Product Spotlight: Frist Tri Essentials

Avrilmai

We've covered some of this in other posts, but I thought it may be good to have all of that first tri stuff in one place.

What is your remedy for nausea? 
Food recommendations or go-tos when you just can't stand the thought of eating? Or how to satisfy food cravings? or for being hungry all the time?
Beverage recommendations (either in general or when you don't want others to know you're not drinking alcohol)
Coffee substitutes?

Favorite prenatal vitamins?

Anything else that helps/helped get you through that first trimester share it here. 

in the coming weeks we'll move into more "products" 

Product Spotlight Spreadsheet

monstera13

Last pregnancy I was prescribed Diclegis, which as I now understand it is the prescription version of Unisom and B6. It helped a ton with the all day nausea. (I took at night before bed). 

I like bread products best when nauseous. Especially just plain French bread with butter. 

Boobopgirl

For me for nausea any kind of watery fruit works.  Watermelon, cantaloupe, cucumbers...one pregnancy I couldn't eat enough tomatoes no matter what I did.  I can't eat anything dry or crunchy (no saltines here). Also when I can't eat, I can usually sip at something, so I do a lot of smoothies in first tri and also broth or hot tea (mint, lemon or ginger are good).

Avrilmai

I was lucky last time that I didn't have a lot of nausea, but this time that luck has run out. I've tried the B6&unisom and have had a bit of success with that. 
San Pellegrino has been helpful as well. 
I was also all about carbs last time. Fruit was essential to the point DH bought me a party tray, baked potatoes, bread and noodles.

I selfishly asked about the coffee. I'm super tired, but cannot tolerate coffee. 

minnie_yoga_mama

What is your remedy for nausea? 

Eating small meals throughout the day has helped the most so far. I’ve started bringing snacks to work so my stomach isn’t ever too empty, and I eat something immediately when I wake up in the morning.

Food recommendations or go-tos when you just can't stand the thought of eating? Or how to satisfy food cravings? or for being hungry all the time?

White toast is my go-to. We have a bread maker so we’ve been trying to have fresh homemade loaves on hand. If I can stomach it, I’ll add almond butter or put avocado and an egg on top for some protein. I’ve only craved carbs/baked goods like cookies (before the nausea got as bad as it is now), so the other weekend I made whole wheat banana bread and it totally hit the spot!


Beverage recommendations (either in general or when you don't want others to know you're not drinking alcohol)

POM juice in a wine glass!! 🍷 I feel so fancy and it tastes good! 😁 And if your friends are drinking red wine no one will know the difference!


Coffee substitutes?

I’ve been drinking golden turmeric milk in the mornings 🧡: I add hot water to tumeric, ginger powder, cinnamon, black pepper, and maple syrup and top it off with goat milk to make a latte. It tastes similar to a chai tea latte! Recently I’ve been considering getting Firefly Chai tea from Mountain Rose herbs. It’s a caffeine free chai that I’ve heard is a good substitute during pregnancy.


Favorite prenatal vitamins?

I’ve been using Naturewise prenatal since before becoming pregnant. I even use their fish oil pills and probiotics as well because I love the brand. It’s the only prenatal I’ve been able to find that has everything I’m looking for in a whole food multi. It’s only low in calcium and iron (as most prenatals are due to absorption), so I also take an additional calcium supplement and try to get enough iron in my diet.

miss_lynn9

For nausea I did ginger chews. Carbs like bread and saltines worked when I couldn't really eat which wasn't often. 

Depending on how you take your prenatal vitamins, spreading them out or taking them later in the day helped with the nausea as well. I know some vitamins don't allow for that though. 

Having time for myself to decompress was essential. I get irritable during first tri so being able to get away from everyone for an hour was very helpful.  

I switched to decaf coffee before TTC so I tried to nap during my lunch breaks and in the evening once I got home. That's going to be a lot harder now that I have a LO. 

loveanddatadriven

What is your remedy for nausea? Still trying to figure this one out.
Food recommendations or go-tos when you just can't stand the thought of eating? Baked potatoes, mashed potatoes, sweet potatoes. Apples, grapes. Chicken nuggets. Mango lassi.

Constipation tips when simultaneously dealing with bad nausea: fiber gummy supplements, Metamucil cookies, my OB said regular Colace was safe to take (but ask yours), applesauce squeeze pouches which have been easier than eating with a spoon

Beverage recommendations (either in general or when you don't want others to know you're not drinking alcohol): coconut water, white grape juice

Coffee substitutes? @Avrilmai Philips GoLite blue light therapy for energy, I love Bengal Spice herbal tea as a hot beverage substitute

@miss_lynn9 +1 to taking prenatals at night but I still dread it
@minnie_yoga_mama love the idea of POM juice! So delicious.

Avrilmai

@loveanddatadriven what a great suggestion! I have a therapy light in my office that I keep forgetting to actually turn on. thanks for the reminder. 

Boobopgirl

I have to cut my prenatal vitamins into like 6 pieces to be able to swallow them.  I'm not a good pill swallower and morning sickness makes it horribly worse....

doula-mama

For what to eat, I highly recommend nuts. They are nutritionally dense, so you can eat say, 6 almonds, and it's enough for your system to be satisfied and help keep the nausea at bay, without having to eat a ton and upset your stomach.

I don't do a coffee alternative... I still enjoy my coffee, I just make sure I don't have more than one or two. 

Mocktails with ginger beer are great... they can feel fancy, but the ginger can also help settle your stomach. I like just doing ginger beer and lime. 

monstera13

@Avrilmai There’s always caffeine pills if you need a coffee substitute 🤷🏼‍♀️ And it’s actually easier to track your exact intake compared to coffee, which can vary. 

SmashJam

I also don't substitute for coffee-but I like two cups in the morning and to make that happen I either do half milk half coffee, or I make the coffee with half decaf beans half regular and drink as normal.  

I enjoyed the ginger candies-Preggie Pop Drops, or something similar-but not sure they worked super well because I ate a LOT. They are delish. 

If I can't stomach eating but know I need to eat, I always do half a PBJ. Seems to do the trick most times! 

I'm thinking of switching to Ritual prenatals for the ease of delivery-and realized the ones I'm currently buying have a similar price, but I can only get them occassionally at the co-op. I had to by New Chapter this time which are fine too. It would just be nice to have them brought to the house!

doxiemoxie212

Okay the best pre-natal vitamins are Ritual. I got ads for them constantly on IG and finally broke down and got them when we started TTC. They have DHA *and* they are like coated in some kind of wonderful lemon scent that makes them a delight to take. 

miss_lynn9

@doxiemoxie212 oo lemon coated sounds delicious. I bought mega foods ones and they taste horrible.

doxiemoxie212

@miss_lynn9 if I take any other pills (like a probiotic or whatever) I literally make sure to take the Rituals last because I like them so much lol