My Pregnancy: 1st Trimester

No morning sickness. No dizziness. No nausea. My practitioner said, “Good for you.”

Indeed; it was a blessing. No early and unwanted signs of the first trimester.
I wanted and needed to work. Otherwise I’ll be as bedridden, immobilized, and could possibly be hospitalized as how my Mother was when she was conceiving me.

Those were also some of the reasons why we didn’t find out at once about my pregnancy until one month after conceiving.
Recalling the first 30 days I got pregnant but unaware of it, I could point out signs; yet subtle ones. . I always got so heavy headed; I can’t help but sleep. I am a natural sleepy bear; but those yawns were simply irresistible. I also craved for my student’s Kelogg’s, strawberry-sprinkled, rice crispies snack; I ate four. How queer; I don’t usually ask for my students’ snacks. In another instance, the same student was merrily munching this circular Filipino delicacy showered with peanuts on top (I don’t know exactly what it’s called) when I asked him to buy me one from the puto (rice cake) stalls. Later I realized the irony: the person who bought me my first craving for my first baby was my student, instead of my husband! Funny.

My emotions, as well, got the most of me. It was a bit unusually intolerable.

After the memorable day of finding out about our baby, more symptoms and discomforts came mushrooming.

Cravings became stronger. Mine though were not like those odd and hilarious stories of some who’d ask their husbands for an order of KFC fried chicken in the middle of the night, and with much accuracy; or ask for a freshly-picked mango in a December afternoon, like how my Mommy compelled Daddy; not to mention, it should be his own hands who’ll pick the mangoes. She even desired for a roasted wild bird from the rice fields. The hunter should and must be no other than my Daddy. To relate the brief and amusing story: he went to the rice fields with an air gun, headed home with a lifeless wild bird, held upside down on its cold feet and immediately grilled it; the smoke kept my mother salivating; more so when she ate it. She even described it with many M’s — mmmmmmasarap (delicious). All the while she thought Daddy really did the sharp, skilled shooting; but the fact is: he bought the bird! My mom just learned about it years later.

I also didn’t demand for a refrigerator, a karaoke, a cushioned bed, or a house and lot, and if request is ungranted, I’d bleed, or even undergo miscarriage – the thing my husband was very anxious about. He even warned me with a shaking head about such behavior.

The least things I asked from him were sopas (chicken soup), chicharon, french fries and Jam Sweet Jam spaghetti. Nothing super specific. Nothing deadly demanding. Nothing surprisingly strange. These were not because of my husband’s warning nor did I prefer to; it all came naturally.

People frequently commented that my pregnancy is not maselan (crucial). But I still took unsolicited advice on taking extra care during the 1st three months since it’s the most critical stage. Almost all my moves were calculated; my husband gave me extra nursing; almost pampered me.

At one and a half months, no obvious tummy yet. (March 26, 2009)

The physical changes, too, are worth note taking.

My tummy was not yet that conspicuous, I could still camouflage it under baggy shirts and loose tops. But my slight weight gain was noticeable, being naturally skinny. A beige line ran down my abdomen. Suprisingly, my hair became darker and grew faster; my face got the luxury of clearer, zit-free skin people noticed it. They said I will be expecting a girl having this sort of pregnancy glow, which I didn’t really take seriously. Fatigue naturally didn’t spare me. Though I didn’t actually do any exasperating activities; my body was so exhausted, so withered. “What to expect when you’re expecting,” answered that unusual feeling: even though my outside body is not exerting much effort, my insides were busy and often got worn out building and producing my baby’s cradle within me — the placenta, amniotic fluid and what-not.

Emotionally, I was also in a whirlpool or caught in a cyclone!

During the second month, in spite of the confirmation from a disposable pregnancy test and from my doctor; I still had some skepticism. I was yet emotionally detached to the fact that I am a mom-to-be; that another heart beats inside of me.

I just didn’t cry, I howled over petty things; my husband would complain.

I was also so anxious I might make a wrong move and lose the baby. A slight jerk worried me. Bumps on the road made me lift my butt off the seat. The irony is: I ride on my husband’s two-wheeled vehicle, the thing which many people worry about especially my parents.

I was close to being paranoid.

At three months, I was so impatient, I want the baby already cradled in my arms; but fortunately reading pregnancy books really helped me overcome those emotional roller coaster.

This is my online journal entry on my baby’s first three months of life; and my experiences with him/her.

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Tags: English speaking, feature writing, interesting, ironic, Journalism, Journalist, knowledge, learning, pregnancy

Category: CHIT-chats