1. You might not feel like yourself, but it doesn’t last forever!
This surprised me. No one told me that I wouldn’t feel like my normal self. I mean, I knew about morning sickness, and those types of things, but this was totally foreign. I felt foreign to myself! If this is you, know that you’re not alone. This lasted a few weeks for me. But as soon as that second trimester came around, I started feeling back to my normal self-it was like a switch flipped!

2. Finding out the gender helped me connect with my baby.
I totally admire those who choose to wait to find out if they are having a boy or a girl until birth. But for me, when I found out I was having a baby girl, I was able to connect with her so much better than before. From thinking of names to picking out clothes to dreaming about her future, it made both pregnancy and the baby growing inside me that much more real.

3. Feeling baby move wasn’t as weird as I thought.
Truth be told, I was completely weirded out by the idea of something—or rather SOMEONE—moving inside me. I was nervous and not that excited to feel my baby move or kick. It just sounded weird. But I can honestly say that now I love it, and it really wasn’t that weird. It started off as the tiniest of taps. And it wasn’t until my ultrasound at 18 weeks when I both saw and felt her movement at the same time that I realized what the feeling was! From there I grew to understand and appreciate those taps that turned into bumps. I liked to imagine her doing flips and having the best time. And I loved the daily reminder that she was hanging out with me, going where I go, doing what I do. What an amazing experience!

4. It’s important to make space to process and prepare.
I am an internal processor, so I found that I needed the time to think through labor and delivery, research and plan, and prepare not just physically and around the house, but mentally and spiritually as well. For you-whether that looks like an evening, a day, a weekend, or a week-allow for that margin during this season as much as possible.

By Esther O., former Marketing + Development Director at You Medical