Pregnancy in 2020 has definitely proven to be an interesting ride. I found out I was expecting in March, just around the time that Covid restrictions began to be put in place. Without a doubt, this had great impacts on my experience with pregnancy, and encouraged me to read, research, and reach out to people around me, in the hopes that I would be better equipped for the journey.
I can honestly say that I have tried my hardest to find some amazing resources and products that made me feel more connected to my pregnancy and body, and made the experience empowering and enjoyable.
Today I wanted to share 10 amazing products and resources that got me through and enhanced my pregancy in the hopes it will help other women better enjoy theirs.
If you are pregnant and reading this, Congratulations! I am so happy for you and the amazing experience you are about to embark on. I hope you find this post helpful, and if you enjoy reading it I ask that you please share it with your family, friends, & mother’s groups.
Lots of Love – x Luciana
Australian Birth Stories
During my pregnancy, one of the most recommended products to me from women who had already gone through giving birth was to listen to the incredibly informative and wonderful podcast Australian Birth Stories by Sophie Walker.
This podcast helped me learn so much about birth, and most importantly about all types of births.
The weekly podcasts are a range of interviews with mothers as they tell their stories of childbirth in Australia. No subject is avoided, with all types of birthing, challenges and triumphs discussed.
Wether you want to learn about physiological births or cesarean births or relate to other women’s stories with issues similar to yours, these podcasts are honest, heartfelt and everyday stories of birth that will not only help you understand the birthing process better but also help connect to your own pregnancy and birthing process.
I can not recommend this podcast enough and you can listen to it here
Headspace Pregancy Meditations
Navigating pregancy during Covid-19 had it’s lonely moments at the beginning. Practicing daily meditations through Headspace really helped me connect with my self, my body, and my baby. It also helped me to take each day at a time, and focus on creating a positive space for both myself and baby.
The Headspace Pregnancy Pack is designed to be practiced over 30 days and uses a visualization to help achieve a strong connection with your baby. It’s also designed so you can repeat the process once you finish the 30 days, and can be accessed if you have a subscription to the Headspace app, which is so worthy, wether you are pregnant or not!
Physio Laura Pilates / The Pregancy Posse
I know I keep bringing up covid, but it really is something that interfered with my expectations of what a ‘normal’ pregnancy would be. I always imagined that I would be able to take part in antenatal yoga, pilates, barre and gym classes while pregnant, but covid made sure that was not possible.
Instead I went on the look out for online classes. I wanted to do Pilates in particular, as I enjoy the exercises the most, but also as it is so helpful for strengthening the pelvic floor (very important for pregnancy), and just staying limber and mobile in general.
I could find some online classes at some online studios but most had limited classes at specific times, and I really wanted a course that specialised in pregnancy Pilates in particular.
Someone suggested the Pregnancy Posse by Physio Laura to me and my only regret is that I didn’t find it sooner. I started doing the online videos towards the end of my second trimester and found it so helpful to ease aches and pains and also keep me active and agile.
All of the workouts are designed and demonstrated by Laura Callea who is a pelvic floor physiotherapist. The subscription offers weekly videos that are specifically designed for each week of your pregnancy as you go along, and they are gentle, enjoyable and easy to do with no equipment required (besides a yoga mat perhaps).
Growbright Pregancy Pillows*
Growbright maternity pillows were an absolute godsend, in my 2nd and 3rd trimesters of pregnancy. As my body grew to accomodate for our little peanut, it definitely got harder to sleep comfortably, but these pillows ensured that my posture was supported and made snoozing so much easier.
From 20 weeks of pregnancy onwards, it is recommended that pregnant women not sleep on their back, as putting too much weight on the major blood vessels can restrict blood flow to both the mother and the baby. The Growbright pillows helped keep me propped up and cushioned so that sleeping on my side was comfortable and easy.
The knee support pillow is the one I used the most. It is ergonomically designed to fit really comfortably between your knees and provides support that helps alleviate knee, back or hip pain. It helps keep your body/spine aligned, promoting healthy circulation and relaxation, relieving any pressure on the lower back.
