Thalia - Thalia Radiante: ¡Belleza!: Lessons in Lipgloss and Happiness

THALIA: RADIANTE!

Your Guide to a Fit and Fabulous Pregnancy

BY THALIA

WITH DR. ANDREW R. KRAMER, OB-GYN

I find myself today among a new generation of mothers.

Many of us are having babies later in life, and were not necessarily living close to our extended families. In this way, were forced to become more independentpioneers of our own experience and empowered by the choices we make. I wanted to write a pregnancy book from this point of view, one that would cover the basics, lend a helping hand, and, most of all, serve as a fun and informative place to come back to during what will prove to be a challenging time.

In my culture, motherhood equals queendom. Children are welcome everywhere, mothers are revered, and entire worlds of relatives circle around these women who give shape to the family and run the home. Historically, multigenerational families have always lived with one another: grandmothers helping young mothers, aunties assisting their sisters, and everyone always up for rocking a baby on their knee. Growing up among five sisters, I witnessed my fair share of pregnancies, births, diaper changes, stroller purchases, baby burpings, bathings, swaddlings, and more.

I guess its in my genes, then, because for as long as I can remember, Ive always dreamed of having a baby. Since I was a kid, Ive been in love with their tiny, soft wrinkles, their sweet powdery smells, and those adorable smiles that could shatter a grown mans heart into a million pieces. And there was no shortage of babies in my household. But nothing in that world of interminable cuteness prepared me for the amazing experience of my own pregnancy.

For me, being pregnant was like living in some kind of altered dimension; everything glimmered with more brilliance, more light. All my senses became radically heightened: Sounds resonated more; colors began to popthe blue of a clear sky became so unabashedly glorious that it felt almost piercing to my gaze. I felt less accelerated, less erratic, more balanced, and perhaps more impressionable.

But the most amazing thing about pregnancy is the way it put me in the now as nothing else ever had. There is just no getting around it: When you carry a baby, you are naturally forced to live in the present. You simply dont have the mental wherewithal to worry about how many oblique crunches you did at the gym that morning, or what appetizers you will be serving at your upcoming holiday party, when there is a little creature inside you who just needs for you to lie down and take a nap. When you are gestating a baby, you must defer to each moment as it comes, living each minute of each dayand living it for two. Just like that, me becomes we.

But of course, as you probably already know, it is not all smooth sailing. In the earliest weeks, my mind was swirling with emotions and questions. There was so much to address at once: doctors to choose, books to buy, questions to write down, relatives to inform, experts to consult. I felt like a tourist standing in the middle of Times Square for the first time, wide-eyed and excited but definitely a bit on edge. I was overwhelmed, and the physical impact on my body wasnt making matters any easier.

There is no shortage of books on pregnancy, but few of them spoke to me woman to woman, in the straight-up, stripped-down, vibes-up language I can relate towhich is what I needed most. And that vacancy on the bookshelves is what inspired me to write this book.

In the pages that follow youll find tips and tidbits regarding pregnancy basics, including ideas on diet, personal style, exercise, and mental attitudes. If there is one thing I hope you take away from this book, it is this: While pregnancy is a time loaded with unknowns, its also a time to rise up and celebrate. Yes, your body may be changing in ways that feel terrifying, but you can still look and feel gorgeous, and trimester by trimester I will do my best to show you how.

I have broken the book down into four trimesters (yes, ladies, four!), as the three months after the birth are just as crucial as the previous nine, a delicate time when both your little one and you are just beginning to cozy up to the idea of babys life outside the womb. I offer easy tips on how to look and feel terrific through each stage of pregnancy and the postpartum period, little morsels and fabulosity rules that Ive managed to garner from my constant orbit of stylists and makeup artists. I consulted with my own doctor, Andrew R. Kramer, MD; my pediatrician, Barbara Landreth, MD; top nutritionist Esther Blum, MS, RD, CDN, CNS; and lactation consultant Mona Gabay, MD.

There isnt enough room in this book to cover every smidgen of information about pregnancy and birth, but Ive done my best to streamline things and, better still, to provide guidance, perspective, and positivity along the way. I invite you to be the guest of honor at this twelve-month celebration. Its your party (you can cry if you want to!), but I encourage you to run this show of yours with style, confidence, and grace.

Being pregnant is the absolute mother of all highs. Im not going to lie and say that things dont get ugly, but, before I go any further, I want to make it crystal clear that even in the darkest hours of what may seem to be hormonal chaos, there is this magnificent light that shines on you as a woman, compelling you to persist, to rise above, to endure, and to move forward with the knowledge that at the end of it all, a gorgeous little creature will look up at you with a smile on her face and a look of absolute love in her tiny little eyes.

If you are already pregnant, let me say congratulations: I welcome you to what will likely be the greatest adventure of your life, and I invite you to consider me your friend along the way. Im no expert, but I am endlessly inspired by the phenomenon of creation and the power of love (the heart and soul of pregnancy), and, as a new mother, I feel inspired to share with other future mothers a bit about my own experience... and maybe a little simple wisdom along the way.

But all that sweet stuff aside, there is an aspect of the experience that is so raw, so unfathomable, that even your own mother, sisters, and aunts wont want to talk about it, let alone your doctor or nurse, or any magazine, book, pamphlet, or DVD. There are downright nasty things that happen to pregnant women that no one wants to discuss.

I refer to this murky realm of classified details as being guarded by The Secret Society, the mamas who keep the mysterious domain of hard-to-stomach bodily expressions on the down-low, perhaps if only to protect the mamas-to-be. My intention here is not to scare you, because the truth is that pregnancy brings with it a stronger and more intuitive you and entire worlds of magic and rapture. However, with all of that wonder and awe comes a brutal reality, ladiesone that includes unruly gassiness, endless pain, and plenty of anxiety.

Although the business of The Secret Society can be ugly, knowing the game empowers you to better handle any curveballs. More important, you quickly learn that the discomfort does in fact pass, and that even the most uncomfortable things are only minor inconveniences in the face of the profound beauty of what it really means to have baby. So, if youre a give-it-to-me-straight kind of girl, and you want to cut to the chase, take a deep breath and pour over the Dealing with Discomforts section of each chapteryoull get your brave little self acquainted with the unspoken mysteries and tribulations of The Secret Society in no time. But try not to get too ahead of yourself. Its actually a lot more important to get your head in a positive space right now. Try to embrace this new world of yoursBabylandfloating in it freely, blissfully, allowing yourself to bask in all the excitement. You deserve it. Well get to the challenging stuff in due time, and youll be better off taking baby steps on your road to baby-having one moment, one feeling, and one sensation at a time.