The Second Baby Book: How to Cope with Pregnancy Number Two and Create a Happy Home for Your Firstborn and New Arrival

I love Sarah O.S. she has written a book that really helping me cope with the stress and emotions of having a second child. It was as if she knew what I was thinking and gave me the tools to get through the hardest part of my mom guilt and accept and thrive with my new family.

The book is really kind of meh. I’m 90 pages in and I have picked up maybe 1 tip. Lots of the topics are wishey-washey. “It’s a good idea to do “x” unless you don’t want to, then don’t do “x”. I also feel several of the topics are not in alignment with other baby books I have read. Granted, I have not read the full book (yet) and if it improves, I will update the review, but for now: Recommend passing on this one.

Still pregnant of my second child. This book has helped me with tools and insights of other mothers that I am sure will be very helpful during the adaptation stage for my first born!

Reading this book while pregnant and finishing it when my second born was 10 days old has been invaluable. It’s prepared me so much! Thank you.

I didn’t dislike the book, but I wasn’t particularly impressed by it either. I was wanting more of a book on experiences for the first child and preparing for its arrival with the new sibling. I felt half the book was telling me more about birth, too much about shopping, how to wear new baby. It’s not that this isn’t important to some, but I was hoping to read more about the last few chapters through the entire book. I wanted more focus on first born and how to transition to two.While I liked the authors writing, I wasn’t impressed with the book information.

I’m only on chapter two and have had to skim across irrelevant information to me. They also scare you with a ton of negative scientific facts in the FIRST CHAPTER. they then go on in the next chapter to talk about how it could take longer to get pregnant with baby #2. If you have anxiety, DO NOT GET THIS BOOK

Great book! Definitely recommend it for anyone starting the process of adding another baby to the family

While I read this book to answer some questions I have about the possibility of a second baby, it was very informative. It's also really nice to know that any apprehension I have is shared by others and I found the personal stories helpful.

I was waiting impatiently for it to be released and it was worth the wait! I've always known I wanted a second child but found that there was very little information to be found on the experience the second time around. I'm still deciding on when to have baby number two and the book has helped me put a lot of things into perspective. The book is incredibly complete. I love how it covers everything from how to prepare yourself and your first born emotionally to real science based facts on second pregnancy. I had an emergency c section for a breech baby first time around and truly hoping for a VBAC for number 2 which to my surprise is even tackled in the book. I've found all of Sarah's work to be amazingly empowering for Mums and families and it has truly enabled me to be the best, confident Mum version of myself possible. Thank you and looking forward to the next one!!

I’m expecting my second baby in a few months and have a toddler. This book was great for me, a breath of fresh air from all the advice I’ve been hearing about ‘must wean’, ‘must get her into her own room’ etc which just felt wrong for our family. It’s helped me to think about what changes I actually want to make now and how to help my daughter through the experience of getting a sibling. It was particularly useful to have practical tips around when to get the new baby stuff out, what to do with no1 when no2 is cluster feeding, what to do with no1 when I go into labour and to be reassured about the things that actually don’t matter at all. Thank you

I bought this because it was literally the only book I could find about having a second baby, in the hope that it would contain much wisdom.For £6 I think I got an appropriate amount of wisdom, which consisted of the same two very useful points expressed through many different examples:* Change practical things about how your household works for baby #1 as soon as possible (except potty training).* Don't stress about emotionally preparing #1 for the arrival of #2. It will be a shitshow no matter how many cute books you read together - or it was never going to be! There is no way of telling and no way to prevent or encourage a different outcome. Kiddy brains are too complex and their ability to hypothesise is too crap for them to understand what's going on or for you to predict what they will think about it all. So don't stress, go with the flow.I paid £6 for this wisdom so you don't have to.Probably more useful for other parents whose kids are going to be further apart in age, or twins, or other bits that I skipped over. But in general - could have been a blog

I have read a few of Sarah Ockwell-Smith's previous books and found them to be helpful but this one is a must read for anyone having an additional child. The advice contained is really practical and do-able. The way it is written means you can just read the bits that are relevant to you.I'm not always a fan of reading other people's experiences but the ones in this book are really reassurring, especially surrounding what to do with your older child if you don't have family nearby. You can dip back in when required and I think I'll get a lot of use out of this book going forward. I'm now a week into life with two children and can say this book has already been worth its weight in gold. Can't praise it enough.

I have only one child and want to keep it that way, but I am a therapist who looks after mums with multiple children. I found this a great resource for my clients as it explains really well what they can realistically expect of their older child and what challenges different age gaps present, as well as offering practical advice on what to do in certain challenging situations like hitting, toy snatching etcIf you are thinking of having a second child, get the book before you make the decision.If you are already pregnant, get the book to prepare yourself and your older child as best as you can.If you are in the midst of it already, get the book to remain sane. X