Pregnancy: 10 Years On

 


Pregnancy: 10 Years On

“You’ll be right!” They say, now that I’m pregnant with my third.

“You’ve done it twice before!”

Sure, that is true.. but how magic that women’s bodies, minds and souls are wired so fantastically to ‘forget’ a lot of it, too.

Whilst I will admit I am going in quite confidently and self-assured, I won’t ever forget the line I said immediately after having my catheter removed the morning following the birth of Florence (my second). As she tug, tug, tugged (a far from seamless process I recall from my first) I said to my then partner - “fuck this, I am NEVER doing this shit again!”

I forget the exact pain yes of the labour, but I don’t forget knowing it hurt. I forget the burning of those late contractions yes, but I don’t forget the panic of wondering if my epidural would make it in time. I forget the feeling of recovery, but I’ll never forget the look on my mums face when I showed her my swelling. I forget the delirium of sleep deprivation, but I’ll never forget the first 5 hour stretch feeling as though you’d slept a week.

With my son born in 2014, and my daughter in 2017, I thought I’d visit some of the things I’ve ah, overlooked - aka completely forgotten - when expecting again after a significant gap.

Tiredness: Now this one could be debated due to a significant difference in lifestyle then vs now. Then I was younger, fresh, fitter and most likely healthier - 22 years old when I fell pregnant with my first and 26 with my second. I didn’t have the commitments and responsibility I do now playing a single mum role to my son & daughter (and also being one of those parents who doesn’t want their child to miss out on anything) but their age also now comes with greater commitments even outside of school. So the tiredness is something I most certainly forgot as someone who once struggled to switch off / nap, you could now find me asleep at anytime of day, anywhere. However is that my age, too? Regardless, it really does hit you like a tonne of bricks and can wipe you out for an entire day.

Frequency of appointments: I remember being SO excited to have an appointment in my first pregnancy, now, amongst a busy working schedule and two older children, I don’t have time to fart let alone drive across the city to my obstetricians appointment. But alas, we must, and I love at this stage in my pregnancy they go from monthly, to fortnightly, to weekly...

Body Changes: I wouldn’t put this under ‘things I’ve forgotten’ but more something that surprised me third time around - how quickly my body changed! I did forget that awful, warm bloating where you’re convinced you have a big baby belly (until the real one actually comes along) but the rate in which my hips immediately widened, my boobs doubled in size, the texture of my skin and the fluid in my legs... it’s like the more pregnancies I have, the more fast-tracked everything is. And the more tender those early pregnancy nipples become... OUCH.

Fear: Every time you wipe after going to the bathroom...

For those who are returning to motherhood after a significant period of time, the excitement of it all is bound to be tinged with a little uncertainty. It’s SO easy to forget the details of pregnancy, childbirth and the early days of motherhood, especially when so much time has passed. Let me know what you completely forgot about!

Soph xx

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