(Part 3) Best products from r/pregnant

I had a badass skincare routine going before pregnancy that is totally not pregnancy friendly; I’m talking BHA/AHAs, special face washes, and rags, everything...

I got some pretty bad acne when I had to stop my routine, probably just because my skin was oily and I hadn’t looked into how to handle it while gestating just yet. But I’m getting MUCH better in the 2nd trimester, and now it’s just healing the scars left from the hell trimester. Here we go:

Face:
• Garnier Clean+ Clarifying Cleansing Gel Sensitive Skin - Takes off my makeup easily. Mostly used in the shower because washing faces in sinks is brutal in the bad way.
• Garnier SkinActive Micellar Cleansing Water for Oily Skin - Takes off eye makeup easily if your having trouble with your thick black eyeliner smearing down your face because you “insist on doing your makeup like a ‘vam-per’” according to your parents.
• MISSHA Time Revolution Clear Toner - Expensive as shit toner that I paid over $18 for and is now listed at $15, WTF Amazon. But it’s good stuff, pregnancy safe, toner is good stuff anyway, and it’s helping with evening my skin tone back out from the acne scars.
• Triple Vitamin C Serum L-Ascorbic Acid - Vit C oil to help you fake that “pregnant glow” that we were all promised...
• Bio-Oil Liquid Purcellin Oil - I use an off brand that I got on clearance but omg...like...I know this stuff is expensive but it’s a miracle. You just dab some on your scarred places, like the acne marks, or where your stupid fucking cat decided your hand was a snack and ripped a hole on your hand, or dark spots on your legs because you’re still bad at shaving leg hair and not leg skin, and I swear it fades SO FAST. Also rub it all over your boobs and belly. Like pretty much I would bathe in this from the neck down if it wouldn’t bankrupt my family.
• Cetaphil Moisturizing Cream for Dry/Sensitive Skin - Old faithful, the moisturizer. A tiny bit goes a long way. Also tends to make its way to my boobs when I’m tired and dont feel like using other lotions.

Body:
• NIVEA Q10 Skin Firming Hydration Body Lotion - Bought pre-pregnancy. I used to use it every single morning and night on my thighs and it totally does reduce the appearance of cellulite. Now I use it lazily but it’s there and smells ok so it’s my go-to body lotion.
• Lansinoh Hpa Lanolin Nipple Soothing Cream - my nipples are pierced and those things get dry in the winter. Baby may not be here yet but I went ahead and decided to try this stuff out. Seems legit. It’s super thick, moreso than Vaseline but I dig it.

I also use special toothpaste (not because pregnant, because shit teeth), a special washcloth (because I developed keratosis pilaris (sp?) and I wasn’t having it. The special rag put a stop to it FAST), lady-bits wash (because I get self conscious about sweating and smelling funky), special “sensitive skin” lube, and well I guess that’s about it. I sound like an amazon ad for many products. I’m not. Just a researcher/lover of my husband describing me as “so soft” when he touches me. 🤗

This list is awesome! I was not nearly that organized for my registry! Just a few comments from the other side (my baby is 3 months currently).


Baby nails are sharp and scary, some friends bought us this Electric Nail File and it is absolutely amazing, not painful for baby at all and much more efficient than the little files.

This butt spatula thing has been great for when we apply diaper cream! Saves us from getting it on our hands.

For me personally, I found the Boppy rather ineffective for nursing at first while we were trying to figure out nursing. Baby would kind of slide down between the Boppy and my stomach. Now at 3 months old, the Boppy is super useful for propping baby and sometimes as a nursing pillow if I decide to use one. My first few weeks of nursing I'd use the Brest Friend Nursing Pillow it was great when Baby really needed a little extra support for getting into the best position for nursing.

Breastfeeding was very painful for me the first few weeks. Our LO ended up having a bad latch due to tongue and lip ties we had to get lasered (anterior tongue tie had been clipped by Pediatrician in the hospital, she still had a posterior tie that was diagnosed later by a lactation consultant - just something to keep in mind), by the time we had the procedure done the damage was done to my nipples. These nipple shields are one of the things that really helped my nipples heal in between feedings to keep my bra/clothes off of them. I hope you don't have to use them, but something you may want to make a note of in case you have a similar experience. If you do end up having nipple pain, ask your OB (or Google how to make it yourself) for a script for "Newman's Nipple Cream", that stuff helped save our breastfeeding relationship!


