Pregnancy is no walk in the park and your body changes so much over the course of the 9 months. To make things easier and more comfortable for me throughout the pregnancy, I’ve come with a pregnancy essentials list. Some of these things you’ll need in the first, second or third trimester only whereas others can be used throughout the pregnancy. I also tried to be minimal and not buy too many of the one time use items or items that take up too much space. I hope you find this pregnancy essentials list helpful if you’re also pregnant.
Pregnancy Essentials List
Crackers
The majority of pregnant woman will experience morning sickness for some time. Some may be lucky and not experience any at all, and there may be others that get morning sickness throughout the pregnancy. For me, I had morning sickness between weeks 7-14 while also experiencing some nausea randomly in other weeks. After a lot of trial and error, I realized crackers really helped subside the nausea (my favourite are the Toppables brand). Especially in the mornings. I realized if I stayed on an empty stomach for too long in the morning, I would vomit. So, since the beginning of the pregnancy, I started keeping a box of crackers in my bedside table. As soon as I’ve brushed my teeth and taken a shower, I eat a cracker. Every day.
Diclectin
Another pregnancy essential for me is Diclectin. Diclectin is a a prescription medication that is used for nausea and vomiting in pregnancy and it is combination of an antihistamine and vitamin B6. You need to take 4 pills a day to see a difference because it is a medication that needs to be in your system throughout the day for you to feel the effects. This really helped me during the worst of the morning sickness and I took it into the second trimester as well because I really did not enjoy feeling nauseous.
Stretch Mark Oil
My sisters gifted me this oil from Burts Bees and I started using it in the first trimester, well before there was even any sign of a bump. It smells so good (a lemony scent) and was very nice to apply to my stomach and back so I made it a part of my night time routine. I’m 30 weeks pregnant now, with a pretty big bump, and have yet to see any stretch marks. They say stretch marks are genetic and there is still another 10 weeks of this pregnancy left, so I could still get stretch marks. But this oil is definitely keeping my skin hydrated and healthy.
Pregnancy Wedge
When my bump did start showing, it became quite uncomfortable for me to sleep at night. I am a stomach sleeper, so I had to stop sleeping on my stomach and transition to my side or back. I started looking into pregnancy pillows and asked friends and family their opinion about those giant pillows. Some loved them, some barely used them. I didn’t want to commit to such a large item in our room, so decided to get the pregnancy wedge. And boy oh boy, this is such a holy grail item for me and is my favourite in this pregnancy essentials list. It’s small, helps lift my stomach when I sleep on the side and easy to move around at night when I change positions. I even use it when I sit cross legged and need a little more support.
Compression Stockings
In the second trimester, I started getting round ligament pain, which is a sharp stretching sensation in my stomach going down to my legs. So, I started wearing my compression stockings and they made such a big difference. I wear them at work and take them off at night and I have not felt this pain in my legs since I started wearing them. As for the sharp stretching in my stomach, I think chiropractic treatment and gentle massage from Gursheel has helped quite a bit.
Dry Brush
Related to round ligament pain, I found using my dry brush really helped. Dry brushing really helps with circulation and detoxifying your skin. I first featured my dry brush on my Amazon Favourites post and I have been using it ever since. It is a must have for pregnancy as well.
Nose spray
Also during the second trimester, I started getting a stuffy nose every morning (I shared this in my what they don’t tell you about pregnancy post from last week). I immediately purchased a saline spray from amazon that just contains sea water and that really helped to clear our my stuffy nose. I also noticed that if I used the saline spray too often, my nose started to dry out. I suggest only using this a couple of times a week to get the best benefit.
Exercise Ball
Now that I’m in my third trimester, I pulled out an exercise ball we had lying around and have really enjoyed sitting on it and stretching out my hips. It is more comfortable for me to sit on the exercise ball than on my bed/chair.