Congratulations! You just found out you are pregnant! Now, you are overwhelmed with emotions, unsure of what to expect in the first trimester and beyond.
This is just one of many exciting times that are coming your way. And you have full license to feel happy, scared, concerned, confused, and every other emotion under the sun all at once.
We asked the TodaysWorkAtHomeMom.com community of amazing moms to share their tips and advice to help you at this stage in your new journey as a new mom.
30 Moms Share What To Expect In The First Trimester Of Pregnancy
You probably have thousands of things running through your mind as of right now. It can be like a rollercoaster especially if you are a first-time mother.
A lot of things can happen especially during your first trimester. One morning you feel good, but the next morning you feel really exhausted.
Because we want to make sure you understand your body and pregnancy journey, we have prepared a few things that you can expect in the first trimester of your pregnancy.
This is what our mama vets want you to know, for what to expect in the first trimester.
Table of Contents
1. Fatigue is normal
During your first trimester of pregnancy, you can expect extreme fatigue.
This fatigue is completely normal and does not in any way mean you are lazy or unmotivated. You are growing a human!
Don’t be afraid to nap when you can and rest as often as possible. Your body and mind will thank you – Heather, Embracing Chaos With Love
2. Feel It All Around
A new mom should expect to feel “all the feelings” during her first trimester.
Being pregnant is a big change so it’s only natural to feel excited, scared, anxious, worried, and thankful.
Know that this is normal, and don’t feel bad for experiencing all emotions. – Kari, Money For The Mamas
3. Simple Tasks Will Feel Exhausting
What to expect in the first trimester is that you will be so tired, just doing everyday things.
It’s a lot of work growing a little human. Take as many naps as you can during the first trimester – Rosaura, Crafty Mother Father
You will feel very tired in the first trimester, not much energy. Sleep more, your body needs it. – Amy, Needed In The Home
4. Lean Into The Emotions
The first trimester is a whirlwind of excitement, fatigue & nerves.
You aren’t “supposed to” tell anyone you are pregnant but you can hardly contain your excitement because you are growing a human!
My advice to a newly pregnant mama would be to embrace all of the feels.
Soak in the emotions and lean into the excitement to help get you through that fatigue. – Kinzy, Coffee With Kinzy
5. Everything Is Weird, And That’s Totally Normal
With my first baby, the doctor said “Come back if anything weird happens.” I think she regretted that because I basically lived in her waiting room!
When you’re pregnant with your first child, everything is weird.
- It’s normal if you throw up your prenatal vitamins for the first few months.
- It’s normal if you have strange pains and aches.
- It’s normal if you cry for no reason.
Make sure you have a doctor or midwife that you really trust, and believe them when they say things are fine. – Marie, Just Plain Cooking
6. Mom Brain Starts Now
You will be tired, more than you would expect. And forgetful.
Your body is learning how to adjust to this alien in your uterus and is redirecting some of the blood flow to it, taking it away from your brain, hence the term “mom brain.”
Yup, it starts already. – Christina, Life With The Days
7. You Are Amazing
Focus on how amazing your body is to create a life, instead of focusing on the symptoms of the first trimester!
Some days are tough, but know your body is working hard and you WILL get through it!
Give yourself some grace, sleep, and focus on the positive! – Lauren, Sips And Sidebars
8. Take It Easy On Yourself
Your first trimester is a whirlwind of tiredness, often sickness or uneasiness, and a whole lot of new emotions. Your body really has to get used to growing a tiny human inside of you.
My advice is to take it easy as much as possible. Love your baby and yourself by eating well (when you can), resting often, and drinking lots of water.
Start taking a good prenatal, DHA, and Vitamin D while also eating lots of protein; this will help you start your pregnancy well.
If you are nauseated often, consider sucking on ginger or peppermint lozenges to help your tummy. – Gessica, Catholic Mom Vibes
9. The Hormones Are Wild
Your first trimester may be filled with all kinds of emotions, from anxiety, apprehension, excitement, joy, love, to depression.
Your body is going through so many hormonal changes in that first trimester.
To top it off, the first 12 weeks while you wait to see your baby on the ultrasound for the first time can go by incredibly slow!
Take it one day at a time and have patience. Take the time to read books and articles to prepare yourself for the rest of the pregnancy, giving birth, and caring for a newborn.
