Some of you may think I’m a fusspot or that I have a low pain threshold (untrue - due to having a bad back for much of my life, my pain threshold is rather high), but I had no idea such nausea was humanly possible. For four months I threw up, felt absolutely dreadful, had the energy levels of a limp lettuce and was a misery to be around.

To add to the mix, I had a high-pressure consulting job on at that time. Imagine a meeting room, an intense meeting, and me with my hand over my mouth running to the loos. Imagine me with my face an ashen shade of grey, trying to present something or run a training session. Think of me lying on the sofa all weekend trying not to move for fear I’d spew some more. Picture my partner anxiously trying to feed me something nutritious, only for me to bring it all up again.

What the hell was I doing getting pregnant? This is HIDEOUS.

Lesson 1, I tell myself – don’t work during the first months of your pregnancy. If you must work, do it later, during the second trimester.

Desperate, I plead for help from my obstetrician, who puts me on Maxolon. It’s totally safe for pregnant women, I'm told. I don’t want to take it – indeed, I haven’t taken so much as a single drug, sip of alcohol or coffee or even a painkiller since finding out I was pregnant. But I have to do something, as I am simply unable to function as a human being.

So I pop a Maxolon most days from about 9 weeks until 15 weeks.

Eventually the sickness begins to ease. However I am still prone to the occasional spew. To my distress, I sometimes wet myself whilst doing this. I truly am at my lowest point.

Lesson 2, I tell myself - if you feel even slightly ill, empty your bladder IMMEDIATELY.

By about 18 weeks the sickness has eased and my energy levels are returning.

Thank God. Now for the next phase.