The First Trimester

So, as I said in the last blog entry, the last 14 weeks have been pretty interesting. At week 4 I ran 20 miles (not knowing I was preggers); at week 5, I could barely get out of bed. I will be honest and admit I totally underestimated what pregnancy would do to me. I was one of those people who would hear other people’s horror stories and tales of fatigue/naseau, and never give it a second thought because I figured I was “fit, healthy and ready for pregnancy.” No problem, right??

That statement could not be any further from the truth!!

At 4.5 weeks, I felt like I had been hit by a truck, and then backed over by the same truck and then a 16 wheeler…..you get the hint. My “late” 10 pm bed times and “early” 6 am wakeups quickly became 8 pm to bed, 8 am to wake up. My hour runs became 30 minutes, 20 minutes…walking….

By week six, I was nauseous and would swing from one food craving to the next within 10 minutes. We spent the month of December NOT stocking the Fridge, but rather taking 2-3 trips to the grocery per day, just to make sure we were not wasting food as my normal eating habits were long gone!! The sight of any raw vegetable made me want to gag! BUT, I figured, I was “ok” because if I felt bad, that means the baby’s ok…plus, I wasn’t puking…….yet….

Then the fun started in Canada. The kid got the upper hand of me, and anything I put into my stomach he/she didn’t like came right back up. We learned a lot! No oatmeal, no salad, pretty much nothing healthy. However, I could take back a pint of Dairy Queen Ice Cream with no problem. And…I learned cheese makes everything better!...I have not had my cholesterol checked.

In addition to all these lovely “pregnancy” side-effects is the notorious constipation. There is no way to sugar coat this topic; I was/am constipated and had to pee every 20 minutes. They say it is due to increased progesterone, whatever. One word: Metamucil ! (and apples if it’s a really bad day)

The funny thing about “morning sickness” is that it is not just in the morning; it can be ALL FRIGGIN DAY! From weeks 7-11 I only gained ½ pound (living off of ice cream). Now, I know that none of this seems very fun (well at least the ice cream is)but, the tradeoff of knowing in a few months I will have a beautiful bundle of joy to look at and know it was worth it (at least that is what many mothers tell me)

For now, my instant gratification for the 1st trimester suffering is the boobs. Last summer in France I bought some bras, but I got the wrong size and they were too big. Not anymore!! I am filling those cups up like a champ! And nobody better rain on my parade and tell me and A cup is still small!! I am almost B now!

Throughout the first trimester, albeit tired and sick, I was encouraged to keep active from my physician. When you are extremely active and become pregnant, going from a lot of physical activity to nothing can be worse for the baby than exercising in moderation. Now, that does not mean it was easy on the days I felt cemented to the bed. Some days it was hard to just get moving, but once I did, I felt SOOO much better. I have no idea why, some attribute it to diverted blood flow from the stomach, but the only time I did not feel like hurling was when I was running or on the elliptical.

Don’t ask me how fast I was running…..I am not sure if I resembled any form of running. Enough said.

The funny thing is just as sudden as the symptoms appear and in the exact reverse order, they begin to resolve, right around 12 weeks (except for the constipation; that’s the 9 month bonus plan!). At 12 weeks, right after my birthday I started JUST feeling nauseous; you can imagine Gregory’s and my surprise when I kept breakfast down. Then the next day, breakfast and lunch….and at the end of the week, I was eating 3 meals with snacks and enjoying it!

Then, I knew I was fine when I got hungry and thought I could hold out 10 minutes to finish up a piece of work. Well, I think I almost passed out due to low blood sugar and ripped Gregory’s head off when he would not give me a bite of his lunch (he was joking, but I failed to notice it and instead went into a hysterical fit). Note to self: when hungry, EAT…there is no time to waste… if not, I will self destruct and take down everything around/with me. Hence, I keep snacks by me all the time, even on the bed stand. I am a great wife and like to wake Gregory up to share with him at 2 am (I am a notorious sleepwalker/talker as well).

So, I think that sums up my first trimester. Not the easiest, but definitely interesting…

I still have a lot to write about, like how the 2nd trimester is off to just as an exciting start as the first, how much I am showing, all the crazy things people have said, the unsolicited advice (I know everyone likes to read about that), and the sex of the baby(that will come in a few more weeks). Stay tuned…