How To Safely DIY While Pregnant
NOTE: I am NOT a medical doctor, and this blog should not be used in place of medical advice from your doctor.
I recently got the surprise of my life - an unexpected second pregnancy with a sweet baby girl. After struggling with fertility the first time around, we never planned on having a second baby. When I was pregnant with my son, I wasn’t into DIY. In fact, I started my DIY journey not too long after he was born to find a hobby and make extra money.
As soon as I announced my pregnancy my followers flooded me with questions - the most common being “will you still be doing DIY projects??”.
YES!
As long as I feel well enough, I plan on continuing to do DIY and home reno projects (including the laundry room to nursery project!). After consulting with my doctor, I’ve been following these recommendations to make sure I keep myself and baby healthy:
1. Wear a mask while sanding, cleaning, and painting. I use this RZ Mask even when I’m not pregnant, but I’m extra careful about putting it on more frequently when I am pregnant. Masking protects against chemicals in the air, sanding particles, and strong odors.
2. Work in WELL ventilated areas. When I say WELL ventilated, I basically mean outside. Especially if you are staining or working with any kind of chemical. If you can’t be outside, open all of you windows and have fans on to circulate the air (and wear your mask!). I wear my mask even when I’m working outside if there are chemicals or sanding involved.
3. Use safe paint. Pregnant or not, l only use Melange paint products (use code MAGGIE10 for 10% off your order!). Melange paints are water based, zero/low VOC, self priming and self leveling. I feel absolutely safe using these paints while pregnant. It’s also generally a good idea to avoid spray painting while pregnant, but if you’re going to spray paint I would recommend doing it outside with a mask and long sleeves.
4. Be extra cautious using power tools. You can still use power tools while pregnant, but be extra careful. Minor injuries while not pregnant can turn into major injuries when pregnant. Specifically, watch out for kickback and cutting yourself.
5. Stay off ladders. As your baby (and belly) grow, your center of gravity changes. I will be staying off ladders and other high surfaces through this pregnancy.
6. Don’t lift heavy objects (unless your body is used to that pre-pregnancy). Most doctors say it’s safe to lift the same amount you did before you got pregnant (especially if you did it regularly). If you’ve seen the video where I tried to (literally) flip a dresser upright and the weight broke the legs, I probably won’t be attempting this kind of lifting while pregnant. For anything extra heavy, grab some help!
And the most important of all: listening to my body. My first trimester has been ROUGH. Somedays I just simply don’t feel like I have the energy or capacity to DIY, and that is ok. My priority is keeping myself healthy, and growing a healthy baby. DIY comes after that. Embrace listening to your body and not pushing boundaries.
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