Oh, I admit, they aren't big differences at all. It's not like I sailed through pregnancy last time with nary a symptom and suddenly threw up through nine months this time or anything like that. They are just small things, small variations from each other, for some people hardly noticeable, and even I admit, probably inconsequential. But I've become so aware of my body the last few years that I *do* notice them. (And remark on them with far too high a frequency.)
Like at the beginning. I felt this pregnancy around implantation. True, true, I was waiting for this pregnancy, but the last one I had no idea until several days after I missed my period, and it didn't even occur to me until then to even buy a pregnancy test. And the reason I felt it was because I had this strange twinge in my lower right side, a twinge that got more and more painful through the first half of the pregnancy, before disappearing all together. Never had THAT with the first one.
And then there was the morning sickness. Which this time actually WAS morning sickness, unlike last time when mornings were the best time of the day, even during the worst of the nausea. I would cough and dry heave in the mornings this time -- and last time it was just unremitting nausea each day. Which was another difference -- this time I had weeks on end of nausea that would come and go, and tiredness that would come and go, days where it felt like all pregnancy symptoms had vanished all together, only to come round another day like nothing had ever happened. The last time, I felt fine fine fine until around week eight when I had three weeks of consistent nausea, and then ... poof! nothing.
The carrying of the baby is completely different too, as I've mentioned. At 7.5 months last time, I was a swollen, enormous scary pregnant lady who could barely haul herself around and had to wear support hose for swollen legs. I had little sausage fingers from six months onwards. This time I still have knuckles and ankle bones and those old lady support hose are nowhere in sight. And I hope to keep it that way. This time I've gained some weight in my hips (ok. A lot.) and I have a big baby bump, but that's it! It's lovely, if I do say so myself. (although I could do without the hips.)
Then there's the pregnancy congestion, which THIS time has plagued me from four or five months in, and nothing I can do helps. Last time it was mostly a third trimester thing, and a humidifier pretty much kept the problem at bay.
And lastly may I just complain for a moment about the tiredness. I am SO MUCH MORE TIRED. This is normal for second pregnancies, I know: I've polled the daycare moms. I mean, let's face it: I'm still working full time, like last time, but THIS time I have a four year old to take care of, which necessitates more housework and more meal prep (for some reason he needs to EAT when we get home. Go figure.) But it's also exacerbated by the fact that my body doesn't want to sleep much any more, and most nights I'm up at 4am and dozing the rest of the night. I am NOT HAPPY about this. I'd be much better able to deal with it if I were off work, but I still have to THINK every day, which is truly unfortunate.
If you ask some of the old wives' tales, they will tell you that different symptoms mean a different gender child, but I'm more inclined to think that it's more a matter of four years later / different diet. I wonder if perhaps my poor body didn't like gluten before, and the pregnancy tiredness and sickness and edema that I had then were part of my body trying to grow a baby AND cope with other things.
Or maybe it just is what it is.
Also: added in much later -- I have NOT yet had much heartburn (requiring of course the ingestion of gallons of vanilla ice cream, perhaps the reason I gained 60 pounds last pregnancy ... -- and I HAVE had leg cramps. So far most leg cramps just required mild stretching -- not the kind that require you to get out of bed and stand on the affected limb for ten minutes or more. Still. Not exactly pleasant.
V. strange.
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