Can You Suck In Your Stomach When Pregnant?
Your belly expands naturally during pregnancy to make room for the developing baby, which naturally strains the muscles in your abdomen.
Now, when you suck your stomach in, you’ll probably pull in your intestines, and a few other vital organs, changing the contour of your belly.
However, the baby and all uterine fluids remain contained inside the uterus, which is comprised of strong muscles, so this will not affect them.
Can You Suck Your Stomach In While Pregnant? Is It Safe?
The baby bump, the adorable little (or not-so-little) bulge that emerges from the developing baby, is one of the most prominent visible indicators of pregnancy. It’s satisfying to notice your baby bump increase when you’re pregnant since it implies your unborn child is growing at the same rate as your waistline.
When your favorite pair of pants simply won’t fit any longer or when you can’t bend over to put on your socks in the morning, an expanding waistline is less entertaining. If you’ve ever been pregnant, you’ve undoubtedly secretly wished you could suck in your growing belly for a split second so you could finally put those socks on.
Another reason for sucking in the stomach is to conceal the pregnancy bump and appear beautiful. While it’s impossible to completely hide your pregnancy baby bulge, a new workout might give the illusion that you’re sucking it in.
The Bloom Method devised this activity, known as “belly pumping,” as a way to assist pregnant women to strengthen their core muscles. So sucking in your stomach while pregnant is safe for brief periods of time. However, there are several situations in which it can be harmful to you or your child.
Risks of Stomach Sucking While Pregnant
The risks of stomach sucking don’t just apply to pregnant women. Here are a few of the most typical dangers related to the practice.
1. Structural Problems Resulting From Bad Posture
In order to lead effectively, we should keep our shoulders back, chins up, and chests out. These actions cannot be performed while your flat stomach or stomach is being squeezed. Consistently bad posture might result in structural problems.
2. Breathing Issues
The basic process of our bodies is belly breathing. We are unable to breathe properly or effectively when we suck in our stomachs. This can lower blood pressure if it occurs frequently or for an extended period of time, which might have an impact on both mom and baby.
3. Intense Pressure on Organs
Your digestive and excretory processes may suffer if the internal organs in your belly are constricted.
Many pregnant women struggle to have bowel movements because of strain on the anal sphincter and frequently pee because of pressure on the bladder. Additional strain on these organs might worsen their current conditions.
4. Loss of Confidence
Usually, stomach-sucking has an aesthetic component. An appearance of temporary slimming down might be detrimental to the mental health of pregnant women who are already struggling with body image concerns.
Alternatives To Sucking In Baby Bumps That Are Comfy
Even though it’s excellent to feel confident in your appearance, it’s more crucial that you feel at ease. So, here are a few pointers to help you feel well and look beautiful at the same time.
1. Get Yourself the Maternity Clothes
You probably knew you would eventually have to purchase this and were even anticipating the unsightly maternity clothes since, let’s face it, nobody wants to wear a flower-print smock that looks like it was dug out of trash in the 1970s. However, you shouldn’t fret. Maternity dresses today are both attractive and practical.
You have two options for finding the clothes you want: either leave the comfort of your house and go shopping or look for loose dresses from your wardrobe. You can discover a maternity style for any occasion, whether you buy it online or in person.
2. Dress In Loose Clothes
Your greatest buddy right now is a loose dress that flows over your figure without emphasizing curves. When it comes to concealing a baby bump, maxi dresses and vintage-inspired tunic-style dresses are a godsend.
3. Accessorize
It may seem counterproductive to wear big earrings or a bright necklace because they don’t truly conceal a baby bump, but this technique may be effective.
Spend some cash to appear more flashy. The correct accessory can divert the ordinary person’s attention away from your tummy.
4. Layer Up More
This might be beneficial early on in your pregnancy when the baby bump is modest.
Coats, long jackets, or cardigans can be worn separately or in combination to conceal your pregnancy; this is especially useful in the winter to stay warm.
5. Perform Sit-Ups
During the first 16 weeks of your pregnancy, you will be able to perform sit-ups, but after that, you shouldn’t. This activity will help make strong core muscles as a result, which will be quite helpful when it’s time to give birth.
After the first 16 weeks of pregnancy, it’s not advised to perform sit-ups, but there are alternative safe exercises that can help strengthen your core strength without endangering your unborn child.
6. Buy a Pregnancy Support Belt
Pregnancy support belts may be purchased online. These belts are made to support and strengthen the stomach muscles, which often deteriorate during pregnancy.
They also have the added benefit of making baby bumps appear smaller. These belts shouldn’t be worn all the time or wrapped too tightly, so use them with care.
Final Thoughts
Although there aren’t many concerns associated with stomach sucking in pregnancy, there are still some.
Sucking in your stomach can impair your posture, pelvic floor Issues, breathing patterns, urine, bowel motions, sex, and the internal structure of your organs as a whole. Because of this, it is not advised to suck your stomach when pregnant, regardless of the trimester of pregnancy.
Therefore, instead of thinking about your baby bump, enjoy your pregnancy. You’ll have plenty of time to work on your physique once the baby is born, so don’t worry about it too much now.
Faqs:
How can I strengthen my pelvic floor muscles?
Sit comfortably and squeeze your pelvic floor muscles 10 to 15 times to strengthen them. Don’t tense up your stomach, buttocks, thighs, or pelvis when you’re used to exercising your pelvic floor muscles. Instead, practice squeezing them for a few seconds at a time.
What triggers pelvic floor dysfunction?
Things that put pressure on the floor of the pelvis. Some of these things are being overweight or obese, having chronic constipation or always having to strain to go to the bathroom, lifting heavy things, and having a persistent cough from smoking or health problems.
How serious is pelvic organ prolapse?
Most of the time, a prolapsed organ in the pelvis won’t kill you. But it can lead to some problems, like Bladder control problems (urinary incontinence) A bend in the urethra, which is the tube that moves urine out of the body.