The first trimester was most draining for me as I was so tired coming from work everyday. Worry if the baby is healthy since I can't feel him/her at all. My bump is barely there, only my morning sickness is. Every time I felt being pulled in the stomach, I didn't know if it was a healthy symptom or not. Hence each visit to the doctor made me feel safe for a while. I tried to eat, drink, sit, sleep following the mama's protocols. But you know the risk of having a miscarriage is always looming in the corner.
I might be worried, but I still travel in my 1st trimester.
The 2nd trimester is the time when I feel better, less morning sickness but it's also the time to be prepared for baby as I am afraid I might not be able to move an inch in my 3rd! So I started reading books, asking friends and shopping and cleaning up our nest. Questions like if I wanted to breastfeed came up many times and I decided to read more about it - which is a good thing and I came to know about my breasts a little bit more. Actually the most practical tip I learned from the book is to massage my breasts every day with the hope that when the baby comes, the milk will pour! But please don't judge me if there is no supply. There is a funny picture on the internet on this is that either the baby is BFed or having formula, they all ended up eating McDonald! For some mama, it's no joke about this but maybe try not to be so hard on other women if they choose not to do the same.
Cat and exercise help ease the anxiety
I am in my 2nd, reading about my 4th trimester already. Watching too. Netflix has a Korean show called Birthcare Center which goes around the story of new mama in their 4th trimester. I thought it was brilliant in depicting most mom's types. Whether she is working mom or stay at home mom, what matters most is she is BFing her baby right! The CEO mom is the main character and she was also struggling with BF as she didn't have so much milk as other moms and she has to learn to navigate through all that milk supply, taking care of baby, finding a nanny and working full time after maternity leave. I found it resonated with me when she was ordering coffee and everyone from the waitress and the stranger told her to take either decaf or kiwi juice as she was pregnant. Luckily no one told me to order what coffee but there are people who decided for me what to eat. I know they might thought it was better for me but I guess I would appreciate a question than a decision when it comes to my food choice.
One thing I noticed is that there is far more information about how to prepare for giving birth and baby out there than information about how moms should take care of themselves after giving birth. On my tiktok account, once I watch a video on stuff to buy for newborns, instantly all the video feeds are full of that. Which is why I appreciate the book called Suối Nguồn Tươi Trẻ Cho Mẹ Sau Sinh or The Fourth Trimester: A Postpartum Guide to Healing Your Body Balancing Your Emotions, and Restoring Your Vitality by Kimberly Ann Johnson. It was eye opening for me on the journey of new mamas after giving birth when all chakras and energy channel were wide open and out of balance and how each country is giving new mama post-partum care. Then I came to know that there are also services like that in Vietnam and it's a old tradition in some region as well. It can be 10 to 30day treatment and it's certainly not cheap but I think it would be essential to have this after birth so mom and baby can restore back to balance. There are also other topics discussed in the book which I found super helpful as well. The conclusion is I need as much support as I could have.
I appear blissful in this picture
I guess my best way to navigate throughout this worry kingdom is to write about it, confront my fear and somehow magically it would become a normal part of life. There is no pregnancy bliss but there is sure pregnancy glow as people give me compliment on my skin and all. Maybe maybe the bliss will come after.
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