Some women love being pregnant, but for the rest of us pregnancy can be challenging. The beginning of my pregnancy was a breeze, but the second and third trimesters have proven to be quite tough. All of these challenges will be worth it in the end, but they have made it difficult to enjoy this time. For this reason, I came up with a few simple ways to enjoy pregnancy even when you dislike it. These methods have helped me tremendously and I hope they will help you too!
Thank you Palmer's for sponsoring this post!
1. TAKE TIME FOR YOURSELF EVERY DAY
Every day after work, I spend a little bit of “me” time just to decompress and cuddle with our dog. Even when I have a lot going on, spending 30 or so minutes relaxing helps ease my mind and conquer the rest of the day!
2. CREATE YOUR OWN AT HOME SPA EXPERIENCE
Just like the first step, this one is super simple and doesn’t have to be a big production! Every night after I shower, my “spa moments” are spent applying Palmer’s Cocoa Butter Formula Massage Lotion for Stretch Marks all over my entire body. I absolutely love the smell and it totally relaxes me before bed. The fact that 98% of women saw improved skin elasticity* doesn’t hurt and gives me peace of mind as my belly grows!
Creating your own spa experience at home can be super simple, just make sure it’s something that makes you feel good. You deserve a little “treat yourself” moment every day when you’re pregnant- you are making a human after all! Some other spa ideas I like to do on the weekends are an at home microdermabrasion or just taking a nice relaxing bath.
Just recently, I also started applying Palmer's Cocoa Butter Formula Massage Cream For Stretch Marks in the morning before I get ready for work. Why not treat yourself twice in a day?! Next week I plan on continuing this ritual but also including the Palmer's Cocoa Butter Formula Tummy Butter For Stretch Marks in the evening because it's a concentrated formula and the calming scent helps me to relax in the final stretch of my pregnancy!
3. DON'T FEEL GUILTY TO TAKE A NAP
Don’t be afraid to nap. If this is your first pregnancy, take all of the naps you can! The way I look at it, we won’t have the luxury of taking a nap whenever we please for the next decade or more, so now is our chance! I felt so guilty about napping the first half of my pregnancy. I felt like I should’ve been getting more done around the house, keeping up with my blog, and a million other things. Now I take all of the guilt free naps I possibly can and get to those other things when I can! Give yourself a break, your body is working hard to make a beautiful little baby and the last thing you should be worried about is taking a little tiger snooze!
4. CONNECT WITH OTHER MOMS
No one can sympathize with you better than a fellow mom-to-be who is in the same position! Use social media to connect with other moms who have a similar due date so you can chat all things pregnancy- good or bad! I’ve reconnected with friends and even had so many sweet followers reach out to me on Instagram to talk pregnancy and it’s the best stress relief! They’re the only ones who know how you feel and let’s face it, husbands just don’t get a lot of what is happening to our bodies, nor do we want to tell them all of the sometimes gross details!
5. STAY POSITIVE
This is definitely the hardest thing for me, but necessary to have a happy and healthy pregnancy. Anytime I feel stressed out or down, I just remind myself of all of the benefits of pregnancy and that some people would even kill to be in my shoes, swollen feet, extreme weight gain, fatigue, and all! Using Palmer's products has helped me to stay positive about my body image because I've seen great results and so far do not have any stretch marks. Hooray! You should definitely try it if you are expecting!
Each one of these practices has helped me to really enjoy my pregnancy, especially now when I'm in the final stretch and more uncomfortable than ever. If you have any tips you'd like to add, I'd love to hear them in the comments! Thank y'all so much for stopping by today!
Xo,
Haley