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My Jeans don’t fit! and other clothing dilemmas during pregnancy

My jeans don’t fit! It doesn’t take very long for your pregnancy to make your waist band too snug for comfort.  Part of that is because you are also dealing with morning sickness and some hormonal bloating which are both normal in early pregnancy. Yoga pants and leggings to the rescue! There are so many fashion choices that have a comfort band at the waist. You might want to check out one of the many local thrift stores if your wardrobe needs a few more loose waist options. Check out the links below!

Here are a few tips that may come in handy!

If you do want to wear your jeans, you might like to try this elastic trick from Thriftyfun.

or search for one of these waist extenders.

or cover the gap with a “belly band.”

After the complaint about tight jeans, the most common clothing question our nurses get is about bras.  Early in pregnancy your enlarged, tender breasts can be bothersome.  Your breasts may have grown enough to need a larger size bra.  If you are planning on breast feeding your baby, you may want to buy a nursing bra now, rather than a new regular bra now, AND a nursing bra later.  Whattoexpect.com suggests a supportive, but not tight bra.  If the tenderness is bothering you at night, try a wire-free bra without hooks or clasps, or a cotton sports bra that meets the supportive-but-not-tight guidelines. Read their whole article on breast tenderness here. Your new bra will probably cost you about $30+.

Your great grandmother might have only paid 63 cents for her bra in 1920, but the modern versions look way more comfortable!

Let’s take a humorous look at more of your grandma’s maternity clothes. 

How about these tent-like creations from the 1940’s and the 1960’s? 

A pregnant belly is now something to be proud of, to show off, not something to hide behind a tent.  Wear clothing that is comfortable for you and loose enough or stretchy enough to allow easy movement. 

Current maternity clothes

Maternity Clothes are expensive!

If someone wants to treat you, by all means go shopping at a maternity store, but for most of us, spending lots of money on clothes we only wear for a few months doesn’t really fit in the budget.  Thankfully, Anchorage has some great thrift stores with maternity sections. If you haven’t already visited one of these stores, give them a try!

To visit Bishop’s Attic Facebook page click on their logo to learn more about this thrift store and their items!

Click the logo to learn more about Value Village and their thrift store.

FashionPact is Anchorage’s newest thrift store where all items are $5! Check out there location on Gambell and click on their logo to learn more.

If you are looking for more big belly coping strategies, consider signing up for our Life Lessons program that includes short videos about pregnancy.