To girls in their mid 20s -- was pregnancy harder than you expected, or smoother?

Question

Just curious, was pregnancy impossibly hard, or was it reasonable? I'm referring to not just the physical burdens or strains on the body of being pregnant...but other things too, such as budgeting finances for the pregnancy, reactions from others, conflicts with employment, etc.

Also -- for you, what was the hardest part about being pregnant?

Seeing how hard/easy it was...if you could go back in time and do it again at that same age + life situation, would you? Or, would you have opted to wait longer to get pregnant?

Answer 1

Hey There!

Hmm...interesting question. I'm 27 and currently 25 weeks...graduated college when i was 23. I first got pregnant last year prior to my 26th birthday (lost her to miscarriage). With my first pregnancy it was a total surprise and i was totally stressed about everything: financially, emotionally, etc. Financially you kind of have to put everything in perspective by budgeting. With this pregnancy i find myself not going out as much. I actually enjoy spending time at home. Definitely a money saver. I have a car note with 2 yrs of payments left but NEED my car b/c it will be a headache with a baby and no vehicle. I've eliminated all of the things i don't really need...sort of the "luxury items".

I didn't chose to wait longer per-see, i was just really careful with my birth control methods. I knew that i wasn't ready to give up my partying, needed a car, and kind of wanted to flush all of the unnecessary things out of my life before anything. I wanted to be semi-stable...and definitely didn't want to be "too old" to relate to my child. After being promoted and getting a little bit of a boost financially, being in a committed relationship (2nd income) and growing tired of the club scene and always hanging out i figured what the heck: go for it. I really didn't care about what people thought and i definitely do not regret anything! So far smooth sailing my only worry is child care and finding the right babysitter (aside from the grandmothers).

Answer 2

I was 21 when I had my daughter...married and out on our own.  I was still going to college full-time and worked off and on throughout the pregnancy.  I received medicaid and foodstamps since my husband was too much of a dead-beat to go get a job to help out and didn't want me to work.  The pregnancy itself was very easy and I had no problems.  Our parents helped us out with a lot of the baby stuff and we had college loans/grant money that helped out as well.  But honestly I wouldn't go back and do it again like that.  When I was about 4 or 5 months pregnant we were living off of bread and pasta for every meal b/c we didn't have any money.  We were pawning off what we could...even if it meant we'd get $10 for something b/c that would buy us food for a few days.

Answer 3

I'm 29 and have four children [yeah...i know...it's crazy] LoL

I had my first when I was 16 and oddly enough that was the easiest of the four pregnancies...and deliveries!! My second pregnancy was difficult because I ended up getting preclampsyia and had to be induced [she was already 9 days late]. My third was pretty easy...didn't have any problems and the delivery was super simple and quick!! [the first 3 were all about 2 yrs apart]. I didn't have my fourth until I was almost 27 and that was the most difficult of all the pregnancies!! I had high blood pressure, constant migraines, swelling...etc. It sucked!! I have my 2 boys and 2 girls...that's all for me!!! I'm done :-)

Every woman and every pregnancy is different so you just have to go for it and hope for the best!!

Answer 4

I am 24- I'm married and have had a job for 2 years since I graduated college so I feel pretty stable in that aspect. I will say being a "young mom" that it has been hard in that a lot of my friends go out and are not married with kids and I'm not much into going to bars without drinking, etc so I just don't do it. The physical aspect has been easy except this past couple weeks (but I'm due in about 2 weeks). Work has been great with my pregnancy as my job is very flexible so I haven't had any problems with that. It's all about your own maturity level and your situation- not the age I would say. And as for the physical portion- I would suggest getting in decent shape and being heatlhy before you get pregnant... ours was a surprise and that's one thing I wish I had done- is started working out a bit earlier before I got pregnant.  

Answer 5

I have had a hard pregnancy i am 21 and married however i have hyperemisis and in the first 6months of my pregnancy i lost about 25 pounds i was sick all day long and had to take 3 different medications just so i could keep food down. because of the hyperemisis i got taken out of work at 3 months so i have to get temp. disability which is only 50% of what i got paid before. However if i could back and do it all over i wouldn't i love being pregnant and yes it has been hard but im getting induced in 15 days and i can't wait. if you asked me this question a few months ago i would have said that i will never get pregnant again but now i think if i can make it through this i can make it through anything and i would do it all over again in a heartbeat. i can't wait to meet my little girl. Good Luck

Answer 6

I had almost a textbook pregnancy. I wasnt quite mid 20s but I was 22. The only thing that didnt go the exact way it was supposed to, was that my water didnt break on its own. But I was totally ok with that! lol...everything else was a breeze! Now I mean contractions DO hurt. But its not anything a woman can't handle! Thats why WE have children...not men! lol! I honestly have to say the worst part was after I gave birth, they went to take my epidural out, and there was a long rectangle of tape on my back from the top all the way to my lower back...they ripped it off wit no warning! I'd have to say that was the worst part and the worst pain!

Answer 7

I'm 23 and just had my second boy 2 months ago...yes, I would go back and do it all over again.  

However, we are very financially stable with great job security (that's one positive of having a hubby in the military!) so I dont know if I'd do it over again if we didn't have that financial stability and job security.

I'm not even working full-time yet...I just got done with my degree and will start working full-time when he gets done with the military next year.

The only hard part about my pregnancies and deliveries is that my husband missed both deliveries and the majority of both pregnancies.  Other than that they have gone great -- your body has a much easier time coping with the physical demands and then going back to pre-pregnancy state when you are younger.

Answer 8

Well, I'm 24 and pregnant with my first and due Sept 27..it actually hasn't been that bad. I have a pretty good job and make okay money so it hasn't been a struggle, but then again the baby isn't here yet so I haven't had to do any extra...my family is really supportive...so my mom bought the big stuff like the crib and I got so much at my baby shower that I don't think I'll have to buy anything for awhile anyway....I still advise you to save, save, save though...I'm going on leave w/o pay because I was pregnant before my yr of service had been completed..so that sucks, but I have been saving and I regret I didn't start saving sooner!

Looking back...I think I would have waited a little longer...One I'm not married yet...and now being pregnant I see the importance of it (not just in a biblical sense) and I just wish I had done a little more before I got pregnant and by that I mean a little more traveling and living, but by no means do i wish I wasn't pregnant! I'm so happy and excited to see my baby soon!

Hope this helps you!

Answer 9

I'm 25 and I think it's been pretty normal. I won't say easy because I don't think pregnancy's easy whatever your age is. I'm out of college, married, own my home,and finacially stable though.

My main conflict has been working full time. I have a 45 minute drive one way to work, so that's hard when you're throwing up and/or exhausted. I'm lucky though because my boss is really understanding and I work with all women so they've all been through it.

I'm glad I didn't wait longer, I think it happened exactly when it was supposed to.

Answer 10

My pregnancy has been super easy. I waited until I was financially stable though, so I am not worried about finances. The hardest part of being pregnant is......well I can't think of anything. I would definitely go back in time and do this all over again at this point in my life.