Hey there, expecting mama! 🙂 If you’re looking for pregnancy essentials, must-haves, and tips, I have got you covered.
I absolutely LOVED being pregnant! Pregnancy was such a special time for me as it was something I had always looked forward to. While I knew the basics of some must-haves that I’d need throughout my pregnancy, a lot of it I just kind of learned as my pregnancy journey went on. It was all a part of the fun, though! Every pregnancy and every woman is different. Isn’t that beautiful? Some of my must-haves might not turn out to be one of yours but that’s totally okay. Us ladies are in this together! So, if one of us found something that helped out through such time as pregnancy, we 100% need to tell each other about it.
Anyway, all that to say… I’m sharing my top pregnancy essentials and must-haves with you today!
[bctt tweet=”My Top 15 Pregnancy Essentials I Couldn’t Have Survived Without” username=”SummerTelban”]
15 Pregnancy Essentials I Couldn’t Have Survived Without:
1. LEGGINGS – It’s a no brainer that leggings are a maternity must-have. I couldn’t find any maternity leggings that would fit me since I’m short and petite but I still relied on leggings! I loved Simple Addiction’s black leggings before pregnancy and since they’re so stretchy, they got me through my entire pregnancy. Yep, non-maternity leggings! During the third trimester, I only ever wore leggings out of the house. Whatever your leggings of choice are, you’re going to be glad you have them!
2. SEA-BANDS – During my first trimester and into the first few weeks of my second trimester, the morning sickness was rough. The nausea was honestly worse than getting sick. At 9 weeks pregnant, I decided to try Sea-Bands even though I was skeptical. Well, they work! Some days I’d have to have them on all day and other days I’d only need them on in the car. If you’re dealing with bad nausea, I highly recommend these!
3. PALMER’S STRETCH MARK PRODUCTS – Stretch marks aren’t completely preventable by using lotions and oils since they’re more about genetics. With that being said, it’s still a great idea to use stretch mark preventative products anyway. These products keep your skin hydrated and nourished. Plus it’s nice to have a pampering self-care routine in place for your pregnancy. 🙂 My favorite stretch mark products that I used from the first trimester and on were Palmer’s Skin Therapy Oil and their Massage Lotion for Stretch Marks.
Related Reading: 7 SELF-CARE PRACTICES FOR PREGNANCY
4. PRENATAL VITAMINS – Prenatal vitamins are really important to take throughout your entire pregnancy. They’re essential for both you and baby! I took the Vitafusion Prenatal Gummy Vitamins and didn’t mind them at all. One pro tip: If your prenatal is making you nauseous, try taking it at night instead of in the morning. I made the switch and was so glad I did!
5. UNISOM – When you’re pregnant, you’re limited on the medications you can take, including sleep aids. Unisom is safe to take while pregnant (check with your doctor, of course!) and I took it pretty much my entire pregnancy. I had trouble sleeping throughout every trimester, especially in the beginning. Unisom helped me immensely!
6. BASIC V-NECK MATERNITY T-SHIRTS – I lived in these v-neck maternity t-shirts and loved them. They run true-to-size and I got my pre-pregnancy size: XS and they lasted me my entire pregnancy. I definitely recommend sticking to basic pieces that you can style multiple ways during your pregnancy. You don’t want to buy a new wardrobe, so classic pieces are best. They also have a bunch of other cute tops and sweatshirts!
7. NURSING BRAS – Yep, choosing to wear nursing bras during your pregnancy will be one of your best decisions. Your boobs go through a lot even before nursing (if you choose to) so it’s best to be comfy. I absolutely love THESE and THESE! I wear both styles to this day for nursing and both are incredibly comfortable. They have some other nursing bra options here!
[bctt tweet=”Pregnancy Essentials You Didn’t Know You Needed” username=”SummerTelban”]
8. MATERNITY BELT/BELLY BRACE – There will come a time in your pregnancy where you’ll start to have some lower back aches from your growing tummy. There are many ways to relieve these aches but I found that the most cost-effective way was getting this maternity belt. It helps to support back and baby bump. You can wear it over or under your tops and it’s more comfortable than you’d think. I got it around week 29 and was regretting that I didn’t order one sooner! I felt instant relief with this brace.
9. CLUSTER PILLOW (INSTEAD OF A PREGNANCY PILLOW) – Pregnancy pillows seem to be all the rave but as someone who’s naturally on the warm side, I knew they wouldn’t be for me. I had a lot of lower back pain throughout the second and third trimester but using a cluster pillow in between my knees while sleeping providing me a ton of relief. Cluster pillows are similar to memory foam pillows. They only difference is that cluster pillows contain clusters of memory foam, instead of being one large piece.
10. TUMS – If you experience heartburn during pregnancy, TUMS will become one of your new best friends, haha. Heartburn really set in for me during the third trimester, especially during the night… I kept them on my bedside table. TUMS Sugar-Free Melon Berry are my favorite!
P.S. I believe the old wives tale regarding heartburn = baby with lots of hair to be true… my baby girl had a full head of hair at birth!
11. MATERNITY BELLY BUTTON RINGS – If you have your naval piercing and don’t want to take it out… you don’t have to! They are specially made maternity belly rings. I got a pack of them off Amazon and they worked great! They come extra long so that you can cut them down to proper size as your belly grows. I definitely recommend getting a pack so you can change them out as your tummy grows. I had these ones!
12. PANTYLINERS – TMI time. I mean, we are talking about pregnancy. Pantyliners will also become one of your best friends during the last months of pregnancy. You’ll want to have them on-hand! Trust me, haha.
13. LABOR PREP TEA – Red raspberry leaf tea is said to help tone and tighten the muscles in the pelvic area, including the walls of your uterus. This means it could help make delivery easier and some women claim that it can make labor shorter. You can start to incorporate 2-3 cups of red raspberry leaf tea into your routine during your third trimester. I started an herbal blend of red raspberry leaf tea at 37 weeks and definitely believed it helped prep my body! Next time, I’ll be taking it the entire third trimester. This was the one I drank – really enjoyed it!
14. HOT & COLD GEL PACK WITH STRAP – For about a week before my daughter’s birth, I had contractions on and off. At night, they’d get more frequent and I really felt them in my lower back. I had a hot & cold gel pack with a strap and it was a game-changer! I was able to heat it up and wrap it around my back, rather than holding a heat pack there myself. This was especially helpful when I was laboring at home before heading to the hospital.
15. BIRTHING BALL – Or… exercise ball, yoga ball, whatever you want to call it. This was by far one of the BEST purchases of my pregnancy and it was the most helpful thing for me during the last few weeks of pregnancy. I had gotten one to bounce on to help encourage my cervix to get going, haha. I would bounce on it multiple times throughout the day. The week I experienced contractions before going into actual labor, it was the only comfortable place for me to sit and be in general. It provided so much relief for my back! I ended up having back labor and even in the hospital, I used their birthing ball as long as I could because it was so comfortable. Get one!
I hope this was helpful for ya! Wishing you a happy and healthy pregnancy! Shop the post below.
Follow along with me!
INSTAGRAM – FACEBOOK – TWITTER – PINTEREST
