1st Trimester Lifesavers

The first part of my pregnancy was not a pretty time to say the least.

I was nauseas 24/7.

I threw up almost every day.

I had no appetite, and when I did it was for things like hot dogs and pizza rolls.

That led to poor nutrition and feeling yucky and other lovely things that I won't mention here.

I had major indigestion every night while I was trying to sleep.

Every time I saw beautiful maternity photos of happy glowing women I scowled. scowled! how awful :/

Pretty much I spent 2 months with the stomach flu from Hades and was a big ole grouch.

I don't say this to complain and sound ungrateful for being pregnant. I say this because morning sickness stinks. And during that time in my life I found comfort reading other women's stories of just how much it stunk for them too and what they did to cope. So here are some of my personal tips and tricks.

1. lavender essential oil

I was VERY sensitive to smells in those first weeks. I developed the ritual of taking baths with lavender essential oil before bed. I cannot tell you how much this helped. Very calming and relaxing and gave me just enough relief to be able to fall asleep.

2. peppermint soap

I fell in love with this natural peppermint soap and use it as a body and face wash. The smell is super calming and peppermint is a natural way to fight skin problems.

3. mama bee's belly balm

Sometimes stretch marks are inevitable. But the more I read up on what other women did I found that those who started deep moisturizing early on had little to no stretch marks. I chose this because it is natural and cheap and still seems very high quality. Although this is my first choice from l'occitane, its a bit out of my price range. Coconut oil is also a great option if the smell doesn't bother you.

4. B6

50mg a day helps with nausea.

5. folic acid

Your daily dose is an any good prenatal vitamin but the thing is, you really need this in your system BEFORE you get pregnant. While your body doesn't store folic acid, any woman who knows she has a chance of getting pregnant should be taking folic acid so her body is prepped when that miraculous moment occurs. Folic acid helps prevent birth defects in baby's spinal cord that can occur in early pregnancy.

6. Bolthouse

These drinks were and continue to be a lifesaver! Early in pregnancy I had no desire to eat food. I was so nauseas that I couldn't feel hunger pains. If I could get one of these down in a day I atleast had some peace of mind that my body was getting nutrients. Also, Bolthouse makes awesome protein drinks which pregnant women need a lot of, cause protein makes the baby ;)

7. sunshine and exercise

This was not really an option for me until the end of my 1st trimester, but when it was it helped so. much. In the mornings I go out with my yoga mat and just stretch and soak up the vitamin D. In the evenings Ryan and I try to go on walks. Exercise just makes everything work better. It's a fact.

8. massage

For the love, buy one of these and put it in your husband's big strong hands (don't forget to add that part) and tell him this is his contribution to growing the baby. Mid 1st trimester it started feeling like I was growing a new set of hips (good thing, because the old ones did not inspire much confidence in the baby birthing dept. Thanks God for prepping pregnant women's bodies the way you do). As you can imagine, that made everything feel disaligned and out of wack. This was a necessity.

When you get pregnant, your body starts to increase in hormones equivalent to the amount of 100 birth control pills a day. That's a big deal. Those are some MAJOR changes. For me, morning sickness initially stole some joy out of being pregnant. I had to continually remind myself that I wasn't really sick, that my body was fine and that this was all a normal part of growing a baby. And then I had to give myself a break. Women who are pregnant and have other children, you are beasts and I have no idea how you do what you do. You are my inspiration.

I would love to hear the wisdom of other mamas out there or things that you know helped friends and family get through pregnancy. Please do share!