Twin mum-to-be Jana Pittman shares varicose veins and growing bump
The doctor says it's all worth it.
Having four children, competing in the Olympics and on SAS Australia were walks in the park compared to the varicose veins of Jana Pittman’s twin pregnancy.
Sharing photos of her growing boy-girl twin baby bump on Instagram, at 18 weeks Jana revealed some of the less enjoyable parts of being pregnant, saying that she wanted “to share the realness of carrying twins at 39”.
The likelihood of developing varicose veins increases if you are on your feet all day at work (or tearing around after young children).
At the 18-week mark, Jana told her followers, “I am 18 weeks this week and, well, so far it’s been a mix of amazing and rough as guts.”
‘The vomiting and fatigue was yuck but feeling much better now… and I guess with my job I see women having it much, much, much worse… including having the privilege of working with couples who have late stage miscarriages or infertility. So I realise I am simply blessed.”
Jana shows off a beautiful bump that at 24 weeks looks close to a full-term singleton!
Over Christmas, Jana showed off her twin pregnancy bump on Instagram saying:
Twins continue to grow… getting bigger and bigger. Look almost full term and only 24/40! Have a feeling the I wont get away without stretch marks this pregnancy 🤰🏼
Jana shared a mirror selfie of her growing twin bump.
In October, Jana announced her pregnancy in an exclusive interview with New Idea, saying “‘I never thought I’d have six children. I don’t know how we are going to cope. How will we all fit into my car? I can see life is going to be a logistical nightmare.”
Already Mum to Cornelis, 14, Emily, six, and Jemima, four, and Charlie, one, Jana said she knew the pregnancy was different from the others.
“I’ve been so nauseous and vomiting constantly this time around,” she explains. “The fatigue has been something else, too,” she told the publication.
Jana also told her Instagram followers that she also has to wear a pelvic girdle as the vulva pain (also due to veins) is severe.
Jana already has four children (three pictured here), and is expecting twins with her husband, Paul Gatward.
What are varicose veins
Pregnancy increases your chance of developing varicose veins for a few reasons. Firstly, you produce more blood than usual to help your baby grow. As your baby grows, your uterus presses on and partially blocks the veins that are returning blood from your legs to your heart. Also, your pregnancy hormones make the walls of your veins softer, which makes it harder for them to work properly.
