Confessions of a Semi-Crunchy Mama: Some Things I've Found Helpful in Pregnancy
Now that I'm about to enter my ninth month of pregnancy I can say that the pregnancy journey has gone both fast and slow. I can't believe my due date is little more than a month away, but at the same time, I have lived so much life with this little love growing in my womb. I've traveled to four states, swam in the Atlantic, ran 300 miles, celebrated Independence Day and Thanksgiving Day, and enjoyed a slow, peaceful Christmas season. I've felt so many little kicks and showed up for multiple prenatal appointments. We've been showered with love and gifts by family and friends, and I've helped hubby put together baby's crib, dresser, and rocker. We've made decisions on baby gear and completed decorating baby boy's winter woodland nursery.
As I'm nearing the end of my pregnancy journey, I thought it might be helpful to share some things I've found useful and life-giving over the past months for other holistic health-minded, crunchy mamas. But even if that is not you, perhaps it may be interesting to read about what has worked for one mama--you never know what bit of insight might be of help on this journey!
Let's start back in the first trimester. I was fortunate not to experience severe or long-lasting morning sickness, but I did try some Preggie Pops. They did help, but were really no different than any other hard, flavored candy. Jolly Ranchers or something similar would probably do the trick. I didn't use a lot of them, but I did consume baskets and baskets of fresh berries and other fruits. I was very thankful to be in my first trimester at peak farmer's market season, but even now farmer's markets are going strong at Bryan Park every Saturday and online ordering is available at the Birdhouse farmer's market. Farm-fresh food has made a huge difference for my pregnancy diet. Once you have farm-fresh eggs it's hard to go
back.
As far as prenatal vitamins, I've loved Garden of Life whole food gummies. You can find them online or at Ellwood Thompson's or probably other grocery stores such as Whole Foods. They taste great and include folate rather than folic acid as well as vitamins that aren't synthetic but are from real foods. Other vitamins I take every week include Blood Builder to increase my iron levels (I had a hard time with these in my first trimester, but they no longer bother me in my third--thankfully since I really need to raise my iron levels before the birth), Rosehip C from Beeyoutiful (one of my all-around favorite companies for vitamins and natural body care products), Vitamin D (they say it helps with COVID immunity!), and Tummy Tuneup probiotic (probiotics are highly recommended in pregnancy and may even be helpful in preventing Group B Strep bacteria).
Another product that I have loved has been Glow Organics Belly Butter. It's a bit expensive, but I love the all-natural ingredients and it keeps my belly bump smooth and soft all day. I spread it all over my belly, thighs, and back every day after I shower. Many claim it was helpful in preventing stretch marks, and while stretch marks are likely genetic, I haven't gotten any yet, so it certainly doesn't hurt as far as that goes! I started using this toward the end of my first trimester.
Something else I would absolutely recommend is prioritizing exercise in pregnancy. The important thing to remember when it comes to exercise in pregnancy is that you shouldn't begin a new exercise regimen when pregnant, but if you're used to walking, running, weight lifting, pilates, barre, yoga, etc. it should be fine to continue these activities with some modifications as long as your care provider gives you the green light. My midwives know I was a runner before baby, so they have encouraged me to keep it up. I started off telling myself I'd see how it would go in the first trimester (actually, running was one of the few times in those early weeks that I could completely forget about morning sickness). After I got through the first trimester I told myself it would be my goal to run through my second trimester. That went pretty well, and so I just kept going until I reached 300 miles with baby. Once I hit my third trimester I wore my supportive belly band (from Belly Bandit) on every run and never ran more than four miles at a time. My pace was also about a minute slower than my pre-pregnancy pace. Realizing I can still get a good workout with baby has been amazing for my mental as well as physical health. Even me who doesn't believe that pregnancy is a condition or an illness had initially bought into the lie that pregnancy somehow disables you from doing things. Modifications are important, sure, but being pregnant does not mean that you are suddenly barred from normal physical activity. As much as my little one is my whole world and I think about him thousands of times every day, there are still times I "forget" I'm pregnant because it's not a physical inconvenience. It's still your body and you're still strong. Actually, stronger in many ways because pregnancy is such an incredible thing woman's bodies can achieve and support.
But if you're not into running or haven't been running pre-pregnancy, there are dozens of great YouTube channels for pregnancy workouts. Two of my favorites are Fit by Larie with Larie Midkiff and Glow Body PT with Ashley Keller. I like Fit by Larie for longer full workouts and Glow Body PT for shorter workouts. Both of these women provide great workouts that will make you sweat but are safe for pregnancy.
Now let's talk about books. Thankfully, pregnancy is nine months long so there is plenty of time to do some reading and research. A few books I found helpful and insightful:
1. The Mama Natural Week by Week Guide to Pregnancy and Childbirth by Genevieve Howland--this one is a comprehensive approach to pregnancy and walks you through the journey week-by-week. It's jam-packed with research, helpful tips, nutritious recipes, personal stories, and birth affirmations. You can even go to the Mama Natural website and download free icon-based birth plans. If you are only going to read one pregnancy book, I would recommend this one.
2. Nurture: A Modern Guide to Pregnancy, Birth, Early Motherhood, and Trusting Yourself and Your Body by Erica Chidi Cohen--this book was another comprehensive guide to pregnancy written by an experienced doula. It takes you through pregnancy by trimester and also includes insightful research, helpful tips, and nutritious pregnancy and postpartum recipes. I found this one especially helpful for breastfeeding and postpartum information.
