How to manage first trimester exhaustion (& free pregnancy yoga class)

First trimester exhaustion hits you like a brick, doesn’t it?  One minute you’re feeling on top of the world, excited about being pregnant and then BAM.  You can barely make it through dinner time without falling asleep and when you do wake up you’re disorientated and groggy.

Of course, every pregnant woman is different, but most will feel some level of fatigue during that first trimester – and not surprisingly.  Your body is literally growing an entire body from scratch during those first 14 weeks!

I still remember being pregnant for the first time and being blown away at the 12 week scan by the fact that it looked like I had a fully formed human in there.  Which technically I did.  All the main systems are mostly formed by the end of the first trimester and from then on it’s all about just growing bigger.

So while it’s no surprise that we experience first trimester exhaustion, how can we deal with it other than spending 12 weeks in bed (which obviously isn’t an option when you’ve got work to go to or older children who still need you.

How to manage first trimester exhaustion

Stay hydrated

Not drinking enough water only increases fatigue so try and do your best to have at least 2L water every day and not make your body work any harder than it already has to.

Try to eat well

Whilst you may also be suffering from morning sickness that makes you only able to stomach dry bread, where possible try and do your best to sneak in some good nutrition where you can.  Make your favourite smoothie and hide some spinach in it. Dip your toast into some bone broth soup.  Or if you’re really struggling to keep good food down, visit a naturopath or nutritionist for some supplements to get you through.  You body needs a whole lot of nutrients to grow this baby, so if you’re not able to get them in, you’ll be feeling even more run down during this first trimester.

Use your energetic time wisely

I’ve aways found that at some points during the day, like first up in the morning, I do still feel relatively normal.  Use this time to get the essentials done (maybe even food prepping for later) if you know that by dinner time you’re going to be falling asleep on your feet.

Take a nap

While I know this is not possible for everyone in every situation try and sneak in a 20 minute nap whenever you can.  If you’re still working full time or have kids who don’t nap, this might only be possible on the weekends but something is always better than nothing.

Keep moving

While the couch becomes overwhelmingly tempting during the first trimester, completely ditching all exercise can actually make you feel worse in the long run. Try to keep moving, even if that’s just a gentle walk or yoga class. I’ve got a really gentle yoga class for first trimester exhaustion below that you can practice right now or bookmark for later.

How did you manage first trimester exhaustion?