Ultimate List of Pregnancy Essentials

If you’re newly pregnant with your first baby, let this ultimate list of pregnancy essentials be your guide! I am about a little over a month from meeting my first baby, and the past eight months have been a lot of trial and error. Pregnancy is hard, but I have put together a list of pregnancy essentials you absolutely need to make your pregnant life easier. Happy Shopping!

Pregnancy Pillow  

I bought my pregnancy pillow early in the first trimester, but you don’t really need it until the second trimester. It helps you to find a comfortable sleeping position for the most part, although you have to maneuver the arms of the pillow to get the right fit. By the third trimester, I needed belly support, hip support and back support, and the pillow has been a life saver.

Rooibos Heartburn Tea  

This tea is considered safe for pregnancy, but check with your doctor first! I actually used this tea to help me with my nausea in the first trimester, but it didn’t do much to help with my really bad heartburn in the third trimester. It has a mild flavor and tastes great with honey.

Ritual Prenatal Vitamins

These vitamins are not the cheapest, but they have high quality ingredients, including DHA and choline which are missing in some other prenatal vitamins. They get auto delivered to your door every month so that you don’t have to remember to go to the store and pick some up. This was super convenient for me, but it is not the cheapest option. The other downside is that you have to take two per day.  I think the UP&UP brand of prenatals from Target are a pretty good budget prenatal, which is $18.99 for a two month supply.

Maternity Leggings  

You’re going to need something stretchy and soft to help you feel comfortable as your belly expands. Get some over-the-belly maternity leggings. You can find them on Amazon, linked above, but invest in more than one because you’ll be living in these, I promise.

Breezy Maxi T-Shirt Dress  

When you’re tired and nauseous and you feel uncomfortable, you just want to be able to throw something on really quick when you need to leave the house but still look stylish. Enter the Maxi T-shirt dress. It’s on trend, and it glides over your new curves so that you can feel comfortable and confident all day long.

Pregnancy Journal  

This journal is a keepsake for your baby. It allows you to write about your feelings and symptoms week-by-week, record special events like baby showers and gender reveals, write letters to your baby and display your ultrasound photos. Pregnancy goes by so fast, and this is a great way to help you to slow down and reflect on this amazing journey that your body is going through.

Ovia Pregnancy App

I used the Ovia period tracker app before I got pregnant and I liked it, so I downloaded their pregnancy app. I really like this one, too! This app makes it easy to enter your data like symptoms, weight, blood pressure, doctor visits and any notes. It also details the week-by-week development of your baby, and comes with a kick counter and contraction timer. The best part is that it is also completely free to use!

Baby Bargains Book  

This book has pages full of ways to save money on baby gear, as well as some product reviews. Check out my post on saving money on baby gear for more ways to save.

50 Things to Do Before you Deliver  

This book gives a trimester-by-trimester to-do list to help you stay on top of all the things you may need to take care of before the baby arrives. If this is your first baby, this can be so helpful. Tips include making postpartum freezer meals, setting up a registry and dealing with symptoms.

Hypnobirthing  

If you are interested in learning more about managing labor pains without the use of drugs, this is the classic book that focuses on visualization and breathing techniques.

Mesh Trim Maternity Bralette Nursing Bras from Lively 

These bralettes are lightweight and breathable nursing bras with a low V-cut in the front so that you can wear lower-cut tops. These are unlined and are not padded, and perfect for lounging around the house in. I bought the two-pack in black and nude, and I love them! Full disclosure, I am a Lively ambassador and I receive a commission for purchases made through my link and my coupon code. Use my code AMB-Springjdavis for $10 off of your order!

Belly Bandit Support Band

As your belly grows, you will need some more back support, especially if you’re active, exercising or doing a lot around the house as you approach the third trimester. You can wear supportive clothing, or you can throw on one of these support bands. It looks like a back brace and has an adjustable velcro closure and a pocket to put an ice or heat pack. I highly recommend it! You can also use this for compression during the postpartum period.

Levi’s Maternity Jeans

These pants are so comfortable. The over-the-belly style gives you coverage and the jeans fit as well as regular Levi’s jeans. Even my doctor complimented me on how stylish I looked in these pants, and they are not that expensive (under $30).

Hospital Duffle Bag

If you don’t already have bags for your husband and yourself, get these. There is a separate compartment for shoes at the bottom and it comes with a toiletry bag so that you don’t have to buy it separately. These are also stylish for going on trips later, as well.

Comfortable Slippers

Your feet will start to hurt if you are walking around all day, and slippers give you some support while you are lounging around at home. These slippers have memory foam soles and are super comfortable.

Comfortable Sneakers

As above, you need some comfortable, supportive shoes. Get some sneakers that are slightly larger than what you usually wear because feet can get larger as you approach the end of pregnancy.

Maternity Midi Dress  

Get a dress that helps you look cute and hugs your curves. Some pregnancy clothing can make you look frumpy, and for me, that was ruining my self-esteem because I just felt like I suddenly gained 50 pounds as opposed to being a beautiful pregnant woman. Do yourself a favor and buy some fitted maternity outfits.

Maternity Tee

Regular shirts might work for a while, but as your belly gets bigger, it just doesn’t cover your belly anymore. Bite the bullet and get a few maternity tees. They fit longer and they are really comfortable to wear, and I would consider this to be an essential piece of an expecting mother’s wardrobe. If you want to save money, you can also size up in your shirts, although you won’t get that fitted look I was talking about earlier.

Exercise Ball

This ball helps you to open up your hips and get the baby to drop in the third trimester. I haven’t bought mine yet, but I’m so excited to bounce on it all day long as the baby’s due date approaches. I can’t seem to find a comfortable position on regular chairs anymore at 33 weeks.

Padded Nursing Bras  

These bras are not cute, but they are comfortable. The padding protects sensitive breasts and the sizing accommodates rapidly changing sizes. Don’t buy any regular bras until after pregnancy, unless you want to buy several because your cup size will change.

Shop all of these pregnancy essentials in one place, here:

These all are pregnancy essentials that I think every first time mother needs for comfort and are helpful for navigating all of your body changes. Pregnancy is hard, these products can make your life easier. 

Let me know what your thoughts are and what you consider essentials in pregnancy in the comments! I am sure these suggestions will be helpful for all of the expecting mamas that are reading this post!