When you hear that someone is pregnant or has a child what advice can you give them? Maybe you let them know that certain things might be easier than others. I could go on for days about how doctors’ appointments are going to get pretty annoying and invasive on some accounts and how some people might just come up to you randomly and touch your belly without asking and make you feel violated but you don’t say anything because you don’t want to be rude. I have not experienced random strangers coming up to me and touching my stomach and asking me a million questions but some other women do. So I am here to enlighten soon to be moms on unexpected difficulties I have at least faced in my 5 months so far during pregnancy.

1. Family

Sometimes family can be a little overbearing and try to help and sometimes it feels like you don’t know what to do. Even the father’s family can try to step in and say what they think is best or not and you have no idea what to think. The relationship you have with the baby’s father will either help or hinder how both sides react. Make sure you are doing what you as the parent want and not what everyone else wants. Talk to the father and figure out what you both want for your child. If you don’t like something but you don’t want to “seem like you are being difficult” oh well, your job as a parent is not to please everyone else but do what is in the best interest of your child.

2. Self-Esteem

In my first 3 months, I went through 2 different size shirts, went from a medium size pants to now 2XL. I felt so “fat” and it put a dent in my self-image. I had just gotten to the point in my life when I was comfortable in my own skin to then it seemed like I was blowing up like a balloon. It is okay to feel overweight but you have a precious life growing inside of you. You are going to gain weight because your baby is growing and developing like he is supposed to. Just remember it’s going to be worth it.

3. All the “What-Ifs”

How much our mind can contemplate all the scenarios of different outcomes? What if I can’t handle the baby? The amount of concern and worry is endless. I remember going through some complications in the beginning stages of my pregnancy and ending up in the hospital a few times from these complications. All I could think about was the “what ifs”. I remember being incredibly terrified if I had lost my son what I would do and how I would handle the pain and heartbreak of losing this precious life I was carrying. It is completely normal to overthink and worry. Keep a positive outlook and attitude and it will be okay.

4. The Amount of Unconditional Love

Even before you realize the gender or see the baby on an ultrasound picture the amount of love you feel for your child is indescribable. A mother’s love has no end and has no specific word(s) to describe what motherly love is. When I found out I was pregnant as any young mom I was scared but I had this sense of love that is different than a husband/wife love. The intensity was incredible. Once I found out I was expecting a son my immediate reaction was tears of joy. I cried not because I wanted a boy but because I was so filled with love for my son and I had just found out that he was a he. A mother’s unconditional love is something no one can replace and no one can change.