Second Pregnancy

Widowed, But Never Alone (Anonymous)

Bonnie (SOAM) Belly, Breasts, Postpartum, Second Pregnancy, Submissions, Widow 8 Comments

Age: 22
Number of births: 2
Ages: 4 years and 2 years

I had my first son when I was seventeen. It took almost two years before I decided to change anything about myself as I weighed almost fifty pounds more then I had before pregnancy. Shortly after getting my body back I lost my husband to the war and was pregnant with my second child. I did everything I could to not loose the hard work I had done and stayed healthy. It is a long struggle and I am still trying to get my body back but I know that things can never be the same. My children keep me strong and fighting everyday.

Beautiful Blessings (Leah)

Bonnie (SOAM) African American, Belly, Pregnant, Second Pregnancy, Submissions 10 Comments

I am 23 years old and expecting my third baby. My children are 1 and 8 months apart ,I have two girls and I’m praying for a little boy. My first pregnancy was a natural birth that lasted 5 hrs. and my second pregnancy was an emergancy c-section. I love my doctor I have the smallest scar you ever seen. The journey through both pregnancies were life changing and I can’t wait to see whats next. I came across this site to get a glimps of what my belly might look like in my third pregnancy and I’ve seen dissapionting comments that led me to post my story. Not only am I m having a third baby but my children are bi-racial and I know how it feels to be ridicualed in public by people. They are half puerto rican and african american and their beautiful. I actually was in shoprite and A women came up to me and said your a very young nanny, I thought to myself she must think my kids were somebody elses becauses their so light and I’m darker then them. It did hurt alittle, but I just told here that these are my children and then she went on saying that I should be ashamed because of my age. I asked her how old do you think I am , she replied 15 and yes I do look young but to flat out embaress me like that in public was rude of an older women.

so I finally told here that Im 23 and I could see that she was embaressed , I said its ok I get it alot. I knew she was embaressed and she apologized. I had so many comments given to because thier bi racial and because I look young but, I just pray for those people and keep my head up. I write this not only for myself but all moms out there. God bless you and keep doing the best career in the World.

Young Mom to Two Gifts (Kathryn)

Bonnie (SOAM) Belly, First Pregnancy, Postpartum, Pregnant, Second Pregnancy, Submissions, Teen Mom 1 Comment

I had my sons close together my oldest will be 2 in June 6/16/09 3:16pm 6 pounds 6 ounces 21 inches long! My pregnancy with him was horrible I was nauseous from 6 weeks up until I delivered at 39w 2d I threw up frequently but really didn’t loose much weight oddly. I had him at 18 I weighed 154 I had been that size since I was 14. Day of delivery I was 167 or 169 at my 6w check up I was 154 but my pants didn’t fit because my fat moved around didn’t really bother me that much. When my oldest was 6 months I found out I was pregnant again!! I was happy that my first born would have a pal to play with. My second pregnancy was wonderful up to 35-36 weeks I was nauseous the normal 8w-12w. I never vomited with him and a wonderful pain free birth and he was born on my 20th birthday Sept 9th 2010. He was 6 pounds 6 ounces 19 inches long 10:51am I actually got to breastfeed him for a week up until we found out that he had a dairy/soy allergy and reflux. I was fine to quit nursing I was in so much pain from it because my milk came in. I recovered from his birth fine and was out driving the next day didn’t even use my pain meds. At my 6 week check up I was 150 something but now I am 173 and have a whole mess of stretch marks they don’t bother me what bothers me is the flabby fat my stomach and thighs are the worst but I don’t diet and I don’t eat healthy and I’m not really active but that’s about to change when I start work in June! I am thinking about buying a Wii fit I heard positive things about it. When it really gets to me I just look at my youngest and he gives me a huge smile and I know he loves me so its worth the extra 23 pounds to have 2 gifts in my life.

Age:20
Number of pregnancies and births: 2 pregnancies 2 births
The age of your children, or how far postpartum you are: my oldest 2 in June youngest 6 1/2 months
I am 6 1/2 months pp

1st one is me at 36 weeks with my second.2nd one is the day my 2nd was born.3rd one is 24 hours after having my first and the last one is my oldest at 21 months

Birth is a privilege and every scar is a testament of what we’ve been through and it’s made us who we are (Simone)

Bonnie (SOAM) Belly, Mom over 30, Pregnant, Second Pregnancy, Submissions 4 Comments

I went through my first pregnancy comparing my damaged body to all the other women I believed came out of it completely unscathed! It seemed like just about everyone had a washboard unblemished stomach just weeks after giving birth.