Research birthing classes. Get your partner involved as much as you can and lean on them. – Dawn, Wild Simple Joy
10. Anxiety And Worries Are Normal
In your first trimester, you may experience lots of worries.
I remember when I was pregnant I worried about so much. But that worry is not healthy and not realistic.
Give yourself Grace through your pregnancy and even more after! – Candace, The Dixie Lady
Anxiety about pregnancy? Talk to a licensed counselor online right now, for free right here.
11. Saltine Crackers Are A Must
After finding out you are pregnant, your body starts to change very rapidly.
One of the first symptoms I had during my first trimester was morning sickness. I was literally sick all day long and it was miserable.
The biggest tips that helped me was drinking plenty of water and having saltine crackers on my bedside table.
And every morning when I woke up, I took a few bites of the crackers to help curb my nausea.
This helped tremendously with both of my pregnancies. – Heather, Very Anxious Mommy
There will be lots and lots of mixed emotions, hormonal meltdowns, morning sickness and sleep.
I would say go to sleep whenever you feel tired, keep a secret stash of goodies just in case you have a craving, and eat ginger or crackers to help with morning sickness. – Ashley, The Mommy Brand
12. You Can Get Mentally Prepared Without Anyone’s Input
My best advice for the first trimester is, don’t tell too many people because everyone wants to give you their two cents on names and gender and symptoms.
They mean well but you should use this time to think and plan and start getting yourself mentally prepared, especially if it is your first child. – Nici, Sassy Smart And Simple
13. The Fear Is Temporary
Your first trimester is a whirlwind of emotions! From super excited to scared out of your mind.
I personally was trying so hard to get pregnant. And when that little line showed up positive, I was petrified from fear. All I kept thinking is “what did we do?!”
But of course, the feeling passes, and then you are just left with plain old morning sickness. – Stormy, Pregnant Mama Baby Life
14. Morning Sickness Strikes At Any Time, Not Just In The AM
My biggest piece of advice for the first trimester is to be prepared for morning sickness, which can happen at any time of the day, not just the morning!
Preggie Pop Drops were a lifesaver for me and helped save me from a bout of morning sickness on more than one occasion while I was out and about. – Ashleigh, Growing Graci
Expect to get morning sickness at any time of the day. As well as lightheadedness, and heartburn. – Devy, Thousands Of Miles Away
- Take mints/ peppermint drops or any flavor drop that help you get rid of sickness
- Stay away from fatty and/or spicy food to avoid heartburn
- Peppermint and Chamomile tea should help your sickness
- If you feel sick, drink warm/hot water instead of a cold drink
- Start taking supplements to make sure the iron level is good
- Take things easy and have enough rest
15. You Can Take Things Slow
It can be so exciting to find out you are expecting and you just want to start telling everyone and buying everything!
I say just slow down and enjoy the moment before you start telling everyone and planning. You have a lot of time to do all the things.
Relish in the moment of knowing you are growing a new life. Enjoy having your own special little secret for a little bit. – Amy, The Purple Monarch
16. You will get dehydrated easily
Stay hydrated! Because dehydration can happen very quickly when you throw up. – Najma, Ace fit Mom
17. Pay Attention To The Connection Between You And Your Baby
The first trimester is all about the spirit of newness for a new mom. Not only for her body, but for her soul too.
A feeling, where nature is rewarding a woman to give birth to a baby, is extraordinary for her.
In this period, she should enjoy every moment of curiosity, take care of herself, talk to that faceless, genderless soul which is growing within her.
Only she can understand that connection, not physically but emotionally.
She should calm her baby, she should have an internal dialogue to the baby inside, she should talk to her, as that soul is listening to only her mom. – Kimaya, Kimaya Kolhe
18. You Are On An Incredible Journey, Allow Yourself Time To Process It All
Being a new mom is such an amazing gift! A time to learn and grow as your baby is growing inside of you.
All pregnancies are different. You may be super tired, give yourself permission to rest.
You may crave wild foods. Eat! You may be super emotional.
Allow yourself time to process whatever is going on. Pregnancy is such an incredible journey and transition into motherhood. – Mina, Silk & Purple
19. Exercise Will Help Combat Nausea
A new mom can expect to encounter the following in the first trimester: nausea, weight gain, cravings, aversions.
I would recommend drinking at least eight glasses of water a day and exercising regularly.
