On the whole, my first trimester was pretty much smooth sailing. I have a fear of being sick (although weirdly I don't mind dealing with anyone else's), so the fact that I escaped morning sickness all together makes me feel very lucky. The symptoms I did have were par-for-the-course, but I did have a few items which helped me through.
1.Vitamins
These didn't help with any symptoms but are obviously essential throughout pregnancy. I was already taking folic acid before I fell pregnant, but wanted to switch to something which made sure I got Iron and Vitamin D as well. These do the job, but I'll warn you that they are massive and you need to gulp at least half a glass of water with it to make sure it goes down. If you can't deal with large tablets I'd recommend looking for something smaller, as even I struggle with these sometimes.
2.Dry Crackers
Although I was only sick a couple of times during the first trimester, I found myself becoming quite nauseous and faint throughout the day, especially if I let myself get too hungry. I was never much of a snacker before, but it became too hard for me to just stick to three meals a day with huge gaps in between. Things like plain crackers or oatcakes with cheese even digestives were great to level out my blood sugar and stave off any nausea.
3.Water
OMG the thirst is just something else. You will honestly feel like you've been trapped in the middle of the desert for the past three days and your life depends on getting a drink. Before becoming pregnant I drank around 1.5-2l of water a day but this has now almost doubled because I have to constantly have a drink by my side. I usually get through about a pint during the night too, which is doing wonders for the nightly toilet trips (not).
4.Non-wired bras
The last thing I could have done was to wear a padded, push-up bra during the first ten weeks because my breasts were just so tender. You wont believe the difference a non-wired bra will make!
5.Pantyliners
Take my word for it- you'll need these!
6.Full Coverage Make-up
My skin went absolutely haywire during my first trimester to the point where people commented on it so I had to up my game in terms of coverage when it came to my make-up. I've always worn Esteé Lauder Doublewear on nights out/special days, but it's too expensive for me to wear on a daily basis, so a great budget alternative has been the Seventeen Stay Time foundation. It doesn't quite have the staying power of Doublewear, but holds up just fine for a day at work. As always, I've been using the Collection Lasting Perfection concealer which works a treat. I just pray that my skin will clear up a bit for the warmer weather so I can wear something a bit lighter.
7. Jeggings
At the moment I can still do up my jeans, but they are not comfortable in the slightest, and haven't been for several weeks. I'm only just starting to get a proper bump, but even at the beginning of my pregnancy, the bloat just made normal jeans a nightmare so I've been relying on jeggings. These are from Tesco, were £10, and are the best quality I've ever had.
8. Pregnancy Apps
I'm a firm believer in not googling anything to do with my pregnancy, as it usually comes back with something awful which just makes me worry. I stayed away from apps for the majority of my first trimester, but eventually caved and got Pregnancy+ and wish I had sooner. It's free for two weeks and then £2.99 but I think it's well worth it. As well as providing updates on the baby week by week, you can also keep track of your weight, symptoms and cravings. There's also a labour section, and although I don't think it will be a priority for me to pull out the iPad to time my contractions, it has given me a great start on my birth plan. The fact that baby names are also included means I can keep track of everything in the one place instead of flitting here, there and everywhere.
So that's my list! What were your first trimester essentials?
2.Dry Crackers
Although I was only sick a couple of times during the first trimester, I found myself becoming quite nauseous and faint throughout the day, especially if I let myself get too hungry. I was never much of a snacker before, but it became too hard for me to just stick to three meals a day with huge gaps in between. Things like plain crackers or oatcakes with cheese even digestives were great to level out my blood sugar and stave off any nausea.
3.Water
OMG the thirst is just something else. You will honestly feel like you've been trapped in the middle of the desert for the past three days and your life depends on getting a drink. Before becoming pregnant I drank around 1.5-2l of water a day but this has now almost doubled because I have to constantly have a drink by my side. I usually get through about a pint during the night too, which is doing wonders for the nightly toilet trips (not).
4.Non-wired bras
The last thing I could have done was to wear a padded, push-up bra during the first ten weeks because my breasts were just so tender. You wont believe the difference a non-wired bra will make!
5.Pantyliners
Take my word for it- you'll need these!
6.Full Coverage Make-up
My skin went absolutely haywire during my first trimester to the point where people commented on it so I had to up my game in terms of coverage when it came to my make-up. I've always worn Esteé Lauder Doublewear on nights out/special days, but it's too expensive for me to wear on a daily basis, so a great budget alternative has been the Seventeen Stay Time foundation. It doesn't quite have the staying power of Doublewear, but holds up just fine for a day at work. As always, I've been using the Collection Lasting Perfection concealer which works a treat. I just pray that my skin will clear up a bit for the warmer weather so I can wear something a bit lighter.
7. Jeggings
At the moment I can still do up my jeans, but they are not comfortable in the slightest, and haven't been for several weeks. I'm only just starting to get a proper bump, but even at the beginning of my pregnancy, the bloat just made normal jeans a nightmare so I've been relying on jeggings. These are from Tesco, were £10, and are the best quality I've ever had.
8. Pregnancy Apps
I'm a firm believer in not googling anything to do with my pregnancy, as it usually comes back with something awful which just makes me worry. I stayed away from apps for the majority of my first trimester, but eventually caved and got Pregnancy+ and wish I had sooner. It's free for two weeks and then £2.99 but I think it's well worth it. As well as providing updates on the baby week by week, you can also keep track of your weight, symptoms and cravings. There's also a labour section, and although I don't think it will be a priority for me to pull out the iPad to time my contractions, it has given me a great start on my birth plan. The fact that baby names are also included means I can keep track of everything in the one place instead of flitting here, there and everywhere.
So that's my list! What were your first trimester essentials?
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