Good luck, looks like you're off to a great start!

I'm a regular yogi and my absolute favorite yoga vid is Hala Khouri's radiant pregnancy (https://www.amazon.com/Radiant-Pregnancy-Comprehensive-Prenatal-Trimester/dp/B009WY24IG). She has a different set of videos for each trimester, and within each trimester's set of videos, there's a warm up, a main workout, a restorative section, and a meditation. I will say that they are very mild (ie, no crazy arm balances and the like :), but I've found that the more mild yoga seems to be more of what my body needs while pregnant. The only other minor drawback is that if you do the warm up, main workout, restorative, and meditation videos for a single trimester in a single go, it's easily more than an hour...great if you have the time, but sometimes, I just do one of the videos rather than all four.

I also like Elena Brower's prenatal yoga (https://www.amazon.com/Element-Prenatal-Postnatal-Elena-Brower/dp/B002EWD0BS/). It's pretty basic, but the workout is only ~30 minutes, which is sometimes all I have time for. Also, the DVD includes post-natal workout for after pregnancy.

Lastly, if I'm super short on time (or just really low energy), I like these 15 minute videos (there are three of them) by SarahBeth Yoga: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=BaSPLL0fF04

Hope this helps and congrats on your pregnancy :)

Maternity underwear. I love the low-cut kind, i find them much more comfortable than full panel underwear, especially when wearing full panel pants.


nursing bras with extenders - you'll need these sooner than you think. One day your normal bra fits, the next day it's the worst bra ever. And you may as well opt for the nursing ones since you'll still need them post-partum too.


Full panel pants of any fabric you like. I have some full panel jeans but the inside is super soft, they are as comfortable as my full panel leggings.


I bought two maternity sweaters, but also just bought oversized sweaters. Since most of your pregnancy will be summer I'd opt for the same but with tshirts. I also raided my SO's closet for tshrts and sweaters he no longer wears. Open-front cardigans can't be beat, and there is no reason to buy a "maternity open front cardigan" when you can just up the size you'd normally wear. Slap the word "maternity" in front of something and the price skyrockets.


I also ordered a bunch of dresses from Old Navy since they no longer have maternity in store. Old Navy maternity tends to not be as expensive as other places like Thyme and Motherhood. A trick my friend taught me is to order two sizes of each item then return the ones that don't fit. You can return for free through mail or in-store (even though they don't sell it in-store).


Also, maternity pantyhose is expensive. Look for plus size instead. I'm at 33+5 and the size 1X has fit perfectly since about 22 weeks. They are a bit more expensive than non-plus size but still cheaper than maternity pantyhose.


Lastly, flats that easily slip on and off, tying your shoes becomes next to impossible at this point.

I'm glad you got the help you needed! I was actually on antidepressants years ago and they made a huge difference. Eventually I got off of them and started taking a specific combo of vitamins and supplements and felt just as great. Unfortunately, I ran out of them and simply didn't buy more because I thought I was "all better", some major life events occurred and here I am again. I stocked up on the vitamins again and hope that within the next couple of weeks I start to notice a difference again along with finding a therapist. I really didn't want to share my awful thoughts with my fiance, but I did and it definitely helped. Thankfully he didn't take any of it personally and has been my biggest cheerleader through this.
Again, I commend you for getting the help you need. There is nothing wrong with antidepressants--I know firsthand that they can be a godsend. If you are interested, though, here is the book that got me on the path to understanding why my brain works the way it does and how vitamins impact mental health. You might find it interesting, too! https://www.amazon.com/Depression-Cure-6-Step-Program-without/dp/0738213888

Everyone's different, everything is a trade off - sure you stop throwing up as much - but now you have acne...

Some ladies just add more and more "fun symptoms" to the list as they go without trading out anything.

For acne, some things that have helped me A LOT -

1. extra water, more water than you think you can drink - I'd rather pee every 30 minutes (because at least I'm moving more?) and have clearer skin (face and back)
   
2. gentle/calming face masks - my favorite is:
   https://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B074Y7CL6Q/ref=oh_aui_search_detailpage?ie=UTF8&psc=1
   It doesn't stop the pimples, but it makes them less red
   
3. biore strips about every other week
   
   Heartburn - I had ulcers pre pregnancy so I am a pro, better than tums is a dual action acid reducer - looks like tums but it has famotidine and magnesium ingredients (mag helps with leg cramps too!)
   