Even simple things like taking a stroll can help. Exercise diverts blood from the stomach, alleviating nausea. – Michelle, Michelle Muses
20. Allow Yourself To Sit Down, Often
Don’t be afraid to sit down every once in a while. Yes, you can still do the majority of things, but treat your body with a little more compassion.
Sometimes it just seems like you get winded or tired a little faster, and there is nothing wrong with that.
Just know that if you can afford to give yourself compassion, it will make your full pregnancy easier. – Mallory, Beautifully Blooming
21. Voice Your Concerns With Your Doctor
Expect a myriad of conflicting emotions: excitement, joy, paranoia, self-doubt, worry, and disbelief that this is actually happening to you.
Physically, you can expect rapid changes to your body that might be a little frightening at first.
The most common I experienced was nausea, sore breasts, frequent–scary–cramps, exhaustion, and weird cravings.
My best advice is to seek out a medical provider that you trust and feel comfortable with.
You’ll have some “new mom” moments where you need some medical advice to ease your worries.
Finding a medical provider that takes you and your concerns seriously is important. – Erin, Blunders In Babyland
22. Give Yourself Grace
What to expect in the first trimester: Expect to feel kind-of lousy and do what you need to do. Nap, eat as well as you can and give yourself grace. – Danielle, Wee Potty
23. Listen To What Your Body Needs
Go easy on yourself as your body is changing in an incredible way for its first time ever!
Don’t freak out though, it’s the most natural thing in the world.
Some expecting Mums breeze right through it while others can be extremely tired and nauseous (that was me).
My best advice is to listen to your body and give it what it needs, whatever that may be for you. – Emma, My Rig Adventures
24. Embrace #Homebodylife
You’ll never know how you’ll be feeling from one day to the next, so don’t feel bad if you need to turn down outings you normally would have loved to take.
You’ll also be very tired, so make sure you get enough sleep each night. – Bridget, The Freelancing Mama
25. Expect the unexpected
Some moms will have a hassle-free easy first trimester and others will suffer from bad morning sickness.
Expect people to interfere and people to start treating you differently because you are pregnant.
Take each day as it comes and love the fact that you are carrying your baby. – Samantha, Recipe This
26. Take Notes During Your Checkups
In your first trimester as a new mom you can expect to be thrown so much new information about being a mother and what you need to do and not to do by a doctor.
I would definitely bring a notebook and pen to your doctor visits because they are going to give you this long spill and you are more than likely going to only retain 5% of what is being said. – Kayla, My Motherhood Made Easy
27. This Isn’t Mother Nature’s First Rodeo
You are going to be super tired and freaked out. My midwife gave me excellent advice.
She told me that I needed to chill out. Women have been giving birth for thousands of years and that it was all going to be ok.
It was what I needed to hear. – Bree, Baked Bree
28. Talk To A Professional
This first trimester is a rollercoaster. And it can come with a lot of anxiety, stress and questions.
Did you know that you can talk to a therapist at any time, by phone, online or via text at BetterHelp?
Talking to someone is a huge help to put your worried mind at ease, work through your anxiety and prepare yourself for the chance of signs of postpartum depression in the future. Which is very common.
Get a free trial of BetterHelp here.
29. Magnesium Spray For Nausea
If you’re feeling intense morning sickness, use a magnesium spray. That significantly helps decrease nausea. – Nicole, nikkygraber.com
30. It Will All Pass, Before You Know It
Embrace the excitement and the transition to a new life and most importantly morning sickness will pass. Hang in there. – Vanessa, Vanessa Leblanc
What To Expect In The First Trimester – Conclusion
The first trimester is always one of the most parts of your pregnancy.
You are growing your mini self from the size of a poppy seed to the size of passion fruit. Your body will not only be so busy adjusting to making a new home for your baby, but it is also busy making sure that you are healthy enough to continue your pregnancy journey.
Always ensure that you are taking enough rest and lead a healthy lifestyle throughout your pregnancy. It’s nice to create a room for your baby but always remember that your own health always comes first.
You can’t give a nice “home” to your baby if you can’t provide a relaxing, healthy life for yourself.
I hope this resource for what to expect in the first trimester of pregnancy helps you today. Connect with us and join the Todays Work At Home community below.
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I’d love to add: Do a pregnancy photo shoot!!! Seriously. It goes fast, then baby comes and that goes even faster. One day you’ll look back and treasure those photos. With the awesome pregnancy before and after photo shoots out there, you’ll be so happy you did it.