There are many things in your life that will have an impact on you but becoming a mom will definitely make the biggest impact of all. When you experience your first pregnancy you feel happy, nervous, clueless, and for some scared shitless (me with my first pregnancy). But just like everything else life, you learn new things and adapt. one day at a time. Here are a few interesting changes that happen when you decide to have the second or third or fourth or hell just having a baby in general. Every pregnancy is different. You hear this statement while you are pregnant the first time and think yeah yeah yeah I know my body and I know what I’m doing over here, I’m in control. Next pregnancy you’re like who the F am I?!?! WTF is happening here? Then once you have one baby you are ready to have 5 more because you’re a professional now, you know the deal! NOPE.

WEIGHT GAIN. hmmm..the dreaded pregnancy weight gain that comes while pregnant and is fine because for GODS SAKE you have created a human and carried it for nine months in your womb you will gain whatever you want to gain. You are a human creating phenomenom. (also me with both pregnancies) Except my second pregnancy it didn’t fall right off, in fact my hips got wider, my waist bigger, and the baby fat still hanging in there. BUT WHY?! My first pregnancy it fell right off, and i put on my regular jeans a week after giving birth! I was totally back to normal in no time. Second pregnancy and I am LITERALLY a different human. Weight is STILL not off, the damn abdomen muscles didn’t even form back together properly. My back and lower pelvis area are so F***** that I can barely hit a fast jog without knocking it out of alignment and falling straight to the ground. Someone get me a life alert, I’m gonna need it.

BREASTFEEDING. Ohhhh breastfeeding, the decision you easily make while pregnant, yeah of course I will breastfeed. Welllllll pals, thats a real bitch too. Don’t get me wrong the first go round was like something out of a breastfeeding commercial. Perfect latch on, perfect milk production, pumped plenty for storage. Burned tons of calories. Second pregnancy, milk didn’t come in for over a week, bleeding raw nipples, finally milk comes and its like 5 drops, pumping at work THREE times a day to barely have enough to give the baby. 4 months in and it is finally a normal experience. FOUR MONTHS. ALSO it made me hungry as shit, and I literally burned ZERO calories.

PREGNANCY SYMPTOMS. First pregnancy: feels nauseas for 3 days…frolics around like a unicorn for the remaining 9 months. Next pregnancy: Literally on the verge of death for 9 months, hangs over toilet every morning and night, wears dramamine fuzzy light blue wrist bands everyday (including best friends wedding that you’re in), and pops zofran like M&Ms. ALSO. I had something called PUPPS, a rare pregnancy rash happening in the last months of pregnancy causing severe itchy rashes all over your body progressing as your labor hormones progress, so that means while you are in active labor pushing the nugget out, the rashes are spreading like wildfire on your body. I had benadryl in my IV and my L&D nurses lathering me up in a steroid cream to stop the itch. The rash goes away as soon as you deliver. craziest SHIT ever. But in better news I didn’t have the rash with my second pregnancy! HALLELUJAH! Are the symptoms different with boys or girls you ask? or what can I do to prevent? DOESN’T MATTER, IT AIN’T GONNA BE THE SAME LADIES. SO PREPARE.

LABOR. ohhh lawwwwwd I can’t even get into my long birth stories today, but i will eventually! Both labors induced. First was glorious, epidural worked like a charm, gracefully pushed out the baby in one push, and she barely needed a bath. Second labor process, labor was not progressing so my pitocin levels were hitting record highs as I started to feel even more NAUSEAS than I already was, finally came time to push and nothing happens, FOR TWO HOURS. TWO HOURS OF THE HARDEST PUSHING I EVER DONE IN MY LIFE. Finally I am nearly out of oxygen and need an oxygen mask, oh and also I start barfing numerous times into skinny little barf bag tubes, which luckily caused so much strain it pushed the baby out. soo.. yeah that was different.

