How many weeks were you when you started wearing maternity clothes...?

[manyhatson]

I'm 13 weeks with my second and I'm having a bit of a crisis. In the past week or so my bump has started to show... This isn't unusual at this time I suppose but this time, rather than just being the bottom half of my tummy - a little pot belly that grows upwards past my belly button, this time, my bump is already up below my bust line, thanks I guess to the extra stone I have this time and the the legacy of a complete lack of muscle tone and a permanently expanded rib cage (?). Unless I hold my tummy in (which I can do for about an hour or so) I reckon I look 4 or 5 months pregnant.

I don't remember feeling embarrassed about my size before, in fact, quite the contrary - I was showing off my bump as soon as I could. I also remember wearing normal clothes for at least the first 5 months - with judicioius use of maternity things here and there.

Now, although I can basically fit into most of my normal clothes, my bump seems to have pushed the flab up so I'm getting an awful 'two bellies' effect with flab above the waistline and a baby bulge below, and I'm looking lumpy. I've tried a few of my old maternity clothes to see if they make me feel better (eg Isabella Oliver wrap dress - can't fail to make you feel sexy!) but they just emphasise my bump and then embarrassingly, I look about 5 months gone.

When I was pregnant before I felt sexy and curvy. This time I just feel fat!

So, when did you start wearing your maternity clothes, second time round? Anyone have any good stories to make me feel better about already being huge??

ahhh that happened to me!
first time around I went into mat wear at about 4 months I think

second time was about 8-10 weeks, which i put down to still having the baby weight, plus some more and weaker stomach muscles.

interestingly I lost weight and got a bit fitter after number 2, and am pg with number 3 and still in regular clothes at 15 weeks

can't help with the second time bit, but I found ordinary trousers a nightmare from about 14 weeks, really tight across abdomen even though not visibly pregnant. Went into maternity clothes properly at about 20 weeks and a great relief it was too!

me neither re second - but was about same on timing as georgimum on 1st pregnancy.

30 ish weeks. I was uber thin before I had dd, and only started to balloon around my 30 week mark. Was in size 8 clothes still until 25 weeks, size 10 clothes until aound 30 weeks, maternity clothes after that.

Could be doing with still wearing them now mind!

Catcha, that doesn't make me feel better

My usual size is a 14-16 btw and before I had DD nearly 3 yrs ago, I had a perfectly flat stomach for my size.

Me too manyhatson, don't worry...

I was in mat clothes at about 20-23 weeks with dd1, and I'm quite a big girl.

This time, around twelve weeks, and now, at 22 weeks, I look full term. Same as you manyhatson, my tummy went out from just below my boobs, so looks huge. There's a girl in my work who's as far along as me with her first, and she has the teeniest bump ever. I feel like a whale!

First time- about 12 weeks as it was uncomfortable sitting at a desk all day
This time- about 10 weeks. Now 31 weeks and everything is uncomfotable..

2nd time - 10 wks, I wasn't obviously pg but I couldn't have waistbands round my stomach, just hated it.

First time was about 18 weeks from what I remember, 2nd time was at least a month sooner due to the lack of addominal muscle strength and general spreadage (not a real word but that's what it did!) around my middle!

1st - 20 weeks, but they still felt too big
2nd - 13 weeks, but I hadn't lost all the weight and dd was only 9 months old.
3rd - well I'm currently 19 weeks and still wearing mostly non maternity clothes that I couldn't fit into between pgs 1 and 2. I do look pregnant though, but bump seems really high.

Definitely most people I know have started wearing maternity clothes much earlier second time round. I'm now 39+ weeks and although bump grew quickly, it seemed to not get too much bigger in the later stages. I think I'm almost the same size as I was first time round at the end, the pace of change was just different as everything definitely is more stretched out than before so happens quicker!!!

One of my NCT group is about 21 weeks now - and got comments from someone in the supermarket last week about being any day now or something which horrified her!!!

Just remember everyone is different, and the most important thing with clothes is to be comfortable - don't compare yourself to other pregnant people. You also will look and feel better if you are wearing things which fit you properly rather than being too small....funnily enough, something in a big size usually makes you feel better than something tight in a small size. Good luck!