It took me a long time to accept my post pregnancy body and to realise it wasn’t nearly as unattractive as I believed it was. In fact, while the father of my boys failed to appreciate my post pregnancy body and our marriage didn’t last, I have gone on to date some stunning (and younger) men who have never had a problem with my post pregnancy stomach! I was recently told by an old (now pregnant) colleague that my ability to attract young hot men was an inspiration to mothers everywhere! I agree. I’m still looking for a man who is the whole package (not just a Personal Trainer or an Ironman – seriously) but quite simply, my post pregnancy body has been no inhibitor. I take excellent care of my body by leading an active and healthy lifestyle and I am grateful every day for the privilege of having my two boys.

I may choose to have a tummy tuck one day, I may not – I simply know it is no longer required for me to feel good about myself, attractive and to be grateful for what I have.

~Age: 36
~Number of pregnancies and births: 2 boys
~The age of your children, or how far postpartum you are: aged 10 and 2

6 Months Postpartum and Still Healing (Jillyn)

Bonnie (SOAM) Belly, Breasts, Child Loss, Homebirth, Plus-Sized Mom, Postpartum, Second Pregnancy, Update 14 Comments

I am posting my postpartum pictures here of my body after my second pregnancy. My previous post is here.

This pregnancy came a bit unexpected for my husband and I. After the birth and death of our first daughter we planned to wait a year before TTC again. But just 6 months postpartum we found out i was expecting again. By 6 months PP i hadn’t lost any of my pregnancy weight and I actually gained a bit. I believe i started my second pregnancy at around 215lbs (i am 5’5″). The pregnancy was an emotional time for me because i was still trying to deal with the emotions and grief of loosing our first daughter. We tried to keep things as peaceful as we were able. We had a midwife for the pregnancy and planned a homebirth.

I delivered our second daughter at 41 weeks and 2 days. Everything went wonderful and we have a very happy and healthy 6 month old (she was 7lbs and 20″ long at birth). I’ve still been struggling with my emotions this postpartum and i’m trying not to slip into depression but sometimes it’s hard, especially with a very high needs baby (most would say she had Colic). But there are many good times and she is such a blessing in our life. Our “rainbow” baby :)

The day i went into labor i weighed 250lbs and a couple weeks postpartum i believe i was around 230lbs. I’ve struggled with accepting my new body but i don’t 100% hate it. I hate how much my belly and hips droop with extra skin, but other than that i’m not too upset. I actually like my stretch marks and i think they are pretty cool (i thought they were cool before as well). One thing that i thought was neat was when i was pregnant with our first daughter i got stretch marks and they started to heal and were more white. Then when i started to stretch more at the end of this pregnancy you could see where my old stretch marks ended (from first DD) and my new ones began. The day i took these postpartum pictures (6 months) i weighed myself and i was 213lbs (and at 6.5 months PP i’m 208lbs!).

The pictures i posted are from 6 months postpartum. I tried to take pictures of all the changes. I included pictures of my worst stretch marks, ones inside my thighs. I have one on each side and they actually split so bad that sometimes they bled and i wasn’t able to walk properly. Even now one of them still splits sometimes (as you can see in the photo). Of course they were much bigger during the pregnancy (about 1/2″ wide and 3-4″ long!). I also took a close up shot of my stretch marks on my belly. And I included a couple pictures from at the end of my pregnancy :)

~Age: 23
~Number of pregnancies and births: 2 pregnancies, 2 births, both vaginal
~The age of your children, or how far postpartum you are: First DD died after birth, Second DD is 6.5 months. Pictures taken when i was 6 months PP.

To Love Thyself (Jessa)

Bonnie (SOAM) Belly, Cesarean, Postpartum, Pregnant, Second Pregnancy, Submissions 3 Comments

Age: 23
Number of pregnancies and births: 2 pregnancies, 2 births
Age of children: almost 3, 8 months

I have never loved my body. I was a skinny child, but I never paid attention to my body at that age. By the time I actually became ‘self-aware’ and started nit-picking about my appearance, I had gained some ‘fluff.’ In high school I was 5’3’’ and weighed between 125-130 lbs. I thought I was fat. HA! I stopped eating for a couple months, but my self-image only played a small part in that. Most of it was the depression. The starving dropped my weight to 120. Still chunky for my height and age. When I started eating again (do to my now husband’s encouragement), I gained weight like I was moving to the Arctic and needed the body fat of a whale to survive the cold.

On my wedding day, at 19 years of age, I weighed 140 lbs. Three months later we got pregnant and over the course of that pregnancy, during my second year of college (yay for stress!) I gained 42 lbs. I’m not going to tell you how often I cried because I was only a stone’s throw away from weighing 200 lbs. Really didn’t help my depression any. That first year postpartum was rough. By the time I finally got to a place of acceptance with my new mommy body my daughter was 15 months old, and we found out we were expecting our second child. It was a bit of a roller-coaster, but overall I loved my pregnant body. I loved how firm my stomach was when it had been much like a water bed before. I loved how the second time around I never got a single stretch mark, where my belly was riddled with stretch marks from my first pregnancy. At 40 weeks pregnant I had gained 31 lbs for a total weigh in of 185 lbs.

