What to do When you Find Out You’re Pregnant

OH MY GOSH! Congratulations, you’re pregnant!

With three kiddos under my belt, I wanted to share some of the essential things that helped me along the way, especially at the beginning.

There are several things I do almost immediately after I find out I’m pregnant.

Of course, topping my list includes telling my husband, and I start popping my prenatal vitamins if I haven’t started already.

What to do when you find out your pregnant

If this is your first time being pregnant, and you’re feeling a little lost right now, hopefully this will help ease your mind a little bit.

First Things First….

1. Find a Doctor

This can be SO hard if you’re new in town and don’t want people to know you’re pregnant yet. Secretly shop around for an OB by getting on some local Facebook groups and searching for “ob/gyn.”

Read what people have to say, then research the doctors/midwives mentioned.

You can also check out your local city magazine. Every year most cities put out a “Best of” or a “Top Docs” edition where the readers all vote on their favorite in every category, including best OB/GYN doctor.

If you have trusted friends, ask them—if there’s one thing other moms like to talk about, it’s pretty much anything pregnancy/baby related.

2. Get an App to Track your Weeks

There are dozens (probably more) apps out there, but the one I’ve stuck with over the years is Ovia Pregnancy. And I’ve gotta tell you, it’s even improved since the last time I was pregnant!

This app gives you an informative update on the baby every day, and you can get an email with even more info, then they send out a weekly email with even more info. I still like discovering what each new day brings to this little one. It also has a food safety lookup, symptom lookup, and medication safety lookup. Of course, you should always talk to your doc, but if you need to know something quickly, it’s all right there.

Ovia also has a calendar, a place for notes (great for jotting down questions to ask your doc), and it tells you the size of the baby not just by fruits and veggies, but you can pick other themes like French bakery items, fun and games, and weird-but-cute animals. Fun, right?! By the way, right now this babe is the size of a Haas avocado, an iPhone, and/or an eclaire. YUM!

3. Invest in Maternity pants.

Listen, don’t fight this one. Don’t try to be one of those people who will squeeze into your favorite pair of jeans until you literally can’t breathe.

Yeah, the hair-tie-around-the-button trick will work, but only for so long. Just trust me and embrace the big ol’ wonderful elastic fabric enveloping your belly, because they’re the best, most comfortable things you’ll ever wear.

In fact, they’re so fantastic, that you won’t even get judged by other moms  when you pull them out for Thanksgiving dinner in years to come. Don’t forget to pick up some maternity leggings while you’re at it.

If the thought of how much they are is freaking you out, I’ve bought mine from thredUP*, Goodwill ($2 for a pair of great condition jeans? YES, please), Old Navy (they’ve last through 2 pregnancies so far, and hello sales!), and Kohl’s. StitchFix also has maternity boxes you can get (use that link for $25 off your first box).

*If you’re new to thredUP, click this link, sign up, and you’ll get $10 to spend. Fair warning…that site is addicting. It’s like Goodwill online with fantastic deals.

4. Buy Maternity Panties.

Yes, I’m serious. Maternity panties were a HUGE game changer the first time around. When you get pregnant, things…change.

Parts start moving, things start widening, and before you know it, things like your reliable underwear are cutting into you, and making your life miserable. Maternity panties, on the other hand, fit like a baby-growing glove. Don’t worry. These aren’t like maternity pants—a few weeks after you pop that baby out, you’ll be ready to slip back into your old undies.

The next time you’re at a store, since we’re on the topic of our nether regions, pick up a pack of “pee pads.” You’ll thank me in a few months.

5. Think Ahead

I’m sure you’re already thinking about a nursery and adorable baby clothes, and while you probably aren’t sure if you want a home birth or hospital birth, keep this checklist handy.

After doing this three time, I finally made a list of all the necessary things you need when push comes to shove (literally) and you head to the hospital.

Grab your hospital checklist here!

6. Figure Out the Food Situation

The annoying thing, at least with me, is that during the first trimester my “morning sickness” means feeling sick all day. And the only way to make myself not feel sick, is to eat (which is the absolute one thing I don’t want to do when I feel like throwing up, but it works). Maybe you’ll be one of the lucky ones who doesn’t get morning sickness, but in case you aren’t, here’s a list of foods I always have  on hand during the first trimester:

Lemons.
I crave the tart juice like crazy, and squeeze it on edamame, broccoli, and green beans. (Honestly, that’s sometimes the only way I can eat veggies in my first trimester. Douse them in lemon juice, and I’m good to go!)

Bagels and cream cheese.
I try really hard to stay away from carbs…except when I’m pregnant. It’s sometimes the only thing that makes me not feel like puking. During the first trimester I’d have one or half of one almost immediately after I woke up.

Quinoa Energy Balls.
I make a batch of these and keep them in the fridge. Every night I’d take a couple and leave them on my nightstand, that way if I woke up in the middle of the night nauseous, or didn’t think I’d make it in the morning, I’d eat one. 

BONUS: Once you have the baby and are nursing, those are excellent for keeping up your supply and 2am snacks.

Peppermint.
Whether it’s sucking on an Altoid, a peppermint candy, or making some tea, peppermint helps calm the stomach. I would be lost without my Altoids—they’re great for emergency I-feel-like-crap moments

Ice cream. Because if you can’t have wine, you’re going to need something at night after a long day.

Cereal.
Sometimes at the end of the night this is the one and only thing that sounds good. (Well, that and spaghetti and meat sauce with maple syrup drizzled over it. My husband was thankful we didn’t have any pasta around when that craving came on. Cereal was the next best thing.)

7. Sign up for Alpha Mom

I didn’t hear about Alpha Mom until the tail end of my first pregnancy, and I was sad for about a week, because of all the great laughs I missed. Alpha Mom is a weekly email you can subscribe to that tells it exactly how it is for the exact week you are pregnant.

Alpha Mom gets it; she puts it out there, and you instantly feel like she’s your new BFF. And if you’re just now hearing about AM, and bummed you missed out, no worries.

Click here and go back and read the ones you’ve missed! It looks like she has an entire site with other info, but to be honest, I’ve only checked out her calendar.

8. Start Some SECRET Pinterest Boards

Unless you want to let the cat out of the bag this early, make yourself a secret Pinterest board (see mine here), and start going to town with all things baby.

Do/did you do anything just after finding out you’re pregnant? Share your “firsts” in the comments!

PIN IT FOR LATER:

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