Expecting a little one brings both immense excitement as well as anxiety and indecisiveness with all the decisions you’ll be making. There are so many questions that can run through your mind as a new mother finding out you’re pregnant. First you get all the strong wonderful waves of happiness, joy, and excitement, but throughout your pregnancy you can begin to worry or wonder about all the necessities and obstacles that come along with welcoming a baby into your now growing family. First off, I just want to congratulate you on this beautiful and blessed moment in your life, and secondly, I want you to know that these worries and anxieties are completely normal for any woman expecting a child. Before you begin to be overwhelmed by the worries and concerns, take a nice long moment to take in this exciting journey about to be taken and spend some time thinking about or talking to your new growing little one.
Before I became pregnant, I researched like crazy, looking into books, podcasts, and motherhood groups on various apps. If you don’t have it already, I definitely recommend downloading the BabyCenter app on your apple store or play store or you can check out their website https://www.babycenter.com/ . This app not only helped me to know when my period would start but also helped track my pregnancy and log my symptoms. They have a lot of other neat features such as pregnancy videos, resources, and recommendations. The podcasts helped me 100% feel more comfortable and prepared for the labor and delivery journey, as well as calming my fears about possible complications. A few of the podcasts I listened to were: “The Birth Hour” – A Birth Story Podcast and “Evidence Based Birth”. I am currently listening to a podcast called “Faithful Labor with Audrey Stinson” in which she focuses more on leaning on God through the pregnancy and birth process, and how we should include Him in this journey and making decisions regarding this (plus her voice in incredibly calming if you are nervous at all). The stories from fellow women who have gone through this journey and delivered their babies helped me so much in feeling more comfortable with not just the labor but also the whole process of pregnancy, delivery and even a little of the postpartum. All of these podcasts I listened to on Spotify, but they might be on other places; I know a lot of them are on apple. Some of the books that I read to help prepare were: “Mindful Pregnancy” by Tracy Donegan and “Guide to Childbirth” by Ina May. I also heard from the podcasts and a few friends that “Gentle Birth Gentle Mothering” by Sarah Buckley is a good one as well. I didn’t finish either of those books, but I read enough of them to get the jest of what to expect as well as ways to help cope with some symptoms or labor positions.
Now, moving on to the actual pregnancy part, it is okay to have worries and be concerned about your child’s wellbeing. Some women just get the pure joy of pregnancy, but for those who know of women or have been one themselves who have had a miscarriage, the pregnancy journey can look joyful but filled with many worries. As a Christian we are called to lean on God and have trust in Him. I feel like this is easier said than done. Before we delivered our first child we had 2 miscarriages.
*Trigger WARNING for sensitive women. However, if you have gone through this and want to know you aren’t alone, continue to read this next paragraph*
During the first pregnancy I got that pure joy without worry, but around week 8 or 9 I stopped having symptoms and stopped feeling the tightness in my uterus that I usually feel while pregnant. I went in for my 10 week ultrasound and they couldn’t find the heartbeat; our baby also looked curled up and still. Mind you I should have gotten a second opinion because I still feel like “What if I killed my baby?” to this day. With the sense of doom I had leading up to that day, plus the doctor not finding the heartbeat, I accepted it and just began the grief process. He mentioned getting a D&C or pill to start the miscarriage since my body hadn’t done it yet on its own and since I have been known to be a heavy bleeder, my distraught self just said yes to the D&C (this was December 28th and I did not want to start my year losing my child…so I had it done on December 30th). I say I question if I maybe “killed my child” because even though they said there was no heartbeat and I felt like they were right, a HUGE part of me still doubts and wishes I would have gotten another ultrasound from a different doctor on a different day just to double check. If you do have a missed miscarriage, I 100% recommend NOT getting a D&C for another reason. Our first doctor when doing a check-up after the D&C (the same one who did my ultrasound saying our child had no heartbeat) said we didn’t have to wait 3 months or so to get pregnant again without complications, and I wish I would have trusted my gut (or most likely the Holy Spirit) telling me to still wait. We fell pregnant with our second pregnancy that first month after the D&C. Our baby boy was so strong and fought so hard. How do I know this? Around 6 weeks I began to bleed, so I went into my OB and they said he was fine and recorded his heartbeat, but around week 8 it happened again. I was put on bedrest, but the bleeding just got worse and worse with 2 hospital visits. We did our 12 week appointment and he seemed to be moving on the screen a lot…the lady said, “Look they’re saying hi.” Now I believe it was a bit more ominous, as if he was fighting for his life, because that night around 11pm I got really bad cramping (labor/miscarriage cramping). I passed huge clots way bigger than our baby was. My husband rushed me to the hospital and when I pulled up the lady straight out said, “It sounds like she’s having a miscarriage. I’m really sorry.” I was admitted and during the ultrasound