Carrying Second Baby Low

Hi J.,

You are in my prayers.

Please, TRUST YOUR INSTINCTS!!!!!
If you think there is something that "just isn't quite right", I would encourage you to go into your doctor and politely and firmly request an exam and an ultrasound.

I had two friends who lost their babies because they didn't trust themselves, but listened to their doctors who said not to worry. One was 7 1/2 months pregnant, and one was 8 1/4 months pregnant.

YOU are the ONLY one who knows your body and and your baby.
PLEASE LISTEN TO YOUR BODY AND YOUR INSTINCTS. God gives us those instincts and those concerns for a reason- survival and life.

Thank you and your husband for serving and defending our country. Being willing to make the sacrifices for our freedom. The cost is more that most of us will ever know.

God's Blessings and Protection,

G. H.

Hello! I am 8 months pregnant with my second and I would swear to God that the baby's hand or foot is coming out of me right now!! I was just at the doctor yesterday and he said that his wife explained it as a knife jabbing into her vagina. He said that is all part of my body getting ready to give birth. Just so you know - I wasn't dialated and he said the baby is high up. So don't worry, just cuz you're having this pain does not mean that you are in pre-term labor. You're just stretching those muscles and getting ready!

When I hit the 7 month mark with my first one, he was sitting so low that it hurt whenever I would sit down. It always felt like I was pushing him back in. My other three boys all decided to park themselves on my sciatica the entire time. That was horrible. I wouldn't worry about it to much as long as you don't feel like you are going into labor. Good luck.

Hi J.,
I have a daughter who will be three in late September and a new son who is 4 months old. I carried my son very low for the entire last trimester. I could have sworn that I would go early too and I was eight days overdue!!! His head was so low that it made me very uncomfortable at the end... I practically lived on the toilet with him pushing on my bladder. I think that with the second baby your stomach muscles are so stretched that you sometimes can carry lower. Or maybe it was because it was a boy? Either way, I don't think that you have anything to worry about.. Good luck and congrats!

Melissa

My second two kids "hung low" but no problems. Unless you're really feeling badly and if the Dr. thinks everything is fine, relax and enjoy the ride!

SAHM of seven, my oldest is USMC, not yet deployed

J.~
Its quite normal... I carried both my girls very low..they both came 2 weeks early.. one was 6lbs 6 oz and secondwas 8.2oz so they turned out fine.. as long you are not spotting or having a any contractions or any other troubles with your pregancy.. You should be alright.. try not to worry too much or you will go into preterm labor..We wouldnt want you to do that just not yet..Good luck... Shannon

I would not say you are worried over nothing, every pregnant mother's concern should be dealt with respectfully.

Once you have had one baby it is very common to have the others position themselves low...Your muscles have already been stretched and they are not as strong. With my second two I carried VERY low, and in fact I was 0 station a whole 5 weeks before delivery with one. Needless to say, when my water broke with him, it took a whopping 2 hours and one push to deliver a 10 lb baby.

Best of luck to you, and your husband, I will keep your family in my prayers. I hope his deployment goes well, and he is able to return to you safely.
A.;)

I was the same way with my 2nd. I was told it was because everything is already streched out from the 1st one. I had the same problem with the bladder and the sciata (sp??) nerve -- super painful! I would not worry, especially if your OB says it is OK too :) I know it is hard (more like impossible) with the second one but try to sit down as much as possible ~ LOL!! Best of Luck!

