austin-moms-blog-happier-pregnancy

9 Steps to a Happier Pregnancy

Pregnancy is different for everyone. Some people love being pregnant while others would just rather NOT. And then there are people like me who fall somewhere in-between. Here are a few things I’ve picked up along the last nine months that have made for more good days than bad during my journey.

1. The good news is LOTS of people love and care about you. They desperately want to know how you’re feeling and what they can do to help you. Don’t get bogged down and feel like you have to immediately respond to every “how are you feeling?!” or “is he here yet?” text message. You have enough (emotionally AND physically) on your plate and constantly putting to words how you’re feeling may be the last thing you want to discuss. So take your time in responding. Sometimes, I think it would be quite funny to respond with my honest answer: “I feel like my baby is performing the can-can in my ribs and I’ve had to change underwear twice today from accidentally peeing my pants. Oh, and wiping after peeing and crushing my abdomen has become the bane of my existence. U?”

2. Just go ahead and excuse yourself from unloading the bottom drawer of the dishwasher. Bending down isn’t fun for anyone with a sore back. And with that said, go ahead and let the laundry pile in the dryer for as long as you ‘d like.

3. Hand me downs can actually come in handy. Even if you’re not sure you want them, politely accept the bibs/clothes/toys… if you don’t use them, just pay-it-forward to another friend and pass them on or donate them.

4. It’s easy to get overwhelmed with all of the advice and new information you receive. Some of it’s super helpful (like this blog post, duh) and some of it is complete crap. From circumcision to breastfeeding to sleep training and beyond, you don’t have to learn it all at once. In fact, if you like the advice, write it down. If you’re reading a book, you don’t have to memorize it… there’s a reason God created highlighters and “dog earring” pages. Go back to it when you need it.

5. The pool makes you feel like you’re not pregnant. USE it. If you can’t get to a pool, treat yourself for a bath which is equally amazing. Love these Lush Bath Bombs to make the tub more fun!

6. Exercise really is key. Even walking 30 minutes a day at least 5-6 days a week has helped me keep my weight gain in check. And guess what! It turns out that prenatal yoga is actually a code for Pregnant Lady Support Group. I’ve met lots of sweet and supportive ladies since going to a prenatal-only class.

7. Rest assured – it’s not just you that has anxiety. The majority of other First Time Moms are just as scared as you are. And guess what? Sometimes Second and Third Time Moms are just as scared as they were the first time around.  This is something I learned at #6: support-group-yoga.

8. Embrace it. Pregnancy is a time in your life when you can put your feet up whenever you feel like it, eat dessert, tell ask your husband to drink less whiskey (um, HELLO, I know I’m not the only woman who gets nauseous to whiskey breath), wear mumus, and binge watch TV shows. These are beautiful gifts of pregnancy.

9. When giving birth in a hospital, not making a detailed birth plan may be the best birth plan of all.  From talking with friends and my own experience of working in a hospital, it seems like developing expectations in your head of exactly the way you’d like things to go may be a big disservice to yourself.

The truth is that if you give birth in a hospital, a certain degree of loss of control is inevitable. Letting expert medical staff (who do this EVERY DAY) help you make your decisions to a safe delivery may be the best birth plan you can have.

Take the analogy of planning your wedding day and then compare it to planning your labor day…

The Dream: You spend an entire year nailing down every detail of your wedding day and dreaming about how perfect it will be.

The Reality: It rains, your mom gets sick, you can’t find anyone to watch your dog, and you spill queso on your wedding dress (this one may just be me…).

The End Result: You still get to marry the love of your life even if everything didn’t go as planned.

I compare the big “labor day” to a wedding day because both are incredibly important days in our lives and give us great joy – but, sometimes the build up of the details can get in the way of the true reason why we are there. On wedding day, it’s to marry your love; on labor day, it’s to get the baby out as safe as possible. I figure that if I create expectations in my head for “the perfect birth plan” … and then that doesn’t work out as I dreamt, it may result in feelings of grief and anxiety, even weeks after giving birth. My birth plan’s main ingredient will include being open to the fact that things may change at the last second, and I can’t control it.

With that said, however, I still think that it is incredibly important to be prepared, write down things that you’d  like, and have open conversation with your doctor about your wishes. I have plenty of ideas about how I’d like things to go when I hit the delivery room, but I’m also keeping in mind the fact that things may not pan out as perfectly as I envision.

So when or if you choose to write a birth plan, keep in mind the things you CAN control and the things you can’t. Consider things like, do you want an epidural? Who do you want in the actual delivery room (RNs will help big time with this)? What do you want to bring to the hospital? Midwives, doulas, and your partner can be incredible options if you’d like an advocate to be in the room with you.

What have you done/did you do to have a happier pregnancy? Hope that some of these ideas can make you happy too!

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