I love the excitement that comes with the first trimester of pregnancy, but dealing with some of the crazy symptoms can be tough. This is such an exciting time, but it is also challenging!
Throughout my first trimester, I learned a few pregnancy tips, and found some must have pregnancy essentials that made things much easier. To help you deal with the not so fun symptoms, I’m sharing everything I’ve learned!
(Affiliate links are provided below for convenience. For more information see my disclosure, here.)
What Do I need For My First Trimester of Pregnancy?
These are my favorite 10 Pregnancy Tips, and Products that helped me survive thrive during the first trimester of my pregnancy. I hope they’ll help you too! Plus, many can be used you throughout your entire pregnancy.
You’ll notice that most of these items can be found on Amazon – which is where I created the bulk of my baby registry!
Amazon makes it so easy and fun to create your registry and you can always add or remove items.
BONUS: you get up to a 15% discount when you buy any of the items on your registry! #WooToTheHoo
Ready to dive into my favorite products to use during the first trimester? Let’s go!
10 First Trimester Must-Haves
1. Use Coconut Oil to Prevent Stretch Marks
It’s important to keep your skin hydrated during pregnancy, especially your stomach. Keeping your skin hydrated can help prevent stretch marks! There’s tons of creams, oils, and lotions that you could use to moisturize your stomach, but my favorites is Viva 100% Pure, Cold-Pressed & Unrefined coconut oil (Amazon).
I love that cold-pressed, unrefined coconut oil is a natural product, and contains no chemicals or man made ingredients. Coconut oil is highly emollient and helps keep skin hydrated. It feels heavenly, and the light coconut scent makes me feel like I’m at the beach. Viva Coconut Oil is also available on Amazon’s Subscribe & Save!
I always tried to eat natural, whole foods, but the first trimester of pregnancy is an especially important time to eat as healthy as possible. During these first 12 weeks, baby is developing its heart and nervous system, as well as all the rest of its organs.
Coconut oil is also great for cooking. It contains a rare, super healthy type of fat called a MCT or medium chain triglyceride. Not all coconut oils are the same – make sure to look for virgin, cold-pressed, unrefined coconut oil. It’s worth paying slightly more get really high quality coconut oil.
To learn more about coconut oil’s amazing health benefits, check out this article: Top 10 Evidence-Based Health Benefits of Coconut Oil (healthline.com)
2. Keep Tummy Drops On Hand
I didn’t have very much extreme nausea (thankfully!) but I often felt queasy or sick to my stomach in the afternoons and early evenings. These Natural Ginger Tummydrops (Amazon) were really helpful during those times of uneasiness. Ginger is a natural remedy that’s safe to use during your pregnancy, and it definitely helped me.
The Tummydrops are individually wrapped, so they were easy to keep in my purse just in case. Plus, they seriously taste so good! There’s 3 different flavors to choose from, but the Ginger Peach was my favorite. The Tummydrops are also available on Amazon’s Subscribe & Save!
For more tips on relieving morning sickness, I recommend reading Morning Sickness Remedies That Really Work (Parents.com).
3. Wear a Belly Band
This pregnancy must have product is a game changer. During the first trimester, I felt bloated, uncomfortable, and everything was starting to stretch to make room for my sweet little baby. My stomach couldn’t handle pressure from tight fitting clothing, and I couldn’t just wear sweat pants all the time.
After getting a recommendation from a friend and reading all the reviews, I purchased this Maternity Belly Band Clothing Extenders (Amazon) to wear over my pants. Let me just tell you, this is the best $15 bucks you’ll spend!
This belly band came in so handy. I ended up buying a second one and wore these almost everyday during my first and second trimesters. They provide a little bit of comforting support, and cover everything up in case you need to wear your pants unbuttoned.
Tip: Use a hair tie or rubber band to extend the button on your jeans. This will help you fit into your non-maternity jeans a little longer, and the belly band easily hides it!
