Congratulations, you’re pregnant! If this is your first pregnancy, remain calm. Pregnancy is not an emergency. The following first trimester checklist isn’t a sprint – there is no rush. Take your time, and meander through this list and implement each task one at a time as it makes sense for you and your lifestyle.
Hopefully as you enter the second trimester, this first trimester checklist will be completed. You can do it!
Use this ultimate all natural first trimester checklist to master the first trimester experience. You’ll be well on your way to a healthy pregnancy!
The Ultimate All Natural First Trimester Checklist
Enjoy Frequent Naps
Pregnancy is hard work. I mean, you’re creating a human being – bones and all! It’s quite remarkable, and as you can imagine uses a bit of energy.
One of my very early pregnancy symptoms is insomnia, so on top of feeling fatigue from normal pregnancy exertion, I no longer got good sleep at night. Add morning sickness symptoms to this mix and I had a perfect recipe for feeling overtired and irritable.
If you are a goal oriented “doer”, taking naps during the day may seem scandalous and a “waste of time”. Welcome to the world of parenting – where “everything changes”!
If you’re needing some inspiration check out my post about tips for getting better sleep in pregnancy.
Take a Quality Prenatal Vitamin with Folate
Now that you’re rested, let’s move on to prenatal vitamins. There are so many prenatal vitamins to choose from! Honestly, the best way to receive adequate nutrition during pregnancy is to create a pregnancy meal plan and eat nutrient rich foods.
But let’s be honest, especially during the first trimester, eating perfectly is impossible.
To fill those nutritional gaps, I highly recommend Garden of Life’s prenatal vitamin. Other than being a raw whole food supplement, I really appreciate that it contains folate instead of folic acid.
TIP: One of my favorite tips to help relieve morning sickness symptoms is to take prenatal vitamins at night.
For the other supplements I recommend during pregnancy, check out my natural pregnancy resources.
Read First Trimester Pregnancy Books
Another fun thing on my all natural first trimester checklist is to take a look at the best first trimester pregnancy books and read a few favorites.
If this is a first pregnancy, you may be interested in books that explain anatomy and how everything works.
If this isn’t your first rodeo, or if you’re already versed in such things, you may skip to books like The Thinking Woman’s Guide to a Better Birth.
TIP: If reading isn’t your thing, check out the DVD The Business of Being Born. Many women have found the information presented to be life changing.
Hire a Doula
If you already know you will be hiring a doula for labor and delivery, go ahead and start the interview process. Some doulas are quite popular and get booked up quickly! It would be sad if you weren’t able to have the doula you had your heart set on.
If you’re unsure where to start, use Doula Match to see which doulas are available in your area.
Choose a Care Provider
Another important task on the all natural first trimester checklist is to choose a care provider that aligns with your pregnancy, birth and postpartum philosophies.
If you are not sure what philosophies one should have so early in pregnancy, this is a sign that you need to do some research. You may need to skip the first trimester pregnancy books, and jump right into the second trimester pregnancy books.
Don’t make the same mistakes as other first time moms, choose a care provider that aligns with your beliefs, values and wishes for pregnancy, birth and postpartum. This may or may not be the care provider you’ve used as a gynecologist in years prior!
It’s important to listen to intuition during this process. I would hate for you to end up switching care providers in the third trimester! It’s totally possible, and recommended if needed, but if possible avoid that added stress so near the date of delivery.
After you have some idea of what you are looking for in a care provider, call around to determine availability and to schedule an initial consultation.
Before this first appointment, spend some time determining an accurate estimated due date if possible. It isn’t always based on the first day of your last menstrual period!
Manage Morning Sickness Symptoms
At this point in our all natural first trimester checklist, we’ve come to a topic where many women despair, give up and decide to never get pregnant again.
Ladies, I’m here to help! Morning sickness was a total and complete shock to me – I just assumed I would be “that lady” that didn’t experience morning sickness.
I was wrong.
Since then, I’ve written an eBook called Morning Sickness Remedies that can be delivered to your inbox for FREE right now.
To get you started, these are some of my favorite morning sickness remedies:
- Eat high protein foods every two hours. Seriously.
- When you wake up at night to pee, eat a light snack like grapes and almonds to keep blood sugar levels stable. You’ll feel better in the morning!
- Many women swear by Sea-Bands.
- I enjoyed Preggie Pop Drops for those moments where you think you’re going to lose it. It certainly helped take the edge off and got me through those harrowing experiences.
- Milk Thistle is a wonderful supplement to take to ease morning sickness symptoms.
Establish a Gentle Exercise Routine
As much as rest is important, so is moving the body. Exercise will help decrease pregnancy discomforts and keep the body toned and ready for labor – a very physically demanding event!
One of my favorite pregnancy exercise DVDs is a prenatal yoga flow by Rainbeau Mars.
Even better, Spinning Babies – a website devoted to easier, less painful birth through optimal fetal positioning – created an AMAZING DVD which includes a prenatal yoga flow designed for easier birthing. It’s called The Daily Essentials. It’s absolutely worth it!
A simple, gentle and FREE way to move the body is to take daily walks. For those that work an office environment, this may look like setting alarms to go off throughout the day as a reminder to get up, move the body and walk.
If any of this seems overwhelming, just pick one thing and do it for five minutes every day. You can do anything for five minutes.
Eat Favorite Pregnancy Super Foods
It isn’t required to “eat all the healthy things” when aiming for clean eating during pregnancy. To avoid overwhelm, it’s best to pick a few new things one at a time.
My suggestion is to research your favorite pregnancy super foods and then see if you can implement them in your weekly meal planning efforts.
To make big, long lasting changes, cultivate small changes daily.
Buy a Pregnancy Journal
Pregnancy and becoming a parent is not solely a physiological process – it’s also an emotional and spiritual process.
In fact, the process of having a baby births a new person as well – a mother and father. Theses parents never existed before! Everything is brand new.
One of the ways to integrate these profound changes is to buy a pregnancy journal that suits your style, and document these changes – both physical and otherwise.
TIP: Use the process of journaling to determine when to announce the pregnancy. Sometimes in the whirlwind of excitement a woman announces too soon and wishes she had waited a few more weeks or months. There’s no harm in waiting!
Schedule Quality Time with Partner
Last but absolutely not least on this first trimester check list is to schedule frequent spurts of quality time with your husband or partner.
Pregnancy is a whirl wind, and if left to its own devices, will leave no time for the ones you love.
Make sure to schedule weekly, at minimum, special times to connect.
This practice will serve you well into parenthood. Babies are tiny demanding little people that will take all your time and attention. If you let them. 😉
TIP: If possible, include your partner on daily walks. It’ll be good for both of you!
The Ultimate All Natural First Trimester Checklist
Just to recap, here’s what’s on my all natural first trimester checklist. Have fun!
- Enjoy Frequent Naps
- Take a Quality Prenatal Vitamin with Folate
- Read First Trimester Pregnancy Books
- Hire a Doula
- Choose a Care Provider
- Manage Morning Sickness Symptoms
- Establish a Gentle Exercise Routine
- Eat Favorite Pregnancy Super Foods
- Buy a Pregnancy Journal
- Schedule Quality Time with Partner
Leave a Comment
Leave a comment and let me know what was on your all natural first trimester checklist. Thank you!
Jessica
Saturday 4th of February 2017
Great list. I think my favourite and the only one on my list is frequent napping! haha