Water retention??

[Laura_James&Amber]

For the past two days my ankles and bottom of my legs have been more swollen than usual. They ache and feel heavy. I had a feel around of them and they feel all squishy like theres water in them. I showed OH and got him to feel and he thinks the same and thinks I should go to the doctors, I'm not sure as I thought it was normal and don't want to make a big deal out of nothing. What do you think?

 

[MaryLouise]

When I've done too much walking or its hot I get really swollen ankles too but I think sudden swelling is something that you should probably talk to the Dr about, it could be a sign of something going on that shouldnt be, I think it can be an early sign of preeclampsia? I got this off the web
"Although mild foot and ankle swelling during pregnancy is normal, call or see your doctor promptly if you have:
Severe or sudden swelling. This could be a sign of a serious condition called preeclampsia. Other signs and symptoms of preeclampsia include severe headaches, blurred vision and dizziness.
Swelling in only one leg, especially if you have pain or tenderness in your calf or thigh. This could be a sign of a blood clot."
So it is worth going to the Dr and mentioning it even though it'll probably turn out to be normal swelling, its always better to air on the side of caution, hope that helps

 

[Cleo100]

Hey Laura,

Mine have been the same on and off this week too but my MW wated me to drop wee into the surgery on one occassions just to do a quick dip test for protein.

I can usually get rid of it by drinking about 4-6 pints of water (not all at once! - throughout the day) and by resting with my legs up. The only way it really goes with me is by sleeping on my left and having my feet up for about 5 hours.

It's normal in pregnancy but I would call your gp surgery or MW tomorrow morning and let them know, they may want to check just in case. I'm sure you are fine but best to be safe, don't worry about bothering the MW or Doc they want you to let them know about anything like this.

Maybe try some paracetamol for now for the ache and ask your OH to give you a gentle foot rub? Or if he wont comply like a good little doggy, I found a foot soak in a basin feels loooverly!!

I hope you feel better soon hun.

C xxx

 

[nickilubs]

I would give them a call too just to be really sure You cant ever be too carefull with random swelling parts!

 

[Mildly]

You cant ever be too careful with random swelling parts!

Indeed, this is why we are all in this condition


Back to feet swelling, I get it every couple of weeks and it doesn't seem to correspond to my activity level or the heat so not sure. It seems to take about a couple of days for the swelling to go down. I have heard that fluid retention can be linked to dehydration (which sound silly) and things do seem to be all un-swollen if I make sure I drink loads.

However I would call your midwife to make sure in case they want to test a wee sample

 

[Hazel]

I get this if I've walked a lot or sat without my feet up. 10 minutes after I put them up again they go back to normal.

 

[Bubalu]

I've had swollen ankles and fat legs since about 32wks. I keep mentioning it to my midwife as they are horrible looking but she doesn't seem concerned as my urine and blood pressure are fine. Putting my feet up doesn't help much and they don't go down overnight. I hope they go down after the birth!

 

[Laura_James&Amber]

Thankyou for all your replies Will phone the doctors in the morning and get it checked out. And I'm sure I can get OH to give me a foot rub!

 

[Hazel]

Get him to rub upwards from your ankles to your knees. It sorts mine out immediately.