My first pregnancy. I have thoughts.
Just so you know: This post contains affiliate links. All of these are products I have personally used and would genuinely recommend.
Being pregnant for the first time, I had plenty of ideas regarding what it was going to be like. Everything I had heard from family and friends who had been pregnant as well as TV shows and movies played a part in forming the expectations I had.
I found out about four weeks in that I was pregnant and both of us were surprised and extremely excited. That was when things got interesting.
Not long after finding out, I began having incredible amounts of nausea. I was throwing up almost everyday regardless of what I was eating. Smells also played a key role in the amount I was throwing up. For example a smell like lavender which I typically love, would make me throw up almost immediately. The first misconception I had was that morning sickness only affected pregnant women in the first three months.
So how did I relieve the nausea? Honestly, I was never able to get rid of it entirely. I tried prescription medicines from my doctor as well as over the counter medicines to no avail. The only thing that lessened my nausea was lemon ginger tea. It might have been in my head but that helped me get through the day.
The other thing that no one told me before getting pregnant is how difficult it is to sleep comfortably. At the beginning i found it difficult to fall asleep, but around month six there was no way for me to stay asleep. I had back pain and found the most comfortable thing was to sleep on the couch.
Maternity clothing is an complicated topic. Prior to pregnancy I varied between plus size and midsize. I was wearing pant size 16 or 18, with tops in XL or 2X. I did not gain too much weight during pregnancy and my clothing style made it easy for me to continue wearing my regular clothing until the 7th month. Sizing can be tricky in maternity clothes because for some reason many brands go from size XS-L in regular sizes and 1X -3X in plus size. At target they have maternity clothing in XS-XXL. The tricky part is that there is no consistency in sizes. The first thing I felt uncomfortable in was undergarments. I purchased a few from Kindred Bravely and I would 100% do it again. My favorite maternity leggins are from Target and maternity t-shirts that i found helpful were from Old Navy.
Finally the thing no one really talk about is the food aversions. I have heard plenty of speak about pregnancy cravings, and to be honest with you, not once during my pregnancy did I have a craving. It was pretty interesting. I avoided foods I had previously enjoyed, and felt no desire to eat. Most of the time I was eating because I knew I needed to.
While I was so happy to be pregnant, it did have so many challenges. I would like to normalize talking about the less than stellar moments of pregnancy so that any person who is feeling down by pregnancy doesn’t feel alien or as though they are the only person who is having those types of feelings. When you have a pregnant friend, check in on them. I am sure they could use it.
If you have any simple creative ways to support a pregnant person in your life, please let us know in the comments below.
For a list of my favorite pregnancy items, click here.
Until next time
Jenny