Heart burn in pregnancy is more common in late pregnancy however, I have been blessed with heart burn since early pregnancy and it has not subsided. I am 24 weeks pregnant right now. I stopped taking “tums” (anti-acids) because I learned that it depletes the natural acid in your stomach that is essential to digestion (from Lily Nichols’ book, Real Food in Pregnancy). The tums never really worked for me even for temporary relief. For the past couple of months I have been living with heart burn without any intervention even though my entire soul believes in the power of herbs. I decided to experiment when I turned back to my book, Unhindered Childbirth by Sarah M Haydock. Sarah says that Heartburn “can be caused by anxiety, excess stomach acid or too little stomach acid or the displacement and constriction of the stomach due to your growing belly”. She, like many other authors, advises to eat small meals with smaller intervals in between instead of eating three large meals. In addition, she says you can make tea from carminative seeds such as; fennel, anise or dill. “ Add a teaspoon of honey and a dash of milk, which can also help alleviate heartburn. Sip the tea slowly, before, during and especially after meals”. This option seems a bit impractical for me. I may not always have access to the tea if I am out and about but, I am going to try my best. I went to Heilshúsið the health food store in Reykjavík and found this lovely Fennel that was cultivated in Austria. Another option that I am trying is to take a teaspoon of slippery elm bark powder, mixed with honey, after every meal (suggested by Susan Weed). I was a bit doubtful that I could find slippery elm bark powder in Iceland but thankfully, Heilshúsið had one more bottle on their shelves. Regnálmur directly translates to rain elm in Icelandic. I checked the scientific name on the bottle and it is the same as slippery elm or Ulmus rubra. According to Sarah and Susan “Slippery Elm soothes the stomach and the intestines, and is often used as a food and remedy for people who experience severe digestive problems. Slippery Elm can also alleviate gas and bloating. So, if you’re not pregnant and suffer from these issues then consider the lovely, slippery elm for alleviation. 

Taking it back to 2004

I have decided to ditch my Instagram and take it back to 2004 with a blog on Tumblr. I will post about my pregnancy and when he’s here earth side, my baby, Leo (because many family and friends will be searching for photos and updates of him). When I feel inspired I will share my poetry, journal entries, photography, my passion for cooking, canning, pickling, herbal medicine and overall - nature.  I don’t know about you but I exhaust myself by scrolling through Instagram, comparing my life and posts to others, constantly being bombarded with ridiculous comments from trolls and adds of what to buy. No matter how many times I try to take a cleanse from the gram it doesn’t help. I can’t tell you how many times I have deleted the app and then re-downloaded it a day later or sometimes even just hours later. I truly feel like I am reaching beyond myself, checking for messages or looking for news updates and new information or simply just “reaching”. Maybe it is an addiction to distractions. An addition to being seen and heard. Maybe I am uncomfortable in this body or seeking an escape. Whatever it is, reaching for my phone and clicking on the app feels like a bad habit. A habit I told myself I would break by the end of my pregnancy, in other words I would delete the app one last time. I want to refocus my energy on whats in front of me, reconnect with my body, my intuition (which gets clouded by overconsumption of information) and I want to focus on my journey into motherhood (a comparison I am also trying to avoid on instagram - pregnancy & motherhood). By the time I give birth I want my baby to have my full attention. There were a few things I liked instagram for: #1 is that it was a creative outlet for me, to share my photos, poetry, reflections, etc. #2 I liked the educational opportunities to learn deeper into my interests - like about birth and herbalism. So, this blog will serve as the creative outlet and books will serve as my education. #3 I loved when friends shared posts that were informative or funny or made me inspired. If you are one of those friends. Don’t stop sharing! Share with me through imessenger, whatsapp or to my email.