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As I am sitting down to type out this post, I am counting contractions. I am 40 weeks and 6 days pregnant - just waiting for the Little Lady to decide when she would like to meet us. While I've already shared my favorite products that helped me get through the first trimester, I better share what worked during the second trimester.
Click to tweet: Need some help surviving the 2nd trimester? Try out these products!I have to start out by saying that pregnancy is a wonderful thing but I understand that there are many struggles along the way for a lot of families. If this post is not for you, come back next week for a delicious recipe.
I never experienced any nausea during the first trimester which is normally when pregnant woman get nauseous. Instead, I felt extremely nauseous every morning once I hit the second trimester. My doctor had recommended that I take Unisom and B-6 together at night to help with the nausea in the morning. This totally did the trick for me.
2. Maternity Essential Tank - Liz Lange for Target ($12.99)
I LIVED in these tank tops starting with the second trimester all the way until this day. I have 2 in black, 2 in white, and 1 in grey and they are in constant rotation each and every day. They are extremely comfortable, long, and stretchy. I noticed with a lot of maternity clothing, especially ones with the elastic sides, they didn't fit well until my belly grew in size. Then my belly became too big and those elastic sided shirts were uncomfortable.
These tanks fit well when my belly was still little and stretched amazingly when my belly was the size of a dinosaur egg. I highly, highly recommend buying multiples of these tanks. Plus they will be perfect to wear after I have the baby.
3. Vitafusion™ Prenatal Multivitamin Gummies ($6.99), Nature Made Iron 65 mg Tablets ($5.99), and COLACE 100 mg Stool Softener Capsules ($8.99)
I continued my second trimester with the same gummy prenatal vitamin. And in case you weren't aware, iron cannot be gummified so I also took a seperate iron supplement tablet. On top of those two items, I added a stool softener because pregnancy does crazy things to your digestive system and iron tends to back you up. These are the three items I took each and every day.
I must warn you, my nausea that I experienced during the second trimester was mostly due to the addition of iron. I had no idea it was so rough on the stomach. Once I switched to taking my iron pill at night, I was no longer dealing with morning nausea.
4. Vaseline Intensive Care Lotion Advanced Repair Unscented ($3.48)
I still loved this stuff going into my second trimester. I love how it's unscented and didn't bother my nauseous stomach and it's very moisturizing. I thank this lotion for helping to prevent stretch marks, which I still don't have any. * I talked more about the science of stretch marks in my First Trimester Must Haves post.
5. Belly Band Combo ($19.95)
I used these extenders starting in the second trimester and wore them almost until the end of my pregnancy. They helped get a little extra wear out of my shorts and jeans rather than having to buy all new clothes. They are extremely comfortable and very forgiving. It wasn't until about 36 weeks that I had to cave and buy a pair of maternity jeans. Mostly because I was scared of stretching out my favorite non-maternity jeans, since I wore them practically every day. Well every day that I was required to leave the house. Otherwise I stayed in pajama pants or yoga pants.
6. Stadler Form JASMINE Aroma Diffuser ($49.95) and NOW Essential Oils: Tea Tree, Eucalyptus, Lavender ($15.95)
I suffered with quite a bit of pregnancy insomnia starting in the second trimester. I don't really know if the diffuser and essential oils helped at night, but it sure did smell good. I really enjoyed diffusing lavender at night because it is calming, but I liked to change it up every few days with either tea tree oil or eucalyptus. I highly recommend getting a diffuser and some good essential oils (you'll have to do your own research when it come to the quality of different brands).
7. Bella B Foaming Face Wash ($9.99)
I suffered severely with acne during my entire pregnancy. First I had it all over my chin and jawline, then it slightly cleared up (thanks to this face wash), and then it went to my chest and back. Most of it was the really painful hormonal acne with an occasional blackhead. I really believe that this face wash helped clear up my face during the second trimester. It's gentle and contains good, clean ingredients. But once I got to the third trimester, there was no helping my skin - my hormones were out of control.
Aversions: I still avoided chicken at all costs. I didn't want to cook it and I definitely didn't want to eat it.
Cravings: I never really had any specific cravings, just like the first trimester. However, I NEVER deprived myself from eating something. For example, I have always loved boxed mac and cheese. During this period of time, I never talked myself out of buying a box here or there to eat. Also, I really enjoyed pretzels with cheese dip (specifically this one). And eating cereal - no specific type.
I successfully survived the second trimester and learned a lot along the way. Keep your eyes out for my third trimester must haves as well as a baby announcement (hopefully soon!).
Click to tweet: Need some help surviving the 2nd trimester? Try out these products!
Have you tried any of these products?
