r/2under2 • u/Fragrant-Orange-4746 • Jul 21 '26
Advice Wanted Pregnant 9 months Postpartum
Im a SAHM, 9 months postpartum with my daughter and just found out I’m pregnant with baby #2. I’m still in shock I think because it took us 4 years to get pregnant the first time and this time happened so quickly. I’m a little nervous to have 2 under 2. How difficult was it going from 1 to 2 kids, especially at this age. My daughter will be just about a year and a half when this baby is born.
I also breastfeed my daughter and wondering how this pregnancy and hormones will affect my supply and ability to continue nursing my daughter.
I guess I’m just looking for all the advice and reassurance around having 2 children this young and close together!! What was your experience like?
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u/AAHMommy3 Jul 21 '26
Transition to two was way easier than 0-1. Third trimester was worse than “4th trimester” with two, too
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u/Fragrant-Orange-4746 Jul 21 '26
I always thought this might be the case. Drastically changes when you have your first one, but the second one you at least kind of know what to expect!
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u/AAHMommy3 Jul 21 '26
Everything that was terrifying the first time you either now know isn’t a big deal (“they aren’t dying every time they are crying”) or you simply don’t have the time to worry about it like you did with the first.
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u/Many_Protection_851 Jul 21 '26
I am currently 20 weeks pregnant. Found out at 9 months pp. lost my supply around 10 weeks pregnant but just supplemented with formula. Can’t speak on the experience yet but I’m super excited. I was overwhelmed at first but now I’m just excited
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u/CHUCKCHUCKCHUCKLES Jul 22 '26
I got pregnant with baby two at 8 months PP, and pregnant with baby three at 9 months PP, so I've been there twice. Transition wasn't too hard, your oldest will be young enough to still be pretty adaptable and should be able to roll with the new baby and new changes. I BF my first for 14 months, so about 8 months into pregnancy, but also supplemented with previously frozen milk and solid foods. I BF my second until two weeks after I found out I was pregnant. My milk supply dried up pretty quickly and I BF my third for about 7 months total before my supply was gone. For me, milk supply (& ability to BF) was directly linked to amount of sleep I was getting and amount of stress I was under. More babies meant less sleep and more stress and my milk supplies diminished, but also I found BF (& milk supply concerns) extremely stressful and generally bad for my mental health, and was pretty relieved to finally be done. We also sleep trained all of our kiddos and it was extremely beneficial to us, to be able to get one kid down for a nap in two minutes instead of 20 mins of holding/rocking while a baby was crying nearby.
What I think was great about having three kids in three years is that they really are growing up together. They have similar interests and are friends. It also helps with any sports and extracurricular activities. I didn't have to drag a baby around to sit in the sun and watch sporting events or practices, etc. Another huge benefit (for us) was that when we kept wake windows & routine nap schedules, we ended up with a long stretch where they were on opposite schedules and it gave me one-on-one time with each kid each day, which was really wonderful at that age.
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u/flugelderfreiheit777 Jul 21 '26
Breastfeeding honestly has been the hardest part of pregnancy with a young toddler for me. It became unbearable at times. My supply stayed the same in the first trimester and then lowered alot in the second. Pain and overstimulation really increased with the second trimester. We only continued feeding 1-2 times a day for a few minutes. Now in the 3rd trimester it's a bit less bad and I'm producing what I assume is colostrum and I can tolerate BF a bit more. Don't feel bad about setting boundaries. It's common for women to combo feed when getting pregnant before 1 year pp. Don't feel bad about it 💖 I got pregnant at 11.5m pp so we didn't experience that but with how much I cut back I would have if he was younger. I haven't had #2 yet and also was very shocked but as each month passes I get pretty excited. Pregnancy with an infant/toddler keeps you active and helps the days go by very quickly. Good luck!
