The Best and Worst Thing About Being Pregnant with Twins & Singletons

Curious about the worst things about being pregnant? Want to know the worst things about being pregnant with twins? Read on for my experiences!

Back in 2010, when I was pregnant with my first set of twins, I was a full-time university student.

As such, I was surrounded by other young adults, most of whom had never been pregnant before and were so curious about what it was like.

One day, a classmate of mine asked me a question, a question that made me really think; the question was: “What is the worst thing about being pregnant?”

I didn’t know what to say!

I am one of those lucky people who generally has pretty easy pregnancies. I never throw up, have minimal food aversions and cravings, can be active (enough) the whole time, don’t have pre-term labor, don’t have much heartburn or indigestion, and can still get a decent amount of sleep. Oh, and I don’t even pee much more often than normal.

Now, I am not trying to have a “who had the worst pregnancy debate” (or in my case best pregnancy contest), because I know I’m very fortunate and don’t want to diminish the struggles other have!

For example, I was able to do marching band throughout almost all of my first trimester and into my second trimester while pregnant for the first time, with twins. I didn’t pass out from lack of oxygen or lack of food despite how demanding collegiate marching band can be physically.

Now, it’s not like I haven’t experienced pregnancy symptoms, because I have. Can we say achy legs and varicose veins?

But, the horror stories of pregnancy have seemed to pass by me for most of my five full-term pregnancies (excluding, of course, my miscarriages), two of which are twin pregnancies.

What is the worst thing about being pregnant?

Every pregnant woman will have a different answer to this question. And may even have a different answer to this question depending on what pregnancy they are on. Each pregnancy is a little different, even for the same mom.

I am going to share common crappy things about being pregnant woman experience, and share what I personally have found to be the worst things about being pregnant!

Physical Pain During Pregnancy

One of the worst things about being pregnant is the physical pain.

During pregnancy you may experience the following physical pains:

• Charlie horses waking you up in the middle of the night
• Sciatica nerve pain preventing you from standing
• Varicose veins in your legs and labia, swelling, pulsing, throbbing
• Round ligament pain
• Itchy bellies
• Hemorrhoids (often from constipation)
• Heartburn
• Backaches
• Headaches & migraines
• Discomfort and pain from baby kicking and moving

And there are just other physical ailments during pregnancy that kinda suck, but aren’t necessarily painful. They are things like:

• Light-headedness & swimming head when you stand up or bend over
• Blurry vision and/or seeing stars/spots
• Fatigue
• Restlessness & insomnia
• Bloody & stuffy noses
• Sensitive or bleeding gums
• Being out of breath (a lot)
• Super strong sense of smell
• Strong cravings and hunger
• Strong food aversions
• Nausea
• Vomiting
• Spider veins
• Stretch marks
• Acne
• Blotches
• Random Hair Growth
• Larger breasts
• Gas
• Bloating
• Swollen face, hands, feet, legs
• Having to pee frequently

Add in the physical pains that come from wrangling an older baby or toddler, and the physical stuff can be rough!

RELATED: How to Help Toddlers Adjust to a New Baby

Emotional Problems During Pregnancy

With additional doses of hormones flowing through your body, it’s normal to be extra sensitive during pregnancy. Here are some of the worst things emotionally about pregnancy.

• Worry & fear about baby
• Worry & fear about delivery
• Stress
• Crying for no reason
• Too much or too little sex drive
• Depression
• Anxiety

Sleeping During Pregnancy

Getting comfortable can be extremely hard during pregnancy, especially if you are naturally a stomach or back sleeper! Here are common problems with sleep during pregnancy:

• Can’t get comfortable
• Crazy pregnancy dreams
• Can’t stay asleep
• Need to get up to pee multiple times
• Hard & uncomfortable to roll over
• Legs and/or hands getting tingly

Social Issues During Pregnancy

When you are pregnant, you draw a lot of attention to yourself. This can lead to some interest situations. There are just generally some interesting social issues that come up when pregnant:

