Monday 15 October 2018

The second trimester - pregnancy update, baby number two

When I first blogged for Natural Birthing Company, I was sharing the story of my journey tobecome mum first time around, and how we found out we were expecting our secondbaby, due in early December. My first trimester was full of anticipation, nerves and some anxiety, I have to be honest, as having experienced a miscarriage last year, we were far more cautious this time around. We had extra, private scans early on to be sure everything was going ok and it was nice to finally reveal to everyone our happy news when all the signs looked positive.

So, how has the second trimester been? You can see this post over on the NBC website too, as I am a blogger ambassador for them, but there's lots to cover, so I have shared it here too to keep you up to date...


Well, I do have to say I feel like I have been pregnant a LONG time, but that isn’t in a bad way - I really do enjoy having a bump and, touch wood, everything is going well and I am feeling good. In fact, during the course of my second trimester, my overall health and well-being seems to have improved a lot; my skin has been really clear, my hair seems to be growing and thickening and I do feel good in myself. I had one or two days around 24 weeks where I suddenly felt quite sad, for no apparent reason, but it didn’t develop into anything and I talked to my husband about how I was feeling, so I’m putting it down to pregnancy hormones.

Scans and appointments

There hasn’t been a great deal to share from a medical perspective as being a second time mum, currently classified as low risk, I’ve barely had any midwife or other appointments. I had a 16 week appointment when I actually met my midwife for the first time, and a second then at 28 weeks, when I found my midwife was someone new. In between, there was just the 20 week scan and the whooping cough vaccination to have (which was no way as bad as I thought it was the first time around, and luckily I only had some dull aches in my arm for a couple of days, nothing more).

Of course we were so excited to have the 20 week scan - nervous again but as I had started to feel some flutters and pops in my tummy from about 17 weeks (I wasn’t sure, but by 18 weeks I knew that it was baby wriggling as they were becoming more pronounced and regular) I was filled with a lot more positivity. We then saw baby and I was just so happy! They were being a little monkey too, as they were facing upside down. The sonographer managed to take a lot of the readings and measurements but even with me drinking water and walking up and down stairs for 20 minutes, and squatting, we couldn’t convince them to do more than turn on their side. This meant a measurement on the heart and a good look at the lips wasn’t possible, so we made an appointment to come back. At 22 weeks, we got to see baby again and his time, we brought our five year old, Ethan with us. We’d had some time to think about if we wanted to find out what baby was; I was so on the fence! We didn’t with Ethan and it was a wonderful surprise, so I wanted to have that again. Baby was being mischievous again, still pointing down and sideways but some more juggling coaxed them into a good enough spot for the scan to show everything was normal and progressing as it should. Phew!

The photos we have from the 20 and 22 week scans aren’t as clear as our 12 week one, because of baby’s position, so how they look is still quite a bit of a mystery to us.

22 week scan

Bump and me

I do love being pregnant, for the most part. I never feel as confident or proud of my body as I do when I have a bump, and it is a really special time. I started using my Natural Birthing Company oil every day to help with any stretchmarks, but mainly to give bump a treat, and it does help especially as my skin is stretching as my bump grows to a pretty decent size! It’s true, you do seem to show quicker and become more round the second time around, but my midwife says that bump measures just as it should so that’s good to know.

Maternity clothes are a bit of a pain, if I am honest. Sure, you can wear a lot of normal clothes, either in looser styles or larger sizes, so don’t have to buy and entirely new wardrobe, but when it comes to trousers and jeans, you do need to invest. Most maternity ranges are only available to buy online it seems, unless you have a larger store nearby, so it can be a bit of trial and error when ordering clothes to fit your changing shape. I think as I head into my third trimester, it may be leggings all the way…!

Towards the end of the second trimester, I have started to experience some heartburn, mainly at night, and a bit of hip pain. Nothing too severe, but something I am using heartburn tablets and pregnancy pillows when I sleep to help with. My appetite is good, and I am making a real effort to eat a good breakfast, and to have snacks everywhere I go – especially in my car, as you never know when hungry will strike. And boy, does it!


Baby and me

I have really enjoyed this trimester, as my connection to baby has grown with the growth of my bump. I can recognise their patterns, look forward to spotting their ripples and kicks and was so excited when, at around 24 weeks, both hubby and my son could feel baby moving too.

We sorted through some of Ethan’s baby things to see what we could still use and what we would like to buy; glad that we did this, as we received some manufacturer advice on car seats and how ours, having been stored in the loft for five years, would now be deemed as unfit for use. I started doing my research into the confusing world of prams and travel systems again and managed to pick up a bargain over the Bank Holiday weekend on the range we wanted, so that was something substantial and fun to do in getting ready for our new arrival.

We don’t need to get a huge amount, but I think the start of the third trimester will be about getting the essentials in – clothes, bottles, bedding – and our bags packed early, just in case. I’m going to be packing Natural Birthing Company’s Cool It Mama as this was a lovely refreshing treat during the hotter weather in summer and this will be a nice pick me up I am sure during labour. I’ll also start using the Bottoms Up perineum oil from 24 weeks and the Relax and Breathe Calming Massage Oil sounds just divine, so will ask hubby if he can help as a relax as much as I can before the big day.

We will also start sorting our Christmas nice and early as, all being well and on time, our little bundle will be delivered at the start of December…

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