First Trimester/Pregnancy Q&A

It seems so crazy that I am well into the second trimester and this pregnancy still seems so surreal! I wanted to do a pregnancy Q&A to share more details about our journey. I had you all ask me some questions over on Instagram stories, and I have rounded up the most common ones to answer for you today!

Q: When is your due date?

A: March 2, 2021.

Q: How long had you been trying to get pregnant and what type of fertility treatment did you do?

A: JD and I had been trying to start a family for a little over a year and a half. This is a really long story, so I will try to condense it as best I can here. We started seeing a fertility specialist after about 1 year. We had some testing done at our first visit, which identified some hormonal imbalances for me. When we found out, we were not very shocked, and we actually expected the results that we received. Starting in my early twenties, I stopped getting regular menstrual cycles and my doctor at the time identified the same hormonal imbalances. At that time, I tried 5-6 types of birth control and had terrible side effects, including extremely high blood pressure. My doctor and I decided, at the time, that it was not worth the risk for me to be taking medication in order to regulate my cycle. So, for the past decade I have been off all medications and continued to have long menstrual cycles that were anywhere about 45-60 days long. This of course became problematic when we were trying to conceive, and based on some of the blood work I had it was likely that I was not ovulating every month. The priority at first was regulating my hormones, so we tried a few medicated cycles with no success. Eventually, we did a series of IUI’s (intrauterine inseminations) which included HCG shots to help with triggering ovulation, and the last one eventually lead to a positive pregnancy test!

Q: Did you do anything to help track ovulation?

A: Yes, I used these ovulation test kits from Amazon. At the time, I was questioning the accuracy of these because there were certain months where I would take 2-3 tests a day for the whole month and they would all be negative. Knowing what I know now, it was likely because I was NOT ovulating every month. During the months that they were coming back positive, I do think they were accurate. I would recommend them if you are looking to learn more about your cycle. I stopped using them once we started seeing our fertility specialist because they were tracking this for us with ultrasounds. To be completely transparent, I actually had a bit of a breakdown in the middle of the night one night after getting yet another negative pregnancy test and threw them all in the trash because my obsession with them was getting unhealthy. Keep that in mind if you are someone who may be prone to that – it was not a healthy habit for me!

Q: How long did you wait to take a pregnancy test & did you have a feeling you were pregnant?

A: Throughout the entire journey to conceive, I typically took a home pregnancy test 14 days after ovulation. That is the soonest recommended time to test for the most accurate results. Once we started seeing a specialist, they would do a blood test 14 days after any type of treatment. I did actually have a feeling I was pregnant at 12 days post ovulation after our last IUI. JD and I went out to dinner and I came home and immediately felt sick to my stomach, which was unusual. I took a pregnancy test that day and it had the FAINTEST positive line. I ran out of the bathroom to show JD and he couldn’t see it but I SWORE it was there. I took another one the next morning and the line was even darker. I actually called my NP at the fertility office that day and asked “What does it mean when you have a positive pregnancy test?” and she just laughed and said “It means you are pregnant!!” (thank you, Grace, if you are reading haha!).

Q: What type of symptoms did you have in the first trimester?

A: I feel really fortunate to not have experienced a lot of negative or uncomfortable symptoms so far this pregnancy. In the first trimester my most noticeable symptoms were fatigue, headaches, and a very heightened sense of smell. I actually did not experience any nausea or morning sickness!

Q: Are you going to find out what you are having? Do you have names picked out?

A: We do know what we are having, a little girl! We do have a name picked that I think we are 90% sure of, but we are going to keep it secret until she arrives 🙂

Q: Any recommendations on things to do pre-pregnancy to help conceive?

A: So, first of all have patience and give yourself and your partner grace. Starting a family does not look the same for everyone, so try not to compare yourself to other couples. Outside of that, focus on your mental and physical health. For supplements, I took a prenatal vitamin with DHA, CoQ10 supplement, and baby aspirin (due to my blood pressure + fertility reasons) daily. I also tried stay active and exercise 4-5 times a week. As far as my diet, I could have been much better with this, but I did pay more attention to what I was putting into my body food-wise. Just maintain a healthy, active lifestyle, and don’t stress too much!

Q: Any cravings?

A: My cravings have become less intense during the second trimester, but I did have a few! For the first 12 weeks I constantly wanted citrus fruit. I would wake up every morning wanting orange juice immediately and I ate a ton of oranges and put lemon in everything. I actually craved most fruit and would make smoothies or fruit salad daily in the summer as a snack. I mentioned this a bit on stories too, but I have also been eating more dairy than I normally would. This is hard to explain, but my body felt like it needed calcium and I started eating yogurt for the first time in over 3 years. My one really random craving…sour patch kids (still have a few boxes of these for emergencies).

Q: What was your experience working with a fertility specialist?

A: Overall, great! Good quality healthcare is extremely important to me, so I am not afraid to make a switch if I feel I am not getting what I need. JD and I did the majority of our treatment during the beginning of the COVID pandemic, which was a little crazy. I was really nervous that staff would limit time with me out of fear of the pandemic and exposure. All things considered, I felt the staff was as attentive as they would have been in more conventional times and I had a great experience. When it comes to OB/GYN or reproductive care (or medical care in general), don’t be afraid to speak up OR find a new practice if you aren’t happy.

Q: Are you going to move before the baby comes?

A: Good question! This summer, after we found out we were expecting, we hired a realtor almost immediately and started looking at houses. We even had photos taken and were about to list our house this past July. Unfortunately, we discovered that the housing market in our area is not suited for individuals who are selling homes and also looking to buy. Our realtor felt that we would get an excellent return on our home sale, which was great. However, we found that the market was so competitive that we were going to put in offers 20k over asking on new homes that may not have been worth that sale price. In the end, we pulled our listing and deciding that we would welcome our new addition in our current home and re-evaluate next year.

I hope I answered most of your questions in this pregnancy Q&A! If you have additional questions, leave them in the comments and I would be happy to answer them! You can also read our pregnancy announcement here!

Thank you all for the love and support so far during this pregnancy! I am so appreciative!

xo, Kristen