My Pregnancy Journey

Long Lace Wrap // Nude Lace Underwear // Lace Nude Nursing Bra // All Nursery Decor Linked Here

I finally decided to write a blog post on my entire pregnancy journey. This has been a long time coming and something I have been working on for a while. Remember that everyone’s fertility journey and pregnancy journey are all so different so try not to compare. I know it’s hard! I just simply wanted to share my journey in hopes that it may help some of you!

How we found out we were pregnant:

I won’t make this long but I did want to touch on it because I get a lot of questions on this. I have been on birth control pretty much my whole life. I have been taking Lo Loesterin Fe for the longest time. Cam and I started talking about expanding our family and decided I should just go ahead and stop taking the pill because we weren’t sure how long it would take us to get pregnant. I got off of the pill and we started trying for 2 months and got pregnant! We are so thankful it came so easy to us but know this is not the case for a lot of others, including some of our dearest friends, and our thoughts and prayers are with you all. Everything will always work out in God’s perfect timing. The only fertility tracker I used was the Ovia Pregnancy app. I tracked my fertility on there but never used the fertility sticks or anything like that.

Cam and I went to Raleigh for the NC State/Clemson game in November of 2019 and I happened to notice that I was a couple of days late on my period. I took a pregnancy test that morning, laid it down, honestly forgot about it and kept getting ready to go tailgate for the game. I went to go use the bathroom again and saw the test sitting there on the floor and noticed that it said “pregnant”. I couldn’t believe it. I thought for sure pregnancy was going to be something that we would have a hard time with. But I was overcome with so many emotions, especially happiness. I wish I had a fun story of how I told Cam and had everything on video but life happened and I don’t. He was downstairs talking with his dad and I called him to come up. When he came into the bathroom I showed him the pregnancy test. All he kept saying was “oh my gosh, really? Really? You’re not kidding?!”. Once it really hit him we just hugged and cried and just were in total shock. The funny thing is that we still went to tailgate for the game (obviously I did not drink at all) and had to hold it in around everyone even though inside I wanted to scream and tell everyone because we were so excited. I took 3 more tests to confirm the next day and they were all positive!

1st Trimester:

I was 4 weeks pregnant when we found out we were expecting so it is safe to say that the 1st trimester seemed like it lasted forever. The 1st trimester is hard. You are so excited about your baby but there are still so many risks with miscarriages and you can’t really share with anyone or feel like your pregnancy is safe until around the 12 week mark. So I definitely struggled with that a lot. It’s hard to find out that you are pregnant so early and have so long to wait until you feel that you are in the “safe zone” but I just tried keeping myself and my mind as busy as possible for the next 2 months.

1st Trimester symptoms were very tough. I was taking Zoloft and Abilify to help with my depression and anxiety before getting pregnant. My psychiatrist and my OBGYN decided the best route for my mental health and a healthy pregnancy was for me to stay on Zoloft but to get off of Abilify. So along with the crazy hormonal emotions that I was going through my 1st trimester, I also was withdrawing from Abilify so I was extra emotional. I definitely did not feel like myself at all and it was extremely hard. The mood swings were insane but I kept telling myself that it was all temporary. I cried all of the time over nothing and just really felt extreme emotions, as many pregnant women do. I also was extremely tired my 1st trimester. I did a lot of sleeping and napping and pretty much didn’t work out at all because I simply didn’t have the energy. I was also extremely nauseous. My nausea was never so bad that I was throwing up every single day but it still was pretty rough. To help get through it, I ate a lot of carbs (lots of bagels for breakfast) and just got a lot of sleep. Carbs were really the only thing that would make me feel better so I always kept crackers in my purse and made sure I always had something on hand when I needed it. I also had really bad headaches, bloody noses, bloody gums when brushing my teeth, and extremely bad hormonal acne on my chest and back. I took a lot of tylenol for the headaches and used these Momma’s Blemish Reducer Skin Pads to help out with any hormonal acne. But to be honest, hormonal acne is just something you kind of have to ride out. As soon as I hit my second trimester, the acne got a lot better. I also slowly started losing bladder control. This doesn’t mean that I was just peeing myself all day long (LOL) but any time I sneezed or coughed, yep, you guessed it, I would do a little tinkle down there. This has lasted throughout my entire pregnancy and something I deal with to this day. The only thing I have been able to do to help with all of this snissing (sneezing and peeing) is to wear panty liners/pads. I hate it but sometimes you just have to do what you have to do!

