother or sister.

If they aren’t changing their behavior, then you should leave the room to protect you and your baby until the older child has calmed down a bit.

A mother’s body isn’t super fragile

The female body is not that delicate, throughout history women have gone through lots of trauma while being pregnant.

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Women and their babies survive through natural disasters and have always done strenuous physical work to help with their tribes or on the farm.

In fact, female babies who are ill with sickness will fight to survive longer than a male baby. This has been proven in studies, showing us just how resilient the female body is.

Dog Moms Go Through These Questions All of the Time from an Extra Loving Puppy

We’ve heard of many mothers who were a dog mom long before they conceived the baby. In the case of mothers who have big dogs, this could cause concern when their dog jumps up on the pregnant belly.

If your dog is over 40lbs, you should train your dog to kneel or sit before approaching you, a blow from a dog this size could potentially harm you and your baby. They are just too heavy and hyper dogs jump a lot.

Trim your dog’s nails throughout pregnancy

Another thing you need to consider no matter how big your pup is their nails. Unclipped nails of dogs can be sharp, slicing open the skin on accident.

Keep your dog’s nails clipped throughout your pregnancy to avoid any unwanted scratches that could lead to infection on the surface of your belly.

Dogs can become a tripping hazard if they get under the feet of mom

We all love to have our dog beside us, but when we’re pregnant it might be best to create a little more distance while walking around. Teach your pup to not walk in front of you to avoid falling over them.

It could be quite dangerous to get caught in a nasty trip from not seeing your dog, which could potentially cause harm to your unborn fetus from the impact upon falling down.

You could also hit your head during a fall, which could be dangerous if no one is nearby to assist you.

Keep in mind that during pregnancy you will naturally be a bit dizzy when you stand up from the couch. Your equilibrium could be quite off so be ready for that in the latter days of pregnancy.

Certain Activities Should Cause Pregnant Women to be Extra Cautious While Performing

It’s important to know which activities to be extra cautious of while performing. Even if your belly doesn’t get impacted or bumped in the process, some tasks could risk injury and preterm labor from doing them.

Don’t Lift Heavy Items Especially In the 2nd and 3rd Trimester

That’s according to the American College of Obstetricians and Gynecology.

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The following guidelines apply for the occasional heavy lift

If you aren’t 20 weeks pregnant yet, then it’s approved for you to occasionally lift up to 36 lbs. Anything over this even early in pregnancy could put you at risk for pulling the muscles of the uterus or in other parts of the body.

After 20 weeks of pregnancy, you shouldn’t lift any more than 26lbs, at this point your body is creating a lot of the hormone relaxin (putting you at higher risk of a pulled muscle).

Aside from the extra relaxin, you’re at a greater risk of preterm labor at this point.

The following guidelines apply if your job requires you to lift daily

If you aren’t 20 weeks pregnant yet, you can lift up to 18lbs on a regular basis without adding extra risk to your pregnant body. But, once you’re over 20 weeks of pregnancy, you should not routinely lift more than 13lbs on a regular basis.

Practice Safe Lifting Regardless of How Far Along You Are

Regardless of how far along you are in your pregnancy, you need to ensure that you are practicing safe lifting no matter how heavy the items your lifting is. Follow these rules when lifting:

• Bend the knees instead of your waist
• The back should remain as straight as possible when lifting
• The glutes, thighs, and core should be actively engaged to help with standing
• Breathe deeply and don’t hold your breath during a lift
• Don’t hold the object outward from your body and make sure you keep it close during the lift

Traveling More Often Present More Opportunity For a Car Accident to Occur

If there’s one thing that all pregnant women dislike, it’ll be traveling. The physical aspect of traveling anyways, the adventure is always fun.

But there’s more to look out for than just having to pee every five minutes on the road. Car accidents send pregnant women to the emergency room on a regular basis.

Getting in a car accident while pregnant is often scary, your emotions are running high and you might have had your belly impacted by the steering wheel or by the lap belt. Doctors find that it’s the number one reason that patients call into the office.

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If you’re the driver, adjust your seat back far enough to allow enough room for your belly as it grows. Don’t drive with your belly up against the steering wheel, but stay close enough to be comfortable still.

If you end up being in a car accident while pregnant, you should go to your OB or primary physician’s office as soon as possible.

If any harm was done to you or your unborn baby, it’s best to catch it early. Symptoms could take a while to present since an injury could cause internal injuries, not obvious from the outside.

When Nesting Hits in the 3rd Trimester, Be Careful Not to Overdo It

I’ve been a pregnant woman in the nesting phase plenty of times, so I can vouch how intense it can get.

I won’t go on to tell the story of how I scrubbed my shower one time when I was pregnant with twins. I think I might have pulled a muscle though. Don’t overdo the nesting phase.

