PREGNANCY JOURNEY- FIRST TRIMESTER

My first trimester pregnancy update is finally here!  I am currently in week 18 of pregnancy, but I thought it would be beneficial to do a recap of each trimester including any symptoms, cravings, nutrition, exercise, helpful products and overall how I have been feeling these first 13 weeks.  My hope is that these series of posts are a helpful resource to any other moms or moms-to-be. 

How Did I Found Out?

Luckily for me, I’ve always had a very regular monthly cycle.  Its always falls the same number of days apart, and is consistent in terms of length.  Therefore, I feel like I am very in-tune with my body.  So when my period was 3 days late, I had a sneaking suspicion I could be pregnant.  I decided to wait until around 5 days after my missed period to take a pregnancy test...and well, you know the rest.  I also took 3 more on the consecutive days after,  just to be sure lol.

How I Told Nathan:

When I saw the pregnancy test was positive, I was overcome with a wave of SO many different emotions!  I think prior to becoming pregnant, it’s natural for a woman to think of all the creative ways she might tell her significant other, but when it came down to it I literally wanted to run in the other room and tell Nathan right away.  Luckily, he had just worked the previous night and was sleeping which gave me time to get my emotions in order and plan something a little more special.  I ran out to Hobby Lobby and bought a cute wood famed chalkboard, wrote out "You're gonna be a Daddy" and taped the positive pregnancy test underneath.  Once he woke up, I told him I wanted to show him some decor update ideas in the master bedroom (we had been talking about getting new artwork, side table, etc.)  When he walked into the room, the sign was sitting on the bed waiting for him to see.  Then it was his turn for the wave of all different emotions!

First Trimester Pregnancy Symptoms:

Tender, Growing Breasts- the most prominent symptom for me was tender breasts, and they have never ached as much in my life as those first couple of weeks.  They also grew at least half a cup size by the end of the first trimester.  

Nausea- I'm very fortunate that I only had mild "morning sickness" and mine was more of a constant nausea throughout the entire day. I always started the morning out with hot lemon water because I found that this soothed my stomach, and I welcomed the hot drink first thing in the morning. I also felt the best when eating 5-6 smaller meals throughout the day verses 3 larger meals. 

Fatigue-  this was another big symptom of mine.  I swear I've never been so tired in my life!  Even after getting 9-10 hours of sleep at night (on non-work days) I would still need a nap by 2 or 3 in the afternoon, and then would be back in bed at night by 9.  Growing a baby is tiring! 

Constipation- this may be TMI but prior to pregnancy, I was very regular.  It would not be uncommon for me to have 3 bowel movements per day.  After becoming pregnant, some days I would only use the bathroom once, or not at all, so I became a little concerned.  Turns out this is a very common early pregnancy symptom, so I had nothing to worry about.  I started using THIS supplement, and found that it helped me to be more regular and prepare my body for sleep at night. 

Need to pee- The last prominent symptom I experienced was the need to constantly pee, specifically at night.  Sometimes I would get up 4-5 times a night (usually I never get up at night).  I also found it harder to pee.  I would have this great urge and then only a little would come out, or I'd have to lean forward to release my bladder.  I'm really glad this has passed, for now, because I felt like my quality of sleep was terrible. 

Anxiety- I feel like this is a symptom I experienced that many people don’t necessarily talk about.  I felt an overwhelming sense of anxiety in the first weeks from the time I found out I was pregnant, to that very first ultrasound appointment at 9 weeks.  Reading statistics about miscarriages, waiting for the first ultrasound appointment to hear the heartbeat and confirm vitality made it really hard for me to relax and truly be excited.  As someone who likes to have control over every situation, it was difficult for me to quiet my mind from all the negative possibilities.  I found that praying/meditating and talking to Nathan about my fears and worries was the most helpful.  But let me tell you, when we DID hear that heartbeat for the very first time, tears were streaming down my face and I literally broke down into an ugly cry afterwards in the ultrasound waiting room. It was pure JOY to my ears!

First Trimester Cravings/Food Aversions:

Soon after experiencing the first effects of becoming pregnant, my healthy-ish eating habits flew right right out the window!  I wanted nothing more than to eat healthy to provide the essential nutrients baby needed in those early days of development, but trust me, my body had different plans lol.  I pretty much only wanted carbs and “bland” sorts of foods, and couldn’t even look at a vegetable. So instead of being too hard on myself, I simply ate what sounded good, knowing that these aversions would eventually pass.  My diet looked a lot like bland cereals such as Chex, toast with almond butter, jasmine rice, fruit, tomato soup, pizza, and really any form of bread you can think of.  I also hate to admit but I craved fountain Coke like CRAZY!  I tried to keep it to a minimum due to the caffeine content, but again, I tried to not be too hard on myself.  Taking THIS quality prenatal also made me feel more confident about not eating a particularly well-balanced diet.

As far as cravings go, I really didn’t have too many because honestly NOTHING ever sounded good.  I did love lemon water!  I would (and still do at this point in my pregnancy too) start every morning with a cup of hot lemon water. The tartness of the lemons tasted amazing.  I have always enjoyed starting my morning off with a hot drink, and unfortunately could no longer even stomach the thought of coffee.  I also put lemons in my water that I drank throughout the day which was super refreshing!  My other major craving was citrus fruit!  I all of a sudden craved Orange Juice, which I never typically drank previously along with oranges, fresh pineapple and grapefruit.  

Overall I ate what sounded good and would help to get me through the day, knowing that this was just a short season that would too eventually pass. 

First Trimester Exercise & Wellness: 

During the first trimester I did what I could in pretty much all areas, including exercise.  Prior to pregnancy I worked out 5-6 days a week, so this was another area that was difficult for me to “relax” about but again, I just listened to my body.  I would go to the gym for my usual weight training about 2 days a week, but I did find that my stamina decreased and I definitely got out of breath way more easily.  So I simply decreased the weight I used, took the exercises at a slower pace, and gave myself plenty of breaks.  I also tried to get outside to take Reggie for long, brisk walks 1-2 days a week.  I would walk for around 45 minutes, and the crisp fall air felt amazing and personally I think it helped keep my nausea at bay. 

Overall, my typical exercise routine did change a bit but the most important thing for me was to keep my body moving.  Even if I was tired, or didn’t have the motivation to give a workout my all, I always felt better afterwards and it also made me feel good that I was doing something beneficial for baby in those early weeks. 

That’s it for now! Stay tuned for a recap of my Second Trimester Pregnancy Journey. I hope this guide was helpful! Let me know in the comments below if you have any questions, or want to share about your first trimester. I’d also love any tips and recommendations for the second trimester too! As always, thanks so much for reading!