How To Explain Pregnancy Hormones To A Man?

As you already know, your female partner will change during pregnancy. And it`s not just about her physical shapes, but the way she will act as well.

Simply coming home and opening the front door may become a game of chance. You`ll never what is waiting for you behind that door – a smiling lover who is making dinner quietly, a crying partner you need to put your arms around, or someone who may look similar to a woman you left at the beginning of the day but now holding an axe.

You`ll be surprised, but none of what`s happening is her fault. She just isn`t able to control things around her anymore! Hormones represent chemical substances which get thrown out from various part of her body to put things in motion. When a women is expecting a baby, her hormones start acting like never before to create an ideal environment for her baby.

Hormones in Early Stages of Pregnancy

Human Chorionic Gonadotropin (HCG)

HCG is the most important hormone present while pregnant. This hormone is produced by what will in the end become the placenta. The basic function of this hormone is to the body of a woman that there`s a form of life developing in her belly and that they body has to create a nest for this life form. This hormone also tells the woman`s ovaries to stop the production of mature eggs each month. The HCG levels will increase 8 days after ovulation, peak at 60 – 90 days and then decreasing a bit. Normally, during the first 2 months ½ of pregnancy, HCG levels double each 2 days. The hormone circulates throughout the entire body and gets removed by urine.

Oxytocin

Lots of women consider oxytocin to be the hormone that triggers labor. The synthetic oxytocin form is Pitocin, a medication generally taken to induce labor. In reality, the levels of oxytocin don`t rise as labor starts, it is only that the uterus becomes sensitive to oxytocin as the end of pregnancy progresses. This hormone is also useful during pregnancy in that it stretches the cervix in preparation for birth and stimulates the nipples in order to produce milk.

Relaxin

This hormone is considered to relax the uterine muscle and loosen up the pregnant woman`s ligaments that hold together the pelvic bones, both in preparation for birth. While pregnant, a woman has 10 times the regular amount of this particular hormone. – Click this link!

Prolactin

This hormone produces milk, which is higher 10 – 20 times while pregnant, and has a tranquilizing effect. The hormone prepares the tissues of breasts for lactation.

Estrogen & Progesterone

Although specialists have contradictory ideas on some of the causes of hormones, when it comes to estrogen and progesterone it seems rather certain that they have an important role in pregnancy. These are the hormones responsible for most of the pregnancy signs experienced by an expecting mother.

• Fatigue represents an effect of progesterone, having kind of the same effect on the woman`s brain as so of the sleeping tablets you can buy from pharmacies.
• Breast sensitivity is caused by high levels of estrogen and progesterone, but they reduce significantly from the second trimester.
• Progesterone is responsible for softening cartilage, so it`s responsible for pubic bone and hip pain which is commonly associated with pregnancy.
• A bloated sensation is quite common while pregnant. The bowel muscles relax, and since the bowel usually contain gas, the decrease of muscle tone leads to bowel distention.
• Another function of progesterone is to inhibit the uterine smooth muscle from contraction, therefore letting the baby develop along with the growing uterus. Still, this hormone isn`t selective, so as the levels of progesterone increase, others of the body`s smooth muscles might be affected, like the lower esophageal sphincter whose functioning of shifted gears might lead to increased acid reflux and heartburn, especially in the third pregnancy stage.

Putting things together, you have got someone close to you that always needs your support, no matter how hard it may sometimes feel. So, during the first couple of months, you`ll need to avoid arguing, and do lots of apologizing and agreeing. You have to remind yourself why all this happen and that even though she sometimes feels out of control, this period of time will soon end and you`ll be able to welcome your baby into this world. This is even harder for her than is to you.

Later, when your baby is near to make his appearance, hormones may induce “nesting” as well, when certain pregnant women feel an uncontrollable need to clean. This is actually great, because your house will be spotless; however, you should be aware that she may get rid even of some of the stuff you don`t want to get rid of.

After the levels of hormones suddenly drop, watch out. Along with the stress of your baby coming out and the tiredness, this slump in the levels of hormones might make lots of pregnant women moody. Again, your job is to be a stronger as possible and support her no matter what. She`ll soon be back to her old self, don`t worry!

In extreme situations, the drop in the levels of hormones might cause postnatal depression. If you are concerned about her, ask her to talk to her doctor. However, for most cases, there is nothing that a bit of understanding won`t make things better.

6 “Must Knows” by the Partner of a Pregnant Woman

Dear men, here`re a few things that you may want to know about our pregnancy.

Pregnancy Is Really Hard

It may sound like we are always whining, but pregnancy isn`t easy. We were not really expecting it to be so nauseating, headache-y and exhausting. We really feel like we behave sometimes – which is quite awful! So, at least you can do is look after us, even if you may get bored of always hearing the same moan.

We Are Really Scared

Sure, we are very excited about the fact that we`ll soon be mothers, but lots of us are scared at the same time. We don`t really know what`s life is going to be from now on, and that terrifies us. We are also concerned about our pregnancy, baby or the relationship we have with you. We are practically worried about everything around us.

We Want a Massage Every Once in a While

Carrying around our baby is a difficult task, and we may feel exhausted at times. Our feet are sore, and hips and backs ache, and we really want to feel like you care. So, can you please give us a massage once in a while? And you can maybe not moan about it so much, especially we experience when every pain and ache known to women.

We Appreciate You

We are aware that you have worked harder from the moment you found out we are pregnant. And we know you are doing more to help around the house, probably reading on childbirth and breastfeeding, you are looking after us, or working overtime to save some money. We would like you to know that we appreciate everything you are doing for us.

Keep the Romance Alive

Lots of men assume that since their partner is pregnant, she may not be interested in sex anymore. Well, think again! For some of the women out there, pregnancy in fact increases sex desire because of these hormones we are still talking about. For other ones, pregnant make them tired all the time and takes lots of their energy, and obviously, they might not be as interested into sex as you think. No matter the case, it`s essential to keep the romance alive the entire 9 months. Well, maybe not in the last couple of weeks or so!

Make Her Feel Special

You probably consider your partner a special woman, since she`s giving birth to your child, but when she was the last time you let her know? As her body starts to change, it will change the way she thinks about herself as well. This might make her feel uneasy and insecure, especially on how she looks. You may try to help her with this by making her feel good about herself. Always remind her how beautiful she is, especially with this extra weight she carries around.