My Pregnancy Journey

I suspected I was pregnant when I threw up all my breakfast one day, and it wasn't just your normal throw up, it was almost like I was going to barf out all of my insides. It wasn't pretty. I didn't do a pregnancy test then because I wanted to wait till my period was actually late. So when my expected period date came and no period, I was 95% almost certain that I was pregnant. It was crazy because it turned out my brother in law's girlfriend was pregnant too! And they announced it to us the day we actually planned on getting the pregnancy test. I remember what I felt that day, I was so happy and really looking forward to the whole pregnancy journey. As it turned out, I was already 5 weeks pregnant when I took the test.

1st Trimester

I booked an appointment with my doctor and I went in at 12 weeks gestation. So almost at the end of my first trimester. I got to hear my baby's heartbeat that day with the use of the Doppler. It was like music to my ears. I didn't want any ultrasounds unless it was absolutely necessary, so it was very comforting to hear the baby's heart beating fast and strong. Everything else was okay, I had all the necessary blood tests, urine test, etc and all came out normal. Thank God. 

The first trimester went by fast, I didn't really get super nauseous. Just mild nausea for me, nothing a little ginger ale can't cure. And I probably only threw up maybe 2-3 times in my entire pregnancy. I did get very sleepy a lot of times during this semester and I was always tired.

2nd Trimester

When I entered my second trimester, I was relieved. Everywhere I've read, they're saying that the chance of miscarriage drops drastically after the first trimester, so that was a huge relief. If you knew me personally, I am a bit of a worry wart, and sometimes I just can't help but worry about stuff. Reaching the 2nd trimester really made me breathe easier. My belly bump grew by the week, and I was able to document it since the 4th month.

Days were pretty much spent just around the house, with occasional hikes and boat rides and swimming in the bay. I enjoyed summer that year.

I decided to switch to a midwife after a couple more trips to the doctor. It just made so much more sense to me, they're more holistic and natural in their prenatal care approach and way less interventions compared to doctors. I came to see Judy, my midwife, once a month and it was good because we got to monitor the growth of my baby. She said my due date was November 5.

Pregnancy symptoms that showed up this semester were cramps, constipation, flatulence, gas, heartburn, and dry skin. I learned a way to stop cramps on its tracks. Once you feel a cramp coming, just point and flex your toes out (like you're tiptoeing) and it will automatically subside. It worked like magic!

I felt those little butterflies in my tummy at week 16. I was cutting some potatoes one day when I felt a weird sensation in my tummy that felt like bubbles rising. Those were the first flutter kicks of my baby! Such an amazing feeling.

3rd Trimester

Finally, in the last stretch! At this point, I couldn't wait for the pregnancy to be over and I could just hold my baby. It was super uncomfortable sleeping. Actually any position, sitting, standing, laying, it was all uncomfortable. I was waddling like a penguin when I'm walking. I felt so heavy and slow. I was still working until I was 8 months pregnant. I had a part time job cleaning and I found myself just having constant backaches and painful joints. I was also feeling dizzy most of the time and out of breath. Constipation was at an all time high, and heartburn was worse. Not to mention the constant peeing, insomnia, snoring, etc, etc. I wasn't one of those women who had the pregnancy glow. I felt fat and ugly. Haha. I gained a total of 35 pounds!

The good thing about this trimester is that I felt my baby move more. I know some mommies have sore ribs because of baby's kicking, but my baby was very good to me and didn't kick my ribs, i just felt little forceful kicks mostly on the side of my tummy and I actually really loved them and miss them. They didn't hurt at all. They were actually a bonding experience for us. Daddy got to feel the kicks too and he was amazed.

Towards the end of my pregnancy, my midwife required me to have an ultrasound so she could see if I had placenta previa. We were planning to have a home birth and she wouldn't do it unless she was certain my placenta wasn't covering the birth canal. She also wanted to see the level of my amniotic fluid.

It was a cool moment when I got to see my baby in the ultrasound screen. He was asleep on his side and his squishy face was so cute. Just by looking at his nose, my husband predicted we would have a boy (we decided to wait until the birth to find out the gender), and he was right!

At 40 weeks gestation, I was ready to pop. I was so bored and impatient and wondering why baby was taking so long to come out. I tried inducing myself with long walks, eating spicy foods, squatting (not that these things are proven to induce labor, but it didn't hurt to try). My midwife told me to take evening primrose oil but I was hesitant because I read somewhere that it wasn't very safe. I don't know how true that is though, I just didn't want to take the risk. So I just told myself, baby will come when he's ready and not when I want him to. But I was just so impatient to have him out already.

I've read of many mommas out there who had a really hard time with their pregnancies, and then there are also those who had super easy pregnancies. I think I was in the middle. I am thankful that I didn't have any complications that threatened my baby (except for the blood pressure spike towards the end of the pregnancy). We ended up having a hospital birth, by the way, because my blood pressure was really high and my midwife refused to do a home birth.

Everything turned out good though. It was a long but worthwhile journey for me as a mom. Although the whole being pregnant thing isn't very glamorous for me, having my baby in my arms finally in the end made everything worth it.

If you want to read about my baby's birth story, feel free to read it here.

Be inspired,