I'm pregnant! Here are 16 things that I was most shocked to learn and experience during my first trimester.
Becoming pregnant for the first time is wonderful and exciting, but it is also a time that is filled with a lot of new and unfamiliar things. In this week’s post, I wanted to talk about and share a bit about my experience so far. Specifically, the things that occurred in my first trimester that I was most surprised to see or learn.
You can take a pregnancy test and the result can be a question mark (?)!!
How soon the pregnancy symptoms start. Once I knew I was pregnant (about 4-5 weeks along), I began to feel the changes happening in my body almost immediately.
My breasts grew an entire size between weeks 5 and 7.
I needed new bras almost instantly.
My nipples have been extremely sore. All day, every day.
No matter how many hours I sleep at night, I am still exhausted the next day - even when I go to sleep at 9PM. I may have a couple of hours here and there where I am alert and focused, but it is always followed by a few hours of complete exhaustion.
I’ve had very little success overcoming my fatigue. I’ve tried to get up, go for a walk outside, eat something, etc. but nothing has really worked. The best I can do is just wait for it to pass.
My ‘morning sickness’ has been minimal and manageable (so far). When I do get a but nauseous, it goes away as soon as I eat something. Based on what I’ve heard and read, I have it pretty easy.
Slices of ginger and lemon in hot water has been my go-to remedy for treating nausea first thing in the morning or late at night. It doesn’t just sort of work….it works like a charm.
I haven’t had any crazy cravings (yet).
The foods I crave the most are any kind of fruit, green smoothies (which I am thrilled about) and carbohydrates in general. My favorite snacks are pineapple; smoothies consisting of leafy greens, cucumber, lemon, apple and mint leaves; and Skinny Pop popcorn.
I have not been in the mood to cook anything and am eating out a lot, which is the complete opposite of my normal routine.
The only food aversions I have are to bland-tasting foods. Tofu, for example, I can’t eat unless it’s prepared in a way that gives it a very powerful flavor. This may sound odd, (because doesn’t everyone prefer food to taste amazing as opposed to just blah), but before pregnancy I preferred foods in their natural state, without too much added flavor.
I feel incredibly bloated nearly every single day, from the second I get up in the morning until I go to bed at night. It doesn’t matter how healthy I eat, how often I go to the bathroom (which has been regularly) or if I avoid certain ‘bloating’ foods. Nothing seems to help in this department.
My skin (so far) cleared right up. For about a year and half prior to getting pregnant, I struggled with breakouts - most of which occurred in an around the middle or end of my cycle. Since getting pregnant, I haven’t gotten a single pimple. I’m not sure if it’s the prenatal vitamins or the pregnancy hormones, but whatever it is, I pray it keeps working.
Emotionally, I feel pretty stable. Other than feelings of guilt about being a bit unproductive as a result of my fatigue or a bit insecure about my body changing, there haven’t been any major ups or downs.
So, there you have it! This was my first trimester in a nut shell. With that said, no two pregnancies are exactly alike so I’d love to hear from you in the comments below about what surprised you most about your first trimester!
