13 Weeks Pregnant: Ascending From the Haze of the First Trimester

September 14 – September 21: 13 Weeks 0 Days – 13 Weeks 6 Days.

Just when I was saying I forgot what it was like not to be nauseous, I had nearly three days in a row of no nausea! I got a glimpse of what it was like to be one of those women who loves every moment of pregnancy.

Instead of dragging my butt to Preggo Pilates, I skipped out the front door. When I picked Richard up from work, he told me I was glowing and looked happy (Although, later he wondered aloud if that may have been in comparison to how wan and miserable I’d been the previous week). The nausea stayed at bay even when I wasn’t constantly stuffing food into my mouth (before I was pregnant an excuse to eat all the time sounded like a dream come true, but now that I have to eat all time to stave off discomfort I feel like a slave to food). I had the wherewithal to book a prenatal massage, which was lovely. Able to imagine myself doing some manual labor, I explored two landscape and gardening centers so I could begin to make tangible plans for my new yard. Richard and I celebrated our fourth wedding anniversary with an Italian dinner followed by chocolate chip cookie dough ice cream topped with Heath Bar pieces—the first time I’ve been able to eat a whole serving of ice cream to myself since I found out I was pregnant (I’ve had an aversion to sugar). For a good friend’s birthday, I got dressed up with make-up and everything, stood on a rooftop patio overlooking the San Francisco skyline and sipped an icy virgin pina colada, and didn’t get to bed until after midnight that night.

The next morning I woke up feeling awful. Maybe it was my body’s way of telling me, “If you’re feeling better, don’t push your luck. Keep eating. Keep pacing yourself. Keep getting enough sleep.

It’s discouraging to feel nauseous and unmotivated to get anything done again, but those three days gave me a glimmer of hope that feeling better during pregnancy is a possibility.

Update: Now at 29 weeks pregnant, I haven’t been nauseous in ages. I can’t even remember what it’s like (maybe I repressed the memories). There have been some new discomforts and annoyances during my second trimester, but their invasiveness in my life pales in comparison to the nausea. If you’re having a queasy first trimester have faith that for most people it gets better and pregnancy overall gets easier!