The first trimester is really hard. For a number of reasons but I found these three the hardest: Firstly, you're scared. The first 12 weeks are the worst because there's a higher chance of something going wrong. 1 in 5 pregnancies end without even having a reason, just bad luck. Which is why you're not meant to tell the world about your pregnancy until you've had your 12 week scan and the chances of anything going wrong are minimised. But it's hard not to tell a few people, close family and friends for example. If you are out at a social occasion it's also hard for people to not notice if you're not drinking, when people ask directly it's a lot trickier to lie. If, like myself you find out incredibly early, I think I was 5 weeks then you have another 7 weeks of hiding. It can be awkward at work, if someone asks you to lift something heavy you don't want anyone to suspect but you don't want to put yourself at any risk. That's not even taking into account the other pregnancy symptoms which can be quite obvious in some peoples cases. You're also not going to be physically showing with a bump yet so it feels strange, like this secret that you need to hide. You seem to have all these horrible side effects but none of the recognition because it's not public knowledge or immediately obvious to people you meet. It's daunting. Until at least you have that 12 week scan and can breathe half a sigh of relief that it can be public knowledge even though most people have figured it out anyway. Secondly, the tiredness. Wow I got hit by the tiredness. It was absurd how sleepy I was, napping was a big part of staying sane. I was so drained it was frustrating. I couldn't muster up the energy to clean, to cook, to go out. Everything seemed like the biggest task in the world and it lasted most of the 12 weeks. I'd finally talk myself round to washing my hair and I couldn't summon the energy to dry it for love nor money. I probably looked a right mess! I'd get in from work and crawl onto the sofa, looking around sadly at the mess and just not be able to do anything about it. It made me most unhappy that I wasn't cooking properly, whatever food was quickest to prepare so I didn't have to do anything was what I went for. If you're lucky like me and have a partner then they really have to really pick up the strain. Mine was very good at cleaning and helping, but mostly he was just very understanding. He very rarely made me feel guilty about being so lazy. You've got to do what your body tells you, if it needs to rest you have to respect it. So what if the house isn't pristine for a couple of months. You can get back to your normal routine when your energy is back. Your body is growing a baby, don't forget that. Thirdly, the queasiness. I was lucky in that I wasn't actually ever physically sick. But I felt sick constantly, from the moment I got up until bed time I had that nauseous feeling. It went away a bit after eating so I tried to have little snacks regularly. I went off a few things, not so much food but lots of drinks. I was a big tea drinker before and suddenly I couldn't stand the sight of it. Orange squash as well, just didn't want it any more. The biggest lifesaver was water. Water suddenly tasted like the best thing in the WHOLE world. Occasionally a little glass of milk took my fancy. Smells also may take you by surprise, the smell of my toilet cleaner made me gag. Any bad smells have you retching. This may include your partners stinky feet so they'll have to learn not to take offence! My lifesavers during the first trimester were: Water. All day keep a bottle of water nearby and keep drinking. Yes, it's frustrating needing lots of toilet trips but it's good for you to keep hydrated and the best thing for your baby. Biscuits. After someone gave me this tip it sorted my mornings out a lot! Just having a nice plain biscuit in bed before you get up takes the edge off the the nausea to at least get you up and out the house. |
Netflix. You are going to be tired and bored of being at home so much, what a perfect time to get into a series or two. Netflix or something similar is ideal for those lazy days and evenings of vegging on the couch. I went with 'The Killing' but I'd also strongly recommend 'Orange is the New Black' and obviously ' Breaking Bad'.
My partner. Sam is my best friend as well as my husband and I don't know how I would have got through the first three months without his support and sense of humour. He's a bloody good egg.
Finally, I am quite a worrier. And I remember actually typing into Google - when can I start getting excited about being pregnant - because I was so scared of getting excited and something going wrong. I found a really great phrase "Don't worry about something being wrong, until it is". I took from that to be excited, be happy about the pregnancy until I had a reason not to be. If something bad, god forbid, is going to happen, it probably is going to happen regardless if you are doing all you can to have a healthy pregnancy. Then you can deal with it if it does. There's no point wasting energy on worrying unnecessarily. Take your vitamins, eat as well as you can, rest up and let mother nature take over,