Somewhere in the first trimester, many pregnant Canadians notice a blocked nose that lingers for days, then weeks — with no cold and no allergies in sight. If that sounds familiar, you're likely experiencing pregnancy rhinitis, a condition that affects up to 30% of pregnancies according to SOGC clinical guidance.

Higher estrogen levels and increased blood volume cause the lining of your nose to swell. It clears up after birth — predictably and completely. In the meantime, a humidifier in the bedroom and a daily saline rinse will help you breathe and sleep more easily. Avoid decongestant nasal sprays for more than three days at a time without speaking with your provider.

Food can start tasting different — and sometimes the change has nothing to do with what you're eating. A persistent metallic taste, especially in early pregnancy, is common enough that it has a name: dysgeusia.

Rising estrogen and hCG levels affect your taste receptors directly. For most people, it's mild and fades by the end of the first trimester. Acidic foods like citrus and pickles can cut through it, and rinsing your mouth with water mixed with a small amount of baking soda before eating can reset your taste buds.

A surprise nosebleed during pregnancy can catch you off guard, especially if you're not someone who normally gets them. Pregnancy increases your blood volume by approximately 40–50% — and the same hormones causing your congestion are making the small capillaries in your nose more delicate. The combination means they rupture more easily, especially when the nose is dry.

Saline spray a couple of times a day, plus the same humidifier helping with congestion, can prevent most of them by keeping the lining of your nose hydrated.

If you wake up with a numb hand and your first thought is that something is wrong — it almost certainly isn't. What you're feeling is mild carpal tunnel syndrome, caused by fluid retention putting gentle pressure on the median nerve in your wrist.

A drugstore wrist splint, the kind sold for office workers, can change your sleep entirely. Gently shaking out your hands when you wake up and keeping your wrists in a neutral position when you sleep also helps. Symptoms typically disappear within weeks of delivery.

Sleep during pregnancy gets disrupted for many reasons — and one consequence of waking more frequently during the night is better dream recall. Many pregnant Canadians also report that their dreams become more intense, strange, or emotionally charged. Full cinematic productions, complete with plot twists.

Hormonal fluctuations and the physical discomfort of position changes play a role. Writing dreams down in the morning or talking them through with a partner tends to take the edge off — they settle as your sleep does. The Public Health Agency of Canada also recommends consistent bedtime routines and limiting screen time in the hour before sleep.

As your skin stretches and blood flow increases beneath the surface, itchiness can feel relentless — most often across the belly, breasts, and thighs, and most noticeable at night when you're trying to sleep.

Fragrance-free lotion applied right after a shower (while your skin is still damp) locks in moisture. Cool baths and breathable cotton clothing take the edge off.

Pregnancy cravings aren't always about food. Some expecting parents develop strong urges to smell specific things — including things that aren't food at all: petrol, rubber, earth, cleaning products. It's called olfactory craving, and it traces back to the same heightened sense of smell making everything taste different.

Lean into the harmless ones (a candle you love, freshly washed laundry, a partner's sweater), and step away from anything that's actually irritating — strong fumes in enclosed spaces, paint, gasoline, or aerosols.

If you've started noticing changes in pigmentation — darker areolas, a soft vertical line down the center of your abdomen (the linea nigra), or inner thighs and underarms that look slightly different — you're noticing something normal. Some Canadians also develop melasma, patchy pigmentation across the cheeks and forehead, sometimes called the "mask of pregnancy."

It's all due to increased melanin production, and it's significantly more pronounced with sun exposure. Daily SPF 30+ on your face and any other areas catching the sun is the right move. Most of it fades within months of delivery.

Feeling overheated when others are comfortable — or suddenly cold when nothing has changed — is common in pregnancy. Your metabolic rate increases by approximately 20%, blood flow rises, and your body is working harder than usual. All of which affects how you experience temperature.

This is also why pregnancy sweating can increase, including at night. Lightweight layers you can add and remove, a water bottle within reach all day, and a small fan by the bed at night make a real difference. Canadian winters help here; Canadian summers do not.

If you've started feeling like you're losing your grip on your own body — dropping things, misjudging distances, bumping into furniture you've walked past for years — you're not. A lot of this shows up before you're visibly pregnant, which is part of what makes it so disorienting.

The cause is mostly relaxin, a hormone loosening your joints across the whole body, combined with a shifting center of gravity and a nervous system trying to keep up. Slow down where you can, give yourself a little extra space, hold the handrail on stairs, and try not to be hard on yourself when something gets dropped. Your body recalibrates as you go.

First-trimester fatigue is well known. Less talked about: how unpredictable energy stays throughout pregnancy. Some days feel manageable; others can be exhausting. The mythical second-trimester energy boost doesn't always arrive on schedule.

Iron levels, sleep quality, hydration, and the physical demands of pregnancy all affect energy — and they fluctuate. Rest when your body asks for it (without guilt), prioritize iron-rich foods, and drink more water than you think you need.

Hypersalivation — clinically called ptyalism gravidarum — is more common in people who experience significant nausea during pregnancy, though it can show up on its own. It's thought to be your body's way of protecting your teeth and esophagus from stomach acid when nausea is intense.

Sucking on ice chips, sipping cold water frequently, and eating small but regular meals all help. It usually eases by the second trimester.

Fluid retention can subtly change the shape of your cornea, which means your vision can shift slightly. Contact lens wearers sometimes find that lenses feel uncomfortable or that their prescription feels slightly off. Don't rush to update your prescription — it's almost always temporary and resolves within a few months postpartum. Switching to glasses or daily disposables can be a real relief in the meantime.

Pregnancy hormones can stimulate hair growth in spots you're not used to: face, stomach, lower back. It can feel unwelcome, and that reaction is allowed.

At the same time, your scalp hair often gets noticeably thicker — each strand stays in its growth phase longer than usual. Both are temporary; things typically return to normal in the postpartum period (though the postpartum scalp shed that follows is another story for another article).

As the uterus grows, it pushes against the stomach and reduces how much it can hold at one time. Feeling full after only a few bites is common, particularly in the second and third trimesters.

Eating smaller amounts more frequently throughout the day tends to be more comfortable than three larger meals. Staying upright for 20 to 30 minutes after eating helps with the reflux that often tags along.