Discover how to navigate a range of emotions, bodily sensations, and support options during your first weeks of pregnancy - Pregnancy & ...
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Discover how to navigate a range of emotions, bodily sensations, and support options during your first weeks of pregnancy. P RO G R A M Pregnancy & Postpartum TOPI C Body & Baby MO D U LE The First Few Weeks The information contained in this guide is for informational purposes only and is not intended to be medical advice. It also is not a substitute for regular medical care. Please consult with your care provider about your care options and for any medical advice. You should never disregard medical advice or delay in seeking medical advice or care because of any content presented as part of this guide. Reliance on the information presented in this guide is solely at your own risk. 2021
PROGRAM PREGNANCY & POSTPARTUM
TOPIC BODY & BABY
MODULE THE FIRST FEW WEEKS
Insights
If you’re reading this, I’m imagining that you’re probably just a few days or weeks pregnant.
I won’t say “congratulations,” because I’m not sure exactly how you’re feeling at this point
in your pregnancy. About 50% of all pregnancies are unplanned, and finding out you’re
pregnant can involve a mix of emotions.1 If you’ve been trying for a long time, then you might
be feeling some joy and relief. If you’ve had a miscarriage or moved through an abortion
prior to this pregnancy, you might be feeling some anxiety or grief. And if this pregnancy
was unexpected, maybe you don’t exactly know what to feel right now, and that’s okay.
Every emotion you might be experiencing is welcome here.
Key Points To Remember
Takeaways
It’s common to experience a range of emotions during early pregnancy. There’s no right or wrong way
to feel. See if you can find some gentleness and openness with whichever emotions may be arising
for you.
You can start doing some early research on aligned care providers, and keep track of your symptoms
and bodily sensations in early pregnancy.
Just like you, your partner, co-parent, or chosen family may be experiencing a range of emotions in
response to news of early pregnancy.
I recommend sharing news of early pregnancy with anyone who you’d like to be there for support. In a
work context, it can help to choose a trusted colleague to kick off the conversation.
Three sensations that come up often during early pregnancy are tiredness, constipation, and nausea.
There are soothing support options for all three in this guide.
Pregnancy loss is common, and birthing people have options for navigating miscarriage.
Be gentle with yourself during early pregnancy and take your experience moment by moment.
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A Framework
For Understanding
Landscape
This Experience
MA NAGI NG A SPECT RU M OF EMOT IONS
You’ll likely experience many intense and complex emotions throughout your pregnancy
experience. It’s really important to create a lot of gentleness and openness with yourself
during this phase. Observe your feelings. Wherever you are is where you need to be. I’ve also
said to my clients and students over the years that pregnancy is an evolutionary process—
every week and month brings something different. What you’re feeling right now (whether
it’s good, bad, or neutral) will change. I want you to know that the support you’re going to be
receiving during this program is designed to meet you exactly where you are and affirm your
experience.
C ONSI D ERI NG YO U R CARE T E AM
You may not be able to see an OBGYN or midwife until about 8–9 weeks into your pregnancy.
So, it can sometimes feel kind of tough to navigate the first few weeks without being able to
get more information from a care provider. At this point, you may want to start researching
which providers you might want to work with—our Creating Your Care Team guide can help
you explore. I also recommend taking notes about feelings or sensations that are coming up
for you by writing in a journal, typing into your phone, or creating audio notes.
NAVI G ATI NG YO U R REL AT IONSHIPS
Depending on the relationship configuration you’re in, you may be navigating these early
pregnancy emotions with a partner or chosen family. This can be a big moment of transition
for all kinds of relationships. Whether you’re partnered, co-parenting, or calling on your
community to help raise a child, the people in your life might have all sorts of emotional
responses of their own when it comes to your pregnancy news. It’s so important to give
yourself and other people room to experience a range of emotions. Even if they don’t react
initially in the way you’d hoped, you can give them a chance to recalibrate their feelings and
try again to support you in a way that’s helpful for you.
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SH A RI NG TH E NEWS
With Loved Ones
Telling people you’re close with about your pregnancy is an important way to create
support around your experience. When you disclose news of your pregnancy in these
single digit weeks, you’re inviting your community to show up and support you through any
possible outcome. You don’t have to hold this information all on your own—the more you
share, the more your community is able to show up and support you.
At Work
Sharing news of early pregnancy can feel different in a work setting. Many work cultures
aren’t as supportive for people moving through the early pregnancy experience.
Choose the person who you think would be safest for exploring those early pregnancy
conversations (like an HR rep), and ask them about how previous parental leaves have
been handled. Some people choose to disclose later, around 20 weeks, but if you feel
comfortable having earlier conversations, it can sometimes be helpful to create a work
roadmap with someone you trust.
If you’re working for yourself, that also has its own level of complexity. Some bodily
sensations can impede your ability to respond quickly to emails and complete projects.
Being able to share pregnancy news early on with clients in a freelance capacity could be
helpful in setting expectations on both sides.
