Heinz - Tinytums

First Trimester

In the early stages of your pregnancy it’s helpful to learn as much as possible about what is happening to you and your baby.

Here, we’ll guide you through the first 3 months of your pregnancy with all the help and advice you need. We’ll explain how to recognise the first signs of pregnancy and how to keep fit both physically and mentally.

First month
You'll probably miss your first period about 2 weeks after the egg has been fertilised. Many of the pregnancy testing kits you can buy over-the-counter at the pharmacy can be used just a few days after your period would usually have started.

Always follow any pregnancy tests to the letter and always confirm the result with your GP. Some women jump for joy when they get the positive result. However, it's just as normal a reaction to feel ambiguous about a positive result even when you want a baby. Becoming a parent creates such major changes in your life that it's not surprising if the idea can sometimes take a bit of getting used to - sometimes several month's worth. Some women find that they don’t want to tell anyone, even their partner, for a little bit. The important thing is to do it when you feel ready.

Morning sickness
In the early weeks of pregnancy, the most common symptom is nausea and often vomiting brought about by the increasingly high levels of pregnancy hormones.  Although it is called morning sickness, it can strike at any time and many women feel sick towards the end of the day.

Morning sickness is one of the first signs of pregnancy and actually means that the pregnancy is progressing normally, although few women who have experienced either feeling nauseous or being sick may regard it as a positive feeling!

It can occur more frequently when you don't eat enough, so always keep some snacks, such as dry crackers or fresh fruit, close to hand.

Pregnancy heightens your sense of smell, so some familiar foods can set off nausea. Common examples of this are tea, coffee, chocolate and foods that are high in fat or sugar. You might even find that the smell of your favourite perfume makes you nauseous!

For most women, morning sickness goes away from about month 3 of pregnancy when your body has got more used to the high levels of pregnancy hormones.

What can help?
Food can relieve the symptoms of morning sickness and at this stage of your pregnancy it is important to be eating a good diet (check out our diet during pregnancy section) and the right foods for the health of both you and your baby. It can be better to eat small snacks often rather than two or three large meals.

The following tips can help to keep nausea at bay:

• Avoid certain smells such as smoky rooms – a good idea when you’re pregnant anyway
• When you feel a wave of nausea coming, sit down and bend over so your head is resting between your legs
• Eat and drink little and often

Foods and snacks that can help to decrease feelings of nausea include:

• Ginger - as tea, biscuits, capsules or cakes
• Toasted bread
• Fizzy water
• Natural yoghurt
• Plain biscuits, such as water crackers
• Fruit juice
• Raw vegetables
• Herbal tea - especially ginger, camomile or peppermint
• Glucose drinks
• Sweets

If your morning sickness is very serious and you are vomiting several times a day and are unable to keep your food down, you could get dehydrated and should consult your GP. In extreme cases and if left untreated it can lead to dehydration which may require hospital treatment. Your GP might prescribe anti-nausea drugs that are known to be safe in the early stages of pregnancy.  It’s important you only  take medicines approved by your doctor throughout your pregnancy.

Weeks 5-6
If you have a transvaginal ultrasound scan, which is sometimes done to confirm that a pregnancy is in place, your baby's heartbeat will show up as a tiny pinprick of light strobing on and off.

Weeks 7-8 
Your womb has grown from the size of a tangerine to that of a large apple, and a doctor can detect your pregnancy with a pelvic examination.

Your breasts will be bigger and rounder. The nipples develop raised bumps  which are known as Montgomery's Tubercules.

Your cervix has softened. Your cervical mucus will also have thickened to form a plug in the cervical canal, sealing off your womb.

Weeks 9-10
A rich hormonal mix of oestrogen, progesterone, HCG and many others is circulating in your system at the moment. It's not uncommon to experience major mood swings as a result. This is totally normal and only temporary.

Depending on local policy, you may have your first maternity clinic appointment around now, usually with a midwife.

She will ask about your diet, smoking and drinking, check your blood pressure, urine and weight, give you a blood test to check for anaemia, check whether you're immune to German measles, offer you a cervical smear and give you general information and advice about pregnancy.