Ive experienced many stages through my pregnancy. You have the 1st trimester, the 2nd trimester and 3rd trimester and within each one you experience different things emotionally and physically. I just wanted to share some of mine.
- FIRST trimester: not the best of times for you in this stage, morning sickness is killer. Any and everything bothered me. Even though I never threw up with my morning sickness it was still terrible. I had to change all smells/fragrances that were once familiar to me. All body wash, deodorant, perfume, lotion, even the smell of new clothes and shoes from previous shopping habits bothered me. Certain songs I used to listen to that brought me memories of my pregnancy, certain places, even the place I worked at made me gag. I had to ask my manager to move me to a different location. One of my friends who I used to hang out with all the time, even her perfume made me gag. My new belly made me a little uncomfortable and i noticed that I would hide it sometimes, like it was wrong. Your emotions flood in, you cry for no reason and you hate when people blame it on your pregnancy hormones. These feelings are all new to you so you dont know how to control them just yet. I was just real sensitive to every little thing. This was the first time I almost let myself go [appearance wise]. Your just so sick that you dont feel like doing anything. That is, until I reached my 2nd trimester...
- SECOND trimester: Once you're out of your morning sickness phase [some people never get out of it, bless your poor heart], you feel more empowered. There was something about this stage that made me feel like superwoman. I felt I could do any and everything. People had to tell me to stop doing things that I wasnt suppose to; bending to pick things up, lifting heavy things, etc. I wanted to do things on my own. I was capable and my favorite line "im not handicap!" I surprised people by my strength and it made me feel good. I was overcome with such a strong feeling of independence! I loved to get dressed up and look nice. This was my favorite stage of pregnancy and I finally embraced my beautiful, growing belly. I loved to accent it through my outfits and the attention you get [oh how cute, how far are you, can i rub your belly] makes you feel good. I was always cheerful and loved life and my pregnancy. The only bad thing about this stage is towards the end you start to get irritated with every little thing....and here comes the third trimester.....
- THIRD trimester: During this stage things are still the same, except for certain little things that come creeping up on you. Annoyance and boldness. I didnt put up with a lot, I actually found my voice. I may have let certain people and things step over me but not now....im pregnant and dont have time for that! lol. You speak your mind more because you just dont care at this point. Every little thing irritated me, especially on the road....i had the worst road rage. During this stage you start to settle down from that superwoman phase and realize maybe you just need to take it easy. Actually, your body tells you that you need to take it easy. Your starting to waddle from side to side because your pelvic area feels weird, your pee every 5 seconds, your feet are starting to swell and you find yourself feeling short of breath. Yes, its time to take it easy. During this trimester i experienced a couple overwhelming emotions.
- Excitement: you cant wait to meet your new baby
- Nervousness: OMG what did i get myself into. Im so scared and my heart rate is soaring and i dont think i can do this. Please comfort me.
- Lets do this already: I dont even care at this point, lets just get this over with already because i feel so uncomfortable.
Towards the end of my third trimester I felt those emotions in that exact order. Everything was fine and I was looking forward to having a baby, and then all of a sudden out of nowhere I started thinking about the delivery process and the pain and it freaked me out! Every 30 minutes I would tell my parents, im so scared please calm me down. Those feelings were so overwhelming they took hold of me and made me fatigue. I was praying that my delivery date would roll past my due date....an extra week wouldnt hurt. Im just not ready yet. But just as fast as the nervousness stage hit me, the next minute I had this sense of tranquility. I dont know where that feeling hit me either but since then I havent thought about delivery. Im not nervous, im not scared, I actually want this to happen already. I regained my strength and Im actually trying to do things to speed this process up so I can have Audrey sooner. Its really weird how those emotions happened like that but I believe all women go through those stages. I just want to let future moms know that you will get nervous. Its inevitable, your pregnancy triggers emotions you cant control. BUT, please have faith that those feelings wont last. When your ready, your ready! You will want that baby to come out already and the thought of what the result will be after delivery [meeting your bundle of joy] keeps you motivated and your spirits high. Good luck, and keep your eye on the prize!
