PREGNANCY & EVERYTHING YOU NEED TO KNOW
Here is your go-to (1st time) pregnancy guide.
This post is definitely long overdue, but I wanted to gain some perspective in life post-baby (& post crazy hormones) before giving you guys the 411 on pregnancy. I’ve decided that I’m just going to condense all pregnancy related things into one post- mainly to be used as a reference, but also because everything is so related in some way or another. To be honest, I don’t even know where to begin. It seems like just yesterday and so long ago all at the same time. I’ve compiled a set of questions that I have been asked me over the past year and I’m going to do my best to answer them while also providing some direction on all of the things I had to figure out all by myself (cue in: Celine Dion song).
You guys. This was the absolute worst for me. When I first found out I was pregnant, it was in the middle of planning my sister’s engagement party. I was in the early weeks and had only told about 2 people. The emotions hit me so (so, so, SO) hard. It was almost an instant thing with the hormones. Granted, I am a pretty emotional person with or without growing baby inside of me, but this was on a whole other level of emotional. Looking back I wouldn’t be surprised if I cried everyday of my first trimester. Over everything. Considering the circumstances (aka my sister’s engagement, aka the stress everyone was going through, aka all of the help everyone needed from me), I put my pregnancy news to the side and kept it a secret until after my sister’s engagement party. I know what you’re thinking. How did you hide your emotions? How did you hide the morning sickness? How did your mom not know? How did you do anything? The answer to those questions I still don’t know the answers to. But I did it, and I’m okay, and everything turned out great so that’s what you need to focus on.
FIRST THINGS FIRST:
+ Get your prenatal vitamins (these were my favorite).
+ Buy this stretch mark cream. And use it like yesterday.
Ok, now here we go.
Not everyone experiences the nausea (my mom didn’t)… but guess who did!? Yep, that would be me. No clue why it’s called MORNING sickness because I felt it all day long. I couldn’t even drink coffee (yeah, I said it) and I was a complete mess over it. Obviously my caffeine addiction is a whole other issue, but if you’re used to drinking caffeine and then you can’t stand the smell of coffee anymore because it makes you sick you have a big problem. And that problem is a massive migraine ALL. DAY. LONG from caffeine withdrawal. It’s great. So what helped with my nausea? I lived off of these things.
+ sour jolly ranchers (random, I know)
+ these ginger chews (saved my life)
+ this ginger ale (super ginger-y & pricey but worked)
Are you seeing a pattern here? GINGER is the answer. If you don’t like ginger and you’re experiencing nausea and/or vomiting, you better start to love it. It’s the magic fairy wand to your nausea needs. The only thing that I could keep down those first FOUR (yes, not three… four months) of sickness were smoothies. I pureed everything and made it extra cold and drank up.
kale • spinach • pineapple • banana • lemon • coconut milk • apple juice
& GINGER
I experienced fatigue like no other. I was so tired all of the time. Even after I woke up I would be awake for just a couple of hours and then immediately take a two hour nap. It’s totally normal and extremely difficult especially if you’re working. So I’m sure you guessed the answer to this one is sleep… and so sleep I did. In the morning, at work (on breaks) and early at night. I just stopped fighting it and gave in (spoiler alert: you’ll miss this freedom the first few months of baby life). Speaking of sleep… you MUST get a pregnancy pillow. Yes, it’s probably not something you NEED but after you get one, you’ll change your mind. I slept with mine all of the time, everywhere, all pregnancy long. I personally bought the first one linked below– but feel free to scroll through and choose the most suited for yourself.
I called this the golden era. I was totally feeling myself.
The second trimester for me started probably around 16 weeks. My mood totally shifted to somewhat normal and I was able to eat again (the best part, obvi). I was more motivated to do things and I didn’t spend all of my time at home on the couch sleeping. It was great. I remember thinking to myself “yes, now I think I can do this”. Here is a photo of me during the second trimester when I was feeling it.
EMBRACE THIS TIME.
Get up, get dressed in nice clothes and go outside. I don’t care if it’s the middle of winter. Don’t spend your time worrying about baby (all the books say to do that), but just enjoy your life. If you started your pregnancy anything like I did, you deserve a break from worrying about baby and this is the time to go do fun things.
This was hands down my most asked question throughout my pregnancy: “How did you stay so fit?” First of all, I’d like to say that I was SO flattered that people thought I was fit because honestly being fit and not being overweight are two different things (I was the latter). But this is probably the best time to talk about pregnancy cravings since this is typically when they start showing up.
There’s something you should know about cravings. You crave what your body is lacking in vitamins. For example: I went to my friends’ son’s birthday party and I met a girl there who had a 6 month old. She told me she was a vegetarian for 10 years of her life, but only craved meat when she was pregnant. Can you guess why? Yes, probably because she wasn’t get any of the vitamins she needed from her non-meat diet and so her body was telling her she needed it. PUT THIS IN MIND WHEN YOU HAVE A CRAVING. I was also so bad at drinking water (my entire life) and all I ever craved throughout my pregnancy was ice cubes. So, how do we combat this issue if you’re craving really fatty foods? You replace your craving by eating a healthier option that contains the same kind of vitamin or taste. When I was in the mood to eat an entire bag of sour patch kids, I would eat a granny smith apple instead. Now, don’t get me wrong… I’m not telling you to neglect your cravings. In our culture they say if you neglect your cravings, the baby ends up with a birth mark in the shape of what you craved (I know it’s weird… don’t know if it’s true or not) but I’m just saying that when it gets excessive and you don’t want to eat like 10 hamburgers… try my replacement method.
