Working through your first trimester is not easy, but with the right skills and tips, it can become easier. Below are 10 tips to help make the first trimester in 2021 a little more bearable when trying to work through that first beautiful- but hard, season of growing your baby.
It’s 2021 January and I am in my third trimester of pregnancy where the grass is a little greener than your first trimester-more on that later. That first-trimester hurdle can be a hard one to tackle especially when working a full-time job but it is definitely possible if you have the knowledge and tools on how to overcome the hiccups that can come while working a job in the early stages of pregnancy. Now before we get into this blog post and how I worked through my first trimester. I wanted to give you guys the tea on my first trimester.
Not all of it because that would take at least 20 years , but I promise, this litter tea will take you a long way.
Firstly, my sense of smell was off the hook!
I could smell literally every and anything! This usually is great for a police dog, but for a pregnant woman suffering from consistent nausea, smelling everything was the worst part of being pregnant!
Covid-19 became a blessing in disguise for me. For some of my first trimester, I was able to work from home and stay in one room that was super isolated and didn’t require me smelling anything that could make me sick.
I could only imagine the struggle of overcoming morning sickness whie smelling everyones lunch at work #JesusTakeTheWheel.
Style Tip: You Can Be Cute While Pregnant- Especially in your First Trimester.
Looking back at my First Trimester, I really struggled to look cute once I got to 10 weeks. My stomach wasn’t as flat and I had what appeared to be a beer belly.
Needless to say, that really messed with my confidence!
But prior to that bloated looking belly, I turned on may fashionista vibes real strong.
The First Trimester Fit
Steve Madden Heels
Skinny Jeans
hOOP EARINGS
How to get Through Your First Trimester, While Working Full-Time.
1. Stock up on Orange juice and take extra vitamins
When I was no longer able to have certain hers and I couldn’t hold down much of anything, I made sure that I consulted my midwife and weighed my options on the best supplements to help substitute some of the goodness I was missing out on without my herbal diet.
2. Try & Eat, and Make Water Your Friend!
We hear so much about the benefits of drinking water, but these benefits become even more real when you’re sustaining another life.
Click the button below to find out more about the importance of your water intake during pregnancy.
Additionally, nausea worsens when you haven’t eaten and causes you to become even more dehydrated. Even if it is the smallest of meals that you slowly nibble on throughout the day, make sure you are eating something healthy and somewhat beneficial to your body.
Although unsalted saltines and some cheese are great as a snack, try and also have cold foods.
When you’re sick, you may tolerate cold foods better than warm dishes. That’s because they generally don’t have a strong odor and that’s what usually triggers nausea.
Add nutrition to your diet throughout your spells of nausae and have a banana.
Bananas are a nutritious, energy-dense snack that’s easy to eat even when you’re sick.
What’s more, bananas help replace the potassium that may be lost if you have been vomiting or have had diarrhea (17Trusted Source).
Just one medium-sized banana packs 105 calories, 27 grams of carbs, 12% of your daily potassium needs and 22% of the DV for vitamin B6 (18).
Other soft, energy-dense foods include avocados, porridge, stewed fruits, mashed potatoes, and peanut butter!
3. Prepare Your Office For Naps.
If your lunch break is an hour, divide your lunch breaks!
Take the first 30 mins to eat and use the last 30 mins as nap time.
Prepare your office to be the perfect environment to get your snooze on to help you make it through the day!
If your lunch break is 30 minutes, divide your lunch breaks!
Take the first 15 minutes or even 20 as time to eat and relax, and use the last 10-15 minutes as nap time!
One thing I can promise you is you will never get enough time to nap.
Bring in whatever you need to make for a comfortable napping environment — pillows, blankets, etc., because you WILL need naps to make it even to the end of day.
If you have a louder office environment, make sure you give yourself extra time to park somewhere in the mornings – like a parking garage, that can give you the peace and quiet you need to nap.
I promise you will never regret those few minutes of napping, or just straight relaxing, to help your body rejuvenate.
4. Take Your Prenatal Vitamins at Night
Most Drs and OBGYN’s will tell you to take your prenatal’s first thing in the morning and for some time that is exactly what I did, especially because it was a common thing that it was best to have them in the morning.
Well sis, the tea on that is, night times is actually a better time to take it.
While trying to balance working full-time and a small side hustle, days felt like they would fly by. I found myself having to take my vitamins just before I would go to bed and it was a week into doing that, that I realized how much of a help that was to my daily nausea.
I did a bit of research and it turns out the extra iron that is in prenatals can make you nauseous if you haven’t had a good meal prior to taking it.