   Constipation - honestly, just thanking the powers that be for allowing me to poop on the days that I do hahahaha
   
   Hand in there girl~

So ummm I know it’s not ok to diagnose someone after hearing one thing about them over the internet but this sounds so much like the same issue I deal with in my marriage but in reverse—I have been the one not trustworthy and my husband couldn’t handle it. Our marriage took a real hit because he lost a lot of trust. Why? I have ADHD. One of the common things a person with ADHD does is totally forget things even when they have the very best intentions. If I’m right, he is doing his very best and is working his butt off to accomplish the things he does get done and feels like that alone is worth celebrating, which it is. I could be totally wrong but if I’m right it’s important for you both to know and work through accordingly. [This book](The ADHD Effect on Marriage: Understand and Rebuild Your Relationship in Six Steps https://www.amazon.com/dp/1886941971/ref=cm_sw_r_cp_api_XRx3AbBE19SJZ) really helped us gain insight and perspective. Good luck!

Mine came in about 36 hours after birth. This is early and unusual per the lactation consultant, but here we are. I had not leaked anything prior birth so don't worry about that.

Pre pregnancy I was a 32e. I wore a medium in this bra from Amazon. Since it is cheap and comfy, I've ordered a few in large for post partum. They are working great. They are supportive enough to be comfy, and also stretchy enough for easy access and growing/fluctuating breast size.

Hanes Women's Cozy Seamless... https://www.amazon.com/dp/B01HRFTF4W?ref=ppx_pop_mob_ap_share

I bought some larger nursing bras too, but I find this one to be more supportive, cheaper, and more comfortable. And yes, engorgement is crazy, my boobs were HUGE when I was discharged. I had a hard time fitting them into anything for about 2 days.

My hubby is taking us out for a nice dinner (leaving our 3yo with grandma for the night). I'm so hungry all the time (5.mths along) he might save more with a buffet at this point lol

I got him this cute fill in the blank "Love journal" so I can tell him cute stuff about all the reasons I love him. It's probably 50 pages but easy to come up cute stuff to write about. (not just generic prompts).

https://www.amazon.com/Without-You-What-Would-Fill/dp/1452157669

We are trying to save too so I was torn about actually spending money but it was under $10 and I know he'll love it.

So I had similar problems. Almost to the point where I threw up in his car. I could hold it until we got home but he searched and searched for something for me to vomit in and he emptied out a bag of his floss with the picks on the end and the mint from the bag actually soothes my stomach upset until I got home and he kept note of that.

Not but a couple days later he got me a Aromatherapy essential oil diffuser necklace so throughout the day, I can inhale the oil when I got sick, I can inhale the peppermint oil (that I put in my necklace) to help with my nausea. Worked very very well. I also am a Brazilian waxer, so my job doesn’t consist of very nice smells but he was so thoughtful for that and it really did help me through my first and second trimester 👍🏼 and it’s pretty 😊 hope she feels better! I’ll link the necklace


Aromatherapy Essential Oil Diffuser Necklace, Hypoallegenic Stainless Steel Locket with 23" Chain 7 Refill Pads https://www.amazon.com/dp/B01IM24ZR6/ref=cm_sw_r_cp_api_xbb9BbY1050DF

I would just buy some cheap tests from amazon and probably test every month or so. When I was on nexplanon (arm implant) I wouldn’t get periods at all either, so I would test every month or so.

I like pregmate brand, but any pink dye test will work the best. It’s better to dip these in urine, so you could get disposable cups. I got my positives on these ones the same day that I for positives with the most sensitive (and way more expensive) test called FRER. I think there’s like a 100 strips for $20 dollars.

To help with your decision, you should know that 30 really isn't a hard deadline (although everyone makes out that it is).

I'm 35 and 14 weeks pregnant. Whenever anyone mentions concerns about age and pregnancy, I always link to this article.

In particular:

> The widely cited statistic that one in three women ages 35 to 39 will not be pregnant after a year of trying, for instance, is based on an article published in 2004 in the journal Human Reproduction. Rarely mentioned is the source of the data: French birth records from 1670 to 1830.

That fact blew my mind!

I highly recommend reading The Impatient Woman's Guide to Getting Pregnant, as she looks at the various pregnancy stats (like fertility "dropping off a cliff after 30" etc) and goes back to the original research to find out what is real and what is scaremongering.

After 35, things can start to get more complicated, but 40 is the "now or never" time.