My youngest daughter was born cesarean section. On top of flabby skin, silver stretch marks over my stomach, boobs, hips and thighs, I have the c-section scar. But I’m okay with all that. My husband finds me more beautiful today, having grown his two children in my womb, than he did when he first fell in love with me. His cat calls, winks and pick up lines are all encouraging to say the least.

I am 8 months postpartum. I weigh roughly 155 lbs. I get asked if I am pregnant at least once a month. But I wouldn’t trade that for anything, because I got two of the most amazing little girls out of it. My jello-like tummy, silver stripes and c-section scar are my battle wounds. I am an Amazonian worrier. I am a mother.

Photos attached are
1. 40 weeks pregnant with my youngest
2. 4 weeks postpartum
3. 8 months postpartum (shirt up)
4. 8 months postpartum with my almost 3 year old (shirt down)

Updated here.

2 Kids and Body Afterwards (Heather)

Bonnie (SOAM) Belly, Breasts, Cesarean, Cesarean Scar and/or Incision, Postpartum, Second Pregnancy, Submissions 14 Comments

I had my first son at age 19. I was 115 pounds and a size three. In my pregnancy I went up to 198 pounds. My body never went to normal. For while i stayed at 165 pounds. Stretch marks on my inner legs ouuter upper legs vigina, boobs love handles belly almost every where . So a few years later I decided to have smart liop/. Now I have six scar from that and loose flabby belly. A year later I got pregnant again, and my stretch marks got worse on my boobs and are past my belly botton on my belly. I’m 23 now with a 4 year old and a one year old. I love my boys but hate my body… I’m a size 7,9 now and 136 pounds.. i had a c section with my 2nd.. i’m ugly.. I used to play sofe ball and be a cheerleader. Now no one wants to see me. I don’t even ghe the beach i can’t wear a one piece cause of the stretch marks on my legs whta do I do

Starting to Love My Body Again (Anonymous)

Bonnie (SOAM) Belly, Cesarean, Postpartum, Second Pregnancy, Submissions, Update 6 Comments

I am 25 years old and have two beautiful little boys. I hated my body after my first child and finally got the weight off when he was about 1 1/2 yrs, only to find out the week that i reached my goal weight that i was pregnant with my second. I was so happy to welcome our new little boy into the world, but i was right back where i started. Well it has been about 19 months and i am again working to get back to my pre-pregnancy weight. I am only about 5 lbs. away now!!

Age: 25
Number of pregnancies/births: 2
Age of children: 3 yrs. 7 m. and 19 months

2 cesareans, 2nd pregnancy

Pic #1- My wonderful little men
Pics 2 &3- 19 months pp after second pregnancy

Updated here.

27 with 2 kids, 1 c-section and dealing with the scar left behind (Marie P.)

Bonnie (SOAM) Belly, Cesarean, Cesarean Scar and/or Incision, First Pregnancy, Postpartum, Pregnant, Second Pregnancy, Submissions 17 Comments

