How My 4th Pregnancy Was Different From My First 3

I’m 8 months into my fourth pregnancy, and while time and experience have made this experience different, I’ve also experienced different symptoms! Today I’m talking about some of my 4th pregnancy differences from my first three pregnancies.

this Post!

As an Amazon Associate, I may earn from qualifying purchases. You can read more here on our Disclaimer and Privacy Page.

Fortunately, my pregnancies haven’t been overly hard. I haven’t been on my knees throwing up daily, and I haven’t gained or lost a ton of weight either way.

My first three pregnancies felt, for lack of a better term, “normal.” I was able to work, exercise, travel, etc. But, 4th pregnancy symptoms were a bit different!

I ran alot throughout my first pregnancy. I felt really good overall – minimal nausea, some fatigue but nothing debilitating, and I was able to live and work normally.

We did have some forecasting hiccups during my first pregnancy. We had to see a maternal-fetal specialist for a few months because they thought my daughter’s head was really small. We had traveled to South Africa, so they were taking precautions from Zika.

She was born perfectly healthy (with a normal-sized head), but I did have to do the stress test each week and have more appointments and more ultrasounds, which I always loved seeing her on screen.

She was my smallest baby overall, being born at just under 7 lbs, and I ended up having an unexpected (unnecessary) C-Section, but other than that, nothing more to say about the birth.

During my second pregnancy, I was set on having a VBAC. I didn’t like how my first birth had gone – I felt unaware, I lacked the knowledge to ask the right questions, and even with having a doula, I felt like I wasn’t properly supported.

I remained physically active during my second pregnancy, though I stopped running around weeks 24-26, and moved more to strength workouts.

I honestly wish I had done more strength with my first, but I used to be a hardcore cardio loyalist!

During my second pregnancy, we switched care from OB-GYNs to homebirth midwives at 36 weeks, a wild change that came out of left field.

It was the summer of 2020, so COVID, and we started noticing our lack of community where we lived. We were still relatively new to the area and really didn’t have much of a plan for who would watch our firstborn during the birth. I was also feeling stressed that I would be pressured to have another C-Section in the hospital and I didn’t want that.

We were also towards the end of our Bradley Birthing Class (highly recommend), and homebirth had come up a few times from people who had seen it as “normal and empowering.”

So, at 36 weeks, we decided to switch to homebirth midwives. I quickly hired a doula, who I didn’t end up meeting in person until the birth!

Fortunately, everything went great! Baby 2 was born at 38 weeks at home with the help of our homebirth midwives, and she was healthy and happy.

My pubic bone was, in fact, not too small, as they told me during my first birth. I successfully had a VBAC at home and a bigger baby at that!

Going From 2 to 3 Kids

We were planning another homebirth for my third baby, and we used the same midwives. During this pregnancy, I continued with my strength work and lots of walking/cycling. I felt bigger than in my first two pregnancies, and for good reason.

This baby turned out to be over 9.5 lbs, much larger than my first two! The labor was very quick – about 3 hours from start to finish. He was born in the birth tub at home, with no complications.

While going from 2 to 3 kids was chaos, like everyone said, we eventually found our rhythm and enjoyed our life with three kids.

After having two successful VBAC homebirths at home, I have to tell you it is the most empowering feeling! Giving birth makes you feel so powerful, and to have it done on my terms, I felt on top of the world.

Life with 3 kids was very full. We truly loved our life with three kids, and while I contemplated a fourth, I felt very fulfilled, and who knows what fourth pregnancy symptoms would be like?!

I had two girls and one boy, and life was good. But the nagging thought of having another started to come back when he was two, and we sat on it for a year.

I talked about it in therapy, wrote about it in journaling, and talked about it with everyone I knew who would listen. I listened to podcasts about it, and tried to read up on everything I could about going from three to four kids, and how to know if you were “done” or not.

My Fourth Pregnancy

After contemplating for 18 months, we finally decided we did, in fact, want a fourth child and started trying. I was 39 at this point, and a potential of turning 40 either right before or right after the future baby would be born.

Here are some of the 4th pregnancy differences from my first three pregnancies, and some of my 4th pregnancy symptoms.

Fatigue

Fatigue doesn’t sound like a shock, right?

The two biggest symptoms of my fourth pregnancy that stood out among my first three pregnancies were extreme fatigue and lack of motivation.

