Being pregnant in Germany as an expat: The first trimester

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One of the most common concerns I would hear from friends when I announced that I am pregnant was “I’m so worried about you being pregnant and birthing in a predominantly white society”. This obviously made me worry a lot as well because of how often I would hear it, and it changed my entire perspective of pregnancy and childbirth in Germany to a very negative/dark one.

I kid you not when I tell you that had this post been written 2 months prior, I would have said everything is SH*T; without even blinking or thinking twice about it. However, now that I have had time to process and debrief, I can safely say that my pregnancy journey was top tier.

 

My husband and I had been discussing having children, and though we did not put pressure on ourselves by deciding on a fixed timeframe; I wanted to fall pregnant on our pre-honeymoon which was scheduled for June 2020. Therefore, I started booking appointments in February 2020 with the Gynecologist and Traditional Chinese Medicine Practitioner to ensure that I was healthy, and my body was well prepared to carry a healthy baby to term.

Unfortunately for everyone, covid-19 hit full force, and Germany went into a very hefty lockdown in March 2020, so all our plans had to either be cancelled or postponed. We stayed home, and on April 15, 2020 a little embryo was conceived (don’t ask me how I know the exact date, location and time our baby was conceived).

 

The day I found out I was pregnant was the happiest, scariest day of my life! My emotions ranged from excited to anxiety, then to a waterfall of uncertainty. The only thing I could focus on was seeing my Gynecologist so she could ease my mind and assure me that our little embryo was perfect and growing well.

Thank heavens I took the time to book appointments earlier in the year because our first appointment was at 4.5 weeks pregnant and all we could see was the fetal pole – my appointments were then scheduled for every week in the first trimester because I had a history of miscarriages.

 

Leaving the doctors practice after the first appointment, I expected to feel a sense of relief, but instead I felt anxiety. And as the pregnancy continued, so did my anxiety.

 

I longed for my prenatal appointments so I could see the heartbeat and know that she was okay, but I hate doing the nandos full-chicken every single time I went in for those appointments (if you know, you know).

Our growing embryo

 

It was during this time of uncertainty that my husband and I decided not to share the news with anyone until we are in the second trimester, and even when we did share the news, it would be with a select few individuals.

 

The pregnancy progressed and our embryo was now growing into a fetus. I finally got my Mutterpass – similar to the clinic card you get in South Africa, and I was more than happy with my doctor because this was now the furthest I had even been with child.

 

We also got an alternative midwife who started coming to our home from 7 weeks pregnant; any German woman will tell you how hard it is to find a midwife in Germany, so we were grateful to have found one that’s available and willing to take me as her patient. She also became a very important part of our pregnancy and postpatrtum journey, reassured us at all times and made us laugh and sometimes had us question a lot of things (in a positive manner).

 

All my vitals were perfect and our little fetus was starting to take form by the end of the first trimester. We made our pregnancy announcements to our parents, and life was almost perfect; even with covid-19 and the lockdowns looming everywhere.

I was still longing for home, but I made a new (now very close) friend, Lisa, who helped me navigate pregnancy in Germany as a black South African and talked me through a lot of things I was still going to experience going forward.

 

OKAY! I’m tired of typing so we’ll continue again next time with the drama that was the second trimester. STAY TUNED and don’t forget to wash your hands, sanitize, wear your mask and STAY HOME if it’s not important.

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