I am currently 27 and 3 months and 1 week post c-section. I have 2 children a 5 year old and now a 3 month old. My son was a c-section and needless to say I, like other women have had struggles with my new body and scarring. Our bodies not only change but they permanently stay unusual in our eyes. And we have to find it within us somewhere to accept it. Before my 5 year old I was very active running every day. So I guess you can say I was in very much in shape. During my first pregnancy I was also active. I was working all the way until I popped and even during my pregnancy I ran up until I was 4 months and took yoga classes. My pre-weight was 110 and at the end of my pregnancy I was 142. I delivered her vaginally with no complications. And short after 2 weeks in having her I was eager to hit the track and start running again. my eagerness caused me to hemorrhage for a 1 month. So I forced myself to stay put for a month. Once I healed and followed doctors orders I hit the track. about 4 months later I was 110 again and my body was prob in the best shape ever, even before my daughter was born. Hard work paid off then. Opting to grace my husband with a son I got pregnant at 26 (having kept in mind that my 1st pregnancy was smooth sailing). After just 3 months into pregnancy, i gained a few pounds and fast. My starting weight was 118. By my 4th month I was 125 and feeling very sick. I was always sleepy and tired and very noxious daily. This pregnancy was definitely different. Needless to say I was not able to work out during this pregnancy. About my 7th month and 8th month of pregnancy I was finally able to walk on the treadmill 3 times a week with much back ache though. My son of course at 37 weeks was footling breech and they had scheduled me to do what they call a version. Where they manually try to turn the baby while in your womb from the outside. This procedure lasted 35 minutes and was very painful for me. After a failed attempt to turn him the doc felt I should go home and we would schedule a c-section. Until the PA found me to be 4 cm dilated. With my son’s foot lodged into my pelvis bone the doctor felt best i had a c-section that day since i was so far dilated. As we got everything prepared to have a baby, another doctor took the shift and felt he could be successful in turning the baby manually to save me having to be cut open. Although I felt like we should just go as planned the doctor was more convincing then I was. So we tried once more for this version. During this process the doctor caused my son to go in distress (meaning having bowel movements in the womb) which then called for an emergency c-section rather then scheduled. The OR was not prepared for a c-section. The nurses had not set up for this and the doctor and nurses were yelling at each other. My husband was called in late into the OR as he was walking in my son was being yanked out. He wasn’t breathing at first but he was revived and his leg was unfortunately broken. I was heart broken but i am so blessed to have him here and thankful that he is ok now. The result of my c-section is my beautiful son who endured alot his first seconds of life. With all that happened my recovery from all this was definitely a hard and long one. the pain was nothing like Ive experienced. But because of how eager I am to be fit, I had in my mind that I was going to start working out 2 weeks pp. Well that didnt happen as planned. My pain lasted longer then 2 weeks. So I wanted to wait another week. I had read all this internet stories about women who had ran as little as 3 weeks pp. So I thought I would be one of them. Well my caring husband would not let me and forbid me from working out before 6 weeks. So having no choice other then waiting I looked daily at my scar and breast that began to slowly sag. The more I looked at my scar the more depressed I got. I applied mederma cream and gel faithfully in hopes that in just 6 weeks the scar would go away. Ladies, it doesn’t work like that. After my 6 week pp I hit the gym thinking I could jog cause I was in shape prior. Nope! It hurt like hell to jog. So for about 1month I kept it at walk and gradually turned it into a jog by Feb. (if you use a trimming belt to suppress your incision area, it helps alot) By the end of Feb. I was able to run again. And by March 1st I was able to run at my peak and without my trimming belt. Im having regular workout sessions as before and I feel great. Until I undress. I know I should see my scar as a trophy scar but I dont. My trophy is my son being here and thats the best trophy out there. My scar is just a new flaw that I have. I got a few stretch marks but they disappear in about a year. (as they did with my daughter) My breast are very run down and I plan on getting them re-done. My husband is very supportive and tries so hard to reassure me that it doesnt mean anything to him and he doesn’t care a bout a stupid scar because he loves me and he is deeply attracted to me. But some ladies will agree that in the society we live in to day. What and how you look is often judge before your personality. Which is very sad. But this is my body and its just something Im not and will never get use to seeing. My ending pregnancy weight at 37 weeks was 152. I am now 3 months and 1 week post c-section and weighing 117. I have 7 more pounds to lose but this time around its been harder then before. For those trying to lose weight after a csection. Follow doctors orders and listen to your body. The after effects like the scarring and the stretch marks are something us women have to deal with that no one will ever understand how it could make us feel. Whether its a lot of stretch marks or 1 stretch mark or horrible incision or sagging breast or prune belly. We have to find ways to accept our bodies… and that is what im trying to do No ones said it would be easy and I am learning that as I go. I know some people have worse and some have it lightly but this is me and what I can stand. And it just doesnt sit well with me.

I have included photos:
1 photo of me before i got pregnant with my daughter
1 during my pregnancy with her
1 after the 1st pregnancy weight loss
1 before my pregnancy with my son
2 during my sons pregnancy
3 of my c section scar
1 of my cankles :)
3 of my body now
1 of my son and his trauma
1 of my scar at 3months 1week

Tummy Struggles (Anonymous)

Bonnie (SOAM) Belly, Cesarean, Endometriosis, Postpartum, Second Pregnancy, Submissions 7 Comments

~Age: 27 years old
~Number of pregnancies and births: Two
~The age of your children, or how far postpartum you are: 3 and 2 years old, both born by c-section.

Every day I look in the mirror and feel a wee bit sad, I have a miss-shaped belly button, scaring in my belly button from any endometriosis surgeries.

My body tells a story. with all the paths leading different ways, spiralling all over my body.

Whilst I am grateful for my two beautiful children I feel sad about what it has done to my body, in fact so much I am putting off having another until my stomach is toned more.

I am not sure how toned I could make it though, there’s only so much going back right?

When I see other women’s bodies like my own I feel okay, but my own, I’m not so okay about.

I just wanted to share to show that no all bodies are made perfect, to those women out there struggling with it like I am!