POSTPARTUM. Ok ladies this is a serious subject for me. Just recently the topic of postpartum depression has really had some light shed onto it and woman are feeling more comfortable talking about it. It is a real situation. Being pregnant and having a child totally and completely rocks your whole body mentally and physically. It is important to recognize the feelings you are feeling and know who you can talk to about it. I experienced a world of trouble after my first pregnancy with my pregnancy rash episode, and a steroid crash from the cream they gave me for it, plus some touches of post part depression and anxiety that I was very unfamiliar with and very scared and upset by it. I was trying anti depressants, xantax, which both just left me drooling on myself and geeking out because of how I felt (very unnatural) so i stopped taking them and soon after I was back to myself again. I realized what had happened and knew I could control it the next time I had a baby. WRONG. The moment the nurse came in the room to tell us we were all good to go waves of pure terror rushed over my body, I fought it so hard, all the way to the car, while they rolled me in the wheelchair down the hospital halls, everyone was congratulating us but I was holding my breath trying to hold back tears. We got in the car and I lost it. I told Mark I didn’t know what was wrong but the feelings were back.This time I paid attention to my feelings and realized the things that calmed me down. Warm showers and snuggles with ella at night helped a lot. Lots of chats with my mom and best friend and my husband being there telling me it was ok got me through it. But again, we are all different friends! Some ladies never experience it, my best friend Hayley being one of those people, she wasn’t sick either during her pregnancies…she is one of the pregnancy unicorns.

MATERNITY CLOTHES. um…first thing.. Why are maternity clothes so expensive??? NO. Please don’t buy new pregnancy clothes. Buy yourself a belly band and live your life. First time around I was right there at all the top maternity stores like ok I’m going to need 4 maternity fancy dresses, 6 casuals ones, 13 pants, 42 shirts & also these maternity sweaters i’ll take 8. WHY. literally I ended up wearing 2 pairs of maternity shorts and XL v necks from target the ENTIRE pregnancy. Second time around was belly band heaven, thankfully I could just pull that sucker on with all my regular pants and shorts and go about my business. ANYTHING else I needed came from Hayley in her bag of saved maternity clothes that we have vowed to share now with all of our pregnancies or Goodwill.

SLEEP AND OVERALL WELL BEING. so long to the days of working all day and halfway into the night and then partying the rest of the night away with large amounts of alcohol. You could literally work a double shift until 1 Am, scurry home, change clothes and then head out on the town for 14 Jack and Cokes and dance the night away with out any problem at all, wake up at 8 AM the next morning and do it all again. Well they ain’t happening anymore. You are lucky to get up in the morning after a night with the baby, feeding it a bottle and rocking it to sleep. Zombie walking your way to the kitchen to make a large cup of coffee just to able to drive yourself to Starbucks to get another large coffee with 3 extra shots of espresso. Once you gain some strength after a few MONTHS and get a date night out, you’re drinking and “being out on the town” abilities have diminished and gone to shit. Might as well call the ambulance while I’m still at the bar because I’m gonna need it for that hangover in the morning. Party all night? Don’t count on it.

THE AMOUNT OF F***S YOU STARTED NOT GIVING. yeah…that happens when you become a parent. The things I do now literally blow my mind sometimes. We are talking wardrobe, makeup, grocery store, talking to customer service, life in general, gym, work. It’s a game changer. If I would have met my future self back in the day, she would have said “who the hell are you & why are you wearing that in public?” I still like to get dolled up, but don’t get it twisted I’m usually rocking a top knot on my head with some jean shorts and a v neck t shirt (yeah those XL ones I wore when I was pregnant). Makeup? Nada. Crocs? Yep I wear them! leopard nightgowns? Yeah boiiiii! I’m proud of my motherhood, I’m proud of my family and the lifestyle changes my husband and I have gone through to be the parents we are today! Sooo WASSUP parenthood!

Every woman’s pregnancy and delivery is different. I thought I knew what I was doing after I had my first child but much to my surprise..I didn’t. It’s all a glorious, beautiful experience that I will definitely go through again one day. Cheers to all you moms out there! Motherhood is magical but it’s also scary as hell! We could use all the help we can get!