I’ll be 25 weeks pregnant Monday which means this first trimester recap blog post is long overdue! I told myself I would be better about sharing all the details of my pregnancy journey this time around so I hope you find this helpful. I know I personally love hearing other women’s journeys and find it so interesting how pregnancy can be SO different for so many of us! I’m going to share what the first few months of pregnancy looked like for me below and would love to hear from you in the comments with your first trimester experiences! And if you’re reading this and not pregnant, just know that every woman’s experience is different and just because I experienced certain symptoms, doesn’t mean you will. Long story short, the first trimester was a rough one… but now that I’m nearing my third trimester I can tell you it does get better!
FIRST TRIMESTER RECAP
SYMPTOMS
I touched on this a little when I announced we were pregnant but the symptoms and side effects of this pregnancy have been pretty intense. I feel like everything started earlier and was more severe than when I was pregnant with Mila. I think I was only about 4 weeks pregnant when I started throwing up nonstop. I was feeling super nauseous all the time but I would literally throw up and keep throwing up bile and dry heaving for hours every day to the point where I had to get on medication to stop it because I couldn’t even keep water down. I threw up a lot with Mila but not to this extent. It was pretty hard to keep this pregnancy a secret for as long as I did because I was feeling so bad every day. It’s kind of weird how you get used to waking up and throwing up like crazy every morning but it still takes a toll on your body. My worst point was definitely when I got back from New York Fashion Week where I had come down with the flu. My family keeps wanting me to get tested to see if I may of had Covid since my chest and breathing was so bad for so long but who knows. I just know the combination of a high fever, throwing up nonstop and the flu is not fun and I’m just thankful the baby seems to be doing really well and healthy. It can be scary when your body is going through so many different things that are considered very harmful and dangerous during your first trimester but I am happy to say we got through it!
Other major symptoms during the first trimester were definitely having a strong sense of smell and food aversions. Like hardcore. There were so many foods I couldn’t even look at or say out loud and so many smells that would have me running to the toilet. But as bad as the morning sickness was, I would get severe hunger pangs. It is the strangest thing how you can go from being so nauseous and sick to this intense almost painful need to eat something specific… our bodies are so crazy, right?!
I also suffered from bad headaches and just being really tired. When I was pregnant with Mila I remember needing to take more naps which I didn’t do much this time around. I do feel like everything happened sooner this pregnancy though. My boobs getting bigger… needing to pee all the time… ligament pain… heartburn… I feel like that all came later with Mila but this time it seemed like it started from the beginning! One thing I am really grateful I don’t have this time around that I had with Mila is dysgeusia, a nasty metal taste in your mouth so that’s a plus.
WHAT HELPED
Unfortunately not much was helping with the morning sickness. I tried the wrist bands and would suck on ginger candies all the time. The candies helped a little so I’d definitely give them a try if you’re suffering from morning sickness. Drinking water all the time is so important as well as eating a little something every couple of hours. I feel like the nausea was always worse if I waited too long to eat. My doctor told me to eat a piece of toast or crackers or something BEFORE sitting up in bed first thing in the morning. So literally have it by your bed the night before or if you’re able to have someone bring it to you so you don’t have to stand up that is supposed to help a lot. It helped me sometimes… but pretty much every day for four months I threw up which my doctor said is not the norm so I may not be the best point of reference ha. Hopefully some of those tips help!
WHAT I ATE/CRAVINGS
Well, as you might imagine when you’re throwing up all the time you’re not exactly craving salads and gourmet meals… all I wanted was carbs. Specifically grilled cheeses, French fries, mac and cheese, hash browns and plain cheeseburgers with ketchup… there were days where I felt like I couldn’t eat anything and then the only thing that sounded good was fries and a coke. And it always made me feel so much better. I only drank coffee a handful of times during my first trimester because it sounded so bad (and this is coming from someone who would have at least a few cups on a regular day). After a while I worked up to eating a grilled cheese with ham on it (I always heat it up in the pan or microwave) and I swear I ate it daily for weeks! The thought of anything spicy or seasoned sounded so awful.
I definitely had random moments I’m not exactly proud of where I downed a bag of Doritos in one day (yes, the big bag) or bought a few boxes of sugary cereal I hadn’t eaten since high school… it’s so weird to crave things you had in childhood and how some of those moments feel completely out of your control. Thankfully these feelings are very rare now that I’m in the second trimester and I’ve been eating much healthier and more normal which I’ll talk more on in a few weeks.
EXERCISE
Other than my incredible diet I just took you through, any sort of fitness was pretty nonexistent the first trimester. There were a few days I could bring myself to getting on the elliptical for 20 minutes or going on a walk. I definitely did little walks with Mila but nothing too long. I felt so drained all the time but had random days I felt up for a decent workout. Which by the way, I can’t stress this enough… it is SO IMPORTANT TO LISTEN TO YOUR BODY! You may feel great throughout your first trimester and able to maintain any exercise routine you had but if you experience severe morning sickness or exhaustion like I did just know how important it is to listen to your body and be as good as you can to it whether that means just taking it easy, napping, saying no to running for a few weeks, etc. I promise it doesn’t mean you’re a weak person, you’re just respecting the changes your body is going through.
So if you’re exhausted, sleep. If you’re severely nauseous and the only thing that sounds good is French fries, eat them! This is not the time to try and down a green smoothie. The morning sickness will (hopefully) pass once you enter the second trimester and you can start incorporating exercise and better eating then. Obviously if you’re feeling good, try to be active whether that’s maintaining what you were doing pre-pregnancy or if you’re like me and didn’t have the most consistent workout routine… try to get some cardio in when you can. I’ve definitely worked out a lot more in the second trimester but I will say it wasn’t until around week 20 maybe that the throwing up went away for me. I know most women it stops around week 12 though! Also if you haven’t already, talk to your doctor about exercise. And everything really…
FIRST TRIMESTER PRODUCTS I LOVED
Ginger Candies – ordered these on Amazon and thought they tasted really good!
Prenatal Vitamins – I was taking another brand for a couple months and hated them so I ordered these Ritual ones that ARE SO MUCH BETTER! They literally smell like lemons and don’t give you that gross lump in your throat or weird taste after. I reached out to them for a discount code so you can use code: FASHIONHOUR for 10% off your first 3 months!
Baby Boosters Protein – I didn’t start using this until second trimester but it’s supposed to help with morning sickness while providing all kinds of vitamins and nutrients. I would put it in my Nutribullet with coconut or almond milk, frozen cherries and blend!
Bio-Oil and Coconut Melt – both of these products are amazing to rub on your growing belly and everywhere around it because let’s be real, the bigger you get other things stretch too! I was already bumpin’ at week 8 so I’ve been trying to make sure I apply one of these nightly! Use code: NATALIE20 for any Kopari products!
Some Pieces I’ve Been Wearing A Lot and a Few I Plan on Ordering…
I think that’s everything… if I left any information out of this first trimester recap you’re curious about or have questions on just leave a comment and I’ll get back to you! The first trimester was real but I am so glad it’s over! If you’re in it right now, just know it gets better and you got this mama!
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Thanks for reading!
