Second Pregnancy Struggles

Photos: Chloe Bee Photo

Thank you to Omnezaprole and Mirum for partnering with me on this second pregnancy struggles post.

I was really surprised by how good I felt during my first pregnancy. I’ve seen friends have horrible morning sickness even all the way through their pregnancy, swell up like crazy, and just be exhausted as soon as they found out they were pregnant until the end. 

While I still can’t complain much about my second pregnancy, (thank you Lord for no morning sickness!) I do think it comes with its own unique set of challenges that I did not expect as a second-time mom. Since I wish someone else would have told me about their struggles as a second-time mom, I thought why not share mine with you?

I am a very positive person for the most part, so I do NOT want this post to come across as complaining or as a woe-is-me, but more of an awareness chat and just as if we were having girl talk in my living room about what my pregnancy looks like. Obviously, everyone’s pregnancy experience is so different and I could not be more grateful just to be pregnant. We can’t wait to welcome baby boy #2 soon!

4 UNEXPECTED STRUGGLES WITH MY SECOND PREGNANCY

The first struggle I noticed with pregnancy #2 was obviously the tiredness you experience in the first trimester! The problem with the second pregnancy is that you can’t just rest or take a nap the way you could when you didn’t have another baby or toddler around who needs you to make sure they don’t kill themselves, ha! Just telling it like it is, friends. 😉 

I will say there were some EXTREME cases where I literally couldn’t hang anymore and I’d put Leyton in his crib, turn off the light, shut the door and let him have quiet time so I could nap. Desperate times called for desperate measures. 

Another thing I noticed with this pregnancy is it seems like heartburn has become an issue earlier on than it did with Leyton. I was taking a standard antacid every night, and in multiples, and wasn’t seeing much relief. Granted some of that is just how pregnancy is, right?! I heard from several of you to try Omeprazole, so the next time I was out running errands, I got a new fast-dissolving tablet called Omeprazole ODT.  They’re orally disintegrating tablets, and I still take them with water because it’s easier that way for me. 

The regimen is once a day for 14 days, and it can help relieve symptoms in just a few days. Please check with your doctor especially if you are pregnant to make sure he or she is OK with you taking it. Here’s where you can learn more about Omeprazole ODT.

I also asked my doctor about things you can do for pregnancy heartburn and he said to decrease caffeine, including chocolate, and sleep at an incline.

As I’ve mentioned before my weight gain this time has been SO different! Even though I’m still working out 4-6 times a week, eating relatively healthy with the occasional indulgences, I am gaining weight much faster this pregnancy. I’ve asked my doctor about it and he said it’s just how this baby and pregnancy is different and that I kind of just have to let it go. He said that I’m doing everything he would tell his patients to do with exercise and eating healthy (small portions, mini snacks throughout the day). 

With the rapid weight gain, my belly also popped out much faster than it did with Leyton. Even in my first trimester, I outgrew many pairs of pants and couldn’t easily conceal my bump. People say that if you have pregnancies close together that your body remembers what to do and just goes for it…they aren’t lying!

This pregnancy has also brought more lower back pain with it. I wonder if perhaps that has to do with lifting Leyton more or what, but regardless I didn’t notice that at all last pregnancy until the very end. Perhaps the pain is now being enhanced by the added weight gain now that I think about it. Hmmmm.

One thing that has helped with the back pain and also round ligament pain is seeing Friends & Family Chiropractic in Homewood. After my first really bad bout with back pain where it felt like I’d thrown out my back and the pain took my breath away, I went as soon as I could. The relief I felt even after the first time was shocking!

Lastly, this second pregnancy has been harder to relish because I hardly have time to think about being pregnant until the end of the day when Leyton is in bed. There were many days when I would almost forget I was pregnant and certainly didn’t have as much time to think about the do’s and don’ts of pregnancy as I did with the first one. When I would sit down at the end of the night after Leyton’s bedtime and start feeling the baby move around, I’d be like oh my gosh, yes, that’s right…there’s a baby in there!

First time moms, don’t forget to soak up the feelings of pregnancy and really listening to your body because once you have another baby or toddler that needs so much attention and physical needs from you, it’s hard to focus on your own with subsequent pregnancies!

I hope this gives you some insight into what my second pregnancy looks like and some of the struggles I face day to day. I really do feel incredibly blessed that these are my only struggles during pregnancy. I literally can’t imagine not sleeping or being sick the way some others of you rockstar moms are.

Did I leave anything out that you struggle with more with the second pregnancy? If so I’d love to hear it in the comments below!

Shop My Second Pregnancy Struggles here!