Anna Fleet writes on ten things to expect in your first trimester of pregnancy

The first trimester of pregnancy is a roller coaster of physical, emotional, and hormonal changes that may make you feel like you have little control over your own body. However, this remarkable transformation is literally building a safe haven for your baby.

The changes you'll endure will happen quickly as your hormones and body begin providing the vital nourishment needed to grow a healthy baby.
However, that doesn't mean you won't be moody and uncomfortable at times (or most of the time for some unfortunate moms-to-be).

Here are ten common things to expect during your first trimester of pregnancy…

1. Food Aversion

An aversion to food that borders on repulsion when you walk by what was once your favorite Thai food restaurant is common and upsetting during the first trimester.  Early pregnancy is a time where you will be surprised by a whole collection of foods that literally make you sick to your stomach.

2. Morning Sickness

Nausea is typically an early warning sign that you are preggers, and it can rear its ugly head in the very first week of conception. Unfortunately, this can quickly turn into nausea and vomiting throughout the first trimester. Oftentimes, taking prenatal vitamins will help soothe morning sickness and pregnancy nausea.

3. Tender Breasts

Unusual sore and tender breasts—more severe than with menstruation—are also typical of the first trimester. Breasts may also become a bit swollen and enlarged.

4. Frequent Urination

During the first trimester, you will find that you get dehydrated quickly and need to drink more water to support the changes in your body. As the placenta develops and the uterus grows, you may experience increased pressure on the bladder that causes frequent urination and even incontinence.

5. Moodiness

Mood swings are a common sign of early pregnancy—especially due to the increased levels of hormones in your system that might make you cry one minute and lose your temper the next.  It's important to know that this is normal and to have increased patience from loved ones at this emotional time.

6. Cramps

Abdominal cramping is common during early pregnancy as your uterine muscles are preparing to support your fetus. However, if you experience continuous and painful cramping, you should visit a doctor as this may be a sign of a fallopian tube pregnancy.

7. Gas

As the uterus creates a safe haven for baby, you will feel increased pressure on your stomach and digestive system, resulting in uncomfortable indigestion, bloating, gas, and even constipation.

8. Fatigue

Even the most bubbly moms-to-be complain that their get-up-and-go— got up and went in the first trimester of pregnancy. You have to be patient with your body as the majority of energy is funneled into building the placenta, and providing hormonal support to the new life growing inside you.

9. Dizziness

With all of these new hormones flowing willy-nilly through your bloodstream, dizziness, lightheadedness, vertigo, and headaches are quite common in the first trimester. Just be sure to sit or lay down and rest if you're feeling woozy.

10. A Baby Bump

A wee bump will be the very first visual sign that you're pregnant during the first trimester. This is more due to your swelling uterus, which will cause your lower abdomen to distend, than it is your growing baby (the fetus is not quite big enough yet to show on the outside).