If you just found out you’re pregnant, let me start with…. CONGRATULATIONS! You have a wonderful journey ahead of you! I hope you can enjoy the process, mama.
First off, I encourage you to take your time processing things. There can be a lot to mentally grasp here!
When you are ready to start making some moves, here a few places you can start.
Establish care with a medical provider
This can be a midwife, OBGYN, or your general practitioner. If you don’t have one yet, you may like to do some research and take time finding someone who is the right fit for you. You’ll want to take some time learning about pregnancy, childbirth and postpartum and feeling out what your values are and what types of things you want for your birth and in your relationship with your healthcare provider. This may feel like a daunting task. Don’t worry, you don’t need to figure it all out right away! I moved counties halfway through my first pregnancy so I had to switch providers and all was well. You have plenty of time to decide on this. But as you begin to make some strides in your pregnancy, ultimately, this will be one of the more important decisions for you to make. I do recommend you start seeing some healthcare professional now or soon so you can have your pregnancy questions answered.
Eat a healthy diet
I know I know, it sounds so cliche. But to put it simply, that’s probably the most important thing for you to start doing right now. Eat a diet based on whole foods. This means doing your best to include vegetables, fruits, nuts, seeds, legumes, meats, fish, eggs, dairy, and whole grains (as long as these foods agree with your body) and minimize processed foods. A good starting place is to increase your veggie intake. If you’re starting from zero, make a goal to eat some veggies with every dinner this week. If you’re already eating well, make a goal to eat some veggies with every meal this week! Eating ample protein is also important during pregnancy (learn more protein during pregnancy here) and can actually help to curb morning sickness. At this point in early pregnancy, just do your best to eat a balanced diet and drink plenty of water.
include folate in your diet
Folate is a B vitamin that is associated with a decreased risk of neural tube defects, specifically when consumed by mama during the first 6ish weeks of pregnancy. I realize that knowing this fact is like a double edged sword…. most of us don’t find out we’re pregnant until close to that six week mark, so we feel like we’ve missed the window! Don’t stress on this— we’re all in the same boat here. Just focus on what you can do about it now. You can get your booty over to a health food store to select a prenatal vitamin that includes folate (choose this over folic acid, the synthetic form of folate that is not well metabolized by many people). Or simply order one online! You can also make an effort to include folate rich foods in your diet! The top foods to include here are liver, eggs (particularly the yolk), sunflower seeds, lentils, chickpeas, black beans, tahini, seaweed, asparagus, spinach, avocados, romaine, parsley, uncooked broccoli and uncooked beets (shredded beets are lovely in a salad!).
Start to avoid alcohol and maybe decrease caffeine consumption
Generally avoiding alcohol and tobacco is a smart thing to do during pregnancy, as is minimizing your caffeine to no more than 200 mg/day. For more tips on how to do this, check out my post How to Break Up With Coffee (for now).
take a prenatal vitamin
A prenatal vitamin should never replace a healthy diet, but it’s definitely a helpful step in a healthy pregnancy. Talk to your healthcare provider to find one that works for you. Some things to think about are choosing one that includes optimal forms and amounts of key nutrients. Look for one that includes folate (instead of folic acid), and also has choline. Personally, I take FullWell Women’s Prenatal (use link for 20% off!), but there are lots of good options out there. Learn more about how to choose a prenatal vitamin here. If you need tips on helping you remember to take the dang thing, check out my article here.
Consider doing some food prep
I hate to break it to you, but there is definitely a chance that you may begin to experience morning sickness (nausea and/or vomiting) at some point in the near future (if you haven’t experienced it yet). Not all pregnant women do! It kinda appears that there is generally no exact rhyme or reason to it, and like all things in life, morning sickness too shall pass. But if you’re feeling quite well right now, you can do your future self a favor by stocking up on foods (first trimester fatigue can hit you out of nowhere like a ton of bricks and suddenly the grocery store feels like a marathon) and doing some make ahead food prep now. Try your hand at a simple crustless spinach quiche (whip up your eggs and spinach with or without cheese in a pie dish and bake— so yummy!) or homemade hummus. Both of these would be great options for getting your food-based folate in!
You can also think about any other tasks you can do now that will support your future self should you start to experience morning sickness or fatigue soon. For example, if you have other children, stock up on healthy snacks for them (for babies and toddlers, my all time favorite healthier convenience food is Serenity Kids pouches). Consider reaching out for some extra childcare (or at least find out their availability should you need extra support soon).
taking medication? Check with your healthcare provider
Last but not least, something else to start doing right away is making sure that any medications you currently take (or take often) are safe during pregnancy. You can find this out by contacting the manufacturer, researching online, and/or talking to your own medical provider.
Enjoy your first steps of motherhood! Remember, you can take your time and slow down to enjoy the process. There’s plenty of time for all the pregnancy and baby things ahead. You got this!
Need more first trimester help? Download my FREE First Trimester Survival Guide here
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