First Trimester

Navigating the first trimester is a challenging and often lonely time. Depending on how soon you find out that you are pregnant you can be waiting for up to 11 / 12 weeks to get your first scan and confirmation that your pregnancy is progressing well. This can be a worrying and highly anxious time for many.

You have the uncertainty particularly if you have suffered previous loss, you have insane tiredness, you have sickness and or nausea (not just in the morning!) You may choose to keep the pregnancy to yourself not telling family, friends and work colleagues despite obvious signs of being unwell. You may also be experiencing stomach cramps sore breasts, constipation, and the sheer responsobility that comes with being a parent.

For me in my first pregnancy I really struggled with my first trimester… It effected my mental wellbeing siginificantly.

The main cause was nausea, I have a thing about being sick. It scared me, I hate the feeling of nausea and the feeling of actually being sick is something I really struggled to cope with. Although I wasn’t actually sick that many times I felt nausea for around 12 weeks (about 3/4 weeks in through to 18 weeks) During this pregnancy I was not offered any options around medication despite the fact it was quite drastically effecting my mental health.

Second time round and with the same pattern (and more frequent sickness) my midwife imediatley highlighted the option of medication. This was something I was not keen to do but at around 12 weeks with a peak in sickness, nausea, tiredness and a pre schooler to take care of I spoke to my GP who perscribd a tablet form medication.

I had done a little research around the types of medication perscribd for sickness in pregnancy using the following resources:

mediciensinpregnancy.org - This website lists so many different forms of medication and explains the research that has been done to identify if the medication is safe. I found this REALLY helpful and informative.

pregnancysicknesssupport.org.uk - A charity set up to support those who suffer. If anything this helped me to feel less alone!

Despite having the tablets I did not proceed with treatment. I am very cautious about any medication that I take and I decided that for me personally the potential side effects for my body, like anxiety and feeling wired or on edge and the unknowns behind use of anti sickness meds and the impact it has on children as they grow older would make me more anxious and stressed than coping with the sickness. However having the tablets at home gave me the choice, which helped me to cope with the sensations this time.

For those of you that suffer with physical sickness and indeed nausea that prevents you from drinking fluids and or eating then please see support from your midwife or GP. The most sever form of morning sickness is called Hyperemesis Gravidarum this severe form of sickness effects around 3% of pregnancies and in these cases you may need additional support to help maintain sufficient fluid and nutrients to support yourself and your baby.

In my second pregnacy I also used my yoga practice to support with the sickness and changes to my body in my first trimester. In the form of mediation and breath work.

I used a technique called golden thread breath which involves inhaling deeply through nose down into the belly and ribs and exhaling really slowly through a very tiny hole in the centre of your lips. Imagining as you do so that you are spinning the most beautiful shimmering golden thread out from your lips into the space in-front of you. A beautiful technique, to aid relaxation, release and grounding.

I also listened to lots and lots of guided meditations. Some hypnobirthing tracks to help me to establish a connection to the tiny life growing inside me. But also some simple guided relaxations, body scans and imagery led, which gave my brain focus and space to shift away from the nausea.

In terms of physical yoga practice I did VERY little in my first trimester. I just could not. I have pretty low blood preassure which means in pegnancy I get very put of breath VERY quickly in the early stages. This is due to something called vascular under fill.

When you become pregnant your body needs to make 50% more blood! (amazing right) to support you and your baby through pregnancy. In order to make room for all of the extra blood your body will make your blood vessels grow and expand. However the blood vessels expand much faster than you are able to make the extra blood and so you left with something called vascular under-fill (blood vessels that are not as full as they could be to support the effective pumping of blood around the body) This can cause you to feel light headed, dizzy, sick. Particularly during physical activity that increases your heart rate. I found things like going up the stairs really challenging and even had to stop taking our dog Poppy on longer walks as I would get so tired so and so out of breath I needed a sit down half way through!

So you may feel pretty useless in your first trimester when you compare yourself and your physical achievements to pre baby you. But all of the UNSEEN effort you are putting in to growing a baby and a placenta (an organ in its own right) is simply making it harder for you to do the other stuff. And if you do not get to the gym, or for a walk or even get out of bed then that is ok. You are growing a human! Ask for help if you able to and rest rest rest (again if you are able to) This is the start of you being a parent and in order to be the best parent you can be you MUST look after yourself.