Pregnancy is no walk in the park. Sure, people will likely give up a seat on the bus for you, or bring you an icy cold lemonade after a visit to a cafe because they thought you could use a refreshment–and that’s a great perk.
But there’s a reason people want to be so nice to pregnant people. It’s because they’re tired! And achy! And swollen!
In fact, being swollen one of the more few talked about pregnancy side effects, but one that affects tons of people. It’s not just your stomach that gets bigger—it can be any part of your body.
For Jessica Simpson, it was her foot. The pregnant singer recently posted a photo of her foot and ankle—her very, very swollen foot—with a simple caption: “Any remedies?! Help!!!!”
While our first glance at her ginormous foot is alarming, experts assure us she doesn’t have anything to worry about—and if your foot looks like this, you shouldn’t worry either.
“This is very normal,” says Jessica Shepherd, M.D., a minimally-invasive gynecologist in Dallas.
It does seem that way. Thousands of former and current pregnant women swarmed to her post to offer their best advice on how to help. So if you’re dealing with a similar issue and want to make your ogre foot look human again, here are some tips from the experts as well as the people who experienced it first hand:
- Prop your foot up with pillows while you’re sitting for a long period of time or sleeping
- Avoid standing for extended periods of time
- If you have a job where you’re on your feet a lot, be sure to take breaks and rest at the end of the day
- Invest in a pair of compression stockings or support hose
- Limit caffeine and sodium intake, which can make your body retain water and contribute to the swelling
“The reason why you see it more in the feet is just from gravity—that’s where the body tends to hold extra fluid,” says Shepherd.
There are a couple of instances where you’ll probably want to see your doctor, for one, if the swelling doesn’t go down after you try these remedies.
Additionally, “you’ll want to see your doctor sooner any time it’s a rapid change,” says Christine Greves, M.D., a board-certified ob/gyn at the Winnie Palmer Hospital for Women and Babies.For example, if one day your feet are completely fine and the next day they look like balloons.
While more rare, intense foot and ankle swelling could also potentially be a sign of preeclampsia, a more serious pregnancy complication that can cause high blood pressure and other heart issues.
It’s better to be safe than sorry, so visit your doctor if you’re concerned about any swelling. We hope Jessica Simpson’s swelling goes down ASAP!
At least her toes look good, you go girl!
Have you ever seen a swollen foot or ankle this bad? What was the worst part of pregnancy for you?