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MA NAGI NG B OD ILY S ENSAT IONS
Due to surging pregnancy hormones at this stage, you may
already be experiencing some new bodily sensations. Here
are the main three I see come up often, and a few examples of
how I’ve helped clients manage them. It’s always best to check
with your care provider to see which management strategies
will be safe and effective for you.
TI RED NES S Tiredness is really common in the first few weeks. Keep
in mind that the hormone progesterone (that’s helping to
maintain the pregnancy and stability of your uterus) is also
responsible for making you tired. If you feel like taking a nap,
don’t try to push through. It’s important to get the rest you
need.
C ONSTI PATI ON Pregnancy hormones like progesterone also slow down the
digestive tract, which can lead to constipation. One of the
first things I ask newly pregnant people is, “are you pooping?”
It can be really helpful to make sure you’re drinking a lot of
water, eating fibrous foods, and ingesting good healthy oils.
You can also consider adding some magnesium to your daily
routine for help with relaxation, sleep, and digestion.
NAUSE A Nausea is often part of the early pregnancy experience. I don’t
love the term “morning sickness,” since you might actually
be feeling nauseous most of the day. Luckily, there are a few
things that can help.
• Make sure you eat a little something when you wake up
in the morning. A mix of protein and carbs (like crackers
with nut butter) can help.
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• You can also use lemon essential oil to soothe nausea.
In 2014, a double-blind, randomized clinical trial showed
that women that were between six and sixteen weeks
of pregnancy with moderate nausea and vomiting
did find some relief from inhaling lemon essential oil.2
I recommend putting a few drops of lemon oil onto a
cotton ball and gently inhaling it through your nose.
• A lesser-known tip is using isopropyl alcohol, originally
a South American folk practice and now used in some
medical settings like the Emergency Department.3 It
involves adding isopropyl alcohol to an alcohol swab and
taking three quick nasal inhales. Before trying this, ask
your provider at your next appointment to see if it might
be appropriate for you (they may even be able to give you
a few alcohol swabs).
A FE W WORDS ON MIS CARRIAG E
Miscarriage is common during early pregnancy, but it’s
something we don’t talk about nearly enough. It typically
happens in about 1 in 5 detected pregnancies (when
considering undetected pregnancies, the rate may be closer
to 1 in 3).4 Miscarriage isn’t caused by any actions or behaviors
of the birthing person—it’s the body’s natural way of taking
care of a pregnancy that may not have gone smoothly.
Miscarriages are typically within first 0–12 weeks of pregnancy
and there are options for managing pregnancy loss.4
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• Expectant management: This is when a birthing person allows the body to naturally
release the pregnancy on its own. This can be an option for people up to 13 weeks of
pregnancy. There’s no medicine or surgical procedures involved and can take about 3
weeks. It’s successful about 50% of the time.5
• Medication-managed process: Misoprostol is a medication that helps the uterus
contract and releases all the tissue related to the fetus of that pregnancy.
• Surgical options: A DNC (dilation and curettage) is when a care provider removes
the tissue and lining through a brief surgical procedure. An MVA (manual vacuum
aspiration) is when a care provider removes the tissue and lining using suction.
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Conversation Starters
To Help You Discuss
Talk About It
This Experience With
People In Your Life
With a partner, co-parent, or chosen family:
“I can tell you’re feeling really excited about this pregnancy,
but I have to be honest with you...I’m feeling anxious and
apprehensive. Can we find time to check in and talk honestly
about how we’re both feeling, even if we aren’t having
the same experience?”
At work:
“I appreciate you setting time privately to talk to me.
I’m asking for confidentiality and some help in navigating
my options, as I’m newly pregnant. I’m not ready to share
this information broadly, but I trust you and would like
support navigating what this means for me at work.
Can we build in time to regularly and privately discuss
my needs, as new ones arise?”
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Where We Found Our Information
On This Experience
References
1
Unintended Pregnancy in the United States. Guttmacher Institute.
(2019, January 9). https://www.guttmacher.org/fact-sheet/
unintended-pregnancy-united-states
2
Yavari Kia, P., Safajou, F., Shahnazi, M., & Nazemiyeh, H. (2014). The
effect of lemon inhalation aromatherapy on nausea and
vomiting of pregnancy: a double-blinded, randomized,
controlled clinical trial. Iranian Red Crescent medical journal,
16(3), e14360. https://doi.org/10.5812/ircmj.14360
3
Culver, M. (2015, December 21). Trick of the Trade: Isopropyl
Alcohol Vapor Inhalation for Nausea and Vomiting. ALiEM.
https://www.aliem.com/trick-trade-isopropyl-alcohol-vapor-
inhalation-nausea-vomiting
4
Dugas C, Slane VH. Miscarriage. (2021, January 29). Miscarriage.
StatPearls. StatPearls Publishing. https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/
books/NBK532992/
5
Rafi, J., & Khalil, H. (2014). Expectant management of miscarriage
in view of NICE Guideline 154. Journal of pregnancy, 2014,
824527. https://doi.org/10.1155/2014/824527
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