One thing that I also wanted to mention is that my allergies have been out of control during my entire pregnancy. They were especially bad during 1st/2nd trimester. It is very normal for allergies to be heightened a ton during pregnancy. I spent a lot of my 1st and 2nd trimester mornings blowing my nose for hours and went threw A LOT of tissues. I’ve always dealt a little with allergies, especially in the Spring, but nothing ever to this extent. To help cope, I took and still take one Claritin a day and use nose spray. Just make sure you consult with your OBGYM with what’s best for you to take. I wanted to let anyone know who is also dealing with insane allergies that you are not alone and that is totally normal/manageable!

With that being said, I am only listing out these pregnancy symptoms because I have gotten so many questions from you guys about what symptoms I’ve had. None of these symptoms are bad or terrible by any means and pregnancy is such an amazing/beautiful thing. Everyone has different symptoms and everything is so manageable. Just letting you guys in on some of the experiences that I have had since I have been asked. Don’t let any of this scare you about being pregnant. It isn’t bad at all. In fact, I have enjoyed being pregnant way more than I thought that I would. You can ask any of my friends or family, I have loved this entire pregnancy journey and I know that I will miss it! 🙂

2nd Trimester:

I felt like a brand new person during my 2nd trimester. I actually didn’t realize how bad I felt during my 1st trimester until I got to experience how much better I felt during my 2nd trimester. It was like a night and day difference. The hormonal mood swings were way more under control. I started feeling like myself again and it was amazing. The hormonal acne started to decrease. I still have acne scars on my back that I am going to eventually try and do something about after pregnancy but the new acne stopped forming which was so nice. I still dealt with all of the snissing, occasional headaches, nosebleeds and bloody gums but that was about it. I also started to notice a major increase in having to use the bathroom, especially during the night. Some nights I woke up 4 times to pee and sometimes I feel like I woke up 10 times. It all just depends! I started to have a lot more energy and started working out again. Overall, I was feeling good! A highlight of the 2nd trimester was feeling baby girl kick! I think I started feeling flutters around week 20 and they became more intense as the weeks went on. It is by far the sweetest feelings I have ever felt in my entire life and it’s sooooo special the first time you start feeling them.

We also found out the gender of our baby during the early weeks of the 2nd trimester. We ended up paying to do the genetic blood test (I think around 12 weeks) to find out the gender early but a lot of people wait until the anatomy ultrasound scan at 18 weeks. Just a total preference on what you want to do! We had a small gender reveal party when I was 14 weeks and found out we were having a baby girl! This was definitely another 2nd trimester highlight!

3rd Trimester:

I can see why some people call the 3rd trimester the “second 1st trimester”. It’s hard to explain but for me, I slowly started experiencing some of those 1st trimester symptoms again. Don’t get me wrong, I didn’t feel anywhere close to as bad as I did my first trimester but I didn’t feel as great as I did during my second trimester. With the 3rd trimester came more hormonal emotions and fatigue which started to make me feel pretty blah again. Thankfully, I haven’t really been feeling nauseous at all which has been a huge blessing. Luckily that symptom stayed far away in the 1st trimester symptoms haha. With the third trimester came some new symptoms. I started getting some pretty rough round ligament pain and started having extremely bad heartburn. To help with both, I purchased a belly band (you can get those from anywhere, I think I ordered mine on Amazon) and started taking Pepcid AC to try and combat the heartburn before it starts. I also take Tums and Mylanta as needed for when the heartburn does hit and gets really bad. Mylanta has worked really well for me. I couldn’t imagine not having it during pregnancy. I also started getting what they call “lightening crotch” during my third trimester and they have only gotten worse and more intense the further I get along in my pregnancy. They usually don’t last that long though and I have been able to deal with them pretty easily. I also still pee a million times a night which is totally normal!

