What's actually working for me in my second pregnancy
The wellness routine, supplements, and sanity-savers I'm relying on this time around
Last pregnancy, I had a season built for rest. This time, I have a two-year-old. Here’s a fun fact about me: I was born and raised in Los Angeles for 22 years before moving to New York, living here for more than a decade now, which I think finally makes me a New Yorker, right? Either way, no amount of eating $1 slices on the sidewalk in the wee hours of the morning in my 20s or twelve years of subway commuting has fully talked wellness out of me. It’s just in my DNA as an LA girl. It’s been dormant, sure, buried under New York grit and grime and, more recently, a toddler named Charlie who does not care about my nervous system, but it’s always in there somewhere.
Last pregnancy, I didn’t fight it at all. I was pregnant through fall, winter, and spring, which in New York is just a very long, very valid excuse to sink into the couch under a blanket and call it self-care. And I did. Fully. No regrets.
This time is different, mostly because the calendar had other plans, and so did my toddler. I’m pregnant through a New York summer with a two-year-old who is pushing 30 pounds and treats “let’s stay in” like a personal insult. So the wellness girl is back, whether she wanted to be or not, and honestly, she’s doing better work this time.
Moving without really trying
The truth is, we have a lot of control here in theory. But in practice, if we don’t get out of the apartment and moving, Charlie will absolutely tantrum, and that is its own personal hell. So walking has become non-negotiable, partly because it’s genuinely good for me and partly because it’s just easier for everyone if we do.
The upside is that all this forced outdoor time has turned into an excuse to actually explore the city instead of defaulting to the same three playgrounds. Rockaway Beach, the Bronx Zoo, Governors Island, all of it is in the summer rotation this year, partly out of necessity and partly because it turns out you can just hop on a ferry and be somewhere completely different in twenty minutes. Charlie doesn’t know he’s expanding his world. He just knows there are new animals to look at.
On top of that, I’ve kept strength training and pilates in the rotation two to three times a week, when life allows it. I go to Kin Kollective in Cobble Hill (they also have a Brooklyn Heights location) and specifically to Jae, who has trained me for years and knows more about injuries and prenatal modifications than anyone I’ve worked with. It’s classical pilates, no megareformer theatrics, but it still kicks my ass in the best way.
I recently added strength training at District in Carroll Gardens, and it might be the most surprising addition to my routine. It’s in a brownstone. It’s chic. It smells good. These are not words I ever expected to use about a gym. They run a prenatal strength class every Wednesday that I’ll do, but I’ve also just started private training there and I am genuinely excited about it, not a sentence I say about exercise very often. Given that Charlie is basically a small barbell at this point, I need all the strength I can get.
The part I’m trying not to rush through
If I’m honest, all this forced movement has turned into something bigger than exercise. I was an only child until I was eight and a half, when my sister came along, and my world changed for the better. I loved having a sibling, I always wanted one. But those years before her were so, so special too. I developed meaningful, independent relationships with my parents and other family members that I still cherish. Memories, inside jokes, travel adventures, all of it entirely mine.
Don’t get me wrong, I know you can build that with siblings around too. But there’s something specific about undivided attention as a child. And it turns out it feels just as special from the other side, as a parent. Being able to focus on one kid completely, without the guilt or the unintentional mental math of “am I giving them enough,” is its own kind of amazing.
That’s what I want for Charlie right now. That same unhurried, undivided stretch with just us before his brother arrives. This age is genuinely delicious. The belly laughs, the new words, the way he narrates his own discoveries like he’s the first person to ever notice a pigeon. I could bottle this up and live off it. We are so excited for the baby, and Charlie seems to be too, in his own two-year-old way, but I know this is a massive shift coming for him. So this summer, more than being about steps or strength training, has quietly become about soaking up every last second of the three of us, before we become four.
The recovery half of the equation
Movement is only half of it. I’ve been getting monthly lymphatic drainage and massage at Element Healing Spa, and it has made a real dent in the swelling, inflammation, and general pregnancy ache that nobody warns you is a full-time companion. I’ve also started getting acupuncture there, mostly to help with overall aches and pains, but also to stay ahead of headaches and support my carpal tunnel.
Speaking of which: I had carpal tunnel last pregnancy too, but it’s worse this time around. I’m now wearing braces to manage it, this one at night and this one during the day. I’m also trying to cut back on salt, which feels like a punishment worse than death to a girl who considers a well-salted anything a personal value system. But it’s directly tied to inflammation and swelling, so this go-around, I’m actually being careful about it. Reluctantly. One craving at a time.
