Reflections on the 1st Trimester

If you haven't heard already... we are expecting a baby January 15, 2013! We are very excited/nervous, and I am counting down the weeks 'til we get to find out the gender.

I have been very lucky/blessed to have had very few symptoms and side effects that the first trimester usually brings. I'm very impressed with women who aren't so fortunate and who spend their first 3 months (or longer) throwing up, nauseous, bloated and everything else unimaginable. If I had experienced any other those for more than a week I think I would have had to quite my job and become a permanent fixture on our couch... so big, big kudos to those who stick it out while working full-time jobs, be it at-home mommies or in the workplace. I told Eric the other night after having a migraine (my one and only "lie down and leave me alone" sickness I've had) that I can not imagine how hard it would be to be pregnant with a kid or more in tow.

Even after all the blogs, websites and books I've read I was unprepared for some of the symptoms. Or maybe the first time for everyone the symptoms come as a shock.

Sore chest: Everything I've read just says your chest will be sore or tender. Um, can we say a gross understatement. They did not say that they would hurt so bad that if I so much as lightly brushed my chest, that I would wince. No, for the record, they do not do this justice.

Tired: I knew that I would be tired, but I was not prepared mentally for how handicapping this fatigue would be. I would come home from work and the gym, lie down on the couch and be unable to get back up to fix dinner, finish my many crafts or clean. Luckily Eric was a good sport and picked up the slack, so we don't subsist on only sandwiches and the house was saved from disaster. After taking a 2 hour nap on Saturday AND Sunday... I'm really looking forward to the second trimester!

Taking my blood at OB appointments: Um, anyone who knows me, knows that I have an intense fear of needles and will go to great lengths to avoid getting shots of any kind and after trying and failing once to give blood (I was barely 18 and thought it would be a bragging point to say I had given blood...) I have vowed off ever giving blood or having blood drawn from me for any reason. Hence you can only imagine what took place in that office when they decided they needed to draw blood....

Lack of Menstruation: I cannot explain how truly liberated I feel to not have to worry about that time of the month. It's one of pregnancies highlights to be sure.

Appetite: I am hungry, often. When I wake up in the morning I can barely wait to shower to have my bowl of cereal. I am starving in the morning, and unless I have some sort of evening snack, I go to bed starving like I had been fasting for 24 hours. And I can barely last three hours at church without a snack, in fact I usually sneak something into the bathroom stall and eat something... However, I think I've done pretty well with only eating a little bit extra, and NOT eating for two.

Going to the bathroom: Going to the bathroom has become my new enemy. For some odd reason the only reason I ever start feeling like I need to throw up and get nauseous is when I go to the bathroom. I won't go into detail, but it is truly evil, and I prolong it as long as possible.

Baby Bump?: I feel like I'm in transition mode. I look like I've gained weight (which I have, but it looks more like 10 pounds instead of the 2.5 pounds I have actually gained), but not enough to have a defined baby bump and I feel fat... ugh.

Emotions: Sad movies have been outlawed for the next 6 months. We watched Hatchi at Grandma Andrus's house when Eric's little sister Annie was in town, and boy did I bawl, and bawl, and bawl. I could not get a grip on myself and to make matters worse, crying gave me a headache which developed into a migraine... not fun. Even before getting pregnant I hardly ever opted for a sad movie, because I don't like crying, even though I always end up liking the movie. But now, no sad movies, period.

Exercise: Thanks to the Melaleuca gym that is free as long as I go twice a week, I have been pretty faithful, and have exercised about 3-4 times a week, and never less than twice a week. I've really enjoyed working out but it really takes the mickey out of me, as if I haven't been tired enough. I don't have as much stamina as I did before, and have to take more breaks.

Dreams: Um, ok. Dreams have been my plague since I was tiny. I used to always have dreams of witches, captain Hook, butcher's chasing me with knives... every nightmare imaginable... and never any good dreams. I used to think and repeat "rainbows and bunnies" as I was going to sleep to ward off the nightmares and it worked most of the time. When I was on my mission, dreams were my bane because dreaming makes me tired, tiredness as a missionary is unacceptable and miserable. So I started praying that the dreams would stop so I could get a restful night's sleep. I think I dreamed maybe 3 times my whole mission.

Now, it's a whole new ball park. The dreams come EVERY night, and of course, they are always nightmares or stressful dreams. So far I've accidentally killed my baby, had a miscarriage, Eric became a fisherman under David Hasselhoff, possessed demons, my reoccurring "Witches" by Roald Dahl dream (had the dream probably 20 times in my life... I hate that movie), and many others.  Gah! I hate it, I think I need to start praying that they stop again...

So besides the funny symptoms --- which in a weird way make me happy, knowing that that means that we have a baby in progress --- we are doing great and are super excited! And I repeat, I cannot imagine how pregnancy would be if I had been sick.