Pregnancy the Second Time Around

Playing at Piedmont park earlier this month, my bump has already gotten huge!

This pregnancy feels so different from my last pregnancy that it hardly seems like the same thing is happening to me at all. This has me convinced I'm having a boy this time around (not logical I know but it's my gut feeling). I do wonder how much this pregnancy is actually different and how much of it is just my perception of pregnancy changing. here are 5 differences between this pregnancy and my last one.

1. I don't think about it, hardly at all.
With my first pregnancy I thought about the baby that was growing inside me constantly. I was always stroking my belly and talking to my little sweet pea. This time I usually forget that I'm pregnant unless I am experiencing a symptom at that very moment. I'm sure I will be thinking about it more as my belly gets bigger and I really start to feel those kicks but right now I am just so busy with Echo that I don't have much time to dwell on the new baby.

2. My symptoms are different.
Last time around I was sick as a dog the whole first trimester, I threw up almost on a daily basis and found it hard to do much of anything. I was also unreasonably tired all the time. This time I have had a little nausea but not nearly as bad as with Echo. I haven't noticed being particularly tired (maybe I'm just so used to being tired that it doesn't register?). I haven't had much in the way of symptoms yet this time which is another reason I don't think about being pregnant.

3. I'm experiencing everything sooner.
For starters, I'm showing sooner. Much sooner! I can't believe how huge my bump is already, it makes me terrified of having a huge baby this time. I also wasn't quite ready to be so big so soon, *sigh*. At least I have only gained 4 lbs so far. I also am experiencing certain symptoms sooner such as heartburn which I didn't get until late in my third trimester last time. The really exciting thing that is happening sooner this time is that I started to feel movement yesterday! Last time I didn't feel anything until 19 weeks and this time I am feeling it at 16 and a half. Maybe this will help the pregnancy feel more real.

4. I'm not as careful about what I eat and do.
Ok, I was never that careful to be honest. I fall in to the "laid back mom" category and I really don't stress about things that have a .01 percent chance of increasing my risk for birth defects. Still, I at least thought about it a bit more last time. This time  especially since I keep forgetting I'm pregnant, I am doing all kinds of stuff I'm not supposed to. I still drink coffee, I lift and carry a 24 lb toddler all the time, I eat lunch meat, the list goes on and on. I am probably eating more veggies this pregnancy than last but that was just a general life choice not something that is pregnancy related. I figure Echo turned out really awesome and I didn't stress about this stuff when I was pregnant with her so why worry now?

5.  I'm terrified of labor and delivery.
Last time I was pretty confidant in my ability to achieve my goal of having a med free birth. I knew this was what my body was made for and although I expected it to be painful I really wasn't worried about handling it and knew it was a "purposeful pain". Well I was able to have my med free birth like I planned but holy h*ll did it hurt! Anyone who tells you that childbirth is magical and/or beautiful is full of BS. It is messy, violent and incredibly painful. And this is coming from someone who had a relatively short labor (12 hours start to finish) with no complications. This time around I am much more frightened because I know how much it hurts. I am honestly still on the fence about wether I want to go med free again. I guess I have 6 more months to think about it!