Gone off meat in first trimester - alternative sources of protein?

[PervyMuskrat]

I'm 8 weeks today with DC2 and have completely gone off the smell (and sight!) of meat.

I'm trying to maintain a balanced diet but I'm struggling to find alternative sources of protein as I'm a fussy sod at the best of times. Pulses set off my IBS and I don't like eggs or fish (and frankly the smell would be too much at the minute even if I could force it down). I don't like cheese on its own (but ok with it on pasta or pizza etc) so I seem to be left with drinking milk and eating yoghurt. Any other suggestions please?

Have you tried Quorn? It's pretend meat and quite nice. Or quinoa that has lots of protein and is a bit like rice.

I'm vegetarian and there are quorn products around, they are very high in protein. They are in the chiller or frozen food dept in all supermarkets.

Thanks, had forgotten about quorn and have never tried quinoa so will add to tomorrow's shopping list

Your thread brought back some memories from when i was pregnant with dc3. I remember cooking a beef casserole when i was about 5 weeks pregnant.

All night i could smell the bloody casserole. I dreamt about the casserole but not in a good way- i had nightmares all night long... The smell was making me sooo sick! I ate almost no meat during that pregnancy & I done eat fish. Lots of eggs & Quorn. Dd is 12 now. Very intelligent & healthy girl!

Try soup with tiny pieces of meat. I found that the liquid and saltiness helped a lot with making veg and meat palatable.

Not cooking or preparing the food helps a lot. I bought lots of lovely ready Japanese bento style platters because it was just about the only thing that appealed. And chicken katsu with edamane beans provided a nicebit of protein, too.

I found that eating eggs and baked beans worked well for keeping morning sickness at bay, too. Still can't figure out why, though. For me the worst thing turned out to be nibbling small snacks all the time, because itt made my tummy feel like it was boiling with acid all the time. Managing a proper meal with protein kept the sickness at bay much better, the only problem being finding something I actually wanted to eat.

Thanks again. Managed to eat a small amount of chicken but will bear these in mind when I feel shit again tomorrow!

Peanut butter?

Peanut butter is the work of the devil (I did say I was fussy!)

Maybe try the things you don't normally like? I really struggled with meat, which i used to love, but gobbled up fish, which I had hated. I still couldn't cook the fish but I could eat it when poor DP cooked it for me.

I found vegetarian ready meals to be a life saver too. They are generally balanced for you and are easy until you get through the sickness.

Ha, fair dos, I hate the stuff myself I must admit!

Unless in the form of the peanut butter cookie...then it slips down a treat...sound like a plan...?