On that note– NO, you are not eating for two. You are eating for yourself and pea. Literally, A PEA. How big is a pea? Not big enough to digest an extra meal. Your food intake doesn’t need to be excessive at this stage especially because your baby is growing it’s organs, not in size. Which makes me also want to tell you to not become anemic like me…eat lots of iron. I couldn’t stand my iron pills so I made foods that were enriched in iron. Like this spinach recipe that Hamzeh & I ate like 3 times a week.
1 lb. ground beef
1 medium onion, chopped
4 bags baby spinach, roughly chopped*
2 teaspoons Middle Eastern 7 spice blend (or all spice)
1 cup – 2 cups chicken stock (preference)
3 cloves of garlic, minced
lemon juice (1 whole lemon + zest)
1 bunch of cilantro, chopped
6 oz can of chickpeas drained, optional
served with: basmati rice
+ Directions: In a pot, add olive oil and sauté onions until aromatic (2 minutes). Add ground beef and brown until no longer pink. Drain fat. Return back to heat and add spice blend (or all spice) and 1 teaspoon each of salt and pepper.
Add spinach (seems like a lot, it isn’t. Plus, if it was… +++ iron for you). Add enough chicken stock to cover the spinach. You’ll want to gauge this based on how soupy you want your stew (more stock = soupier) I usually use about 1 cup depending on how much I make. Let spinach and meet boil together for 30 minutes on simmer.
In a smaller frying pan, add some olive oil, minced garlic, and chopped cilantro. Sauté together until you can smell the goodness. Add to the spinach mixture after it’s done boiling. Taste your stew (may need a little more salt and pepper). Drain chickpeas and add. Serve with rice.
*I like to use fresh spinach from this yesterday but you can most certainly use frozen. Some people prefer it that way. if so, use 3 (10-oz) bags of chopped spinach, drained with all excess water squeezed out.
Ah yes. The WHAT DO I WEAR?!??! problem. Totally one of my favorites.
Ok, so here’s the deal on clothing. Two things I want to tell you.
+ You don’t have to dress like a bum.
+ You don’t have to not dress like a bum.
Literally. Do whatever you want and whatever makes you feel good.
DON’T dress like a bum and still feel bad for yourself. DO what makes you happy.
Now, with that said… let me share with you what I pretty much lived in all throughout my pregnancy. A combination that made me feel good all of the time.
Combined with any kimono I could find. No, seriously.
Also THIS dress. THIS DRESS guys. Still wear it.
If you’re not in a plain Jane mood (wait until the third trimester), and are totally feeling yourself like I was at this time… just size up in places you used to shop pre-pregnancy. Don’t get me wrong, sometimes you do need some good maternity jeans (barely ever wore jeans) or a cute little dress to show off your bump, but for the most part, a size large in a cute dress will do too.
I never cared for buying maternity clothes unless it was something I knew I’d wear later. I just couldn’t grasp the idea of spending lots of money on something I’m going to wear for such a short period of time.
This dress I’m wearing was bought at Ross in a size large. Wore it throughout the whole last half of my pregnancy (and until I couldn’t fit in it anymore). It was $11.
Towards the last part of my pregnancy I started to feel LOTS of back pain. The only comfortable position for me to lay down was on the floor in fetal position or in that yoga pose where your hands are out in front of you as you stretch. The pain was so real. That’s why I bought this back massager that my friend recommended and I loved it. It is only $25 and has a heating option. Now it has been passed down to my pregnant friend and she also looooves it.
Another thing I resorted to (which I don’t usually resort to on normal days) are really hot baths. I used to take a hot bath once a week and just sit in it for a couple of hours. I loved adding a chic bath bomb, but to be honest what really helped the pain the most was THIS LAVENDER EPSOM SALT. You can find it anywhere.
You might have a nervous breakdown at this point. Mainly because a part of you is soo ready for this pregnancy to be over, but the other part of you is scared out of your mind because you don’t know what life will be like in just a few short months (or weeks, or days). It’s an unexplainable feeling, and suddenly all of the emotions of the first trimester start coming back to haunt you and you don’t even know what to do with yourself anymore.
IT’S NORMAL.
A few things that could help:
+ Breathe (inhale for 3, hold for 5, exhale for 7).
+ DO NOT LISTEN TO ANYBODY.
I REPEAT, DO NOT LISTEN TO ANYBODY AT ALL.
Including me. Use this post as a reference. A guide if you are experiencing some of the things I experienced and don’t know what to do. Every pregnancy is different. Every person is different. Every child is different. DO NOT let others get to you with their advice or the comments on how big or small you are. If you’re eating enough, if you’re gaining enough/too much weight, if you should or should not wear heels. Literally, ignore it all. YOU DO YOU. You know what’s best for your baby. I fasted during Ramadan throughout my pregnancy. Do you know how many people told me I was crazy?
You may feel like you don’t know what you’re doing, but you’re going to figure it out. I promise. If there’s anything that I’m sure of, it’s that statement right there.
The first month after having Taleen I remember looking to my mom with tears filled in my eyes and asking her, “Mom… what does she want? I don’t know what I’m doing” and my mom looked back at me and said: “Dania, neither does she.” And that changed everything for me. You’re going to get used to this new life, and your baby is also getting used to you. Everything will be fine. And your natural instincts will kick in and help you. The thoughts are worse than the actuality of it all, I promise. TRUST ME! I would know…
BEST DRESSED: 2018 OSCARS