When you go in for your next appointment I would talk to your Doctor about yout concerns. Chances are it is nothing to worry about but if you are worring about it, I believe, it is worth checking out. I believe in following your instint.
I work as a Doula and am also wondering if you have someone to be at your birth with you, in the chance that you go after your husband leaves (considering you will probably go after he is deployed)? I would suggest checking out www.DONA.org and tring to find a doula in your area that would be willing to help you out durring labor.
Please contact me if you need more info or help finding a Doula.
A. M

I agree with everyone that you should still talk to your doctor about your concerns and maybe have an exam to make sure that everything is fine. However, my first two children were extremely low the whole pregnancy and my worst was the second one. I remember describing it like she was going to fall out or that I was going to look down and have a hand sticking out. It was often uncomfortable to sit for that reason. I would also feel all kinds of movement down there as well. It was SO strange! There were no problems and she came just a few days early. The doctor said it was common with subsequent pregnancies. However, I'm pregnant again now and haven't felt that at all, so who knows! This one I feel in my ribs. Good luck!

I had a whole month left to go on my pregnancy and I suddenly swelled up like a balloon and itched like crazy all over. I called the doctor who was on call, and he asked what I ate that day and I told him normal stuff plus lots of cake. He said I had too much salt! (There was nothing salty in the list I gave him, but swelling is sometimes associated with large salt intake.) I told him I didn't have too much salt and I thought something was wrong, but he said I was over-reacting and to just go lie down. The next evening my water broke and my son was born one month premature.

everythng turned out fine thank god only minor complications, but moral of the story is: TRUST YOUR INSTINCTS!!!

If you are worried, physically go to the doctor's office and or ER or clinic or whatever and demand (politely but firmly) to be given a physical exam.

Sometimes doctors are wrong and your body might be trying to tell you something. If your nurses are not at least addressing your concerns adequately, you do not have a good team working for you- you need the support at the medical level, not someone brushing aside your concerns!

If I were you, I would go get an exam!

{{{HUGS}}}
-Jen

I to would not worry about it as long as everything is good at your dr visits. I carried my son very low as well. People would always comment to me about how low he was. It was not very comfortable always having him on my blatter but everything was just fine.

I know everyone else has said it is normal to carry a baby low, but I would ask your doctor to be more thorough. (Maybe have her/him check for dilation)

When I was pregnant with my third child I felt like she was trying to come out by about 28 weeks. I had so much pressure down low. I told my doctor and she was unconcerned, and never checked me. My daughter was born at just under 32 weeks. She weighed 3# 12 oz. and had to be placed on a ventilator. After 17 days she was able to come home from the hospital and has been perfectly fine ever since (she will be 5 years old soon!), but it was very scary. I always felt like if my dr. had checked me at my last visit when I expressed concern, she would have known and maybe could have delayed labor.

I also had no cramping or contractions until a few hours before she was born. Because she had been so low for most of the pregnancy, maybe I was used to the discomfort? I made it to the hospital less than an hour before she was born, so there was no stopping the labor at that point. It happened very fast.

I don't mean to scare you, but based on my experience, I wouldn't agree with all of the other responses telling you not to worry. I think that you know your body better than anyone and if things don't feel quite right you should definitely push the issue with your dr.
If she does examine you and says there are no early warning signs of labor, at least you will be able to stop worrying so much. Also, possibly an ultrasound to check the baby's development to see if there would be any real concerns if he is born early.

I wish you the best of luck.

(I just noticed that your husband is due for deployment before the baby is due, maybe God has planned for the baby to arrive before he leaves.)

My second child dropped 2 month early. My doctor had me keep my feet up as much as possible and drink a gallon of water a day (the water helps thicken your blood and decrease the amount of chemicals that can start contractions). My son was born healthy and only 3 days early! Make sure you talk to your doctor about this at your next appointment, but hopefully all will be well! Best of luck to you!

K.

Hi! I know every situation is different, but I can say that I carried my second baby that way. He hung out a lot lower than my first, and his movements were a bit uncomfortable. If you do what I did, the baby will get even lower and more way out there in the last few weeks! Hang in there! Oh, and if you have a maternity belt, that will help lift the baby some, or relieve some of the pressure from the way you are carrying.

I agree with many of the other replies you've gotten already. As long as the baby is still moving around and you're not contracting or spotting I wouldn't worry too much. Mainly I just wanted to say that I wish you luck. It must be very difficult for you to be pregnant and chasing a two year old around. Especially with your husband gone. I'm grateful for his service, and yours. Best wishes to you and yours. T.

