You Asked, so I will tell…

Posted: May 25, 2010 at 6:25 pm

When I first announced my pregnancy and then clarified that my blog would not be just pregnancy talk, many of you made sure to point out you want to hear about the details on occasion. You know I’m not one to sugar coat things and hide from the truth, so in this post I will give you what you asked for - some of the pregnancy symptoms I’m currently facing. Before I begin I feel the need to place one of these on this post:

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Warning: The following statements are in no way intended to frighten, gross out, or act as a form of birth control by preventing you from ever wanting to go through a pregnancy. The first trimester is a bumpy road. Proceed with caution. 😉

Weeks 6-13 of most pregnancies are the roughest part. Although the last few weeks before delivery could give them a run for their money. I have just reached week 6 and like Emeril Lagasse…BAM! I’ve been hit with the brunt of it.

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FATIGUE – This doesn’t sound so bad, does it? How does narcolepsy sound? A little more problematic I’m guessing. Well, first trimester fatigue is basically adopting a case of narcolepsy for a couple of months. You can be going merrily through your day, when suddenly stapling your eyelids open would do nothing to help. It becomes almost physically impossible to not crash on the couch and take a nap mid-afternoon. If napping doesn’t happen, go ahead and adopt the nickname “Grandma,” because if you have any say in the matter, you will be in bed by 8:00 pm at the latest and happy about it.

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MORNING SICKNESS – Hold on a second while I pee my pants laughing on that one. Not too hard to do mind you (see below). “Morning sickness” is very misleading and a joke of a name. It should be renamed to the “Hangover from Hades that doesn’t stop for 2 months straight”. I’m not exaggerating. Women out there who deal with it longer than the first trimester are my hero. I don’t know how they do it. An intense hangover is the best way to describe this feeling. You feel like you could get sick any moment, but even if you do there is no relief. Eating has the same appeal as taking a shot of Everclear would during a true hangover (*cough cough* thank God my past is not my present). Your mouth tastes like metal. All you want to do is crawl in bed and pop some medicine for your pounding headache. Oh, wait…you can’t…you’re pregnant and Tylenol just doesn’t cut it.

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EXTRA POTTY TIME – Thanks to your kidneys being extra effective at ridding the body of waste during pregnancy, the toilet becomes your new best friend. After all, the at least once per hour visit I was already taking wasn’t enough. My love for guzzling water combined with PG hormones have me running to the pot at least twice an hour. Once, I went before getting in the shower and had to scramble out of the shower and dry off FAST to make it in time to go again. I might as well go ahead and move my residence to 123 Bathroom Lane, Town in GA, 01020 because I know from experience it only gets worse.

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FOOD AVERSIONS – Remember the whole hangover feeling? Well, you typically want to eat like you’re hung over too. Greasy, carby, and salty all sound sooooo good. It is a tricky battle to get in vegetables, some fruits, and lean proteins. A balanced diet can easily go out the window during this time and it’s okay. I still try to do my best and eat the healthiest choices out of things that sound good, or sneak in veggies in Green Monsters or cooked in with foods, but there are some things that I simply cannot stomach. I’m not going to force myself to eat them either. During the first trimester it is better to focus on actually getting food into your system than not allowing yourself to eat enough because the only thing you can actually swallow is a tortilla with refried beans and cheese (something I ate a lot of during my pregnancy with M) or Morningstar Farms “buffalo wings” (my current it-still-is-edible food).

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TOOT TOOT – That’s not the sound of me tooting my own horn, either. More like the sound of my horn tooting itself. I’ve already shared pictures of the beautiful side of bloating in pregnancy. Where does it come from? An unbelievable amount of gas. You will easily put your husband to shame. Or shame yourself during the squat track of Power class.

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You know what, though? It is ALL worth it. Undeniably. Because all of those symptoms mean this is happening inside of me right now…

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I have a little baby the size of a sweet pea doing all sorts of amazing things already. The facial features are just beginning to form, as well as the limbs. The heart is already beating, the blood is circulating, and the spinal cord is taking shape. It’s just a true testament to the miracles God works. And as terrible as I made all those symptoms above sound, I’m not frustrated by a single one of them. They all are simply part of something amazing. And I embrace them, just as I embrace the toilet bowl.

  • If you’ve been pregnant before, what shocked you the most about pregnancy? If you haven’t experienced it, did anything surprise you about the symptoms I mentioned today?
  • What is one food you would be sad to have a sudden aversion to? Mine is actually meat + veggies. It makes it very hard to come up with ideas for dinner when absolutely nothing sounds the least bit appealing.