I was nauseated from the middle of the first trimester (week 7ish until week 14ish), but I felt like my mood was all over the place. I was tired – of course – I had three other kids to care for.

And I was older, now age 39. I think both of those facts made the tiredness feel much more real, demanding and like it took over.

I felt incapable of doing so much of my regular stuff – I couldn’t cook, didn’t want to run errands or work, had little motivation to leave the house. I did not feel like myself at all.

And of course, through all of this, I was very grateful and excited for our fourth little bundle. All of that can co-exist.

I just wasn’t used to feeling this way mentally and emotionally. Not at all like me. I did therapy, I journaled, and I saw my doctor for anxiety medication.

The return of energy came around week 22-23, as well as my normal motivation to do things, which was a monumental and most-welcomed shift!

Feelings can be temporary during pregnancy due to huge hormonal shifts, but that doesn’t mean they aren’t real or valid. Do what you have to do to survive each day – I truly took it one day at a time!

Age

Obviously, you get older with each pregnancy. My oldest will be 8.5 years older than this baby when he/she is born. And being pregnant at age 39 (nearly 40) has felt much different and harder on the body than being pregnant at 32.

Women are amazing, but our body changes over all those years and pregnancies! I’m sure my energy was definitely impacted by age.

Congestion

Congestion was not my friend this time around – and certainly the worst it’s been out of 4 pregnancies. I always feel allergy symptoms worse when pregnant, but this was worse than allergies.

It was constant congestion and a clogged nose – it was so bad for my sleeping! This may be one of the big contributors as to why I was more tired (aside from chasing around 3 other kids, of course!).

Unfortunately, there wasn’t much medicine I could take. I did daily neti pot, saline rinses, a safe vabor rub cream and nose strips – that was just a hard time!

Exercise

One thing that is pretty much always a constant for me is exercise, and I continued a consistent exercise plan during my 4th pregnancy, despite the fatigue and other challenges.

Now, that doesn’t mean exercise doesn’t look different. It definitely does!

No more running – I resorted to a lot more treadmill walking, sometimes with my weighted vest. I also stuck with strength training 3-4 times a week. Shorter sessions based on what I could fit in, but feeling strong is important to me and I know it will pay off dividends postpartum!

I loved using my Stakt mat because it folds up, so I could get extra cushioning for my stretching and prenatal yoga.

Exercise did also give me natural energy, which was very helpful! I shared more about even exercising strong at 35 weeks here.

Not Into Coffee

This was one that I kept hoping would change, but I really lost most of my desire for coffee. I’d look forward to a few sips in the morning and then I would lose interest and just wouldn’t crave it.

This was sad for me because I absolutely love both hot and iced coffee, but overall, it definitely helped me drink less caffeine in pregnancy. I did have more diet cokes, probiotic drinks and iced tea, though, but the 4th pregnancy was definitely a huge reduction in caffeine.

I did focus on my pregnancy electrolytes! I was diligent in taking my prenatal and getting enough electrolytes, especially in the hot summer months. I liked the Perelel brand.

Stronger Focus on Postpartum Prep

Something about having a fourth baby really put my preparation mom phase into action. I’ve slowly been preparing for postpartum since about 32 weeks, doubling up on meals, buying extra tupperware, and following some of these postpartum freezer meals.

I did a big postpartum Costco run with many convenience, high-protein items, that my husband can easily heat up while I’m recovering with baby.

I’ve also loaded the bedside cart with tons of postpartum snacks and have a mini fridge with more, stocked up on diapers/wipes, nursing necessitise and more.

I also had all of this postpartum stuff ready and prepared by 34 weeks.

• heated/cooling pads (I made a bunch of DIY padsicles)
• peri bottle
• maxi pads or overnight diapers for postpartum bleeding
• sitz baths
• tucks cooling pads
• dermoplast – I loved this stuff for the cooling sensation and it seemed to be my favorite product that helped numb the pain.
• possible iron supplement – I would NOT take this without advice from your care provider. Iron supplements when not needed can be dangerous.

More Slowness and Appreciation

Despite many of these changes being challenging, I definitely felt more appreciation and calm for this 4th baby, especially knowing it’s our last.

I’ve been grateful every day, and really relished every baby kick. I’ve been able to share in those joyful moments with three other kiddos who are so excited to welcome this baby into our family.

So, I feel like with this pregnancy, there is more love to go around. I’ll have more hands around to hold and love on this baby, and I’m really going to savor and cherish every little moment.