Bestselling Author Caroline Foran on her Pregnancy Style & Journey to date.
My pregnancy journey?
What are your top hacks during pregnancy?
Take as many naps as you can and tell the voice in your head that makes you feel guilty about it to just go and do one; you're growing a human and even if you do nothing else in a day, you're still doing that. You won't have the same luxury to rest when you have a newborn so lap it up and enjoy the quiet times if you can. Prioritise comfortable clothes - the bigger you get the less you want to be contorting yourself in and out of jeans so I'm all about loose floaty items, stretchy leggings and feeling as next to naked as possible. With The Pod Collection, you get to satisfy your need for ultimate comfort while at the same time loving your look in the mirror. Lots of navy, breton stripes and simple styles and you wouldn't want for anything more.
Pregnancy and anxiety - any advice?
My advice for pregnancy anxiety is the same as my advice for any anxiety: stop trying not to feel it. Stop berating yourself for feeling a little bit scared or overwhelmed; it's an incredibly normal response to a situation that's full of unknowns. Try to work with it, soothing yourself and doing what you can to make yourself feel better, than working against it or giving yourself a hard time. Take time to look at the reasons why you might be feeling anxious and remind yourself that that's okay; you don't need to be anxiety free to get through this, or to be a good parent. Your body is trying to protect you and that's where anxiety comes from. Keep talking through any worries you have so as to normalise them and take them out of your head which prevents them from growing arms and legs.
Birth plan?
I don't have one. I know for some anxious mothers to be it helps to go in with a detailed plan but in my experience, the more you try to control something the more chances are that you won't be able to retain that control, especially when mother nature takes over. For me it's far more anxiety-reducing to go into it with the simple goal of delivering the baby as swiftly and safely as possible. I have no problem taking pain killers to make my experience a bit easier and I will just absolutely follow the advice of the experts because I am not one of those when it comes to childbirth; I've never done it before! I will try to remember my breathing exercises and remind myself that I'm quite good in situations once I'm in them; it's more the anticipation that gets me.
What are you most looking forward to?
Caroline wears The Bateau Knit and The Tivoli Skirt both available @thepodcollection.com
For Caroline's top maternity purchases and styling tips - check out Mind & Beauty for great advice.