• Not being able to drink alcohol/caffeine or smoke
• Having other dietary restrictions
• Having to pee all the time
• Can’t sit (or stand) for long periods of time
• Bumping into people and things with your belly
• Having to squat to pick things up
• Needing to ask for helping moving or carrying things
• People touching your baby belly
• Can’t be in super loud environments
• Drop and get stains on your shirt often
• Tired way more often (and can’t stay up and party)
• Receiving too much attention (more a problem for introverts)
• Being asked a lot of personal questions about your childbearing
• Unsolicited advice
• Not wanting to be in photos (cause your face is swollen)

Unique Twin Pregnancy Issues

While I generally haven’t experienced too much difference between twin pregnancy and singleton pregnancies, there are a few unique things that make a twin pregnancy worse, like:

• Having to go to more doctor’s appointments
• Weekly non-stress tests the last month
• Higher chance of having a C-Section
• Conflicting advice from your doctors about what is best
• Less room under your rib cage
• Harder to breathe
• Kicks in the rib cage
• Harder to eat large meals at the end
• Larger belly
• More attention from strangers

RELATED: 10 Reasons It’s Great to Have Twins a Your First Pregnancy

What you find the most annoying, painful, or generally worst thing about your pregnancy will be up to what you value most. Some people can handle the pain, but hate the attention. Some people love the attention and hate the physical ailments. Some just struggle mentally and emotionally during it way more than normal.

There is no wrong or right way to look at the worst thing about being pregnant. We’re all different!

What I Find the Worst Thing about Pregnancy for Twins & Singletons

I have experienced most of the above pregnancy symptoms during my many pregnancies. Some I found annoying, but chalked up to the reality of pregnancy and signs that let you know you are pregnant for reals, and moved on. Others I have found harder to deal with.

It definitely is annoying carrying around an extra 35-60 lbs and having a gut get in the way of doing normal everyday things, especially when you already have toddlers and other kids, or are going to school full-time.

Being completely out of breath after climbing a flight or two of stairs, not being as physically active, and having a wave of exhaustion and fatigue sweep over you out of nowhere takes its toll, as does Charlie horses and hot spots in my legs.

But, there are two things I find the worst though:

1. Maternity Clothes
2. Leg Nerve & Crotch varicose veins

Yes, maternity clothes are high on my list of worst things about being pregnant. Here’s why:

I am an endowed member of the Chuch of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints, and I also have extra-large layers of fabric (my underwear) underneath my clothes (you can learn more about what the heck I am talking about here).

The LDS maternity garments (aka underwear) covers my whole abdomen, twice, as the top maternity garment is like a long undershirt, and the the bottom a full-panel flap.

When you add in the full-panels of many maternity pants, plus a maternity top, that’s four layers of clothes over my stomach! Add on a bra, and a maternity support belt, and it’s just so many layers!

After surviving a summer pregnancy in Texas, without AC in my car, and two twin pregnancies, I hate so much about maternity clothes and refuse to wear and buy maternity clothes that require an undershirt and layering. (If I have to layer, I prefer a half-tee underneath like this one.)

With so many pieces and flaps of elastic, cotton, and layers, there is just so much elastic digging in here or there, layers rolling up or bunching underneath or on top, and the clothes generally not fitting me properly as my belly expands to torpedo-like dimensions, yet my chest remains relatively small.

In fact, at the end of my pregnancies, especially my twin pregnancies, my belly may peak out from the bottom of shirts, or shirts may roll up because they can’t fit over my new girth.

And did you know going to the bathroom easily takes an extra minute just to restuff all the layers properly so they don’t look bunchy and weird, creating lines underneath my outer shirt?

Add in the fact that there is such limited selection of maternity clothes out there in stores and online, all of which is generally overpriced (see my list of places of where to get free or cheap maternity clothes), and many I can’t even wear past the second trimester as my belly expands to epic proportions, and maternity clothes just suck.

It’s why I’ve tried out things like maternity subscription boxes like Le Tote maternity and Stitch Fix Maternity.

My favorite maternity piece I got from Le Tote. They are their Summer & Safe Maternity Jogger pants. They are super soft, loose in the crotch, have giant pockets, and are just magical. That exact pair isn’t available, but it’s pretty similar to this one on Amazon.

