Are you feeling exhausted during your pregnancy and wondering what’s to blame? Here is everything you need to know about pregnancy fatigue and tips to help energize you.
Pregnancy is such a special time in your life – but it can also take a huge toll on you. The not so fun pregnancy symptoms can include pregnancy fatigue, headaches, mood swings, nausea and constipation.
In this post, we will be talking specifically about pregnancy fatigue – what it is, what to expect in each trimester and the best pregnancy exhaustion tips you can incorporate into each day.
This post is all about pregnancy fatigue.
What is Pregnancy Fatigue?
Feeling exhausted all the time isn’t necessarily proof that you’re pregnant. You will need to take a test to confirm that. But once you do confirm, you’re pregnant you might be wondering why you’re tired all the time…
Pregnancy exhaustion is completely normal and expected at certain points during pregnancy. It’s a big signal to slow down as your body deals with all the changes occurring.
First Trimester
Hormone changes are to blame in the first trimester of pregnancy. Specifically, progesterone increases sharply during the first trimester and contributes to your increased sleepiness.
Your blood volume will also be increasing to supply the developing placenta which as a result causes your heart to pump faster and breathing rates to increase.
On top of that, morning sickness and nausea can leave you feeling drained and lethargic during the first trimester too.
All of this is a recipe for you to feel like you could fall asleep at your desk at 10am…
The first trimester can be rough because of this – I’m not going to lie. You could get the best night sleep and still feel like you could sleep for hours more.
The first trimester can be mentally tough to get through between the pregnancy fatigue and nausea, but it gets better. Eventually, you will move into the second trimester of pregnancy and things should start to calm down…
Second Trimester
Once you enter the second trimester, most of your previous pregnancy symptoms should be things of the past.
Pregnancy fatigue should be replaced with a boost in energy. Try to take advantage of this if you can!
Some things you can focus on are:
- Going on a baby-moon
- Finishing your baby registry
- Getting rid of the clutter
- Starting to focus on the nursery
- Learning about baby sleep
- Going on a hospital tour
- Getting a prenatal massage
- Starting to think about maternity leave
- Making a birth plan
Third Trimester
The tiredness usually returns in the third trimester of pregnancy due to a variety of pregnancy symptoms including disrupted sleep, increased discomforts, potential stress of having a baby in a few weeks to months, and pushing yourself to get things done before the baby arrives.
It’s also no surprise that in the third trimester, your baby is growing fast and you’re carrying more weight than you were in the first trimester. Carrying around a bigger baby bump is reason enough to be exhausted.
The exhaustion will pass, especially if you incorporate rest into your days, but it can be a mental battle to get through the exhaustion at times.
Pregnancy Fatigue Remedies
Before we get into the specific tips, I think it’s imperative that I mention that taking care of yourself is so important at all times in life, but especially during pregnancy and your postpartum recovery. For this reason, it’s really good to learn about it as early on as possible so you can start taking action.
The truth is, you can’t pour from an empty cup. You must take care of yourself before you can take care of your baby. This can mean a lot of things to different women but it’s important for you to really listen to your body and what it needs.
It can be taking a nap, exercising, eating well, slowing down, hydrating or any one of the items listed below. As long as it leaves you feeling rested and energized, it’s the right thing for you.
Now let’s get into my top pregnancy exhaustion tips:
Get moving
If you were working out prior to pregnancy, your doctor will most likely be comfortable with you continuing, just with a few modifications as your belly expands.
But if you didn’t work out consistently before pregnancy, now is the time to incorporate some light exercise into your routine (with doctor approval of course). The easiest thing you can do is start walking.
A little exercise can energize you and might actually help you sleep better at night too.
This is my favorite pregnancy fitness plan.
Focus on good nutrition
This can be harder to do in the first trimester when nausea and food aversions are the strongest. But once you reach the second and third trimesters, it can be easier to incorporate more vegetables and proteins into your diet.
I find that nutrition is similar before pregnancy and during. Fueling it with healthy, nutrient dense options really helps you feel better as opposed to open ended carbs and unhealthy foods.
Don’t get me wrong, carbs are needed and necessary – but if you can consistently add more vegetables and more protein, you will without a doubt feel more energized and content.
Hydrate during the day
It is important to stay hydrated and to consume water during the day so you are getting up to use the bathroom throughout the night. Even though you might be tempted to drink coffee or other caffeinated drinks, water is always preferable. Plus, it is recommended that pregnant women drink 200mg of caffeine or less per day as much more than that isn’t good for your developing baby.
Read
This can be a really good way to slow down and relax. Even just fifteen minutes of reading before bed instead of watching tv can really help you wind down and prepare for a good night’s sleep.
I find this helpful even when I’m not pregnant because it really works! Try it out and see what you think.
Pamper yourself
This goes hand in hand with #1. You more than deserve this! You are growing a little human inside of you.
Pampering yourself can include taking a bath, getting your nails done or going for a prenatal massage. It can also be just washing your face before bed or using a face mask a few times a week.
It doesn’t need to be complicated – it’s just important that you take care of yourself so you feel rejuvenated and ready to take on the next day, week, month, etc.
Binge a new series
This is another great way to relax, especially if you’re too tired to read a book. Sometimes taking care of yourself means getting lost in a new series or movie and not doing a million things around the house.
Prioritize tasks
This is my favorite way to manage my stress even pre-pregnancy. To do lists can be your best friend but they can also be overwhelming when see a long list of things to do.
By prioritizing tasks, you get the most important things done first and if needed, the others can wait. You can also assign specific days or times to the various tasks (kind of like time blocking) to help you manage your priorities. This can also be helpful in de stressing during pregnancy.
Slow down
When you start to feel the pregnancy fatigue come on or you have just had a long day or week, it’s important to slow down and rest. You don’t have to accomplish everything today.
Sometimes slowing down can actually help you be more productive the next day. For that reason, slowing down is one of my favorite pregnancy exhaustion tips – even though you might not like it.
So the next time you’re feeling overwhelmed or the pregnancy fatigue is really getting to you, do your best to slow down and listen to your body.
Ask for help
This is another one of the incredibly important pregnancy fatigue remedies that will be helpful during your postpartum recovery again.
To put it plainly, you can’t do everything.
It takes a village to raise a child but that same village is also there to help you during pregnancy too. You might not be holding your baby in your arms yet, but you will be going through a lot during pregnancy.
Lean on your partner if they’re around to help with things around the house but also ask for help from friends and family too. I’m sure they would be more than willing to lend a hand and it can greatly help your pregnancy exhaustion.
This post was all about pregnancy fatigue.