Inexplicable huge weight gain first trimester

[BidetBeforeDDay]

First pregnancy... was at lower end of BMI to start, FWIW. Weighed about 9 stone 3 for ages. Now, 13 weeks pg, I'm a stone heavier! (10 stone 3.)

I've been counting calories and exercising as per usual. (Before any negative comments - I've done this for years and it's the best way for me. I can eat without guilt because I know it's within my "allowed" limit. Also sometimes I get anxious and struggle to eat, so it has helped me eat enough at those times.) I had some confused days from week 5-8 where I felt so rough I ate nothing, then junk. So not sure of calories on those days. And I have slept a little more, so maybe that's using a lot less energy?

But overall I can't work out how the hell I've gained so much weight. Even weirder, I don't look like I have. My face looks the same as before. My jeans have only just started getting tight (but still fit!)

A few years ago I was this weight as normal (eating healthily, exercising. Accidentally lost a stone when ill and never regained it). And my face looked rounder, and clothes slightly bigger, couldn't clearly see my ribs like now. So I can't understand how I've gained so much more than I should have during the first trimester, but it doesn't show?

I'm quite upset about this. As you can probably tell it matters to me, my aim was to not put on unnecessary weight whilst pregnant. I don't have a partner to tell me I'm still beautiful or anything either, so it's hard! But given I am eating healthily, actually counting the calories to ensure this, it's so upsetting to have mysteriously gained too much weight. Is there something I'm missing here?

I will add that at my booking in appt. I was surprised how much I'd gained, that was at week 7. Obviously with clothes/boots on, and on different scales, it's not a totally accurate comparison, but actually the vast majority of the gain was before then! (Think I was 10 stone or over, although probably actually less due to clothes etc!)

Is there something I'm missing that means huge weight gain very early on that mysteriously doesn't make you actually fatter?

Your blood volume increases when you are pregnant and breasts swell etc. It’s perfectly normal tbh . When you have your booking in you can speak to the midwife and ask for support to make sure you are meeting your new dietary and nutritional goals to support a heathy pregnancy.

You might find this useful. I love the Mayo clinic website, so much useful info.

Where does pregnancy weight gain go?
Let's say your baby is born weighing 7 or 8 pounds (about 3 to 3.6 kilograms). That accounts for some of your pregnancy weight gain. What about the rest? Here's a sample breakdown:

• Larger breasts: 1 to 3 pounds (about 0.5 to 1.4 kilogram).
• Larger uterus: 2 pounds (about 0.9 kilogram).
• Placenta: 1 1/2 pounds (about 0.7 kilogram).
• Amniotic fluid: 2 pounds (about 0.9 kilogram).
• Increased blood volume: 3 to 4 pounds (about 1.4 to 1.8 kilograms).
• Increased fluid volume: 2 to 3 pounds (about 0.9 to 1.4 kilograms).
• Fat stores: 6 to 8 pounds (about 2.7 to 3.6 kilograms).

https://www.mayoclinic.org/healthy-lifestyle/pregnancy-week-by-week/in-depth/pregnancy-weight-gain/art-20044360

This also gives you an idea depending on your BMI before you got pregnant
https://www.whattoexpect.com/pregnancy-weight-gain-calculator#:~:text=Pregnancy%20weight%20gain%20by%20week&text=Pre%2Dpregnancy%20BMI%20is%20less%20than%2018.5%3A%201%20(1,to%200.6)%20pounds%20per%20week

But before you start stressing that you've put loads on in the first trimester, these are averages. Some people are as sick as a dog then and lose weight, especially if they had it to lose in the first place and / are also eating really healthily. Some people develop killer boobs immediately. Everyone is different and as long as you aren't downing a kg of ice-cream every night it will in all likelihood balance out by the end.

My mum was a midwife in a generation where women were weighed at every appointment. She got a bollocking when pregnant with me as she had to resign as soon as she got pregnant and sat at home miserable and lonely in a new house they'd just moved into and ate all around her.

Her top tip was just to really watch the sugar intake/high GI foods. By all means enjoy a slice of cake now and then like a normal person but don't decide you deserve one every day because your life is suddenly more restricted.

More sugar = bigger baby to deliver. You may find that you develop heartburn in which case sugar will be the bane of your life anyway.

Try not to stress about it too much. I would tell your midwife that you want their support and actual science on this and feedback on how you are doing as you go through pregnancy. Normal range is not terribly useful if the range is miles wide.

I ate so healthily in my first pregnancy and still put on a few stone plus weight of baby, it’s normal.

Hmmm. The NHS figures don’t reflect the reality for lots of people. Can you shift your thinking to allow for a wider range of possibilities? Eg tell yourself based on this thread (not just my post but a few others) that eg a 3-stone weight gain is within the realms of normal?

For what it’s worth, I had an 8 pound baby but was 1.5 stones lighter when I came home from the hospital. I pissed like a race horse for a couple of days after birth which was me shedding some of the excess water I’d obviously been carrying for months.

My DS was then a voracious feeder and I lost the 3.5 stones, and quite a bit more, within 6 months. The weight fell off - I was thinner than I had been for years - which was partly breastfeeding and partly found lots of walking with the pram. I had to eat extra meals to keep from becoming too thin.

I believe that my body was doing what it needed in pregnancy to prepare me for DS. Yes there was a lot of water, and also some fat, but those were reserves I was storing up for the early months of my son’s life.

You need to trust your body. If you are eating heathily, you will be fine. It knows what it is doing. Extra weight is okay. Fat is okay.

Do please have a think about whether you might have tiptoed across the line into eating disorder territory. I can completely see how the unpredictability of pregnancy might be difficult for someone who normal normally exercises a very high degree of control over their body.

What you are saying does sound like quite rigid and disordered thinking. Maybe get some help with that?