Friday, July 26, 2013

Pregnancy Hair & Skin Advice


I’m 29 weeks today!  Part of me is screaming “YAY” and the other part of me is screaming “Oh s$*&, I’m not ready yet!”  But as I enter the last phase of my pregnancy, I have been reflecting on the journey not only my body has been through, but the journey my hair and skin have both experienced.  I thought that I would share some advice for others who are pregnant or thinking about getting pregnant because I found that a lot of what I was reading in books and on the Internet, caused me more stress than help.  As always I am going to keep it real, which may result in some TMI moments.

Your skin may freak out.  If you are prone to breakouts when you are on your period, your face will probably go ape s&*% crazy when you get pregnant.
  • Take it from me, facials do nothing so don’t waste your money.  My face was HORRIBLE so I immediately ran to my esthetician.  After 3 times of spending at least $100 per session, my face still looked a hot mess.  The breakouts are caused by the hormones running through your body.  So your face may look good for a day or two, but eventually you will look a mess again.
  • Talk to your doctor about what products are safe.  Do NOT rely on the Internet.  A lot of the stuff I banned from my bathroom for months due to all of the Mommy boards scaring the crap out of me, turned out to be perfectly safe in my doctor’s opinion.
  • Drink a lot of water.  I’ve always drank a lot of water, but at one point during my first trimester, my skin was super dry, so stay hydrated!
  • Keep your hands out of your face.
  • Wash your face twice a day.  You can't do much about your hormones, but you can keep your face dirt and oil free as much as possible.
  • Do not wear a ton of make-up.  I never wore a lot of makeup before all hell broke loose on my face.  But after waking up several times, looking at myself in the mirror, and crying, I felt like the only thing I could do was to cover it up with make-up.  Not only did this probably make matters worse, but I brought more attention upon myself because of my sudden use of make-up.  If you can’t imagine leaving the house with a bare face, at least keep things light and just use powder or a light tinted moisturizer.
  • Do not beat yourself up.  Your body is doing amazing things to grow your beautiful baby.  In the grand scheme of things, your breakouts are truly a blip on the radar and are temporary.  By the middle of the second trimester, my skin went back to normal for the most part.
Your hair will grow like crazy but you probably won't feel like doing it.  Non pregnant people still ask me, “Why do you have a weave? Your hair has grown so much!”  I tell them until they have been pregnant and understand how incredibly tired I am, especially during the 1st trimester, do not say this to me.  The last thing I feel like doing is my hair and I don’t want the health of my hair to suffer.  Wearing a weave has been a lifesaver.  Granted I still need to take great care of my hair, but it doesn't take me nearly as long to do my hair on a weekly and daily basis.  Pick a protective hair style that will be easy for you maintain and make you feel great.

Your hair will grow like crazy...everywhere.  You will become besties with your waxer but eventually you will probably not care anymore because you won’t be able to see anything below your hips.  The moment when I discovered I could no longer comfortably bend down to shave my legs, was quite humbling and amusing.  My advice - wear pants or maxi dresses and keep it moving.

I can laugh now because I am not longer in the moment or just don’t care anymore.  But I am willing to endure anything for my baby girl!  Would love to hear any skin and hair tips from pregnant lovelies or moms!