The belly support pillow I started using towards the end of my pregancy. As my belly got bigger I needed more support to release that dragging feeling during the night, the pillow offered this by gently lifting my belly into a natural position. A bonus of the belly pillow is that it is made from repurposed memory foam capsules, which can be removed as your belly grows, to adjust the height and firmness of the pillow.
Growbright also offers a full-length body support pillow for those who prefer the longer size, and all three options can be purchased on the Growbright website.
Books
I am no book reviewer but below are 3 books which I found extremely helpful during pregnancy and I would gladly recommend to others who are expecting.
Expecting Better by Emily Oster **
This was one of the first books I read when I found out I was pregnant and boy am I glad I started with it. Recommended to me by a savvy friend of mine I knew I’d be in good hands. Emily Oster debunks myths about pregnancy to empower women while they’re expecting, and it is all done through meticulous research and fact finding.
Often pregnant women are told what to do or avoid without much explanation, but this book discussed everything from alcohol, food & caffeine, bed rest, induction, sleeping on your back, weight gain, & foetal testing, & gave me the facts and (research studies to back it up) that empowered me to make educated decisions throughout my pregnancy.
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The Calm Birth Method by Suzy Ashworth**
This book is for those who are are specifically looking to give calm birthing and hypno-birthing a go.
Suzy teaches techniques, like mindfulness, visualisations and breathing, to help you relax during labour, so that you can work with your body for an empowering, positive birth.
The book helped me to learn about natural birth and to build confidence and trust in my own body to perform the task at hand. It also helped me to connect with my body and baby throughout the pregnancy itself making it a much more pleasant experience overall.
(Disclaimer – I did also partake in other hypno birthing and calm birthing classes and courses that complimented this book, but overall I felt this was a great resource to start the journey itself and explained the processes, techniques and practice best.)
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Beyond The Birth Plan, Getting Real about Pain and Power by Rhea Dempsey
This book is not for the faint hearted, but I believe it is one of the most important things I have read in preparation for my baby’s birth, and was recommended to me by my Doula.
Rhea Dempsey is a childbirth educator, counsellor or and Doula from Melbourne Australia. She is an advocate for natural physiological birth, and in this book she dives deep into the exploration of psychological and emotional preparation for the difficult task of labour itself, and life beyond birth.
The book also asks readers to question our current birth system, and ensure that they are prepared to strongly advocate for themselves in a cookie cutter system that often leaves women behind.
An absolute must read if you are passionate about natural physiological birth. The book will ask you to reach in deep within yourself with hard questions and self reflection, but will ultimately leave you in a more educated, capable, and empowered state, ready to take birth head on!
Videos
These super cute cartoon videos by Today’s Parent were a weekly ritual for Grange and I each weekend as we learned what to expect from our growing baby (and for my growing body) week by week.
They’re so fun and well made with useful information to help you plan for the week ahead without overwhelming you with information.
However, if you want to fast track the info available they have also collated it into first trimester, second trimester & third trimester videos.
The Suite Set*
I was originally a little nervous of packing my bag, that I’d forget something, especially during Covid restrictions when Grange, cannot easily come and go from hospital as usual.
The Suite Set made my hospital bag packing so much easier and actually fun. Their packing set come with reusable labeled packing bags and detailed, colour co-ordinated instructions on how, what and why to pack certain items in your hospital bag. I must say the lists were super helpful and included everything from very practical items, like many maternity pads, to cute little extras, like baby’s first special toy.
You can also purchase a pack depending on your birth plan and they have sets for an overnight stay, a three day stay and a five night stay in hospital, and if you’re getting them for a gift for those who are expecting, there is a selection of add ons you can choose from to fit a number of budgets.
Lovingly created by Australian couple, Sally & Jonathan who have two boys of their own, purchasing from The Suite Set will also help a number of charities that support maternal and child health through their partnership with i-change.
