I’m almost at the end of my second trimester, I am 27 weeks and just have one more week to go until the third.  One thing is certain; the second trimester has much better than the first and even more exciting. I did worry that the morning sickness would never go away, but I was really pleased and relieved when it finally did.

Some of the best things about the last three months have been getting a real baby bump. It sort of came out of nowhere and some days I wake up wondering whether it’s grown over night. I’ve also been feeling the baby move. At first it just felt like butterflies but now it feels like real kicking and punching. I’ve even seen my stomach move! It reminds me that I’m carrying a real life baby. My partner has also felt the baby kick which has been a lovely experience for him.

This trimester we also found out the gender of our baby. I thought I was having a girl and my partner thought we were having a boy and one of us had to be right. Drum roll…. we’re having a baby boy! This was great to know for us personally because we could choose a name and just knowing made it feel more real for us.

Of course there have still been difficulties and especially in more recent weeks as the baby has gotten bigger. As I’m growing, I’m getting more uncomfortable. I went to a concert this trimester and we had standing tickets. My feet swelled up a lot, it really hurt and safe to say it wasn’t much fun.

However, I’ve been trying to make the most of this time. I know how much things are going to change once we’ve had the baby. So as part of this I went with my partner on a work trip to Germany and we had some time together. It was really nice, despite walking around museums with swollen ankles! I’m also getting particularly tired again and it’s really hard to get comfortable in bed because I can’t lie on my front or back. I’ve got a really nice pregnancy pillow which helps.

Another symptom of the baby getting bigger is the indigestion and heartburn. Eating smaller meals more regularly can help but I must admit that indigestion medicines work absolute wonders.

Next up in my third trimester I’ll be celebrating Christmas alcohol free, moving house, finishing work, finalising my birthing plans and preparing for the baby. Phew! I have booked myself a few classes and I really hope I make some mummy friends along the way too because I know how important support will be.

I often wonder what I’ve let myself in for and I am completely terrified. But I also know the journey will be absolutely worth it and I absolutely can’t wait to meet my baby boy!

First trimester – Steph Stephenson from Leeds

I want to share my pregnancy journey with other women in Leeds, and when I came across the Leeds Maternity Voices Partnership website I thought this would be the perfect way to do this. Also, sometimes you may worry that something isn’t normal, so it’s great to hear that other people have been through the same.

I am nearing the end of my first trimester. I’ve had morning sickness from the moment that I did my pregnancy test and I had my head over the loo! I’m sure no one ever told me the sickness would be so bad.  I went to see my GP first when I was sick, she prescribed me some anti sickness (anti histamine) tablets which took the edge off. Even though they made me really drowsy in the mornings it meant being able to go into work. I’ve also been managing my sickness through getting plenty of rest and eating lots of food as being hungry can make it worse. I know some women can have it much worse than me and some not at all, but either way it’s really not nice!

I met my midwife at my local GP practice for the first time at eight weeks and she was really friendly. I was given a maternity folder and she went through mine and my partner’s health history. She was also really reassuring that my morning sickness tablets wouldn’t harm my baby, which I was worried about. Finally, she took some blood and explained some of the tests that I could either choose to do or not like testing for Down’s Syndrome. She referred me to the hospital for my 12 week scan.

At 11 weeks I had something unexpected come up but I rang up the early pregnancy unit at St James’ Hospital and they booked an earlier scan in for me. I was so relieved a few days later to find out everything was okay and that I had a viable pregnancy. I felt a bit stupid for worrying and wasting their time but the nurses were really understanding. It was a real amazing experience to see the baby moving around and with a heartbeat. Both my husband and I felt very emotional!

There’s been so many other changes this trimester that it’s almost hard to go into it all – from feeling out of breath and being extremely tired, breast changes, putting on lots of weight (already), feeling very emotional, needing to pee all the time (how embarrassing), and wanting eat all the chocolate in the world.

There’s a lot to plan and prepare for and I’m starting to think about all the things the baby will need, and all the options I have around my birth plan (thinking about how much it’s going to hurt!). I’m also thinking about how much things will change once the baby is born and I won’t have time for anymore once the baby is born too.