Christopher Fudge

If you are considering becoming a surrogate in Minnesota or some other part of the country, you know that looking after yourself is just one of the most important things you can do. Not only will it help you to feel better physically, in many cases, it will also help you to feel better mentally. Being pregnant can create various hormones to rush through your system, making you feel "all the feels" as they say.

If you are really going to become a surrogate, you already are a surrogate, or you are just pregnant and like to treat yourself, there are some ways that you can get what you need that may not be as effective when you aren't on this journey.

Here are our 5 favorite practices to treat yourself during surrogacy:

Get A Pregnancy Massage

When you are pregnant, you need to treat your body very well. This might mean exercising, giving enough sleep, eating very well, and it could also mean getting a pregnancy massage. This is different from a basic massage because it works on the aches, pains, and condition areas that pregnant women have-- containing areas that you very likely didn't even know could feel pain.

If you have insurance, you may like to give them a call to see if they cover prenatal massages. If not, you may want to contact the surrogacy agency to see if they have additional policy coverage for those massages-- many do. As an additional tip, whether go to a masseuse who provides services for pregnancy massages or tell the spa that you are pregnant when you book an appointment.

Get A Pedicure

Let's be honest, all of us have a fear of our feet seeming like Kim Kardashian's when she was pregnant-- they swelled and just looked uncomfortable. If you are worried that your feet are overreaching that territory, then you may wish to treat yourself to a great pedicure. Not just the workout type that you can get hold of the mall, but one that is really deep and executes the job. One where your feet get a nice massage (sensing a theme here?) and you leave with pretty designs on your feet.

This holds true whether or not you can not see them-- you will at least know they look great.

Update Your Wardrobe A Bit

If you are the type of person who likes to look put together, getting pregnant can cause some really big complications. You probably don't fit into your favorite clothes, so you may need to do some shopping. Trade in your sweatpants and also 1998 Backstreet Boys t-shirt and wear something practical and comfortable, like a cashmere sweater that is soft to the touch and a pair of maternity jeans that really stay up when you walk.

When you are a surrogate, there is usually a provide for to provide for some maternity clothing, so you may additionally spend it-- keep on a little bit of a shopping spree!

Have A Date Night-- Sans Kids

If you are a surrogate, you already have kids of your own. This suggests that you and your partner probably don't get a great deal of time together. Take a handful of hours one night and just go on a date with your beloved. Whether you have a movie night in your own basement or you head out to the theater to see a show, spend some time together. You are giving a gift to someone else, but that doesn't mean you should fail to remember the people who are gifts to you.

In certain cases all it takes is a few hours with someone who loves you unconditionally.

Get A Housekeeper

If you are worn out and ready to give birth at any time now, you probably really want to keep everything organized, cleaned, and ready to go in your own life. Having said that, you may not even be capable to bend over at this point. Your bump is perhaps in the way and you are burning out easily. You may want to hire a housekeeper at this moment. Even when it is only for one deep cleaning, it will certainly make you feel that much better.

As a surrogate, your aspiration to nest will most likely feel different, but that doesn't mean you can't use those feelings for your own benefit? Even better? You presumed it-- many surrogacy agencies have money alloted to get you a housekeeper.

Remember that when you are a surrogate, you are conducting an undeniably essential job for the intended parents. You deserve to treat yourself, your mind, and your body to different forms of relaxation. Even though you haven't done something on this list just yet, it may be one thing to consider. Now is the amount of time to try something (safe and) new.

If you are pregnant, you know that there are numerous things to do in order to get ready for the birth of the baby. For women who are surrogates in Minnesota or who are continuing to work throughout their pregnancies, there are so many different things to keep an eye on and organize over the course of the length of the pregnancy.

Thank goodness for technology.

There are just simply many apps that can easily help you to keep everything coordinated and organized so that you can focus on being healthy and growing the baby inside of you-- and that is enough.

Which apps should you download? Here are our top choices:

A Checklist App

" Pregnancy brain" is surely a real thing, and most people find that listing information can enable them to stay organized. Luckily for us, there are several apps that allow you to make notes on the go and not definitely have to bother with losing your list that you worked so hard on creating. There are a lot of different choices online, so don't hesitate to try something new if the notes apps that you have (or those that come standard with the app) don't pan out for you.

A Food Tracking App

While you don't need to worry too much about your weight while you are pregnant, there are some women who need to monitoring their nutrition to help prevent any issues like gestational diabetes or high blood pressure. You may also like to use a pregnancy-specific app to help you track your vitamin intake to make sure that you are providing your child the very best environment to grow in-- it really does depend on your diet. Even better, you may have the chance to monitor what foods make you sick and which foods benefit your pregnancy.

What To Expect

The classic book that everyone had years ago now has an app that is a lot more user-friendly-- and portable-- than the book could ever be. This app contains solution to each of the questions that you could ever have and even has interactive sections so that you can make friends and chat with women who are pregnant collectively you are, which can be handy if this is your first pregnancy.

Food Delivery Apps

There are going to be days that you just don't need to make your own food, and that is okay. Your feet will hurt, your back might hurt, and you just like to being in front of the TV and eat something good-- and that is where food delivery apps come in handy. Even better, it is good if you try them out now so that you can have favorites for when the baby is born, since you will be just like tired then.

Baby Name App

Another book that so many people buy when they are pregnant is that huge book of baby names that they go through and mark up so that they can choose a name. When the time comes to speak about them, you need to go back through and it takes a long time. A baby name app, alternatively, is easier to use and allows you to "favorite" certain names to make sure that you have a handy list. Even better, you can sort by certain things and search by sections of names.

Social Media Apps

You know you need to flaunt your pregnancy, so why not do it? Download as many social media apps as you can to take pictures and even document this experience. Take pictures, post them to Snapchat and Instagram, ask questions on Facebook, and talk to other moms on Twitter. Now is the time to connect with people and boost a community for you and the new baby.

These are just a few of the apps that you will need to download. There are more being produced on a daily basis. And keep in mind that this list isn't restricted to just the moms-- dads, Intended Parents for surrogates, and family members may need to download some of these apps too.