Its a little scary how quick trimester two happened… so much so that we are now halfway through trimester three! Trimester two was a rather exciting few months – with it brought our first kicks and wiggles, it welcomed larger pants, slower movements and the purchase of tiny onesies and boardshorts.
Trimester two is largely a waiting game, weeks quickly tick over, there are a few more tests and scans slowly become fewer. There is a lot of anticipation and excitement.
This is our Trimester Two…
Highlights: Feeling his first movement was a massive one for me, with that first kick instantly brought a sigh of relief. Not only did I know he was in there, but I could also FEEL that he was happy in there. Naturally, his first kick happened while I was in the clinic and he chose a day that rob happened to be in the clinic with me so that was a little extra exiting. Other big highlights were getting to enjoy the 3D, seeing those adorable little cheeks up on the screen!
While I was happily enjoying trimester two, in the clinic we welcomed new babies earthside and celebrated several positive pregnancy tests.
Lows: I am the first to acknowledge how smooth sailing this pregnancy has been, I have been generally well throughout this whole pregnancy. A few annoying things started to happen in trimester two; like the nose bleeds – argh they were (and still are) super annoying! can happen out of nowhere; driving; cooking; sitting on the couch or in a consult with a client (sorry to that amazing client!). I had never had them before so that was a new one for me. I was also getting a little bit of low blood sugar but that balanced out quickly.
Sleep: There were a few nights of sleeplessness during trimester two, nightmares about losing bub in a park was a common one. The night urination decreased in trimester two so I was able to sleep through, but I did start to get a little bit unconformable – but adding a pillow behind my back fixed that. I also started to get the occasional night leg cramp, also a first, but adding my magnesium back in resolved that instantly.
Covid: It goes without saying that covid is playing havoc on everyone’s normal life and routine. So far it has canceled our wedding, our honeymoon, our housewarming, our hospital visits, our pregnancy announcement with our extended family, our gatherings and celebrations. It means that we won’t see where we are giving birth until its go time, that we wont meet the midwives (as we are going through a private Ob) or get to explore this space that will be forever a big part of our lives. It has been tough, and we are missing that normalcy, but we can only do what we can do.
Dietary Changes: Everything went back to normal in trimester two, no food aversions or super strong cravings – I do reach for salty savoury foods, but that was there prepregnancy and I’ve never been one to turn down a pickled vegetable. In Trimester two our iron requirements increase, so I was extra mindful to pack in the slow-cooked meats, pate, bone broth, smoked oysters and dark leafy greens. I also wanted to ensure I was getting enough dietary choline in (as well as through my supplement) so eggs continued to be a big feature.
Supplements: I have been continuing with my Trimester 2, 3 + breastfeeding formulation, it has been sitting well on my stomach and easy to take after breakfast each day. I also had a blood test and it showed my Vitamin D was a tiny bit lower than I would like so I added in vitamin d along with my DHA + Choline. Zinc I have been having on and off, I also added a women-specific probiotic which I will continue throughout the rest of this pregnancy and into breastfeeding.
Alyce x