As you may be able to tell from the picture above, I am pregnant! 22 weeks along to be exact, which means we are expecting our new addition at the end of July. People tend to talk about feeling a lot more relaxed and confident with second pregnancies – I suppose less is new, and you trust your body more to just do its thing. But for me, this pregnancy has been harder in many ways. This is actually my third pregnancy, as I had a miscarriage at 12 weeks in April last year. It was as awful and devastating as you would imagine, and it’s meant that I’ve been much more anxious and even the 12 week scan wasn’t the relief that I thought it would be. It’s only really been in the last couple of weeks when I’ve started to show and feel those first few fluttery kicks that I’ve started to relax a bit more.
We also waited a lot longer to tell people about this pregnancy. With George, I think most of my family and close friends knew I was pregnant before the 12-week mark, but this time, we didn’t tell anyone until after 12 weeks and most way after that (when I couldn’t hide it anymore 😉 ). This wasn’t because we wouldn’t want anyone to know if something happened again; it was to avoid the questions. When I found out I was pregnant this time, Pete and I agreed to just try to survive the first few weeks – we didn’t find out the due date or really try to plan for the future at all until we saw that wriggling baby at the 12-week scan. Once you share baby news, people start to ask lots of questions – exactly the kind of questions we were trying to avoid thinking about.
The other big difference is that I ‘felt’ pregnant much earlier. Lots of people talk about showing much earlier with a second pregnancy. In my case I’ve just looked chubby for several months; the real bump hasn’t emerged until about the same time as George (20 weeks). To be honest, it’s just not as firm and round as it was with George either – I keep thinking about Nicky’s post and the fact that the wear-and-tear already inflicted on my body means that this pregnancy will take even more of a toll. Before I got pregnant with George, I was mentally prepared for pregnancy to essentially ruin my body, so I was pleasantly surprised that I came out of it relatively unscathed; what I’m starting to realise is that it’s the subsequent pregnancies that do the damage! Bending down has also been really uncomfortable for weeks! This did not happen with George, but maybe this baby is in a different place. Either way, five more months of feeling this awkward does not sound like a fun prospect.
Other than that, I’ve been feeling pretty good. I had very mild morning sickness, and the tiredness I’ve experienced hasn’t been too bad. That’s partly luck, but partly due to me taking it very easy. The first trimester is hard in many ways, with so much happening in your body but none of it visible. Like many people, I felt like I should carry on as if it was no big deal – but it is a big deal! Thankfully, Christmas happened when I was about 10 weeks in, so I had a couple of weeks in which to sit on the couch, graze all day and take plenty of naps – I think that made a huge difference to how I felt. Of course, we can’t all take two weeks off in the the first trimester, but I think it’s important to be kind to yourself and rest as much as possible.
Don’t worry: I won’t be going all-out pregnancy on the blog from now on. I’m certainly not organised enough to take weekly bump pictures, and I’m not sure how much I’d have to say about my pregnancy each week. I do have a few ideas for blog posts, so watch out for them.
What was your second pregnancy like? How was it different from the first?
What it’s really like to give birth and how to survive the first three months of parenthood
12 Comments
Congratulations! It must have been very scary after having a previous miscarriage, I don’t think you ever really get over that. I am expecting my 4th baby in June, and no matter whether it is your first or your 8th, I think you still get that mix of excitement and terror lol! #maternitymondays
Yes, there is definitely some terror mixed in there somewhere whenever I realise that I’ll have to look after a newborn again!
Firstly congratulations and welcome to #MaternityMondays.
I’ve just had my second and we lost 2 inbetween but I only lasted until 14 weeks until I announced the last one 😉
I think the worst thing about being pregnant second time around is having to look after your first ha ha. There’s just not as much time for rest as there was first time.
It all adds to the fun though xx
I’m 37 weeks pregnant with my 2nd and god yes it’s been different! So much harder, I’m more knackered and so much more uncomfortable, I’m glad the end is in sight!
Helen – #maternitymondays
Yes, I keep wondering how I’ll survive 20 more weeks…
Aaah congratulations! Lovely, lovely news.
Sadly I have only had one full term pregnancy. I had early miscarriages the first and second times and, as a result, spent a lot of my third pregnancy worrying. It was a real shame really because the pregnancy with my twins was textbook. No sickness, no health issues — I breezed through it — but until we reached the 26 week mark, I was just so anxious.
My advice would be to enjoy it now! Just relax and enjoy the miracle of a baby growing inside you. It’s such a precious time — enjoy every second and listen to your body. Sleep when you need to and don’t feel guilty about it! #MaternityMondays
Caro | http://www.thetwinklediaries.co.uk
Thanks for your kind comment Caro. Yes, I’m starting to really enjoy this pregnancy now – there’s something so brilliant about feeling a baby move isn’t there? And I’m definitely giving in to the desire to nap 😉
Congratulations! I can completely understand why you are anxious this time round – I think we are all anxious when pregnant, no matter what, but I can only imagine how much that is amplified if you have suffered a loss like ou have. I am so pleased all is going well and hope the rest of your pregnancy goes smoothly too. Thanks for linking with #MaternityMondays
Thanks Caroline! Glad we stumbled across this linky and will link up again soon. x
Congratulations lovely! I’m just the same as you, though you have much more reason to be apprehensive than I am. Yes, there are less things that are new and you should trust your body, but it’s still daunting. I think some people are quick to think that just because you’ve made, carried and delivered one baby, that it should be easy to do the same thing over and over, but it’s not. There’ also a lot that IS new – running around after your existing child(ren) – hello! How knackering is that.. and this time round my birth plan is completely different as I’ve got have a c section which I didn’t have before. I just hope you enjoy the next 18 weeks or so without feeling too tired or nauseous or just generally anything that comes with pregnancy 🙂 #maternitymondays
Oh CONGRATULATIONS! Wonderful news! I love being pregnant 😀
Thanks! I love being pregnant for about half the time and half the time I vow to never do it again 😉