When you’re nine months pregnant, it’s natural to want to prepare for your baby that’s coming in the near future.

You will want to organize, re-arrange, and even move furniture sometimes. The part that can leave you in a worse place physically is when you start moving furniture around.

Ask for help from a partner or friend if you want to rearrange the living room or baby’s room. It’ll be worth it in the long run.

It can make you feel strong and full of energy to get things in order for when your baby arrives. You can give direction to the project while being 9 months pregnant and feel good.

Weight Lifting, Running, or Strenuous Exercise Should Be Thought Over Beforehand

If you were an active individual prior to pregnancy, it can feel like you want to keep up the activities throughout the duration of your pregnancy. The reality is you should be careful of what you do in the second and third trimester.

It can be tempting to lift the weights you used to because you physically can keep doing it.

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The concern isn’t with how well your muscles still function, it’s about how well the internal muscles holding the uterus, vagina, and anus hold together.

As they grow with the pregnancy, they’re stretching significantly and holding up more weight than ever before. If you’re at the gym lifting, running, or exercising it’s best to take some precautions and keep the following tips in mind.

Running on the treadmill can present joint injuries

Remember that the safety pull is right at the front in case you fall down, that will stop it immediately that way further injury doesn’t happen.

You should position yourself towards the back of the treadmill or the middle because towards the front your belly might bump the front panel.

Start the speed slower as the pregnancy continues, especially on days you feel tired. Your body will continue making more relaxin as the pregnancy goes on so be aware of how your joints feel prior to getting on the treadmill.

Lifting weights should be re-evaluated as you get into the later trimesters

If you usually lift weights without a spotter, consider asking someone to be your spotter if you’re in the second and third trimester. It can be beneficial for an experienced lifter to be with you, to see your form from the outside.

The amount of weight your lifting should be evaluated, and lessened as needed. Don’t lift with your back, and keep good form throughout the entire weight session.

If your form starts to look bad, consider resting for the rest of the session instead of continuing. Be attentive to any light-headedness you might feel, this should be taken seriously as to not cause you to pass out.

Hot yoga is more intense than regular yoga and can cause overheating during pregnancy

Yoga is great during pregnancy. While you’re in any of the three trimesters of pregnancy, you can perform any type of yoga you’d like to.

Though, hot yoga should be looked at with caution, as it can cause injury to you and your baby from the high degrees of heat.

When to See a Doctor From an Impact To Your Pregnant Belly

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It’s no doubt that your belly during pregnancy can take quite a lot of pressure since it’s designed to be the safe haven for your growing fetus.

The entire 9 months of your pregnancy should be fun, not sulked over in stressful worry that your baby will not be okay.

Yet, there are times when you might need to see a doctor. These times might not be as obvious as they need to be to rush you to the emergency room. That’s why we have an OB or midwife in the first place, to help us when we’re in need.

After any car accident no matter how small, fall directly onto your belly, or forceful blow to the belly. You should let your obstetrician know right away.

If there is any bloody discharge or consistent contractions within the half-day after having an incident, you should be seen for internal injury to you or your baby.

Lastly, if your baby has not moved as usual after the blow – five or fewer times an hour during the late stages of pregnancy. You should seek medical assistance as soon as possible.

There should be a 24-hour help phone line that you can call if it’s after hours. Don’t feel bad for calling to ask for reassurance, this is exactly the reason why your OB is available.

They get calls like this all the time and are used to answering phone calls after hours.

In Conclusion

You can take some significant bear hugs from toddlers, falls, and even minor car accidents during pregnancy and still come out on the safe end of the spectrum. Yet, some injuries from the pressure to your pregnancy belly might be harder to recognize.

It’s always best to be on the safe side. Call your obstetrician in any minor or major pressure causing a blow to the belly. The sooner that you catch any injury, the better the outcome will be for your baby and you.

Some internal injuries will be non-symptomatic, meaning there’ll be no signs from the outside showing your fetus has lost blood, or your organs are injured.

Even a pulled muscle is enough reason to get medical assistance as it could cause undesirable symptoms if enough rest or treatment is not taken right as it happens.

Get assistance or at least call for verbal reassurance when in doubt. And be sure to live a carefree pregnancy as well.

Women all throughout history have been known to be strong, resilient, and done physically enduring tasks by choice while carrying a baby in their womb.

If you find yourself stressing in a way that you feel is unnecessary after your dog jumps on your belly or such, take a few breaths, talk with a family member if possible, to evaluate the situation, and see if a call to your midwife is reasonable in their eyes as well.

Sources

Can Hitting Your Pregnant Belly Hurt Your Baby? – Parents.com

How much pressure can a belly take? – BabyCenter

35-pound toddler laying on pregnant belly – BabyCenter

Can My Pet Hurt My Baby If They Jump On My Stomach? Their Excitement Has Limits – Romper