My Second Trimester Pregnancy Update!
Now that I’m nearing my third trimester, it got me thinking about how great this second trimester of pregnancy has been and how much it has changed me as a person. Time has truly flown by. It’s hard to believe we will be meeting our baby in a little over three months, and at the same time we can’t wait. Pregnancy is a fascinating and beautiful journey and it has given me so much perspective on life. I’ve gained a newfound respect for and connection to my own mother who brought my sister and I into this world, and breastfed us both into toddlerhood. What an amazing and selfless gift. Women are such badasses.
How I’m Feeling
When you get pregnant you always hear that the second trimester is the best, and for me that has been true so far! Besides catching a cold last week, I’ve been feeling really great this whole time. It’s a nice change from the first trimester to finally feel energized and be able to enjoy food again. I’ve had very minimal aversions and cravings, although my appetite has definitely increased! I seem to be hungry pretty much all the time. Sleep has been tough and uncomfortable at times. I wake often throughout the night but am trying my best to rest up before baby’s arrival. I’m also very noticeably pregnant now – 12 weeks ago I had a questionable tiny bump, and now it’s a sizable dome-shaped belly! My major second trimester symptoms have been lower back pain, carpal tunnel syndrome, and pregnancy brain (I’m so forgetful lately) – not exactly fun but better than nausea and exhaustion!
Birth Plan
I’m a very naturally minded (some may say “crunchy”) person – I have been since I did a chemical detox two years ago and saw a huge difference in my health and wellbeing. My birth will be natural as well. I know my body was made to do this, and I have no fear when it comes to childbirth. What I am afraid of however, is interventions. Hopefully no medication and no unnecessary interventions will be involved in my labor and delivery. Ideally we’ll have immediate skin-to-skin contact, delay bathing, and breastfeed right away. The physical and emotional benefits of all of these things, for both mama and baby, are of the utmost importance to me personally as a mother. Of course you can’t plan how labor will go, but I do know I’ll be going into it with a positive and open mindset.
Nursery Prep
The amount of things people say you need when you have a baby is a little absurd in my opinion but we’ve been slowly prepping a few items for the baby here and there. We’ve been lucky enough to have some clothes given to us, and a friend who moved out of Wroclaw recently gave us a lovely play gym, some books, and a swing chair. Our only purchase so far has been a travel system stroller, which will be necessary since we are frequent travelers. And one thing I’m looking forward to buying is a wrap – there are some great Polish brands that make beautiful woven wraps for babywearing :) although we don't need all the stuff in the world, nesting is certainly real!
The Good Stuff
I’ve been so inspired by my pregnancy that I’ve decided to become a birth worker in some capacity. I’m not exactly sure how or when I will do that yet, but I really feel as though working in the pregnancy and childbirth field is my calling and I’m excited to have found something that I am so passionate about! My absolute favorite thing about this second trimester so far has been feeling my little baby move. It’s a feeling that I have loved since the first time it happened. We have a very active little one! He/she is constantly wriggling around, kicking, punching, and doing some sort of tricks in there. The first time Konrad felt the baby kick was such a beautiful and exciting moment for us – it’s something that will stay with me forever.
That’s all for the second trimester—now onto the third!
xoxo,
Tat