Belly bands are convenient for when you don’t quite need maternity pants yet, but your favorite jeans are starting to get a little too sung. With a belly band, you can keep wearing those jeans a little bit longer.
4. Get Some Comfy (And Cute!) Sweatpants
Speaking of being comfortable, I have been living in these Aerie Low-Rise Sweatpants. They are SO soft and I love that the waistband is low-rise to fit nicely under the bump for ultimate comfort. They’re super flattering and you can wear them all day and still feel put together!
I prefer these instead of stretchy yoga pants because I like to have a little extra wiggle room when I’m lounging. When I’m at home, you better believe I’m in these pants.
5. High-Waist Workout Leggings That Fit The Bump
I bought these workout leggings a couple of months before finding out I was pregnant and LOVE them! They are the Core10 brand from Amazon and I was so surprised at how good the quality is. They pass the squat test, they don’t show sweat and they come in a tall size for us taller gals.
I’m happy to report that these have worked great to continue wearing for workouts in my first trimester (and into my second). They are high waisted and have a little bit of compression which feels good on the growing bump during an intense sweat sesh. I highly recommend!
6. Stay Hydrated With A BPA-Free Water Bottle
I’m normally a big water drinker and now that I’m pregnant, my H2O addiction is even worse. I’m ALWAYS thirsty! So keeping a water bottle close by is a must.
I love this glass tumbler that comes with two lid options, and the time/quantity trackers are so helpful! Keeping this bottle on my desk makes it easy to sip on throughout the day while I work.
7. Grab & Go Water Bottle
For days that I’m on the go, I reach for this Triple-Insulated Stainless Steel Water Bottle to keep my drink cold for up to 24 hours. I love that it’s stainless steel and has a screw on cap so I can easily toss it in my workout bag or keep it in my purse while running errands. It’s leakproof, shatterproof and the built-in handle makes it so handy!
8. Keep Tylenol On Hand
During the last few weeks of my first trimester I started experiencing headaches and immediately stocked up on Tylenol. Many over the counter, and prescription medications are unsafe to take during pregnancy. Make sure to do your research, and consult your healthcare provider when deciding what medications you can and cannot take.
Acetaminophen is safe to take – as directed on the package label – during pregnancy. Most other pain relievers are not.I recommend keeping some Tylenol (or any brand of acetaminophen) in your purse for all three trimesters, but especially the first!
9. Comfortable Bralettes For The Win!
I love these super cheap and comfortable bralettes. They’re soft, stretchy (leaving room for the inevitable growth!) and I wear them all the time now. Do yourself a favor and buy a few of these seamless bras stat! They’re great for nursing too.
10. My Favorite Prenatal Vitamins
It’s super important to start taking prenatal vitamins ASAP when you find out you are expecting. You can even start taking them early if you’re trying to conceive. Prenatal vitamins help provide many of the vitamins, minerals, and fatty acids that are necessary for early development.
I did a lot of research on vitamins that don’t make you nauseous, and I found that gummy vitamins worked best for most women (nausea is a common side effect of prenatal vitamins). I tried a few different brands, and my favorite was: Smarty Pants Prenatal Complete gummy vitamins (Amazon). They contain both DHA, EPA and Folic Acid which are all extremely important for baby’s growth, especially in those first early months.
And, if you take advantage of Amazon’s Subscribe & Save option, you can save up to 15%, and you never have to worry about running out! I loved getting these automatically getting sent to my doorstep once a month – because pregnancy brain is real friends! Not to mention the extra 5-15% savings I get with Subscribe & Save!
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These are the staples that were the most helpful during those difficult first 12 weeks. The early pregnancy months can be tough, but I hope this list helps all you new mamas in your first trimester!
Don’t forget to take advantage of all of the benefits to registering with Amazon! Like a 15% completion discount AND a welcome box with tons of freebies!
You can read more about the symptoms I experienced in the first trimester here!
What would you add to this list? Anything you just loved your first trimester?
