Whether you’ve been trying for years or it comes as a surprise, the moment you discover you are pregnant is exhilarating and anxiety-inducing, all at the same time. This is where the journey really begins. You start to prepare for motherhood, but you also begin to worry about every little thing.
Pregnancy is never easy, but we can all feel a little bit unprepared. Being pregnant is something that everybody will try to advise you on. But sometimes, we don’t learn the right things for us. Here are some things that are worth knowing when you are pregnant but nobody really tells you about.
Your Body will Change, but Not How You Think
Consulting any pregnancy belly guide will show you various stages of pregnancy, but when you start to show and you begin to feel self-conscious, you’ve got to remember that you are, at the end of the day, growing a human. We can feel that we are getting big and therefore if we get bigger, we get “ugly.” But while you may think that you will start piling on the pounds this doesn’t mean you should feel, all of a sudden, “ugly.” As your body changes, go with it. We live in a world where being skinny is supposedly the best thing. But when you are pregnant, you are growing a human- you are beautiful!
You’re Not Going Crazy
The waves of emotions, especially during the first 12 weeks, can make you feel anxious, scared, up, and down! Those first 12 weeks are the most anxious part, and you need to prepare yourself. And you may feel that everything you do could damage the baby. It is important to be protective but you need to remember that you are not alone. Speak to your midwife, family, friends, and get some reassurance, because those first 12 weeks can make you sick with worry.
Everyone has Their own Pregnancy Stories
You don’t need to listen to what anybody has to say if you don’t want to. The thing about being pregnant is that when the news finally comes out everybody’s got an opinion and they will more than gladly share it with you. They will tell you how you should eat what you need to buy, how you should be feeling, and on it goes. You don’t have to listen to this advice. And everybody’s got their own stories of pregnancy horrors. And God knows why people think they ought to regale you with stories of sheer horror during giving birth. Just be polite, and remain calm. After all, you know what is best for you and your baby.
Every Pregnancy is Different
Don’t compare yourself to your friend who gained 2 stone in their pregnancy. Just because they gained weight doesn’t mean you will. At the same time, if your friend was able to run and hit the gym up until giving birth, it doesn’t mean you will be able to. Every pregnancy is different. And one woman might have a completely different pregnancy the second time around! Remind yourself that this is your pregnancy.
You Are Not Weak
You might worry that every single step you take poses a hazard. And when you discover you are pregnant, you may worry about every little thing. But you have to remember that your baby is pretty safe in there. Because there is so much misinformation out there about being pregnant, we can worry about every single thing. We have to remember that our bodies were built to carry a baby and make sure they are safe and healthy. So if you are really worried about certain things in terms of what you should eat and what you shouldn’t, it’s always worth talking to your doctor. Just because your parents had a tough time with you in your mother’s belly, it doesn’t mean that you will go through the same thing.
Know Your Options
You may be midwife-led or consultant-led. If you are midwife-led, it opens you up to a wide variety of options for giving birth. Depending on the facilities your local hospital has, you may be able to give birth in a pool or you may be able to give birth at home! You don’t necessarily have to have a C-section, or you might not want to give birth naturally. There are many options, which is why it’s so important to ask as many questions as possible and don’t take everything at face value. You need it to be as comfortable for you as possible.
The Doctors Will Scare You (but Keep a Cool Head)
This is probably one of the most frustrating things about being pregnant. When you go over your due date, you may be booked in for an induction. And as doctors seem to know what is best, you naturally listen to them. But when you are booked in for an induction, you might notice that it’s not on the weekend! Something that isn’t discussed much is that inductions are usually booked for weekdays because doctors don’t like to be called in on the weekend! You may also notice that doctors are pretty stern and serious when it comes to pregnancy, but it is so important to remember that your body is built for this.
Doctors might try to put the fear of God into you, not intentionally, but it’s part of their clinical nature sometimes. But if there aren’t any serious complications, you may want to argue your case for giving birth naturally. There are certain conditions where it’s not advisable. But the best thing you can do if you are hoping for natural birth is to focus on mental calmness. We have to remember that when we were cave people, there were no doctors telling us that we needed to go in for an induction, we had to do it naturally. And it can be very scary being in a hospital environment. But if you aren’t midwife-led and there haven’t been complications, there is a case for arguing to go a bit longer over your due date.
You Can Do This!
It all goes back to those horror stories that you hear. And remember that, despite what other mothers go through, you don’t have to go through the same things! The fact is that you were built for this. When we hear about the various options for painkillers, being induced, or having a C-section, it is all scary and we can feel ill-equipped to do this. But you have to remember that you can do this! Block out those horror stories, despite how insistent people are on telling you, and focus on your mental strength.
It’s new, and this means that it can be exciting and scary because you’ve not done anything like this before. But there is a fantastic tool that can help, HypnoBirthing is one of those things that is being promoted more on the NHS as a way of having a more natural birth. And it focuses on the idea that you were built to do this and focuses on making sure that you have the mental strength.
And it’s these things that we can push to the back of our minds when we are told scary stories and little things that throw bouts of anxiety into our minds because of the intimidating environment of the hospital. Using HypnoBirthing techniques to put yourself into the right mindset is going to help you focus on giving birth in a way that is comfortable for you. It helps you to release anxieties and fears. Because we associate giving birth as being a painful experience. It doesn’t have to be, just as long as you are in the right mindset.
Pregnancy is Just the Start…
For many people, being pregnant is all they can focus on. Physically speaking, there’s a lot to endure. But we have to remember that our child’s life is not just about the first 9 months. We will go through so much with them. There’s the first year after giving birth, which comes with ups and downs, and even the little things in life that we take for granted come into focus. When you are teaching them to read or helping them to write their first bike, all the way through to graduation and you becoming grandparents yourself, being pregnant is the first stage in a long and exciting life.
And we have to remember the big picture. Being pregnant comes with ups and downs. But being a parent will also come with so many different experiences in life. All of a sudden, you start to remember things that you said to your mother when you were a child or a teenager. This gives you a completely new perspective on the situation. It’s almost like when you are pregnant that you learn how to become a mother as you grow this child. Any other parent will tell you that it is a lifetime of lessons. And being pregnant is the start of the journey. You may feel worried and anxious about the birth, but when you put it into context, it is the very first step.
