Yousra Finding out you are pregnant is a great big ball of uncertainty and questions. You already have a hundred questions and there are still questions you haven’t even thought up yet. Then there are all these things you have heard about pregnancy and you are wondering if they are true. It would be good to compile an exhaustive list of every single question that has gone through our minds in this pregnancy journey and create an A to Z. I have listed 10 points that I reckon could be ticked off a lot of first time pregnancy unknowns.
1.You are not literally eating for two
This is something you will be told quite often by family and well wishers. The truth is you are only going to need an extra 200 calories a day in the last 3 months. Be warned, I don’t want you to end up like me, wondering why I still had 7kg of extra stubborn weight a year later.
Don’t be too hard on yourself either, as we all know how hungry us pregnant ladies can get, that’s one thing we do all have in common.
2. It is RECOMMENDED not to drink caffeine
Yes, if you were a caffeine junkie before, with your coffee cup glued to your fingers all day you will need to cut down, however there is no evidence of the morning fix doing any harm. It is recommended to not exceed 200 mg a day and pregnancy literally makes you want to sleep all day long, so I don’t even know how people completely avoid it.
Here is a caffeine pick and mix reference: a filtered coffee is 140mg, an instant coffee is 100mg, an energy drink is 80mg, a cup of tea is 75mg and a chocolate bar is about 25mg.
3. Free medicine and dental care
Under our wonderful NHS System, we are able to obtain a Maternity Exemption Certificate from the GP or midwife, which allows for free NHS Prescriptions as well as Dental care during pregnancy and expires 12 months after the birth.
If you are already registered with a dentist, it will just be a matter of ticking the maternity exempt box after treatment. Good luck finding a dentist if you are not registered though, I have been refused at the door at every dentist within a normal range to my house as they are more interested in private pay then any type of NHS Funding treatment that doesn’t pay as much. I’ll stop the rant now, but honestly pregnancy can really mess with your oral health so use it while you can.
4.Keep Exercising
Don’t leave exercise until after the baby arrives, keep moving throughout your pregnancy journey. Obviously if you can hardly get off the sofa with your nausea in the first trimester and slightly beyond (nausea rarely ends 12 weeks on the dot), then don’t beat yourself up about it. This is a time where you should be kind to your body and not exercise to the point of being out of breath or lifting anything too heavy.
Don’t overdo the abs workout, trying to get a six pack while pregnant will result in Diastasis Recti, which is when your stomach muscles separate.
Exercising is proven to help with labour, reduce stress and it will help you with a faster recovery. It can also help relieve some pregnancy symptoms like backpain. I found that going to the gym gave me so much energy throughout the day, I can almost say I have become addicted to the buzz and have to force myself to take a rest day!
5.Everything smells bad
There is running joke that I have a sense of smell like a dog while I am pregnant. I can literally tell you what you have eaten, what perfume you sprayed last week or when the last time you showered was.
Your body is literally not taking any risks looking after this little one as it grows, it has saved me one to many times with gone-off food. While I am thankful for this, it might put you off the most unexpecting things.. like your husband, your morning coffee, your favourite perfume, your own body ( no running away from that one!) . I am literally showering twice a day minimum.
I would recommend spraying your favourite scent on your top and using it whenever your nose unexpectedly gets attacked by offensive smells. This will disappear like magic as soon as your baby arrives, like nothing ever happened.
Everyone has this to a different level of sensitivity, and some don’t even experience this, so don’t be alarmed if everything still smells good.
6.Kegels, Kegels, Kegels
Get to work strengthening those pelvic floor muscles by contracting and relaxing your muscle like you’re stopping yourself from peeing and then letting go. Don’t do it while you need to pee though!
Both pregnancy and labour will loosen those muscles which could lead to urinary incontinence. I am sure you have heard a mother say she can’t sneeze without peeing.
Like exercising, don’t wait until you need to start fixing a problem, start now so the problem is minimal and easier to bounce back; it is true that we bounce back quicker the younger we are, however we still need to help our bodies to get there.
7.Not all pregnancies are the same.
Even your own pregnancies may drastically differ. There is no problem discussing your pregnancy symptoms with others, just remember not to be alarmed if their’s is very different to your own. No doctor is going to be able to tell you exactly what your body will do on this journey.
Some people feel absolutely nothing, some people don’t even have a belly, others are bed bound for most of the pregnancy and will not be able to fit into any of their clothes. All of these are normal, and we need to trust the process. Because of the drastic differences, we will often find ourselves worrying about symptoms and whether all is okay, health professionals are very supportive when it comes to the endless concerns and will usually check to reassure you everything is okay as they feel it is better to be safe than sorry.
After your first pregnancy, you will be so busy with your other child that you probably wont even notice things you would the first-time round. You will also be aware of how much your body can take without there being any cause for concern. At this point we have acknowledged that it is just part of the process of you growing a whole life inside of you!
8.Priority Seating on Public Transport and Front of Queues.
There is no shame in being offered a seat on public transport, or even asking for one if no one is offering. I know the latter is much harder, but I definitely regret not doing that one and feeling like I am going to pass out after standing half an hour on an underground train, your body and your baby will be thanking you.
There are priority seats for pregnant ladies and also baby on board badges that you can order for free on https://tfl.gov.uk/transport-accessibility/baby-on-board, so you don’t have to explain your circumstance to people.
The same goes for standing in a queue, you may have to actively go to the desk and asked to be served for this one, but you are perfectly within your right to. Please don’t torture yourselves in fear of what others will think of you.
9. You don’t have to tell your employer immediately.
If you are working, I am sure one of your questions will be when should I tell my employer. You can tell them whenever you feel comfortable but no later than 15 weeks before the due date of the birth.
Depending on your relationship with your manager, you could let them know in the form of a MATB1 form , which your midwife/GP will give you after your 20 week scan and will just verify your pregnancy with a confirmed estimated due date. If you are not working you can use this to claim your maternity allowance from the Jobcentre.
My employer found out in the first 8 weeks because of how bad my nausea was! It is not what I wanted but it turned out prefect as they were very accommodating and allowed me to work from home for most of the period. If you are not offered this, you can put in a flexible working request with HR and they will assess whether or not they can provide this.
You also have the right to paid time off for all of your hospital appointments so make sure you are not wasting your holidays!
10.Hands off the alcohol and cigarettes for now
Put away your glassware ladies, you won’t be needing them any time soon. The same goes for smoking. Although a friend that craved a frozen can of beer every evening was told by her doctor one a day wont hurt and her baby boy turned out fine..
They do however say that some of the alcohol passes into the placenta, so too much will increase the risk of miscarriage, premature birth and low baby weight.
The same goes for smoking, your baby will receive those toxins through the placenta and can struggle to receive oxygen, this can severely affect their development.
