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5 Third Trimester Essentials That Are Saving My Life

5 Third Trimester Essentials That Are Saving My Life
Carly Jacobs

I’m well into third trimester now and although I’ve been feeling great, a few little difficult things have cropped up. I’ve started getting hip pain in the mornings, it clears up pretty quickly once I wake up and start moving around but lugging a bowling ball that’s attached to your stomach every time you turn over in the night is bound to mess with your muscles and bones right?

My energy levels are still great but I definitely need more sleep than usual. I used to function quite well on 6.5 to 7 hours a night but I need a solid 8 to 9 these days. Which is fine. I just go to bed earlier. And blissfully, I haven’t had any sleep troubles. I wake up every few hours to turn over (which is way harder than it sounds) but I’m back to sleep immediately. I’m so lucky, pregnancy-induced insomnia sounds like hell I’m thrilled it hasn’t happened to me. I’ve been getting restless legs and some leg cramping but both have been quite mild so far. Let’s hope it stays that way!

third trimester

I wrote about pregnancy essentials earlier in the year so I thought I’d add a third-trimester update for those are interested…

Oven Fries 

I don’t usually eat a lot of starchy veg but I had a bout of food poisoning from hell this week (everything is totally fine and I don’t think bub even noticed!) and wasn’t able to eat anything but oven fries for a few days. I couldn’t even face my usual yogurt and berries which has been 80% of my food source throughout this pregnancy. I also recovered extremely slowly, it was the worst food poisoning I’ve ever had. I’ve heard that’s pretty typical in pregnancy though, it can make gastro, colds and flu much worse than if you’re not pregnant. Fun times right? I also can’t figure out what it was. I ate literally nothing unusual in the days leading up to it. So bizarre. The worst part was the stress. Vomiting for 6 hours straight and wondering if it’s just food poisoning (mostly harmless to my girl) or something much, much worse. That’s been the hardest part of being pregnant for me, when things happen to my body that are out of my control and might harm my baby and I can’t do anything about it. I know it will only be worse once she’s born and I have even less control over keeping her safe but at least my blood pressure/gastro/the food I eat won’t directly affect her like it does now.

Mineral water 

Melbourne has decided skip spring and make summer be a thing so I’ve been having a lot of iced mineral water. One of my mates is pregnant at the same time as me so every time we go over to each other’s house for dinner, it’s ALL about the mineral water and lime. Won’t lie, pretty keen to smash an ice cold beer or a lovely crisp rosé once bub comes out. Mineral water, lovely as it is, gets boring after 9 months straight.

Bamboo body ruched tank 

I bought this a few months ago on a recommendation from my mate @miss.goodytwoshoes on Instagram. I’m straight up in love. So comfy, super soft, made from bamboo and it comes in a whole bunch of different colours. I have only bought one so far and I’ve heard of lots of women who were able to breastfeed in these dresses so I’m going to wait to see I can breastfeed comfortably in it and if I can, I’ll definitely be getting more.

third trimester

Wearing 

Bamboo Body dress

Wrap cardigan from Zhaiseen here in 2014, again in 2014, my black version in the second trimester this year. These cardigans have were an excellent purchase. Highly recommend.

Clogs from Funkis – I only bought these this year but I’ve worn them nearly every day. So comfy, can’t recommend them highly enough.

Friends and family who have babies

Most of my friends and family have had babies in the last few years so we picked the best time to start our family. I have piles of gorgeous baby clothes from friends, a fancy pants breast pump from my cousin, baby carriers, bottle warmers, feeding pillows. It’s awesome, we won’t have to buy anything which is great because you use baby stuff for a few months and then it’s useless. Much better for the environment (and our wallets!) to use all the stuff our friends and families don’t need anymore. A lot of my friends and family are in between having babies too so I’m taking their stuff for a year and then giving it back to them when they have their next bubs. Lovely little economic circle.

Yogurt  

Weirdly I’ve not been hungry at all during my pregnancy and my appetite has faded even more in third trimester. I think she’s sitting on my stomach, giving me a temporary gastro banding style situation. I haven’t had cravings or aversions as such but I’ve been very into yogurt and berries and it’s pretty much been my main source of food. I had to give it up for a few days around my food poisoning incident (is there anything worse than yogurt when you’re feeling nauseous?) but if yogurt didn’t exist I would have been screwed. I’ve been buying massive tubs of Jalna and just ploughing through them.

third trimester

This outfit was worn for a massive day of catching up on work. Food poisoning is a bitch and can really set you back in the productivity department. Lots of writing, filming and designing for Crochet Coach and doing all sorts of boring grown-up things like tax and doing some bits pieces for the arrival of our girl. That’s another thing I didn’t anticipate – all the paperwork it takes to have a baby! And the research… I swear we spent 2 months researching prams alone.