I read several blogs and pregnancy posts of women who found the same solution when taking there prenatal at night.
5. Learn and Embrace Techniques to Keep Your Stress Levels Minimal
Keeping stress under control can be alot easier said than done. Stress on the job no matter what job can occur so easily. Not only are you hypersenistive because of your hormones, but all your other pregnancy symptoms can also get you out of wack and stressed.
To minimize work place stress try these three techniques:
Take Control: Make a daily to-do list to keep you organized and have your priority tasks in order. If possible feel free to delegate your strenuous tasks to a colleague.
Let It Out: It’s okay to feel overwhelmed, just make sure you’re not holding that in. Find different outlets to allow you to let it out.
Relax: What helps you recenter? Cling onto techniques that bring you back to your happy place. Techniques such as breathing slowly, or imagining yourself in a calm place. Prenatal yoga is a great way to help you relax, just remember to consult your health care provider before you begin your practice.
6. Schedule Your Doctor’s Appointments as Early as Possible.
I know it sounds like a no-brainer, but at first for me it wasn’t.
Early morning appointments can wind up being hard to come by but if you book weeks in advance that can make things a lot easier. In your first trimester, if you are experiencing a low risk pregnancy, you may find that your appointments vary between every 2-4 weeks and sometimes even further apart.
If that’s the case, it gives you more time to spread out and plan your future appointments accordingly.
The less you miss work while working through your first trimester, the better. It will help prevent your work load from piling up and allows you to get to bed early without any stress or thoughts of what the following day could bring.
Also, most women don’t like to announce their pregnancy before their second trimester. Having the option to not miss work helps keep that secret a little closer to your chest, without giving you something to explain.
7. If Possible Work From Home.
There is nothing like the option of enduring morning sickness while being in the comfort of your own bathroom and space. Being comfortable and having the option to avoid smells coming from the work kitchen that could trigger your morning sickness, is also super ideal.
In the era of COVID-19, one of the safest things to do in early pregnancy is to try to work from home, especially if the option is given to you.
Overall, in early pregnancy you will find there are days that you don’t want to go to work. Not only are you feeling extremely tired and run down, but the nausea does not help!
Believe it or not, later on in your pregnancy you will wish you saved up your sick days- for the third trimester when your body needs even more rest to function.
Also, unfortunately, many companies have their employees use their vacation time towards their maternity leave. And who wants to eat into that if they don’t absolutely need to?
8. Consider confiding in your Boss
Waiting until week 12 to tell anyone about the amazing news of your pregnancy can be hard.
I suffered with alot of fear of having a miscarriage and didn’t want to let the news out the bag before getting to what I felt was a “safe” milestone in my pregnancy.
However, with my symptoms all over the place, I had to tell my boss. Lucky for me my bosses are two amazing women that are also my friends, so telling them was a no-brainer.
Having a boss that you don’t feel comfortable telling can be hard. But, consider the benefits of having your boss know why you may be slightly more tired than usual, or why your breaks seem a little out of whack.
I say, if the pros out weighs the cons, tell your boss.
9. Switch up your sleep pattern.
Okay, so I know so far all we have spoken about is sleep and nausae but these two symptoms really are the bread and butter that comes with alot of the early pregnancy dooms and glooms.
Let’s go back to look at sleep.
Gone are the days where you can function off a few hours sleep and a good energy drink. To lessen those mid day drops in energy, make sure you are getting adaquent sleep in the evenings!
Here’s a simple solution
Switch up your sleep pattern from your first trimester, especially while working. Make sure you go to bed at a good enough time to feel very well-rested in the morning. What this may mean for you, is organizing your time accordingly and saying “no” to late-night shenanigans with the gals.
10. BE SAFE At All Times!
We touched on this a little when we spoke about working from home, but in the era of COVID, I can’t stress enough how essential it is for mommas in early pregnancy to be extremely cautious.
I found out I was pregnant in the middle of the pandemic in 2020, it’s 2021 and the pandemic is still happening. As much as I miss my girlfriends and our casual hangouts I know that the safety of my unborn child and myself is my number one priority and that doesn’t change when I am at work.
It can get really frustrating but make sure when you are in communal areas of work that you wear your mask. Sanitizing your hands after every interaction that involves touching a common object such as doorknobs, elevator buttons, etc. When planning work meetings, try and see if there are virtual options or the option to safely social distance throughout the meeting.
All of these precautions can feel like a lot but I promise you will thank yourself in the long run for being extra safe for the sake of your little one.♡