Active Truth Activewear*
Finding comfortable clothes becomes so important during pregnancy, and finding good quality and comfortable active wear, even more so.
I tried and purchased a few different brands and styles of active wear and loungewear during my pregancy, and by far the best fitting and most comfy were a crop and legging set I was kindly sent by Active Truth to trial from their maternity range.
These guys make some seriously good active wear, and one of the things I love the most about the brand is their commitment to providing clothing for a diverse range of women, in all shapes and sizes. They are truly body inclusive and you can tell this is the case the moment you pop their clothing on. Functional, comfortable and also aesthetically pleasing, I know where I will be purchasing all my active wear from in the future.
Active Truth are also proud to support organisations that support women through partnerships with Share the Dignity, Body Image Movement, and a number of smaller female-led, or female-focused, charities.
You can find their maternity styles here.
Palmers Mother’s Range*
During my pregancy I was super lucky to receive a pack of the new Palmers reformulation Mother Care Range. The products target stretch mark prevention and reduction in particular but it’s the ritual of self care that I loved taking part in every day.
I have stretch marks. I had them before pregnancy, I don’t believe they’re anything to be embarrassed or ashamed of. I actually like mine (honest) and see them as a little badge of honour for growing life inside my body.
What I did find was that the Palmer’s Mother Care range helped to hydrate & soothe my skin. For the majority of my pregancy I didn’t see many new stretch marks at all, but like many women I did get a few new ones pop up in these last few weeks. This is normal. However ensuring I moisturised each day with the Palmer’s Mother Care range, meant that my skin was always supple, hydrated and never itchy or sore.
I particularly loved the Massage Oil and used this every morning after my shower. I did try other oils, but this one was the one that applied the best, and a huge bonus is that it was more affordable than some other brands. The formulation also includes Lecithin to soothe itch and calm skin, which was perfect as i got bigger and bigger.
I used the Massage Cream at night before bed. The thick and rich consistency felt luxurious and was the perfect way to bond with baby and belly each night. I also alternated this with the Tummy Butter which has by far the most exquisite smell EVER! The creamy butter was a little hard in the tub, but melted so well once it came to contact with my skin and was the most delicious indulgence before bed time.
The best thing about using these products was taking more time than ever to care for my skin, and myself during this special time, and the fact that the range is accessible and affordable means that you can too.
Doula – Lauren Wall
Expecting a baby during covid really threw a curveball into my experience in the beginning. The first few months were honestly a whirlwind of not knowing what was really going on. I felt quite lonely and insecure that I didn’t have the resources or support I really desired for my journey. Doctors & hospitals were not seeing patients face to face, Grange wasn’t able to accompany me to any actual appointments or scans, and any classes or face to face resources that would normally be offered were canceled. This really pushed me to try and become a little more resourceful and ask for help from the people around me, to better educate me, and support me through my pregnancy.
I decided to contact Lauren Wall, who not only became Grange’s and my Doula during this pregnancy, but has been a friend of ours for many years.
She is a mum of 3 herself, a lover of all things birth and has been trained by Rhea Dempsey (from my book recommendation above). She is incredibly passionate about supporting women and their partners in birth to have a wonderful, transformative experience where they feel safe, strong, powerful and calm.
What her support has done for both Grange and I in our journey, is truly special. She has guided us through what may have otherwise been some lonely steps through pregnancy and prepared us for our upcoming labour, with so much knowledge, love and support. With continuity of care being pretty much non existent in the current hospital climate, Lauren really gave me security, and a familiar face to discuss, challenges and triumphs with, which is so priceless in the lead up to our special day. I am sure I will have plenty more to say after our birth, but for now, I cannot stress enough how the friendly, familiar and supportive presence of a doula can have monumental positive effects on your pregnancy journey and labour.
To find out more about Lauren & her services you can head to her Facebook Page.
This post contains PR gifted product* & affilate links**
Main image outfit details: Linen PJ Set by Jade and May*