Do you have any third-trimester essentials? Anything that saw you through the last few months of your pregnancy that I should know about?

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11 Comments

  1. Hailey 5 years ago

    For the 4th trimester (!) I swore by Rite Aid Hydrogel Breast Discs for sore nipples. You can pop them in the fridge, then stick them in your bra and they provide amazing relief in early breast feeding days. My mum used cabbage leaves – which is apparently traditional – but you can end up with a very strange smell and shape! Highly recommend
    the Rite Aid version instead!
    I mention it now to give you time to buy a pkt and stick them in the fridge so they’re ready to go! 😉

    • Author
      Carly Jacobs 5 years ago

      Actually one of my best mates gave me some of them as a baby shower present! So thoughtful! It’s ace being the last of my mates to have babies because I’ve been so much cool stuff!

      • Steph 5 years ago

        See how you go with these, they stung like a bitch for me and a bestie reported the same xx

  2. Caroline 5 years ago

    Hi There, On the sore boobie thing. While in hospital, the nurses would bring a ‘frozen nappy’ in. Basically they would soak the nappy in water, and pop it in the freezer, ready for any uncomfy boob moments. The joy of this was a) cheap option with no smell (b’bye cabbage leaves) and b) they are perfectly shaped for engorged boobies. I loved them at home when needed.

    • Author
      Carly Jacobs 5 years ago

      I have heard that! Will keep that in mind for breast feeding!

  3. Ruth 5 years ago

    Lansinoh HPA Lanolin cream for nipples is a god send and the only thing that didn’t break me out in a rash. You can also get lovely fleecy cotton washable breast shields for when your milk comes in so you don’t leak through your clothes. I sewed my own big muslin squares which I found so useful for wrapping baby, after the bath inside a soft towel as they are so fine they get in all the little creases that a thicker towel can’t, spit up rags over your shoulder, tucked across the front of the pram as a sunshade, draped across you and baby when you need to breastfeed in public for a bit of privacy, immensely useful. Good luck, it’s such a special time!

    • Author
      Carly Jacobs 5 years ago

      Actually an auntie of mine gave me a box of plain muslin wraps so that will be very useful!

      • Steph 5 years ago

        I loved the moogoo nipple cream, amazing on lips too xx

  4. Jennifer 5 years ago

    I’m pretty sure both my children were raised on hot chips. Certainly not healthy – but when you have severe morning sickness all day, all pregnancy you just can’t stomach anything else. Also, its like the one thing that seems ‘safe’ to eat when you are out.

    You look absolutely brilliant, pregnancy suits you!I second (third) the lanolin cream – nothing can beat it. Another big suggestion from me is don’t skimp on the materinity bras – you’ll pay for it later and maternity singlets are awesome.
    As for the strollers, we bought a mid-range stroller and decided to put the money towards freezing the stemcells from our son’s placenta. In saying this, I’m so glad I didn’t spend big on a stroller – he hated it from birth. When he was about 6 months I bought a Maclaren umbrella stroller and he absolutely loved it, compact, easy to steer and so light.(was a game changer for this tired mum let me tell you). So, what I’m trying to say is you could buy the best – but if bubba doesn’t like it, then it’s not really the best fit. Maybe try second hand and then buy new if it is a winner?

    Loving your updates and your pregnant belly that’s finally showing itself

    • Author
      Carly Jacobs 5 years ago

      I only ate them for a few days but thank god for them because I was REALLY unwell. If you are what you eat, my daughter is yogurt and berries.

      And thank you that’s lovely – I’ve had a very easy time of it compared to most women and I’m so grateful!

      We already bought a second hand stroller! It’s a good one but we’re not interested in spending a lot of money on things we might not use.

      What’s this freezing stemcells thing? What’s that for? Sounds interesting!

      • Jennifer 5 years ago

        Sorry for the late reply. Maybe paranoid parenting, maybe insurance? We chose to freeze our sons cord blood privately, for an emergency for any family member that is a match. This can be used to treat illnesses, cancers and even spinal and brain injuries.
        In fact, it’s now being used to cure type 1 diabetes, MS and cerebral palsy (it’s not sci-fi anymore). I can’t remember how much it cost at the time, it was a one time payment for collection at birth, testing and storage for 18 years.
        Don’t let me scare you into thinking it what you need. Chances are that no one in our family will ever need to use it.

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