Every woman carries her pregnancy differently.
Even the same mom can have drastically different pregnancies the first and second times around.
Still, strangers sometimes think it's OK to comment on the size of a mom's baby bump, or to ask her why it's not there at all.
That was the experience of mom-to-be Yiota.
When Yiota found out she was pregnant, she was elated. She had suffered from severe endometriosis her whole life.
Because of endometriosis, Yiota had serious scar tissue on her uterus, which often limits a woman's ability to get pregnant. But after a surgery to remove some of the scar tissue, Yiota got pregnant!
But her struggles didn't end there — keep reading to find out how endometriosis affected Yiota's pregnancy as well.
Thumbnail Photos: Instagram / Yiota // United States Air Force / Staff Sgt. Kenny Holston
[H/T: The Sun]
Yiota, 29, has had seriously painful periods all her life. Last year, she reached a breaking point when she threw up until she passed out because of the pain.
After seeing a doctor, Yiota learned that she has endometriosis. According to The Sun, endometriosis is a "chronic condition that occurs when tissue which behaves like the lining of the womb is found outside of the womb."
This meant that Yiota was left with a lot of scar tissue, which could have prevented her from ever getting pregnant.
This year, Yiota had surgery to remove some of that scar tissue — and she got pregnant three months later!
Yiota was elated about her pregnancy, but endometriosis continued to affect her even after the surgery.
As Yiota started to post pictures of her baby belly online, some strangers started to ask questions.
Yiota is six months pregnant in this picture — but she doesn't appear to have a baby bump at all.
Soon, people began messaging Yiota online to ask why she wasn't showing.
Obviously, Yiota owed no one an explanation. Still, she made a post to reveal that, because of her endometriosis, her womb is growing backward.
She said:
For the first 4 months of my pregnancy, my uterus was retroverted/tilted which means that I was growing backwards into my body rather than outwards. Most people with this type of uterus tilt forward at around 12 weeks and continue growing outwards like you normally would. My uterus didn’t “flip forward” until well into being 4 months pregnant because of the backwards tilted position paired with decade old endometriosis scarring that I have on my uterosacral ligaments. Basically, these ligaments are acting like anchors keeping my uterus “inside” rather than “outside”, which is why I appeared smaller than most people for the first 4 or 5 months. Now, at #6monthspregnant I’m growing forwards just like everyone else while the scarring on my ligaments slowly breaks down.
Now that Yiota's womb has tilted outwardly, she is starting to show a little baby bump.
Even though her pregnancy is unusual, Yiota says she and her baby are doing well:
I’m perfectly healthy, baby is perfectly healthy and that’s all that matters. Our bodies and bumps are all different and our shapes and sizes are all different too.
Yiota should have her sweet bundle of joy early next year: She says she's due in January 2018.
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