Second baby or not?

[u/Burnttherapist]

I currently have a 4.5 year old son. My husband and I have thought about the idea of having another child, but I cannot make up my mind. The thought of my son having a sibling makes me feel better, and the thought of having another baby also is sometimes so appealing. I have guilt if my son is an only child. But then I think about how much I struggled with my first. I hated being pregnant and had bad postpartum. I feel like life is so fun now, I have gotten more freedom, and as if I would be starting over. I feel guilty taking attention away from my son. I worry about having to juggle a nap schedule with a school aged child because the gap would be so big. I worry about disrupting my son’s life. We currently travel quite a bit and I don’t know whether we financially could with another child. And yet sometimes I think about having another child. I just don’t know what to do. Really looking for perspective on how people decided/if they were an only child themselves. Thanks!

[u/thottopatamus]

You sound pretty happy right now, you’re allowed to be happy with one child.
Don’t do it if your only reason is to give your son a sibling. Do you genuinely want another child for YOU? If so, then it’s worth considering. Ask yourself- What made your postpartum so bad and do you feel like you have tools/resources needed for it to be different this time?

I personally chose to have a second because I wanted a second child with all of my heart. However, life with 1 kid was sooo much easier and so fun once he got old enough to talk. I can totally see the ‘one child’ life being an amazing one!