I would say the worst symptom for me during my third trimester has been the stomach issues that I have had. About 2 months ago I started having really bad stomach pains every single morning, along with loose stool and cramps that last pretty much from the time I wake up until lunchtime, if not all day long. The cramps have been the hardest thing to deal with. They have gotten so bad that it’s made it really hard to do anything so I have found myself just resting as much as possible, especially during this home stretch. The stomach pains also hurt so bad that sometimes I get these painful shocks all the way throughout my arms and legs which is very interesting. I did do a stool test and everything came back normal so I am really not sure what is causing it. I think my prenatal vitamin may be upsetting my stomach a little. I started taking a stronger probiotic along with my prenatal vitamin and that has seemed to help a little bit. I’ve also been trying to drink a ton of water throughout the day. It’s been tough because I’ve wanted to be more active through this last bit of pregnancy and these stomach issues have had me not able to do much BUT she will be here soon and hopefully all of the stomach issues will go away!

Other than that, the third trimester hasn’t been that bad. I am at the point where I feel very large, hardly anything fits me, I waddle everywhere and I can’t fit my wedding bands on my fingers anymore but that is just normal towards the end of pregnancy and all things that I figured would happen. Sometimes you just have to laugh at yourself and realize that as soon as you see your sweet baby, all of the pain and inconveniences are SO worth it!

Weight Gain/Cravings:

I am not sure exactly how much weight I have gained throughout my entire pregnancy. I usually turn around on the scale and tell them I don’t want to look just for my own personal preference but I do think I have gained anywhere from 25-35 pounds, maybe even more! I have had extreme cravings during pregnancy and definitely have not held myself back. My biggest cravings have been sweets and candy. During my 1st trimester all that I wanted was SOUR candy and I swear I could eat sour skittles and war heads every single day hahaha. Now my sweet cravings are more so chocolate cookies and things like that. You definitely want to give yourself some balance and not go too crazy with your cravings during pregnancy but allow yourself to live and have fun with it. Pregnancy is only for 9 months. You have the rest of your life to get that pre baby body back. That’s just my 2 cents!

My Maternity Favorites:

• You can read all about my pregnancy safe skincare routine and all of the skincare products I have been using here
• Belly Butter (code KATYBUTTER10 for 10% off)
• Stretch Mark Cream (code KATYBUTTER10 for 10% off)
• Momma’s Blemish Reducer Skin Pads (for hormonal acne)
• Maternity Sports Bra
• Maternity Bra
• Maternity Leggings
• Non Maternity Leggings  (they work great with a bump. I am normally a size 4 and sized up to a 6/8 in these)
• Maternity Lounge Pants
• Maternity Overalls
• Favorite place to shop for ALL maternity clothes/swimwear: Pink Blush Maternity (I wore smalls throughout my 2nd trimester and started getting mediums during my third trimester)
• Pregnancy Safe Self Tanner (I wear the Ultra Dark CC Cream. You can use code KATY15 for 15% off)
• Prenatal Vitamin (use code MACAROONS to take 10% off your fist 3 months)
• Hospital Bag
• Diaper Bag (I do not have a discount code anymore, sorry guys!)
• You can see my full baby registry and must have baby registry items here
• You can see everything I am packing in my hospital bag for me, baby, and dad here
• You can see and shop everything in our nursery reveal here
• Car Seat Safety Inspection: To get your car seat ready for the hospital, I highly recommend using Michelle from Safe in the Seat. With COVID going on, a lot of people are not doing car seat checks right now. A lot of places don’t do them anymore at all due to liability so we had a tough time finding someone to help us. Michelle was amazing to work with. We did it virtually and we learned so much. Highly recommend her services! Car seat safety is so, so important.

Those are some of my favorite maternity items/services that I get the most questions about! I wish I had a favorite pregnancy pillow recommendation for you guys but I am one of the weirdos that hated every pregnancy pillow I tried and haven’t used one since the beginning of my 2nd trimester. So I am no help there! I will share what my favorite postpartum/nursing items are once baby girl gets here!

I hope this blog post was helpful for some of you! Remember to embrace your new body as you go through these pregnancy changes and do not compare yourself to anyone else. It was really hard for me at first to not compare my changing body to some of my other friends who stayed so TINY during pregnancy. But at the end of the day, our bodies are different and we are making a beautiful baby and that is all that matters. Pregnancy is a very beautiful thing. So even if you gain more weight than you would have liked, it’s okay. You created a miracle, mama! 🙂 Love you ALL and I am praying for a safe pregnancy and a beautiful maternity journey for all of you!

XOXO,

Katy

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