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29 Comments to “You Asked, so I will tell…”
  1. I have never been pregnant but I appreciate your honesty! It is actually really refreshing because so often I always hear women say how amazing pregnancy is. And I have no doubt that it is an amaing exeperience to know that you have a human life growing inside of you. But at the same time I love how real you are in giving us the “ugly truth!” haha! I think that is what makes you so likeable and trustworthy. You tell it like it is and I find that to be so extraordinary! 🙂

  2. I didn’t have any food aversions with my first, but turkey burgers had me running for the toilet with my second. She’s 3 months old now and I still can’t stand the smell of turkey grilling. Although with my first, I was hospitalized three times because I had morning sickness that didn’t end until you could actually see the baby. I still don’t understand how I gained 50 lbs when I was eating like 300 calories a day.

  3. Denise says:

    I LOVED being pregnant, I never felt better in my life. I NEVER had morning sickness, heartburn or food aversion. I did have fatigue. So tired that you can just go to sleep anywhere and everywhere. All food tasted MMMMMMMMMMMMMMMMM GOOOOOOOOOOD, if I was anywhere near it I ate it. Back then they were not so concerned about the moms weight gain as long as I was not having problems I ate what I wanted. I totally gained 60 pounds and thank goodness was back to normal 6 months after delivery. The part I did not like at all was the boobs were huge and everywhere. I went from a B cup to a DD, those to went away and then some, now I am an A+!!!

  4. Never been pregnant but many of my friends have and most were very honest! I don’t know what I’d do if I suddenly couldn’t eat my pizza!!

  5. Kati says:

    Great post 🙂 At 9.5 weeks, I’m having the “morning sickness” queasy feeling that lasts all day, the food aversions (pb, anything sweet), and the frequent bathroom visits. Some fatigue as well and the good ol bloating. I got frustrated today somewhat but like you said, it is SO all worth it!

    And my dinner tonight? Mini bag of popcorn + mac ‘n’ cheese with sausage in it 🙂

  6. I was lucky to have a very healthy pregnancy. I had awful morning …and all day sickness in the beginning. My cravings were powdered donuts and chocolate milk ! lol I had oats most morning 😉 moderation. I’m glad your pregnancy is going well!!

  7. Wow… what I have to look forward to 😉 Really though, thank you for sharing!!!

  8. Holly says:

    Gosh, I am such a wuss when it comes to nausea….I can’t imagine what it’s like to feel that 24/7 for months on end! You are right, though – I am sure it is completely worth it, being part of that miracle. 🙂 I hope you’re continuing to feel okay!

    I would be SO SAD to develop an aversion to any and all dairy. (Well, aside from milk). I don’t know where I’d be without yogurt? And cheese?!

  9. I like reading this, it will better prepare me when I have my own little one! hah!

  10. Thank you so much for sharing this! I appreciate your honesty – just laying it all out there! I am SO excited to be pregnant, but also dreading the “morning” sickness – I absolutely hate feeling nauseous, and the idea of not even being able to get relief from getting sick is so so dreadful!

  11. I always had a hard time understanding how some people look happy glowing pregnant. Because most of my friends/relatives that have had kids have told me all the horrors you listed above… more power to you!

  12. you know, i read all this and i’m still crying because WHAT A MIRACLE!!! i haven’t gone through it, and it probably sucks at times, but just thinking about how wonderful it would be to know that there’s a life growing inside of you just amazes me 🙂

  13. omg i was so sick for most of my preg. I puked at least 10x a day for about 6 mos. it was horrific. i wanted to die. i wondered why i even got preg. i wondered why women said this was a great time of life. it was the worst time of my life! I rolled around on the bathroom floor. i lived on my bathroom floor for mos. How’s that for TMI and not sugar coating it 🙂 It is all worth it to have my beautiful daughter but honestly the thought of ever being preg again is not appealing. thank god we only want and only child 🙂
    You are awesome Tina for blogging WITH A child WITH early pregnancy. Hats off to you!!!!

  14. Shannon says:

    I have heard so many first trimester horror stories. I was really lucky. I was really tired, but I wasn’t sick. Now I am 21 weeks and feel great except for the stretching and pulling of the round ligament pains. I also find now that my stomach is always full. I can eat very, very little, and I feel full. And I’m still hungry for more food (it just has no room to fit anywhere!)!

  15. Sarah says:

    I have never been pregnant, but none of what you said surprised me. I feel like I have read or heard a lot of pregnancy information (especially during my babies-on-the-brain days!). But similar to what you said, none of it deters me from wanting a pregnancy of my own.

