Trish: [00:00:00] Hey mama. Welcome to Pregnancy unpacked. I'm Trish, a labor nurse of 16 years, mom of seven, and your birth vesting. I'm gonna be walking you through not just baby bumps and fruit sizes, but the entire identity shift that pregnancy will be for you. Each episode drops every Wednesday, and we're gonna unpack what's happening in your body, what to expect, what to do, what's normal.

Even when it feels extremely weird and how to actually feel supported emotionally and physically, you're gonna hear from me where I'm not gonna sugarcoat it, but I'm gonna be cheering you on along the way. You can follow along each Wednesday because pregnancy deserves more than outdated advice and Google anxiety.

Okay, mama. Deep breath. Weeks, eight [00:01:00] to 10, they're gonna come in hot girl. You've got hormones flying, symptoms ramping up, and maybe even an ultrasound on the calendar, which is super excited. And somewhere in the middle of all of that, you've got your very first prenatal appointment. So today I'm gonna walk you through exactly what to expect at that appointment, what to ask, what's normal to feel right now, and how to shift from.

I hope they tell me everything I need to do. Two, I'm the one steering this ship. I wanna start that. I wanna get that implanted in you right now. This is something we work on with our mamas inside the courses and also inside the membership because you are the one steering the ship. This is your body and this is your baby.

I'm Trish, labor nurse mama and mom of seven, your calm birth coach in a chaotic pregnancy and you're listening to pregnancy. Unpacked the week by week guide. I wish I had had and I wish every mom can have. [00:02:00] Let's unpack weeks eight to 10.

Let's start with what's happening with Baby right now. Your baby is not just a little blob anymore. By week 10, they've graduated to Fetus status. Congratulations, baby. Here's what's going on developmentally. Their heart is fully formed and beating at 160 to a hundred. 80 beats per minute. Their facial features are forming tiny little eyes and nose and mouth, and that's my baby voice.

Fingers and toes are separating. They're not like little webs anymore. And the organs like the liver, the kidney, and the intestines are taking shape and their brain. Is developing at around 250,000 neurons per minute, which is wild, right? So if your partner comes home and like, what did you do today? You can say, I made some kidneys.

How about you? Your body is still doing all the work until the placenta fully takes over around week 12. So if you still feel like you've been hit by a hormonal [00:03:00] semi-truck, you're not imagining it. That's pretty normal. Let's talk about your first prenatal appointment, what to expect. This appointment is usually pretty long, so don't be surprised if it feels more like a job interview than a cozy little hangout.

Here's what most providers will do. They'll confirm your pregnancy, they'll order your baseline prenatal labs. They'll offer genetic screening options. Take a full medical history, talk about your EDD, which is your estimated due date. Do you hear that word? Estimated due date. They might even call it EDC, which is estimated date of confinement.

And they might do a transvaginal ultrasound. We're gonna talk about what that is. Due dates are estimates not an expiration date. Only four to 5% of babies are born on the due dates. So take a deep breath, girl. It's okay if you go past 40 weeks. In fact, most first time moms go to 40 weeks and five days.

So let's talk more about the first ultrasound, because if you're [00:04:00] imagining a cute jelly on the belly little moment, like in the movies or TV shows, it's not that one. Not yet. At this early stage, around eight to 10 weeks, your uterus is still hiding down deep low in your pelvis. So to get a clear look at the baby, they're most likely going to do a transvaginal ultrasound, which means it is internal.

It's a slender wand and it goes up the vagina so they can get close to the uterus and see what's going on. So let me tell you, the very first time I had one of these in my pregnancies, 'cause they, I didn't have it with my older boys. When I went in for that first like ultrasound, I was so excited and the tech pulls the wand out, then puts a condom on it.

I was like, uh, you are putting that where we haven't even had a first date. Excuse me. I mean, no one warned me and I thought that I would do a normal little ultrasound. So if this is your first time, just know it's totally normal to [00:05:00] feel caught off guard, and it's not painful. It's a little weird and uncomfortable and awkward, but it's over pretty fast.

And what they're checking during the scan is. Is the pregnancy inside of the uterus? They wanna make sure it's not atoptic. Can we see a heartbeat? How many babies are in there? Plot twist, how big is baby? So they'll do a measurement from crown to rump to sea, and that will help them come up with your estimated due date.

Based on measurements. They're also gonna check for what's called the yolk sack. Is it visible and is it supporting the baby? And remember, if your dates are off or they don't see everything they expected, it might just mean you ovulated or implanted. Later than you thought, and that happens all the time.

So do not freak out, don't panic. Ask all the questions. And if needed, you may come back in a week or two for a follow-up scan. One thing that I am so obsessed with is mindset. So we're gonna talk about mindset because here's what happens to a lot of women during this stage. They start shrinking. They nod, they [00:06:00] say okay to everything.

Even when their gut is saying, wait a minute, this doesn't feel right. I don't like this person's demeanor, or this doctor, or whatever. So I want you to remember walking into this visit, your provider is an expert on medicine, but you are the expert on you. That means you get to ask questions, you get to say no to anything that doesn't feel right.

You get to pause. You get to say, I need time to think about this. You don't need a medical degree to advocate for your body. So don't go in there thinking, well, they're the doctor and everything they say is is more important and right than I am. So your mindset mantra For this week, I'm allowed to take up space in the room where decisions are made.

About my body and my baby. So here's some questions to bring to your appointment if you haven't gotten our first trimester prep pack, make sure you do that. Go to any post on Instagram and comment the word first. We have some things in there, including your questionnaire for your appointment, but here's some questions I recommend [00:07:00] asking, even if they don't come up.

