Congratulations – you're pregnant! You will be overwhelmed with a multitude of feelings and you may be far enough along to have already started making notes about what needs to be done before the birth of your baby. If you're experiencing morning sickness, I found making positive plans a good way to keep my mind elsewhere. Here are some tips to help out with one of the items which is sure to be on your list – maternity lingerie.

This is an exciting era in which to have a baby. As recently as the last few years, there have been significant changes to what is available in the realms of the maternity lingerie world. The term encompasses all manner of intimate apparel and underwear including pregnancy and nursing bras, sleep wear, under wear which can be worn as outer wear, shape wear, special occasion lingerie and of course your every day lingerie.

Keep in mind maternity stems from the word "maternal". This can conjure up sedate images of conservatively dressed women beaming down on swaddled infants. But these days it most definitely brings to mind the women of our era – multi tasking, maternal women of the world who have the capacity to juggle many roles, should they wish to. And wearing maternity lingerie while you do it does not preclude you from feeling sexy and gorgeous at the same time! I've said it before and I am sure I will say it many times more: being pregnant is one of the most feminine times in your life – revel in that feeling!

Choose wisely when you purchase your maternity lingerie, which you will probably need to do at around the end of your first trimester. With companies specializing in pregnancy and nursing lingerie alone, they have the ability to concentrate on the very specific needs of a woman who is pregnant or breastfeeding. Tender breast tissue, fluctuating size, and the need for easy to use maternity clips… you must consider these very important facts when you buy your maternity lingerie. And don't forget, choose something that makes you feel desirable, sexy, feminine and flirtatious. It is incorporated in the stunning styles available today in maternity lingerie and has the ability to empower you when sometimes you feel your body has taken on a mind of its own, no matter what you do. It has definitely taken on another life and whether you choose to breast feed or not, your lingerie requirements will change. This needn't mean a large financial outlay – there are beautiful options in designer maternity lingerie which are available at accessible prices.

Take note and tick this off your list!