Heartburn:

Ohhh the heartburn!! I keep hearing that heart burn while pregnant means your baby is gonna have a whole lotta hair and honestly if that’s the case then then I’m giving birth to a yeti! Yikes. As if your hormones aren’t going wild enough, some of these hormones may act as a muscle relaxant that helps to prepare your body for childbirth. The downside? The increase of some hormones can also relax the lower esophageal sphincter. That’s the valve in charge of keeping stomach acid from moving up into the esophagus, where it doesn’t belong. If the acid moves into that area, it can irritate the esophagus and ta-da the dreadful heartburn is what we’re left with.

The heart burn always hit the worst when I’d lay down at night. I would be so exhausted (from doing the bare minimum) and then the burn was so bad I couldn’t sleep!! I’ve never had a problem with heart burn before so I had no idea what was safe to take while pregnant. After talking with my doc she gave me a handy list of pregnancy safe over the counter Meds and thank goodness, Tums was safe. Funny enough, I actually ended up never even getting any because by the time I got the chance to pick some up, my heart burn subsided as I was getting into my 2nd trimester. Thank the Lawd!! But I’ve heard that 50% of pregnant women actually get heartburn during their second and third trimesters. So I will definitely keep y’all posted if it returns!! My advice, stay away from spicy food (hot Cheetos were one of my many weaknesses my first trimester), chocolate and caffeine have been shown to cause heartburn so limit those (suuuck I know), citrusy food, tomatoes, soda. Or if you’re like me and had no self control your first trimester, eat those things but keep the Tums close!! (Always consult your doc first before taking anything. Every pregnancy is different and what may be safe for me, may not be safe for you!)

Exhaustion:

One of the first symptoms I had before I knew I was pregnant was the exhaustion. I would get home from work and want to go straight to bed. My boyfriend would push me to go to the gym with him and it was like pulling teeth! I usually had no problem mustering up the energy to go but by February (we conceived in early January) I absolutely refused to the point of tears bc I was so tired and irritable my poor man would have to slowly back out of the room and hightail it to the gym by himself before I bit his head off.

Working Out:

There are definelty some psychological factors that come with not working out for me. I felt guilty and pudgy but I was so tired there was nothing I felt I could do. Before I knew I was pregnant I had no idea why I was so tired all the time. I thought I just wasn’t sleeping well at night, and it started to drive me nuts. I wanted to work out but I didnt. It’s hard to explain but either way, I didn’t work out for a solid two months into my pregnancy. I wish I could say I did it with no problem, that mentally it didn’t bug me because I knew my body was making a little human and was it screaming at me to slow down, but it did! I definitely struggled with body image. I still struggle with body image! I know why my body is changing now, it’s creating the best thing I’ll probably ever create, but seeing my already wide hips get wider and my tummy turn into a nice little pudge is scary, especially since this pregnancy was so unexpected all these changes can be overwhelming. But I remind myself that one day soon I’ll be able to physically hold what this body worked so hard to make and I know it’ll all be worth it. I just recently started working out again (literally within the last two weeks) and it feels so good. Ive lost most of my muscle and I’m so weak when it comes to weight lifting, but I’m slowly getting my energy and strength back. I’m taking things very slow and mostly walking for at least 30 minutes a night and only lifting light weights for about 15 minutes. I still have to drag my butt to the gym, but it’s not nearly as bad as it was my first trimester. Yay!!

Food Cravings:

The first trimester cravings were so real. As soon as a craving hit, I couldn’t think about anything else until a donut was in my mouth or a cake was in my lap. I think Hunter and I both gained at least 5 pounds in those first few weeks of pregnancy. And don’t even get me started on the rabid animal I became when a craving hit. One time I was craving salt and vinegar chips so I walked to the kitchen to grab my stash and to my surprise the were ALL. GONE. I almost lost it. I nearly tore the kitchen apart looking for them and in strolls Hunter. “What’re you looking for baby?” “MY SALT AND VINEGAR CHIPS! WHERE ARE THEY?” “Oh I finished those..” and that was the last we ever heard from him. Just kidding. But at that point in time I was so angry smoke was pouring from my ears and my eyes were shooting daggers. I wanted to tear him a new one…so I did because not only did I have no self control with food, I also had no self control with my temper, especially when it came to food. Needless to say Hunter hasn’t eaten any of my S&V chips since then. And bless him, I’m so lucky he’s so patient with me. I’ve since calmed down with my cravings. I’ll want ice cream and cake still, but it’s not life or death anymore if I can’t get it, I can easily brush them off now and reach for an apple or some dates if I really need something sweet!