Pregnancy Self Care

Pregnancy Self Care

The second I found out I was pregnant I started looking up everything. Is it safe to do this? Can I eat this? What will happen to the baby if I do this?

The searches were endless and the answer to my question was almost always no, you cannot do or eat this. No, that is most likely not safe for baby. Well, it’s seriously tough to feel like all of a sudden you have all of these restrictions and you have to immediately change your lifestyle.

To be honest, I got sick of the answer no. If you are in the same boat or maybe just a little overwhelmed and want a positive pregnancy read, here you go! I’ve compiled a list of my favorite things you CAN do or have while pregnant. Obviously, I’m not a doctor and you should always consult with your own, but these are a few things I’ve discussed with my Doctor and are on the A-okay list!

Manicures and Pedicures

One of my biggest pet peeves is not having my nails done so it is a huge relief that these are okay to do while pregnant. My favorite nail salon in Santa Monica is Olive and June. Not only do they have the cutest stickers to add to your nails, but they also have specific treatments for pregnant women. The nail polish they use is 7-free which means it’s completely safe for you and baby! It’s also the most relaxing.

Facials

This one has been tough for me. I normally go to skin laundry or get a hydrafacial and while parts of these facials are safe there are parts that are not safe for your skin or baby during pregnancy. There are plenty of skincare products that you can use while pregnant you just need to make sure the esthetician is experienced in prenatal facials. I found a facial place that specializes in tailoring facials to exactly what your skin needs even if you’re pregnant and have been pampering myself ever since!

Massages

This is a must. Make sure you go to a trained masseuse in prenatal massage. But now it the time to treat yourself to a nice massage. Those aches and pains deserve to be eased so don’t feel bad about popping in for a massage as often as you can.

Yoga

Unfortunately, I was not working out before I got pregnant so my doctor told me it was best to not add any new exercise to the mix besides walking and light aerobics. She also said yoga was safe to do so long as I avoided certain moves that involved too much of my core or twisting. Yoga was not something I did pre-pregnancy, but now it is definitely a part of my self care routine. I have been experiencing a lot of backaches and have tried a lot to resolve it, but yoga seems to help quite a bit. It’s definitely a great thing to do while pregnant that helps you feel your best!

Coffee

This is a huge one for me. I can’t tell you how many people asked me once I got pregnant, “oh, how’s it been giving up coffee?” Besides my first trimester when I was feeling crappy, I haven’t given up my coffee fix. My Doctor told me 200mg of caffeine a day is totally safe for baby. So keep on sipping that morning cup of Joe people!

Indulging in your Cravings

Chocolate, corndogs, Ice cream, cheeseburgers, cookies, whatever your craving is okay to indulge in every now and then. When someone told me I couldn’t eat hotdogs after I just had a corndog at Disneyworld I kind of freaked out but my doctor assured me it wasn’t a big deal. Pregnancy cravings can be hard to avoid but so long as you’re not eating a bunch of sushi you’ll be okay.

Travel

Brock and I love to travel and that wasn’t going to stop if we could help it. Unfortunately my first trimester it was physically impossible to do any traveling so when I started feeling better we started squeezing in as many trips as we could. My doctor said it was great to travel up until we get closer to the due date and shouldn’t be too far from the hospital. So you best believe we are taking full advantage of this one. I’m currently visiting my sister in Cleveland while writing this and we just got back from our Babymoon in Hawaii.