Are you a butterfingers? Tripping, slipping, and dropping everything is a way of life for many pregnant mamas by the second trimester. In fact, your bigger belly and loosening joints can make you feel like a walking accident. But if you slow your roll and sport solid shoes, you can ease the trips and walk more confidently.
When does clumsiness generally start during pregnancy?
Many women feel clumsier during the second trimester of pregnancy, when their baby bumps are really starting to grow. However, others notice that their coordination takes a hit earlier due to a combination of hormones and fatigue.
Either way, clumsiness is a super common symptom experienced to varying degrees at some point by most expecting women.
What to Expect Community parent alician204 is going through it: "The last couple weeks I have been stubbing my toe daily, sometimes more than once a day! I'm assuming it has to do with my center of gravity during pregnancy and all that, but it's awful."
For more pregnancy symptoms on the way, download the What to Expect app, your to-go guide for expert-backed advice and safety tips you can use every day.
What causes clumsiness during pregnancy?
Clumsiness is a temporary side effect of pregnancy that's caused by several factors. Here's what's likely behind that unstable feeling right now:
- Your belly's throwing you off. Your burgeoning baby bump shifts your center of gravity, throwing your balance off-kilter. This uneasiness in balance (whether conscious or not) is most apparent when you're climbing a flight of stairs, walking on a slippery surface (something you should avoid anyway), or carrying something heavy (ditto). Not being able to see past your belly to your feet can also make trips and spills more likely.
- Your hormone levels are changing. Pregnancy hormones that loosen your joints and ligaments and cause you to retain extra fluids cause carpal tunnel syndrome, which makes your grasp on objects less firm and sure.[1]
- You're exhausted. Pregnancy fatigue can make it easier to trip when you're too tired to notice the box your partner left in the middle of the living room floor.
- You're forgetful. Pregnancy brain can also make it likely that not only will you forget where you left the keys, but when you actually find them, you'll keep dropping them.
What can I do about clumsiness when I'm pregnant?
You can't completely prevent feeling clumsy in pregnancy, but the condition can definitely make day-to-day tasks tougher. For the most part, pregnancy klutziness is little more than an annoyance. But for obvious reasons, try to avoid falling during pregnancy. To help, here are a few safety tips:
- Proceed with care. Slow down, especially in the shower or when it's icy outside. Don't wear slippery soles or socks without shoes; secure area rugs with padding or sticky tape; keep hallways and stairs clear of objects that might trip you up; and don't stand on chairs.
- Don't pick up what you don't want to drop. The clumsies will be with you for a while, so leave your favorite vase you've been meaning to relocate on the shelf for now, and let someone else load and unload the dishwasher.
- Try to have a sense of humor. When else can you make a one-woman show out of just showing up? If you can let everyone else have a giggle at it, chances are you'll feel better equipped to deal with that extra set of thumbs and those two left feet you suddenly feel as though you're sporting.
When should I talk to my doctor about clumsiness during pregnancy?
Check in with the doctor if you're feeling super swollen and also experiencing blurred vision or sudden unexplained weight gain unrelated to your eating habits. In relatively rare cases, it could be a sign of undiagnosed high blood pressure or preeclampsia, which can cause moderate to severe swelling of the hands (one of the common causes of clumsiness).
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