With my second and third pregnancies, I carried lower than I had with my first. I'm sure it's nothing to worry about! Good luck with your pregnancy! It's fun having 2 boys two years apart - enjoy!

J.,
Feeling movement low could mean that the baby is in a breech position. If you haven't yet, at your next appointment, ask your care provider what position the baby is in. They should be able to do this quite easily. If baby is breech, there are quite a few things you can do do encourage baby to turn head-down before delivery.
Best of Luck!
S. M.

I have had four babies, and this happened to me too, even more so with eah one. It is really normal. The fact is your body remembers how things work, and things were brand new the first time. Subsequent pregnancies are generally more uncomfortable toward the end than first pregnancies. All of those muscles and ligaments that hold your belly up when you are pregnant have all been stretched out once before, and just like anything else that is stretched out, it takes some doing to hold up the weight from that little one and everything supporting him/her. Eventually you may end up walking around feeling like the baby will just fall out any second. No worries though. I can nearly guarantee you that it will take more effort than that when the time comes for your little bundle to arrive. Good luck!!!

S.

Yes, you are worrying over nothing. Every baby lies in a different position. In the olden days they used these "symptoms" to determine the gender of a baby.

I had two girls and both of them seemed to "dance" on my bladder too. However, I'm short so any baby might have done the same thing. I'll never know... two kids is enough for me :o)

Dear J., hi my name is C. and I can relate to you and this pregnancy very well. As my third pregnancy was low and I felt like she was going to drop out at anytime, but not my luck as i carried her over almost a month. I was miserable almost my whole pregnancy. the bigger I got the lower she felt. I also was bed ridden between my first and second trimesters for about a month. the funniest thing about it was that I felt like I was always walking funny because of the pressure down below. One good thing was when I went into labor it wasn't a hard one nor did it last long and my water broke on its own. While I was being prepared and admitted I kept telling them I wanted something to eat and of course you know that can't happen, but that just goes to show you how little pain I was in and deliver was a breeze compared to my first two. So maybe its not a bad thing just unconfortable for awhile. As for what the doctor said, he said that yes I was caring her down low. So as to your worrying I wouldn't because as I was told by my OB that I was just caring the baby low and that it just meant that she attached low in my womb.Good luck, try to stay of your feet as much as possible and elevate them to relieve the pressure that should give you some relief. PS, I've read all the other responses and they all seem to be very informed and seem to think the same thing. But most of all you need to do what makes you confortable and at ease. God bless and our prayers will be with you and yours.

I carried my first so low the doctors had trouble seeing anything below his waist on the ultrasound. I felt like he was ready to drop out for the last month. I had to support my belly when I walked, and going downstairs was tricky. =)
If you're not contracting, you're probably OK. Your dr. should be checking you regularly soon.

Whatever you do don't expect since your carrying low they are "getting into position". I thought forsure I would have my 2nd early. I was carrying low, she was head down, I had my hopes up. She was 12 days late. I was fit to be tied and ready to pry her out myself by that time.

I'm sure it's fine as long are your feeling movement and the Drs are aware of your concerns.

Good luck.

Only time to get concerned is if you are feeling serious "pressure" down below, contractions close together (not the mild squeezing/tightening sensations of Braxton-Hicks contractions, but more intense sensations), or any other preterm labor symptoms such as spotting or leaking (consult with your doctor for more on this)then getting to your OB's office right away is very important. Otherwise, as everyone has said, carrying low doesn't necessarily mean there is anything to worry about.

All babies are carried different from the other. My first was really high the whole time, my second was always really low. I dont think it is a big deal, and just because you are carring low doent mean the baby is getting into position. Its sounds perfectly normal!! Good luck and my prayers are with you and your family on a safe return and deployment of your husband. Tell him thanks for serving!!!