Hello, third trimester! I will be doing a pregnancy update really soon, but I wanted to go ahead and do a roundup of some of my personal favorites during my THIRD pregnancy. These items are all tried, tested and true. Each trimester comes with different woes, and I have an answer for lots of them!
First Trimester (0-12 weeks)
Side effects: nausea, fatigue, cluelessness. Remedies:
Young Living Peppermint Essential Oil
This oil in particular works wonders for nausea. Especially, if I had to be in a place where I had to smell food or something else that would make me sick. Keep it on hand!
My life saving beverage. I wanted all the crisp, cold, carbonated things and this one has REAL ginger in it. The regular ginger ale brands don’t really have much ginger and tons of sugar, so this one was my go-to.
Coffee made me SICK this pregnancy and the last one in the first trimester, but I desperately needed the caffeine to fend off withdrawal headaches, and, well, survive. Starbucks refreshers were great for me to get that little boost without stomaching coffee.
During my last two pregnancies (three including the miscarriage), this app was my very favorite! I found it to be the most visually pleasing, informative, and fun app to keep track with pregnancy. They also have a fertility app for tracking cycles pre-pregnancy!
Second Trimester (13-27 weeks)
Side effects: Migraines, general/mild body discomfort, heartburn. Remedies:
I want to write this in all caps, but I will refrain. Maybe not.. ok BEST INVENTION EVER. This is essentially an air mattress with a hole in it for your pregnant belly. With my first two pregnancies I could not WAIT to lay on my stomach again to relieve my back and relax in my favorite sleeping position. Not only that, but it’s kind of hard getting a massage from your husband in a sitting position. This thing is something every single pregnant woman must have.
My friend Aaronica at The Crunchy Mommy is totally to credit for this. With all my pregnancies I have suffered with a varying degree of Symphasis Pubis Dysfunction and Sacroilliac Joint Dysfunction. Both of those lead to excruciating nerve pain and a lot of sleepless nights. I have tried every belly support band in the world, and none have worked. Aaronica checked our kinesiology taping and it worked! Here is more info on this trick and tips I found on how to do it.
Not everyone deals with this, but I get insane pregnancy migraines. I only get them in the second trimester of pregnancy. Weird, right? They aren’t a joke, either. I am like debilitated for sometimes over a day. This is an essential oil blend I found that really helped me. I ended up having to go on a prescription medication, but this oil was my saving grace for weaker ones and to take the edge off before I got the meds.
Lots of us deal with this. These are heartburn tabs that I really liked. Keep them everywhere. Car. Night stand. Purse. Pocket. Everywhere.
Third Trimester (28 weeks-birth)
Side effects: MAJOR/general discomfort, inability to see ground, more cluelessness.
Born Free Comfort Fit Body Pillow
Love love love this body pillow! It can be adjusted as needed to whatever makes you comfortable while laying or sitting down relaxing. After birth, it’s perfect to use as a nursing pillow. My kids also get a lot of entertainment out of it.
Don’t laugh, you need this! I can’t bend over and when I squat to get something there’s always a 50/50 chance I won’t get back up. If you have to pick up 300 Duplo blocks, don’t do 300 air squats, y’all. Get a reacher thingy like this one.
In the same vein, these things are life savers to get your shoes on. Grab one too.
Peanut balls are all the rage right now in the birth world. As it turns out, they are amazing for pre-birth hip exercises, and wildly effective for labor. I recommend everyone have one from lounging in the living room doing pelvic tilts, to bouncing your baby down in active labor. (Not every hospital have them on site, but many do- so ask!)
If I had to pick one book to share with pregnant mamas it would be this one. Ina Mae Gaskin is the most widely known midwife in the US. She is an actual genius and has taught so many women to learn more about their bodies in order to have a better birth. In this country we are really kind of conditioned to “not care” about our birth process, or to just go with the flow of a ton of medical intervention. Ina Mae has been a pioneer in changing our mindset to be excited and honored to be able to birth and helps us learn what we never got taught. This is a must for me.
DUN DUN DUN (said ominously). Behold, the holy grail of all things birth. But, seriously. If you are having a baby ever in your life and you have possibly made it to your third trimester without watching this documentary, stop everything and do it now. I have never seen a single more inclusive, evidence based, informative documentary on birth culture in the U.S. I don’t know anyone that hasn’t learned a ton by watching this. This is our baby, our body, and birth matters (whether we seem to think it does or not). There actually is more to it than a surviving mother and baby. Don’t live in ignorant bliss, educate yourself so that you have the knowledge to make the best decisions you can. This documentary is an amazing start!
That’s all, folks! I am going to do an upcoming separate post on all my maternity wardrobe favorites, so don’t miss that. There are lots of goodies in that department, too!
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