I got another bad cramp. She had me use the bathroom because I told her I felt like I had to use the restroom before she did the intrauterine ultrasound wand…that should have been a huge indicator. I passed our baby in the bathroom, and I just in shock told my husband to get the technician as I was holding the sac in my hand on the toilet. She had a tray to lay him in while she did the intrauterine ultrasound where she confirmed the baby was no longer on screen. They let us see our child when they got me back in bed, part of me needed to but the other part of me is traumatized by it, but I know in my heart I would have felt so much regret not seeing our child. This is why I say that I wish I would have never gotten the D&C or even waited after. I had what they called Subchorionic Hematomas, caused by blood building up inside the uterus. The hospital said it sometimes just happens when the baby’s placenta tries to attach to the uterus (I later asked my OB/GYN and she told me the same thing, that it can sometimes happen when the sac tries to attach to your uterine lining), but I feel like it was because of the D&C and it not healing soon enough afterwards. In a way I feel this was my fault, but I know now whatever the reason or cause, I did everything I could have possibly done and it happened anyways. For those of you who have had miscarriages and did everything you possibly could right, please do not blame yourself in any way. I did this and still kind of do, but I have also come to realize that if I had not had these miscarriages I would have never had our amazing daughter that we gave birth to in 2023. She is an absolute miracle and huge blessing beyond compare. Do not lose faith, don’t lose hope, and please just take your Father’s hand and don’t go through it alone. I had an extremely rough time with our second miscarriage, so bad that I started doubting my purpose and importance of my life. Satan was definitely using this time to try to get me, but I leaned on the Lord and put my life in His hands, and I am so glad I did because He brought me out of that absolute darkness I had put myself in and pulled me back out into the light. He gave me renewed hope and the strength to carry on. Our children we lost will never lose a place in my heart and my mind, and even years later I still grieve them. It is okay to grieve your children that you never got to hold. Their lives meant something and will always be a part of you and what made you a mother. Hold onto that joy and hope that one day you might see and hold your children when you go to see the Lord.
**For all readers you may continue to read. The heart ache portion is done**
The joys of pregnancy! There are lots of things that could possibly go wrong, yes, but if you lean on the Lord and give your fears over to Him, He will get you through it and allow you to enjoy the beautiful things going on with you and your growing little one. Some verses that have always helped me through hard times as well as during pregnancy is Philippians 4:6&7 “Be anxious for nothing, but in everything by prayer and supplication, with thanksgiving, let your requests be made known to God’ and the peace of God, which surpasses all understanding, will guard your hearts and minds through Christ Jesus.” Another verse is Proverbs 3:5-7 “Trust in the Lord with all your heart, and do not lean on your own understanding. In all your ways acknowledge Him, and He will make straight your paths. Be not wise in your own eyes, fear the Lord, and turn away from evil.” And the last one that helped me through is Psalms 46:1&2 “God is our refuge and strength, always ready to help in times of trouble. So we will not fear when earthquakes come and the mountains crumble into the sea.” Connecting with your child is a huge part of this time in your lives, so enjoy the milestones, the growing each week of your little one, and eventually the first movements you feel. Don’t get upset if your bump doesn’t show up as soon as others’ bumps. Mine showed up around 10 weeks but it was very subtle; the bloat you get around 7 weeks started going away and relocated to my lower pelvis where the bump began. When I first got to the movement point of pregnancy, I was at the end of week 16 beginning of 17 weeks pregnant, and the “flutter” that people describe felt more like bubbling (like when you blow bubbles into a drink. That’s just the best way I can describe it). This part as well as the bump were my two favorite parts, because I could visually/physically see our child growing and thriving, but also feeling your child stretching and moving their newly formed limbs was just way too precious. Some women during pregnancy get cravings, but I never really got hard core cravings, so don’t be scared if you don’t get those. If you have morning sickness, I definitely recommend keeping Ginger Ale, crackers and maybe ginger chews or mint flavored gum. It doesn’t completely take the morning sickness away, but it does help alleviate the yucky feeling of feeling close to throwing up. I also bought some morning sickness products from Pink Stork that helped quite a bit as well: “Morning Sickness Sweets – Ginger Mango” which I would keep in my purse and pop whenever I felt the sickness begin, and it would help so much (they also have other flavors, but this is the one I had). I also had some tea of theirs at home for whenever I would get that sickness at night “Morning Sickness Tea – Ginger Peach”. I also bought some of their other tea for labor prep, but I will get into that later. If you don’t like tea I definitely recommend the Sweets because they did help a lot. The morning sickness wasn’t fun, but it could have been much worse. One of the other things that I really loved, that I think all expecting mothers do, was baby shopping. As far as shopping for a baby goes I will have to make a separate article for that.
