Life of being a pregnant Asian

Hello all my beautiful ladies

So for some of you may know that YES! i am pregnant!
and i have been getting a lot of questions about pregnancy so i decided to write a post and answer some of your questions.

Firstly some back ground about me. I found out i was pregnant last year December and i am now 28 weeks and 6 days into my pregnancy. I am 1.7m tall and use to weigh 65KG now i weigh 72KG so i picked up 7KGs which is quite little.

This was me at gym when i was 4 month into pregnancy, can barely see that i am pregnant.

I always imagined i would be this huge whale when i get pregnant because of how much i loved food and i have big bone structure and i was never skinny even before i was pregnant.

But in my first 3 month of being pregnant i had the worst morning sickness, i was vomiting the whole time, could not eat anything meaty or oily so i practically lived on salad. I lost about 4KG within the first 3 month.

This was me at 5 month, finally can see some bump but still quite small compare to normal

Q AND As

1. Does it matter if you smoked or drank alcohol in the first month of pregnancy?

The answer is No, many ladies don't even know that they are pregnant within the first month unless you have been planning to get pregnant, for me i had no idea that i was pregnant, me and my husband went to Asia for the December holiday and we still went clubbing and drinking and i smoked. When i came back to SA and had my first check the gynecologist said it will not affect the baby in any way mentally or physically, if it did within the first 3 month you would miscarry as the baby wouldn't survive in the womb. But if you are an abusive drinker or smoker and you don't stop during the whole pregnancy there are chances of deformation or mental issues.

2. Is it ok to dye your hair or cut your hair (as Chinese culture it is apparently not allowed)

It is totally fine to dye or cut your hair also dying is not suggested as it does contain chemicals, I asked my gyne as i bleached and dyed my hair before i knew i was pregnant and she said it's ok as the dye does not stay on your scalp long enough to affect the baby i dyed my hair when i was 4 month pregnant also, i just didn't dye to the roots. So it is ok if you really need to do it but otherwise i would suggest to stay away from hair dye.

3. Can i eat this? Can i eat that?

In Chinese culture there are many things that is said pregnant ladies cannot eat such as: watermelon, mango, crabs, lamb, ice cream etc. due to so and so old sayings. Honestly girls eat what ever you want to eat, it is already bad enough that we suffer through morning sickness and then there is still all these rules, just eat what ever you feel like. Non of these food have scientific proof that links to miscarriages. If something had to happen to the baby it's mostly because of the genes not because you ate too much mangoes or whatever. But do stay away from sushi and raw steak so anything too raw as it can carry parasites and bugs. 

4. Is it true to have bad memory and become stupid when pregnant?

There is a saying in Chinese one pregnancy can cause 3 years of dumbness. I do feel like my memory has gone worse and i can't concentrate very well since i have been pregnant but i don't think it is caused directly from pregnant, it's because you have so much to think and do now and due to age it is normal to have bad memory and the lack of concentration is probably due to my lack of sleep as the bigger you get the harder it is to sleep at night, So there are no scientific proof that pregnancy affects IQ or memory.

5. What cream am i using to prevent stretch marks?

I am using bio oil and a cream called Happy event, i mix the 2 together and rub it on all over after i shower every night. I have not grown any stretch marks. Do not forget your bum and your waist as those areas are commonly forgotten but trust me these places can grow stretch marks too and it's too late to use any cream if you already started growing so use the cream as early as the 2nd month of pregnancy.

6. Can you still apply make up and facial products.

This is me now at 28 weeks and 6 days. Still quite small as my womb is at the back so the baby is closer to my back than sticking out in the tummy.

Absolutely YES i don't know why some people say you can't apply make up or facial products when you pregnant. Just make sure you are using good quality makeup and moisturize because since i have been pregnant my skin has become extremely dry. Do let your skin breath now and then and if your skin is growing a lot of pimples due to pregnancy then i would suggest for that period do not use make up as in my first 3 month my skin was terrible i had pimples all over because of hormones so i did not use any makeup during that time.

This is when i went for my sonograph, which is super clear scans where they can tell you that the baby has no deformation or down syndrome, this is done at 6 month.

If you do not want to become a whale during your pregnancy, eating healthy is very important remember now you are eating for 2 and exercise if you want to do natural birth. I still gym 3-4 days a week now attending Yoga, pilate, zumba, aqua classes that is one of the reason why i have not gained too much weight, if i wore loose clothes people wouldn't even say i am pregnant.

Try staying positive ad happy during your pregnancy as your moods can affect the baby. It is easier said than done i know because i have become super emotional, i cry so easily now days and i am constantly worrying about the baby and especially now i'm close to due and i am totally freaking out about giving birth. But do try staying happy and positive.

That's all for now, if there is anymore questions please don't hesitate ask away you can leave a comment or email me angie.chen1992@gmail.com, or on FB:  https://www.facebook.com/angie.chen.7965

P.S Everything i say are all in my own opinion. 

Thank you for reading ^^

Till next time my beauties xoxo