Becoming pregnant has a lot of emotions to it. This is such a scary, exciting and stressful process.
Of course, I’m excited about having a baby. I have always pictured myself having kids and becoming a mom. I’ve always felt to my core that I was meant to become a mother.
My boyfriend and I were not planning for a baby anytime soon. I thought we’d get married first then start a family. To our surprise, baby came first. I know the universe has its own divine plan, so I’m going with that.
Before having children, I had hoped I was more prepared. Especially financially because that adds to stress levels.
Finding out I was pregnant
Because I have irregular periods I didn’t think anything of it. I did have tender breasts which felt more swollen and heavy so I thought I was just getting my period soon. I didn’t realize that I had been feeling this for a few weeks.
I ended up going to Los Angeles for a bachelorette weekend and I told the bride I had swollen breasts and they were feeling heavy. I even started to feel a little nauseous the day I told her and she mentioned maybe I should take a pregnancy test.
I thought I was fine and would get my period soon so I figured I would wait until I got home after the weekend to see if I needed to take a test. On the drive to Palm Springs for the bachelorette festivities, we had to kill some time, so we decided to go to Walmart. The bride asked me since we were at Walmart, did I want to buy a pregnancy test. I figured why not, I probably wasn’t. I bought two digital tests and went straight to the restroom.
My friend (the bride-to-be) and I waited for the result. It seemed the test was loading very slowly. A few minutes passed and we looked again and it read “Pregnant.”
I was speechless and completely shocked. We looked at each other confused. I was numb and didn’t even know how I should feel at this moment. Since it was her bachelorette weekend, I wanted to keep this news between us as to not take away from her weekend to celebrate.
I acted like nothing had happened when we got to the house and we continued the weekend. I made a few mocktails since I knew I was pregnant and couldn’t drink. I still had no emotions and didn’t know how I should feel. Honestly, it was tough not being able to tell my boyfriend. I thought it wouldn’t be fair to share this news with him over text or a phone call, so I thought it was appropriate to wait until we saw each other in person.
Once I landed home in Texas I was acting different and I think my boyfriend noticed. As soon as I walked through the door I rushed to the bathroom to set up this box I bought along with a cute little pair of baby shoes and the pregnancy test. I had so many emotions running through my mind. I was anxious, nervous, and excited to tell him.
I presented him with the box and when he opened it, he was completely shocked which is understandable. I was too when I found out myself. He was so surprised and had to take it all in but I could tell he was also excited. I told him if he needed time to process this I understood since I had a few days to process it before telling him.
My boyfriend is big on researching everything so of course that’s what he did. He started avidly reading up on all things pregnancy and having a baby. He told me the first step we needed to do was get me to an OB-GYN. Since I didn’t have one yet, we researched our options and booked our first appointment.
First doctors visit
The first appointment was pretty standard. Filled out medical history and paperwork, then confirmed I was pregnant with another pee test with the nurse. My doctor shared her medical background then went over my health and medical history with me.
She measured my uterus and did an annual pap smear test. I was so eager to see the baby and find out how far along I was since I didn’t know. She also did an ultrasound which she said they normally don’t do on your first visit. It was so cool to see the little bean. They also had me do blood work which gave me a chance to chat with the nurse about foods I should be eating and what I shouldn’t be having.
Second Doctors Visit
It was a quick visit, about 30 minutes. My doctor said my expected labor day is March 12, 2023. She also maternal serum screen test, which is a simple blood test to see if your baby is at risk for Down syndrome, extra sequence of chromosomes 13 (trisomy 13), or extra sequence of chromosomes 18 (trisomy 18). This test also tells you the gender of your baby which I’m excited for. We decided to take her up on this test.
Prenatal VITAMINS
After I found out I was pregnant, I called my mom a few days later to share the news. She was happy and also concerned that I take prenatal vitamins right away. She shipped me off a box. I have been taking Ritual Prenatal, seems great so far. This vitamin contains 2,000 IU vitamin D that the nurse suggested I need to take if the prenatal doesn’t have enough.
FIRST Ultrasounds Visit
I had my first ultrasound on August 5th. My boyfriend went with me. We were told how far along I was, 8 weeks and 5 days based on the measurements. I was 2.08 cm at this point. We were able to also hear our baby’s heartbeat. They did a vaginal ultrasound since they said at this stage would be easier to see more.
Financial thoughts
This has weighed on me the most since finding out we’re going to have a baby. Thinking about finances and what should be my next steps with work is stressful. The most stressful part is not knowing what to expect.
I want to stay home with the baby when he/she is born. Of course I’ll take maternity leave. I’m not sure how this works since it’s my first time experiencing all this. I’ll have to inquire and ask questions at work.
We also live in an apartment which is not enough space. So we are looking to buy a house before the baby is born. This adds another layer stress and decisions which come with a lot of emotions.
First time parent
As a first-time parent, you really don’t know what to expect. I decided to buy a book that could prepare me for parenthood/motherhood and give me some tips. And yes, it’s the infamous book What to Expect When You’re Expecting.