Once you get into your second trimester, most of the worries go away, but not all. By this time you can find out your baby’s gender, your bump is continually growing (I kept a “bump log”), and for some women the morning sickness goes away (I’m sorry if you have your morning sickness for the entire pregnancy). The second trimester, in my opinion, is the best. You get the excitement, you still have energy, not as many aches and pains, and heartburn hasn’t begun. Towards the end of the second trimester, you almost get a burst of excitement and energy that turns into the “nesting” phase. Whether you are preparing a room or space in your bedroom where your little one is going to be spending their first 6 months or so, going through all your baby shower gifts(if you had one), going through hand me downs (or basically just all of your baby necessities), putting together strollers or furniture; this moment or bit of time you spend doing this is so wonderful. During the second trimester is also when I took some of the birth prep classes. I did not go to any physical classes, which I am kind of bummed that I didn’t do (maybe for baby #2), but I took maybe about 3 or 4 different classes. The main classes to focus on are (1) Safety, in which they cover baby/child CPR, Heimlich, choking safety, severity of sicknesses baby might get varying from head trauma, colds, cuts, fevers, etc. (2) What to expect & How to care for baby (if it’s your first) which included how to wash baby when they still have their umbilical cord piece (stump) still attached, which falls off within 1-3 weeks; how to change a diaper for both a boy or girl, how to swaddle baby, burp baby, safe sleep guidelines (which is different in different countries or even doctors), choking safety, baby poop color I believe, and a few other things. (3) Breastfeeding course, which most hospitals have if you want to attend before baby’s arrival. In my personal opinion, I preferred “The Thompson Method”, it was $120 or something when I bought it for the one time payment option, but I believe they have sales here and there (I just looked it up now 10/7/2025 and they currently have it at $82.50 for the one time purchase option). This is in my opinion 100% worth every penny; it may not seem like it right now, but when issues start happening regarding either your baby not latching or tongue ties or what not, you WILL want to talk to someone or have information readily available at any time of day/night. In purchasing the breastfeeding program, you will be able to access it on your phone or computer whenever you need it. This was my saving grace when I was up at 3am crying because our daughter was having issues with latching and drinking. I didn’t like how forced the hospitals were trying to tell me how to feed and it just made it worse. The Thompson Method made most sense because it felt more natural and wasn’t forcing the baby to your breast (like the doctors seemed to have me do) it is allowing the baby to come to you and by you moving towards your baby rather than forcing them. Babies can sense tension and stress, but also your milk doesn’t flow that well when you are under stress (go figure). Lastly (4) Birth-prep which included breathing as well as labor positions and birthing positions. This helped me so much in laboring at home before we made our way to the hospital. This class helped keep my mind focused off the pain as well as relieved some pain and stress where I was feeling it during labor. You can also look up videos on YouTube or Google of peaceful/calm births. I watched many births of both Christians and non-Christians who had peaceful looking labors and births, this helped me greatly in feeling calm and at peace when it came to when I went into labor.
Now comes the 3rd trimester. This is the most exciting yet longest trimester…EVER. By this time I just wanted to hold and see my baby, plus I was feeling pains in my back and feet and had the worst heartburn. I spent almost my whole trimester propped up in bed almost sitting and had to pop tums before bed just to get to sleep without feeling like I was going to throw up. Now don’t get me wrong, this is an enjoyable trimester, but like I said it can come with its cons. I was eager to have our child probably due to my past miscarriages because I just wanted to have her out where I could protect her and not worry about my body doing harm to her. Other women might think this is the fastest trimester if they feel like there is still way too much to do before the baby comes. Whichever one you end up being, just know that your baby is almost here, and your life will be forever changed in the best way. If you are someone who enjoys writing or journaling, pregnancy is the perfect time to do so. Write little love letters to your baby telling them how you feel or what they have to look forward to once they arrive. Spend time with God, sharing your thoughts, fears and excitement about soon welcoming your child into the outside world. God is your rock, and He will be with you every step of the way. When things might get tough, lean not on your own understanding, lean on your Father in heaven. He will be your protector, your comfort, your peace in the chaos that this world as well as motherhood brings. And never forget, you’ve got this mamma. You are strong, you are beautiful, you were created for this, and you are NOT alone.
May God bless you, and congratulations!
The Honeyed Path 
Leave a comment