UPDATE: I contacted my OB and someone called me back. She said that this is “just pregnancy” and that it’s normal since everything is “moving up”. That shortness of breath is common, even though I told her specifically that it’s not shortness of breath, I’m not winded. She suggested I try some yoga poses and that it’s probably just me having anxiety over my “shortness of breath” that’s making it seem like so much more. This will be the last time I try asking for help, because every time I do I just make myself look stupid and like I’m overreacting.

For about two weeks now I’ve been having a really hard time breathing. Every couple of breaths I have to take a really deep breath just to feel like my lungs are getting enough air. Sometimes when I take the deep breath, it doesn’t work. Air will fill my lungs but there’s a certain point that the air doesn’t seem to reach and when it doesn’t reach I yawn involuntarily almost like my body is forcing my lungs to take in as much air as possible to compensate. It gets worse while lying down. More and more of my deep breaths don’t work and I end up having to take so many that it’s started hurting the sides of my ribs and my chest.

I’m 23 weeks and 5 days. Has anyone else experienced something like this? My next appointment isn’t until the 20th, but I will be contacting my OB office.

It’s gotten to the point where breathing is really stressing me out because it’s become such hard work and causing me pain. I’ve put off going anywhere or talking to anyone because in March I went to L&D for “dehydration” symptoms (loss of appetite, nausea, pain one area of my stomach for over a week, decreased fetal movement) and I was there for less than 2 hours and was told I was just having round ligament pain and to keep taking my nausea medicine. I felt like I went to the hospital for no reason and I don’t want to do that again.