3. Ina May's Guide to Childbirth by Ina May Gaskin--this book was wonderful for shaping a positive, empowering view of pregnancy and birth. It includes a lot of practical information, including encouraging real-life birth stories. If you're nervous about pregnancy or birth, this one would be especially helpful.
4. Hypnobirthing by Marie Mongan--when I first heard of hynobirthing I thought it sounded kind of weird, but as I quickly discovered, it's simply an invitation to release yourself from fear in pregnancy and birth and allow your body to do what it was designed to do in a natural and beautiful way. As the book states, "All hypnosis is self-hypnosis," so hypnobirthing is really just leaning in to a calm state of mind and letting go of worries and anxieties which increase tension and ultimately exacerbate pain and complications with birth. I loved the emphasis on the baby's autonomy in this book, as well as the importance of creating and nurturing a gentle environment for baby in pregnancy, birth, and postpartum.
5. Expecting Better by Emily Oster--this one was really interesting for exploring all those pregnancy antidotes and rules we tend to take for granted. Oster is an economist and researcher and takes a very logical, un-sentimental approach to pregnancy and birth. She explores topics such as off-limits foods, drinking, pregnancy weight gain, and different pregnancy tests. She doesn't offer prescriptive advice, but as a chronic worrier and overthinker, I found this research-based approach helpful. I also have her book Cribsheet which takes the same approach to parenting, so I am looking forward to reading that as well.
6. Bringing Up Bebe: One American Mother Discovers the Wisdom of French Parenting by Pamela Druckerman--this book was especially interesting to me since I spent a week in France a couple years ago, and while I don't agree with all the ways French parents tend to raise their children, there were many things I found so refreshing, such as the French view that children are simply small people and not a whole separate category of humans to infantilize, spoil, and cater to. This book also made me incredibly jealous of the French healthcare and daycare systems.
While we're on the topic of resources, I also found the Pregnancy Podcast with Vanessa Merten to be invaluable. I started listening to this months before I was pregnant which I would also recommend. Merten's voice and approach to every pregnancy and birth topic is measured and calming, as well as well-researched. You can listen episode by episode or simply search episodes that interest you. She covers practically every pregnancy and birth-related topic or question you might have. I've even messaged her with a question and she responded to me with a very thorough and helpful email. Another (RVA-based!) podcast I've started listening to is the Latched Mama podcast with Melissa Wirt. Latched Mama is a company that sells pregnancy and nursing clothes. My mom gifted me several pieces and I highly recommend them; plus, if you are in RVA, it's a great local company to support.
Now let's talk about doulas. First of all, I've loved having midwives as my care providers (midwives tend to treat pregnancy as a natural and healthy part of life as opposed to OBs who are trained to view pregnancy as a condition often requiring medical intervention). To complement the midwifery view of pregnancy care, we also decided that we wanted a doula as part of our birth team. I had known about A Brighter Birth for some time since I had previously done dry needling sessions for a running injury with one of the members of the collective. A Brighter Birth is also local to RVA (literally a few blocks from our home) and is an organization that offers many services including doulas, birth classes, prenatal massage, placenta encapsulation, physical therapy, and nutrition counseling from an amazing group of talented, local women. We chose Melanie Headley, the collective's founder, as our doula, and also took ABB's four-week birth class with her. We haven't had a chance to see her in action yet at our baby's birth, but the birth class was so foundational for both hubby and me. Melanie packs it full of insightful personal stories as well as essential information about the stages of labor and what to expect.
How about some things that I haven't found helpful? There are so many pregnancy products out there, and you certainly don't need everything that is marketed to you. As I mentioned, the Preggie Pops weren't worth it. Also, maternity clothes are kind of overrated. I bought a grand total of three things and was blessed with several more pieces on loan from a friend. Still, I've mostly rotated through the same few pairs of leggings and sweaters and haven't felt the need for much more. That's also a perk of being in the third trimester in cold weather months. Honestly, though, I'm surprised by how many of my normal sweaters and even leggings still fit. I guess I assumed my whole wardrobe would be off-limits in the third trimester, and while pre-pregnancy jeans are a definite impossibility, leggings with long sweaters are better in these cold months anyway.
Also (prepare for a rant), you know what is extremely unhelpful for pregnant women? How hibiscus is in almost every. single. decaffeinated. tea. As someone who very much enjoys a hot cup of tea in cold weather, this has been frustrating. And while you'd probably be just fine if you drank a cup of tea with hibiscus in it, knowing that it's something that's not recommended in pregnancy takes a lot of the enjoyment away for me. Thankfully, I am now in the third trimester so red raspberry tea is an option, but I've spent an inordinate amount of time in the tea aisle at various grocery stores reading tea box ingredient labels to no avail. Earl grey and rooibos have been other good options, but if you want an herbal tea, the options are few and far between.
As I approach the completion of this pregnancy journey and the end of 2020 which has been quite a year for us all, those are my pregnancy insights and reflections. What about you? What have you found helpful or unhelpful on the pregnancy journey?
I've been overjoyed to see so many of my friends and acquaintances also make pregnancy announcements this year which have definitely provided moments of light and joy in the midst of such global strain and hardship. I'm also so thankful to have a community of mamas, whether in person or via the internet, who are on this journey with me. So many precious babies we are privileged to carry. I'm looking forward to 2021 with great hope and anticipated joy for when my little one comes into the world and looks at me for the first time, knowing I carried him for nine months and will be his mama forever.
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