my arduous first trimester

some might read the title and think "wow, she is dramatic". however, i kid you not, it has definitely not been a walk in the park for me these last 10 weeks. for those that have been pregnant and didn't experience any typical first trimester symptoms, you are SO SO lucky. i have experienced almost every possible symptom these last two and half months. so let's start from the very beginning when i was still "normal" and had control of my body...

Week 5 - The Exciting Discovery!

s and i were actually in memphis when i thought i was pregnant. i'm a very regular gal so when i was a day late, i knew it! of course, since we were with my family, we had to wait a couple of days until we were back home to take a pregnancy test. the 2 pink lines showed up pretty immediately! the weird part is that you don't see the doctor until your eighth week so it's just a waiting game.

so what do people do after finding out your pregnant and the first doctor's appointment? i just started reading everything and anything online...what you should eat or not eat, feel or do. as much as i wanted to share with the world the exciting news, there is just so much risk in the first trimester, s and i didn't tell anyone except my sister. it was nice to have someone to confide in other than s. plus, since my sister was just pregnant last year, it was nice to hear her experiences and have someone that can help me with all my questions.

Week 7 - First Doctor's Appointment

after several weeks of being pregnant and a couple of vomiting incidents, we finally had our 1st doctor's appointment. all I wanted to know was that I was still pregnant. luckily, when we saw the baby on the screen, it was a little overwhelming (even though my doctor called the baby a blob). my official due date is october 27! after the doctor's appt, we told my parents and brother. we still didn't want to say anything to anyone until I was safely through the 1st trimester.

Week 8 - Ugh, Morning and Evening Sickness

the doctor mentioned eating crackers and drinking ginger ale to help alleviate my nausea. ummm...all useless. everyday, i threw up. first it was in the morning but then it also happened in the evenings. not only that but i was so tired. i normally get to work around 7:30am and stay until 6:30 - 7:00p. now, once it hit 5:00p, i got so tired! i did manage to leave a little earlier at 6ish but gosh, it was so hard to maintain my energy in the afternoons.

throwing up and being tired wasn't too surprising as it's discussed a lot as typical symptoms. what was really strange was that i really didn't want to drink water. i used to drink tons of water but oddly enough, i was barely drinking 2 cups of water a day. it was so weird - i just couldn't figure it out.

as i was starting to really feel "pregnant", my lovely husband was also leaving for china for 2 weeks...so I decided to stay with my parents to shorten my commute time and have someone around me. =)

Week 9 - Oh Dear, A Visit To The OB Triage

my morning throw ups aren't unusual, so i always still go to work. however, one day i threw up 2 more times at work in the morning. so really 3 times in 3 hours, was more than i can even handle, so i went home after lunch. i got home and just slept for the rest of the afternoon. by the time dinner came around, i had to eat something since i really hadn't been able to keep anything down all day. then guess what? after dinner, i threw up again. i knew i wasn't going to sleep it off or feel better in the morning so i called my doctor. she suggested i come into the hospital. my parents thought it was weird that i was going to the hospital; they thought i was just "weak".

after the urine sampling confirmed that i was dehydrated, they started me on an IV with glucose water and some anti-nausea medication. after 1 full bag of water, the nurses were surprised that i didn't have to go to the bathroom. that just meant that i was THAT dehydrated. so they started a 2nd bag of glucose water and during the 2nd bag, i swear i went to the bathroom like 5 times in half an hour.

i still wasn't feeling better so they gave me a 3rd bag of water! i mentioned to the nurse that not only was i not really eating but i wasn't drinking water as well. she then educated me that when you are nauseas, the last thing you want is water. it only makes you more nauseas. that was the most shocking thing i've heard --- don't drink water?!?! my mother even asked if she heard the nurse right when she said it! the nurse recommended drinking plenty of juice instead.

so my doctor suggested a couple of things to hopefully ease my nausea:
1) take vitamin b6 with half a tablet of unisom every night
2) eat crackers every morning before i get out of bed
3) wear "seabands"; these accupressure bands around your wrists

yes, did i also mention that i was very constipated (umm... 3 days of no bowel movement!!) and actually had a hemorrhoid as well! so needless to say, i was pretty miserable. however, after the visit to the hospital, i was feeling a bit better. i was still nauseas but at least i wasn't throwing up everyday.

Week 10 - Who Needs Sleep?

ummm...i haven't been drinking a lot of water so why do i have to get up twice every night to go pee!?! totally, don't get it. every night - like clock work i get up twice. the annoying thing is that hubby snores so when i get back into bed, i can't fall asleep right away because all i can focus on is his snoring!!! so frustrating!

but exciting new...i only threw up once this week! i'm still very exhausted; every night i sleep at 9pm. just as i was starting to feel a little better, hubby gets back into town. he has no idea what i've been through the last 2 weeks. he thinks i'm being dramatic and that my parents are enablers. huge argument ensues but we resolve it quickly...

Week 11 - Internal Struggle

one of the hardest parts about being pregnant has been the struggle of my independence (or lack there of). as my husband can attest to, i am fiercely independent and in control. now, i have no control of my body and it's difficult for me to accept that. i'm also very frustrated with how i don't feel like myself and can't focus at work because i'm so exhausted. maybe this is to prepare me in slowly transitioning to working less and finding a better balance but i don't like it.

although i have been quite sick, the only consolation is that the sicker i am, it means the healther the baby is! hormone levels are super high so although my body isn't adjusting to them well, the baby is hopefully developing well.

Week 12 - 170 BPM

i was worried that because i haven't had the healthiest appetite, i was losing weight. it was a relief to hear the doctor say i didn't gain or lose weight! during the 12 week visit, we were able to hear the baby's heartbeat for the first time. it was a pretty cool experience. 170 bpm sounds fast but the doctor said that the baby's heartbeat does tend to be fast in the early stages; nothing out of the ordinary.

although i haven't gained any weight, i do feel my pants tightening. i have a couple of jeans that were big on me so those are definitely more comfortable to wear. oh dear, might be time to buy some maternity clothes.

on the home front, i do have to say that my hubby is now uber supportive. he basically does all the household chores. all the cooking and cleaning - it's amazing. i do try to do the dishes or tidy up every now and then but seriously, after work, i'm only up for an hour and need to unwind.