Who will actually deliver my baby? Will it be you? Will it be random? What's your policy on induction? How do you feel about unmedicated birth or using a doula? What is your C-section rate? If you're a VBAC mom, ask them what their successful VBAC rate is, what their repeat C-section rate is. If something is flagged on a scan or test, what is the process for a follow-up?

These questions do not make you difficult, girl. These make you / prepared, and since we're talking about being prepared, let's be real morning sickness does not care how organized your birth plan is. So if you're deep in the nausea fog right now, I get it. I see you. I was there and I wanna give you a few things that have helped both my students and myself, because dry heaving into a grocery bag at a stoplight is like.

Really depressing, and you're like, why is this my life? So let's talk through some options. So there are some traditional and medical morning sickness relief, vitamin B six and Unisom, [00:08:00] which is also known as Diclegis. And you can talk to your providers. That's usually the first line recommendation. From most obs and midwives, it's safe, it's effective and simple, but it can make you sleepy.

So talk to your provider about that on how to dose it, when to take it. There's also Zofran and Raglin. Some doctors prescribe it, some don't. If you're vomiting regularly or you can't keep food down, please do not suffer in silence.

Girl, you need help. These meds are safe and can be a game changer for quality of life. Now we can talk about holistic as well. There's ginger, everything, tea, choose drinks, even essential oil. Can help settle your stomach. There's also magnesium and you can get that as a lotion. You can get that as a spray or you can take it if you can swallow it, and that can help with nausea, fatigue, and constipation, which is a bonus win.

There's also acupressure wristbands, and I really love these ones all linked to them in the show note. I cannot think of the name of them right [00:09:00] now. They're so cute though. But you don't have to wear like ugly plastic ones. You can get some cute ones. We have them in our Amazon shop, so if you check that out, you'll see 'em.

Also peppermint. I always had a bag of peppermint sucking on them. Chewing, sniffing, essential peppermint oil or peppermint tea can also help you as well. Here's some lifestyle hacks that you can think of. Always be grazing. Not three meals you need to eat, eat, eat little meals all day long. Keep snacks by the bed.

I think I told you this in a previous episode. Some crackers, dry cereal, almonds, something. Before you even open your eyes, reach your hands and like blindly, grab over there, get a cracker. Take a few bites before you open your eyes and sit up. Wait a few minutes. Okay. Try cold, bland foods. Sometimes heat and stronger smells will trigger it.

So try things that don't have a, a strong smell. I'm not even gonna say ones that do, 'cause that'll make you sick. Listening, stay hydrated with electrolytes. So coconut water. You can do liquid IVs and water down juice with a little bit of salt, which is kind of nasty, [00:10:00] but it might work. But this is important.

Even if you're not eating perfectly, your baby is getting what they need, you are the one that's gonna be depleted. I really want you taking your prenatal vitamins First. Trimester is not just about survival, it's about also honoring your body and taking care of you.

So whether you're throwing up daily, you're just a little bit queasy. You're wondering why everyone said pregnancy's amazing. Give yourself some grace because morning sickness is hard. And you deserve support that meets you where you are, not just that textbook

Now we're gonna also talk about learning. This is so important. Most people wait until third trimester to take a birth class, and that is a mistake. And I'm gonna tell you by then, you're exhausted by then. If you need to switch providers based on what you're learning, you're not gonna wanna do it. And so I really recommend that you start right now.

While your brain can still process things, your body has time to practice what you learn. And what I recommend [00:11:00] is that you join one of my birth classes. We've got calm labor, confident birth class, and we also have our new Calm Labor Confident Birth Pod. Think of it like a podcast style birth class. You can binge on a walk in the car in your bath, and it's a perfect fit for you if you wanna feel calm and prepared.

But you're short on time or you're overwhelmed by all the info. You don't wanna watch all the videos. You just need the basics taught by a nurse, the full birth class, and. If y'all can hear my little Tula, she's growling, but she's sick and she's on my lap, so I'm sorry. The full birth class is a deep dive program that takes you from confused and scared to confident af and y'all know, I mean, as fudge is packed with everything I've taught thousands of moms, it's got all the things with video.

It's a full comprehensive program. The only difference between the calm labor, competent birth pod and the full birth class is that the full birth class comes with community and support, and all the videos and all the things [00:12:00] takes about six hours. The Confident Birth Pod is. All of the audio, but none of the video and none of the support.

So it's totally up to you if you really wanna understand your birth. Both of my classes start from the beginning of pregnancy and go all the way through postpartum. You can make empowered choices when you have the knowledge and you can walk into each of those appointments feeling unshakeable. So choose whichever fits your vibe.

I don't care. I just want you. As prepared as possible. I don't want you to line up and go to the OR because you didn't know what was happening. If you're not sure, DM me on Instagram and DM me the word class and then I'll walk through it with you and help you pick. You are not just a passenger in this.

Experience. You're not just here to watch your pregnancy unfold. You're here to be a participant in it. You get to understand like what's happening inside of me. You get to make informed decisions and you get to feel supported while doing it. You are powerful, [00:13:00] powerful, powerful. Queen. If this is your first pregnancy, you're not just learning, you're becoming.

If it's not your first pregnancy, let's do it differently this time. And I'm so proud of you for showing up for that. Congratulations. If you just found out you are a superstar, you are building a human girl, take a moment. Take a breath and pause. You're building a human.

That's it for this week, mama. Next week we're diving into weeks 10 to 12 where things can get emotionally intense. We're gonna talk about identity shifts, mood swings, and the truth about bonding when baby still feels like a concept. In the meantime, go check out the Calm Labor, confident Birth Pod, or the full class Linked Below.

Take a breath, ask the big questions. And trust your gut. You are the magic. Don't forget it. I'll see you again next [00:14:00] Wednesday.