So, it's good to know that I'm not the only one!

I started at 8 wks (1st pregnancy), I thickened through the waist really quickly and all my suit trousers just didn't fit. I didn't look much different and I hadn't put on any weight but I had to get out the elasticated trousers.

I didn't seem to get much more pregnant looking for ages although I was putting weight on slowly and steadily.

I didn't really wear any maternity clothes except trousers last time - moved into them at about 24 weeks. I survived on leggings and wrap dresses whenever I could.

This time, I've been wearing maternity trousers for work since 8 weeks because it's more comfortable. Still in skinny jeans the rest of the time though, because my bump is still just below my belly button.

Trousers at about 14wks second time - was in them earlier first time but think that was more due to sickness and being uncomfortable. Only just in full-time maternity tops now at 36wks, but was a "curvy" size 16 before this pregnancy so think I hid it well.

First time was in top to toe maternity from about 20wks.

Am 10 weeks with number 3 and already some trousers are too tight - jeans are put away already although work trousers are still ok. I think it's the material and cut that seems to dictate it - I suspect I only have a few weeks more wear out of them though

With baby no. 2 it was very similar - am sure your body just remembers what to do and obliges far too early!

Coat is getting too tight around my middle now too - sigh, that's a bigger purchase than trousers/leggings

Cicatrice - I'm so glad you posted - I'm 6 weeks with first pg and waist is already thickening (plus bloating) was getting really worried! I'm actually losing weight but seems to go from everywhere but my waist!

My bf was in her maternity clothes at 9 weeks with her 2nd and she's usually tiny!

First pregnancy not until around 16 weeks - this time I gave in this morning (am now ten weeks) as its so uncomfortable to sit down with normal jeans on.......am too feeling fat rather than pregnant!!!!

This is my first pregnancy and so I've signed up for that Mumsnet 'your pregnancy' thingy. This is what it says about weight gain in the 9 to 12 weeks section:

Weight gain:

This is especially true if you have already had a baby. With indecent haste your abdomen will go "I've done this before" and spring out like an inflated balloon. Unless you have done serious abdominal work since your last pregnancy, you are doomed to look close to term by the end of 12 weeks or, at best, find you can't fit into your jeans any more. It can be depressing - illogically of course, but that's the problem with pregnancy - you know you are having a baby but you still feel fat.

First and second time round, I didn't need mat clothes till quite late on but couldn't tolerate waistbands or bras or anything, so had a variety of bizarre items that were barely presentable for work but didn't irritate.

PG no. 3 I've had the waistband thing again, but got pg-shaped much more quickly. Was in mat. trousers by 12 weeks, but I'm actually a size smaller than last time round so everything was flapping round the legs and falling down.

I've found that big dresses from the charity shop are the most versatile, cheapest maternity wear (but no good for antenatal appts)

1st time: well after 20 weeks, and people at work were shocked when I told them I was pg, this time - very visable from about 9 wks on! (now 13 weeks, still in non - mat wear, but need to pick and choose e.g. hipster jeans below the bump and long loose tops.

I've just surrendered to maternity trousers at 13 weeks (2nd pg)and exactly the same thing has happened to me. I had a lovely neat firm bump last time, now I feel like a blob with a big flabby belly . I'm managing to hide it under loose tops most of the time but trousers are just getting TOO uncomfortable.

For second I was in mat clothes really early prob about 11 weeks, I remember because I felt really silly at 12 week scan already dressed like I was halfway through!

I'm 30 weeks and only just starting to find I'm completely unable to fit into my "ordinary" clothes. Have slipped on a couple of maternity t-shirts and yoga pants I bought much earlier in the pregnancy and they're still quite loose, but they do fit (they were like sacks when I bought them around the 20 weeks mark).

I've only had a discernible bump for about 8 weeks though and like CatchAChristmasStar am slim. It's very satisfying though, the actual tangible necessity for maternity clothing. I've been waiting for it for yonks!