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15 Best Pregnancy Hacks for Every Trimester

15 Best Pregnancy Hacks for Every Trimester

Pants don't fit? Can't bend down? These tried-and-true life hacks will solve just about all your pregnancy woes.

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15 Best Pregnancy Hacks for Every Trimester.

There’s an inner struggle that comes along with pregnancy. Our bodies and needs change rapidly and so does the urge to buy every remedy and gadget that promises sweet relief.

Spare yourself the cost of temporary fixes with our favorite pregnancy life hacks. And once your baby is born, and you’ll be happy you don’t have a box full of pregnancy-specific gear gathering dust in your garage.

1. Cooking Oils for Itchy Skin

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If you run out of your beloved baby belly oil or decide to forgo it altogether, olive oil, grapeseed oil or coconut oil will do the trick. Raid your kitchen pantry and massage on whatever you have on hand post-shower to relieve itching from stretch marks.

2. Use Kinesio Tape for Back Pain

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Basic Kinesiology tape can serve the same function as a supportive belly band, but it’s cheaper. Have an athletic trainer, chiropractor or physical therapist tape you the first time. Wear it for up to 5 days, then re-tape as necessary.

3. Turn Your Tennis Shoes Into Slip-Ons

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There are a lot of benefits to wearing your workout shoes during your pregnancy (all hail the cushioned support!). Get more mileage out of them by using Xpand laces or uLace laces (with tons of colors to choose from) so you can still work out without bending over to tie your shoelaces.

And if you’re looking for an excuse to buy a new pair (or several), we love Kizik shoes for their innovative no-tie, no-bend-over slip-ons. You don’t even need to see your feet to pop these sneakers on.

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4. Unbutton Your Pants

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A burgeoning belly doesn’t have to stop you from wearing your pre-pregnancy pants. If your pants fasten with a button, you can use a basic elastic hair tie to give yourself a couple extra inches of stretch in the waistband. With your pants unbuttoned (don’t worry, they won’t fall down with this hack) loop the hair tie over the button, through the hole and back over the button, like in this tutorial.

5. Cut the Front Pockets Out of Your Jeans

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And once your bump gets too big for the expansion that hair ties offer, here’s another hack to keep your favorite denim going even longer. Use this easy sewing tutorial to rock those trusty blue jeans for the rest of your pregnancy (and into the fourth trimester).

6. Download an App to Know Which Meds are Safe for Pregnancy

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When you’re pregnant, you may have questions about which medications you can and can’t take. In order to have one easy spot to check what meds are safe for pregnancy, the MommyMeds app, developed by the Texas Tech University Health Sciences Center, cuts through all the conflicting results with a doctor-approved database. A one-year subscription costs $3.99.

7. Create an Everyday ‘Emergency’ Bag

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We know the focus is on packing your hospital bag, but there are plenty of necessities you’ll need before the big day, especially if you’re experiencing morning sickness during your first trimester or heartburn or indigestion later in your pregnancy.

Fill a toiletry kit with snacks, chewable antacids, ginger candies, lavender essential oil—anything you need to get you through a rough day—and keep it in your purse so you’re always prepared.

8. Extend the Life (and Band Size) of Your Bra

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There’s no need to buy all new or invest in pricey maternity bras right away. Buy a 3 pack of bra extenders for under $10 instead to take care of your expanding bustline.

9. Get Ahead on Scheduling

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Pregnancy brain happens. It’s easy to forget to schedule your glucose screening or 34 week appointment. Instead, book them all at once so you can plan accordingly with work and know exactly when the next few are scheduled. Even better, try to book your appointments all on the same day of the week at the same time.

10. Extend Your Reach with a Grabber Stick

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At some point in the third trimester, you’ll realize it’s impossible to bend over. Between the huge bump, the extra weight and the sore back, you’re probably tempted to leave whatever has fallen on the floor down there forever. But a grabber stick, with about three feet of reach, can help you pick up just about anything off the floor without needing to bend over (and it costs less than $15!).

11. Trick Yourself into Hydration

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You might get to a point where peeing frequently makes you want to stop drinking water altogether. Instead, stay hydrated without even knowing it by eating high-water-content foods like cucumbers and radishes.

12. Buy Baby’s Humidifier Early…and Use It

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Feeling more stuffed up than usual, or have a runny nose that seems to come out of nowhere? Pregnancy-caused rhinitis is a real thing, and while a humidifier is great to have on hand for baby’s first cold, it can also help you! You may already have one on your baby registry, but it’s a good idea to get a humidifier before baby is born so you can find some relief from your own runny nose.

13. Cool Off Your Downstairs

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Ice packs made from menstrual pads—also known as “padsicles”—are a common remedy for postpartum recovery, but if you’re suffering from hemorrhoids and/or vulvar varicosities (varicose veins in and around your vulva), making or buying a set of padsicles to use while you’re still pregnant can save you a lot of discomfort.

14. Fix Swollen Feet With Salt

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While eating more salt may cause you to retain more water and make swelling worse, giving your feet a good soak in epsom or sea salt works wonders to tame the bloat. Use a bucket or large bowl, add a few drops of grapefruit essential oil and voila! Your feet will feel good as new.

15. Midnight Snacks Always Within Reach

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We fully support you if there are nights when you need to eat in bed. Keep granola bars or other non-perishable snacks in your nightstand drawer. If you’re craving something that needs refrigeration, like a cheese sandwich, make it before you go to bed and have it ready in the fridge.

16. Bonus Hack: Register for Everything You Need for Baby from Any Store

Once you start building a mental list of things you’ll need for baby, you’ll quickly realize that what you really need can’t be found at one or two stores (or in any stores at all). A Babylist registry lets you add any item from any store to one list. You can add help and favors (like babysitting or dog walking), even cash funds (for baby’s education, or for diapers) too. Start your Babylist registry now.

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