Unfortunately, I have to wear clothes every day still (and as I don’t want to buy a ton of clothes, so I typically wear the same few items over and over again), which means I can’t avoid this pregnancy reality.

I have been known to come home from school (first twin pregnancy) or while chilling with the fam and lift up and pull down all the layers resting over my belly.

But, if maternity clothes are one the worst thing about being pregnant, I think I’ve had it pretty easy.

However, in my current twin pregnancy, thanks to the one before it where I gave birth to an 11lb 2oz baby vaginally, I have a lot of new pregancy pains that are daily and near constant.

During my pregnancy with my big baby, I developed new varicose veins, this time in my labia. If you didn’t know, they swell and hurt a lot, making maternity clothes even more uncomfortable and less flattering to wear (hello bulging camel toe 😲).

But, I also had this weird pulled nerve feeling near the crotch and down into my inner left leg that made everyday things much harder. I hoped that because it went away after delivery, it was just a weird one-time pregnancy thing. It wasn’t.

This leg pain and general crotch pain are definitely the worst things about my current twin pregnancy and last pregnancy. They make doing anything painful, from rolling over in bed, to squatting, to walking, to putting and taking off pants. Pain, all the time.

But, I’m keeping positive and enjoying all the good I still experience in pregnancy! Which is why I want to quickly reflect on the BEST things about being pregnant!

The BEST things about being pregnant:

Easily at the top of the list is having a husband who takes such good care of me!

My husband is so sweet.

During my first pregnancy, he told me multiple times that he has been prepping himself for having a pregnant wife one day, who would send him out in the middle of the night for some weird food she was craving. How unfortunate for him that he ended up with me then as that isn’t me at all when pregnant!

But, he’s been wonderful in keeping me stocked with pickles, ice cream, chocolates, Tums, and healthy food too! He makes me dinner every night and about once a week makes me breakfast in bed. He even often gets me lunch.

He is the best thing about pregnancy. He is so loving and caring. He is SO excited about having these twins and about being a father, again.

Other things I have enjoyed about being pregnant through the years is reading books!

I read lots of pregnancy books, articles, stories, etc about having babies, being pregnant, and what to expect for twins. I really like learning about my amazing body and the amazing changes that are taking place. It’s so fascinating.

Also, having a pregnant belly is fun! It’s so cute and beautiful. I’m growing babies in there, somehow, miraculously. I really enjoy being part of creating new life. The changes are exciting and I’m getting more and more excited all the time to meet my little angels.

I also like all the baby attention I get at times, even if it’s strangers touching my pregnant belly. Twins are doubly exciting. I love talking about big babies, large families, birth, delivery, twins, and about the future. Birth and pregnancy are truly fascinating!

I like feeling the babies move around, most of the time, too. It lets me know they are doing just fine. It’s also a little funny to watch my belly shake and come alive like in the movie Alien.

I don’t usually say I love being pregnant, but I really don’t hate it, at all. I am so grateful to have good pregnancies, and never take how fortunate I am in that regard.

But, really, the very best thing about being pregnant is knowing that at some point I won’t be pregnant anymore because I will have a beautiful baby in my arms, my child, my unique creation that I made through love with my husband and with God.

I know that having babies is expensive, especially when in college, or grad school.

I know that there are so many unknowns and so many scary things that can happen, and we pray throughout our pregnancies that all will go well.

Don’t let pregnancy scare you.

Trust God that he will provide for you and take care of you and your babies. People poorer and less apt than me (and you) have had children and survived.

Things happen and there’s still always things that can go wrong, but know that if you are supposed to have a child, even if you only are blessed with that little baby for a few short weeks, that it is meant to be.

Why?

Only God knows, but he’ll bless you for your faith. I promise. Having babies is a God-given privilege and I am so grateful that I get to be a co-creator with God.

Tell me, what is the worst thing about being pregnant for you?!

Be sure to check out these other great pregnancy-related posts:

• Best Modest Maternity Swimsuits
• Free Breastfeeding Supplies and Samples
• 10 Pregnancy Box Subscriptions That Pamper Moms-to-Be
• Preparing Home for Baby Checklist