Cooking my way through it
I’ve always loved to cook, but since having Charlie, I’ve been cooking more than ever, not less. It’s become one of our favorite things to do together, and there’s something genuinely exciting about introducing him to new ingredients and recipes instead of just defaulting to the toddler classics on repeat. We recently signed up for a local CSA, which has been the best possible push out of my grocery store comfort zone. It shows up with vegetables I’d never think to pick out myself, and now we’re all eating them.
There’s also a more practical piece to it. To be clear, I am still very much using butter and cheese and all the delicious things, I have not converted to some sad, joyless plate. But since I’ve been watching my sodium more closely because of the carpal tunnel, I’ve noticed I genuinely feel better on the days I cook at home versus the days we order in or grab takeout. It’s not a moral thing, it’s just a real, physical difference, and once you notice it, it’s hard to unnotice.
Lately I’m on a beans kick, hard. My go-to right now is a creamy butter bean and zucchini dish that basically demands a good sourdough or baguette for dipping. It’s the kind of thing that feels indulgent but is actually just vegetables and beans doing all the work.
Charlie, meanwhile, has been on a serious smoothie kick, which could not be better timed for this heat wave. We use this mini blender for our morning smoothies. It’s small, unfussy, and the button is easy enough that Charlie can push it himself, which in toddler terms means he now considers himself the one making breakfast.
The skin thing nobody warned me about
Here’s a new one: I’ve developed perioral dermatitis this pregnancy, a rash around my nose, mouth, and chin that flares completely at random with zero pattern I’ve been able to crack. I’ve never dealt with anything like this before. I’ve more or less lucked out with my skin my whole life, so this has been humbling, to put it kindly.
My dermatologist says it’s hormonal, she had it herself during pregnancy, and the good news is there’s an antibiotic that clears it right up. The bad news is that antibiotic crosses the placenta and can affect a developing baby’s teeth and bones, so it’s a no-go until after I deliver. Pregnancy giveth, pregnancy taketh away.
In the meantime, I’ve stripped my skincare down to almost nothing. I’m using the No7 Dry and Sensitive Skin Face Wash and Moisturizer duo on my derm’s recommendation, no more layering five products before bed, and I switched to a non-fluoride toothpaste, which apparently can help reduce flares too. It’s not a full skincare routine over here right now. It’s survival mode for my face, and honestly, it’s driving me a little insane. If you’ve dealt with this and found anything that actually helped, please tell me. I am extremely open to suggestions at this point.
What I’m actually taking, and why
My body is doing an amazing thing right now, but it is also running overtime, and it needs all the support I can give it. So here's what I'm actually doing to help it keep up. I’ll be honest: I don’t usually buy into supplement culture. The LA girl in me has her limits, and “this powder will change your life” marketing is generally where I roll my eyes hardest. I believe in medicine, first and foremost.
But these have genuinely stuck. I’ve been taking Perelel’s prenatals, which are broken into trimester-specific packs that shift as your needs and the baby’s needs change, instead of the one-size-fits-all approach most prenatals take.
For congestion, I added Bee Keeper’s Naturals Sinus Support after watching Charlie thrive on their kids’ immunity spray. When pregnancy congestion set up permanent residence in my sinuses, it made sense to try the adult version, and it’s helped noticeably with the pressure and stuffiness.
And at night, I’ve added Cymbiotika’s Liposomal Magnesium Complex, which might be the single best addition to this whole pregnancy. It comes in these pre-dosed packets you just suck down, almond-butter flavored, which sounds strange and is somehow delicious. My husband keeps trying to steal one for himself, which I’ve decided to take as a compliment. I was taking Unisom every single night in my first trimester, and since adding this in, I haven’t needed it once, no more grogginess the next morning either. Sleep without the fog. That’s the win I didn’t know I needed.
Sleep, or my ongoing negotiation with it
I’ve relied on two pregnancy pillows this time, same as last pregnancy. Early on, I was using this adjustable wedge pillow, small, easy to travel with, does the job when the bump is still manageable. Now that I’m getting bigger, I’ve switched over to this U-shaped full body pillow, which is basically non-negotiable at this stage of pregnancy. Both are genuinely great, and the wedge pillow pulled double duty for me postpartum too, especially after my C-section, when I needed something that made me feel held together, literally. If you know, you know.
The other non-negotiable is my Hatch clock. Every single night, I fall asleep to ocean sounds, and it genuinely makes me happy, which is not a sentence I expected to write about a sound machine. There’s something about the same wave sounds every night that feels like a small, reliable ritual in a season where very little else feels predictable.
What’s helping you get through this summer, pregnant or not? Tell me in the comments, I read every one, usually while hiding in the bathroom for thirty seconds of peace.