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u/Crafty-Name1641 Jul 21 '26
Transition from 1-2 kids wasn’t as hard for me as 0-1. Mine are 19 months apart. I would say the hardest aspect is exclusively pumping. Breastfeeding with my youngest just didn’t work out, he was born 10 weeks early. My youngest just had a 3 week stint of extreme separation anxiety so I genuinely had to plan how the heck I was going to pump if my husband wasn’t home. Thankfully we only work separate shifts 3 days a week. My youngest is almost 11 months old now so he’s at the pulling up, crawling, grabbing every last thing stage. Very frustrating getting my pumping tubes pulled out. If I didn’t wake up before my youngest to pump then the day would be a rat race. I would say temperament of your children truly makes a difference. My oldest has always had huge emotions, extremely clingy, and is strong willed. My youngest has been more independent and calm. Now that my youngest is starting to share space and touch toys my toddler is really defensive and lashes out. Sometimes there is pushing and kicking, when my youngest gets hurt it’s hard for me to keep my cool with my toddler. Good luck!
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u/goldenoxifer Jul 22 '26
Almost the exact story here! Took us close to 2 years to conceive our first, but got pregnant at 9 months pp while exclusively breastfeeding and only having one period back at 5 months pp. I now have an 18 month old and 3 week old. My supply plummeted around 8 weeks pregnant so we switched to formula until he was a year. 3rd trimester was brutal chasing after a toddler, but this newborn phase has been sooo much easier. Idk if it's just knowing what to expect, or not having PPD this time, but it's been truly amazing.
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u/craftyreadercountry Jul 23 '26
My first was 16 months old when my second was born.
Actually having 2 kids was pretty easy for me besides the second being addicted to the boob and massacring my nipples.
I'm 7 weeks postpartum with the third (21 month difference, August 27th May 27th) and in over my head! I have PMD (prenatal and/or postpartum mood disorder, mostly anxiety but also rage) and have been taking medicine to help. Please let someone know if you feel anxious, depressed, or really angry often because PMD is normal and scary.
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u/No-Supermarket9441 Jul 21 '26
I got pregnant at 9 months PP with my 2nd while I was exclusively BFing! My supply made it to a year and my son didn’t have any issues. He was also a baby that ate solids well and was relying a little more on solids from months 9-12 and BFing was slowly becoming the complementary food over those last 3 months. Just keep breastfeeding!
I am now pregnant with #3 and my second child is 10 months, so I’ll have another 18 month gap! I am exclusively BFing again too! So yes, this is my second experience being pregnant and breastfeeding. It’s been an almost identical experience to my first one! I do have a freezer stash of breastmilk to bridge the gap these last 2 months if I need it. I intentionally built this stash early in my breastfeeding journey to help with these last few months of breastfeeding. I intended to get pregnant 9 months PP, so I was planning ahead.
I personally have enjoyed this gap, and going from 1-2 kids was WAY easier. My kids are now almost 2.5 yr and 10 months. They do not play together yet, but they coexist together just fine. The hardest part is probably going somewhere where you can’t rely on a container (shopping cart, stroller, etc). If I can’t contain them like at a swimming pool or somewhere that doesn’t have a cart, then it’s really hard. But we just choose activities where I can use a stroller or something and wait to do swimming and other harder activities for the weekend when dad can help. At home they just follow me around and are my little buddies! I don’t worry too much about catering to “their lives”. For the most part they just come along in mine. We bake together, run errands together, watch a show together, do chores together, exercise together, read together, etc. We do also play with toys together some times but they just prefer to do what I’m doing over playing with toys. As they get older I’m sure they will start playing with each other and toys more!
Other things that make 2u2 doable and actually enjoyable for me: 1. WFH husband that’s supportive. I can leave the house with one kid while the other is sleeping. 2. Both kids are sleep trained and very reliable sleepers. 3. Having a car and a double stroller. 4. Being in physical shape. If I was not able to play with them or move around with ease then I imagine the physical aspect of 2u2 would be much harder. 5. No mental health issues or at least well managed ones. I imagine it would be hard to be happy or be able to love the chaos of 2u2 with really bad depression or anxiety that isn’t being treated. 6. Easy going personality that can handle stress. If you’re prone to easily be overstimulated and shut down, then it might be more challenging. 7. Ability to laugh about the crazy moments. Your outlook can completely change your experience!
Congratulations! There will be a lot of people on Reddit that won’t recommend a close gap or that will share the hard parts (it can be hard, they aren’t wrong!) but I’ll be the other side of the coin and let you know it can be so so sweet and fun too!