  16. Justine says:

    While none of that surprised me, I still have no desire (I’m only 20, so it may change, but I am not betting on it) to get pregnant. The concept of me imparting knowledge on some one is scary to me. That and losing my vegetable craving. It is really cool to read that you are not annoyed with any of your pregnancy symptoms though and that you have the whole general picture in your head rather than just focusing on the not so fun parts. Thank you for sharing all of that. 🙂

  17. “Eating has the same appeal as taking a shot of Everclear would during a true hangover (*cough cough* thank God my past is not my present).” <- You crack me up!! It's so great you can be humorous about these symptoms because I'm sure they are not fun. I have never been pregnant before (I'm only 20) so I don't know if I'm looking forward to it or not now?! haha and I would be seriously devastated if I got an aversion to oatmeal.

  18. I’m pregnant now with our first child, and the one thing I didn’t expect was an aversion to coffee. I used to drink the stuff like water and now I can’t stand the smell of it!

  19. Heather says:

    I have never been pregnant but have tons of pregnant friends. Let me say this is something I am not jumping for joy about!

  20. ellie says:

    Thank you for sharing this- I love how upfront and honest you are! I have never been pregnant and hae no immediate plans… I think I would be upset if I developed an aversion to dair products because I don’t know what I would eat!

  21. haha even though I have never been pregnant, I work with preggers on a daily basis. This post makes me have a lot more empathy for my struggling moms! Wow. Glad it’s all worth it though…I loved your ending 🙂

  22. Holly says:

    I have never been pregnant…but I can tell you that I would HATE to suddenly not be able to eat peanut butter or frozen yogurt. I would be a very sad girl 🙁
    Hope your pregnancy goes smoothly though..at least for the most part 🙂

  23. Hayley says:

    Oh Tina I can relate to EVERYTHING you wrote so none of that grosses me out or scares me off! Besides, there’s no such thing as TMI for me! 🙂 I remember the first trimester very well (unfortunately). I swear it must’ve been some guy that coined the term “morning sickness.” I was nauseous all day long and threw up most of the time at night. I lived off English muffins, pretzels, bags of ginger snaps, bread, Cheerios and Corn Flakes. The thought of eating a vegetable or salad made me even more nauseous! Thank goodness that goes away! I’d say the one aversion I hated the most was my strong dislike for tea. I am basically what one might call a teapot – I drink LOTS of hot tea (must be from my British parents) but I couldn’t stand the taste of it. I drank lots and lots of water, because that was all that I could stomach. Oh and the fatigue thing? YES!! Sometimes I’d get 12 hours of sleep at night and then have to take a nap during the day. I was miserable!

    On the other hand, my sister-in-law, who is currently pregnant with her second, experienced no nausea and suffered from INSOMNIA! I’m like, “Who ARE you?!” Teehee…

    Was your first pregnancy the same way as this one? How far along are you now? I’m doing well in my second trimester, but the third one is fast approaching and I’m a little nervous!

    I LOVED this post!! 🙂

  24. Susan says:

    Hahahaha, the “hangover from Hades” definitely frightens me now – thanks Tina! 😛 My favourite part of this post though is hearing how your little one already has a heart beat and started to develop beautiful facial features! 100% worth every ounce of nausea 🙂

    I would die if I got an aversion to peanut butter.

  25. Angela says:

    I am new to the blogging world but I came across your blog and just wanted to say I LOVE it! You have so many helpful hints and info. Congrats on your pregnancy:)

  26. Thanks for sharing! I hope your first trimester isn’t too tough on you and the “easier” part arrives soon! I really enjoyed reading about your experiences – it will be nice to know these things in a few years when I’m in your shoes!

  27. Jennifer says:

    I love how you are so honest! This was so informative to me. My husband and I hope to start trying for our first baby around Spring of next year so I can only imagine going through all of those symptoms. But it’s like you said, even though you’re going through all of those crazy things, what God is forming in you makes it all so worth it. 🙂

  28. Amber says:

    haha I know I’m late but grate post Tina. You described in great detail everything that I am feeling right now. I’m just hitting the 10wk mark and I’ve had almost all of those symptoms except the extreme morning sickness, although there have been days where I felt all I wanted to do was puke. You’re a trooper though. You handle pregnancies so well.

  29. Jess says:

    HA! I’m just catching up on this post and LOVED your honesty. Seriously, us women who have yet to experience pregnancy need to hear this stuff! A slap of reality is great birth control, hehe. But I do want to hear about it so if one day I do choose to become a mom, I’ll be quasi-prepared. 😉

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