.png)
As of the writing of this blog post, I am 40 weeks and one day pregnant - meaning my due date has come and gone, and yet, here I am - still very much pregnant. While I'm passing the time, I thought I'd put together a top five list of things NOT to say to the pregnant ladies in your life.
Over the last nine months I have heard every single one of these multiple times. Of course, no one is trying to be mean spirited when they say these things, but just in case the sight of a pregnant belly leaves you at a loss for words, I've also supplied some helpful alternative phrases.
You're still pregnant? You haven't had that baby yet?
- Hormonal Translation: What's wrong with you? Why haven't you had the baby yet? Don't you WANT to have the baby?
- Safer option: You look lovely. Here, have some chocolate.
- Hormonal Translation: You look big enough to be carrying two babies. You are as big as a whale. There's no way there's only one baby in there.
- Safer option: You look lovely. Would you like some chocolate?
My sister/neighbor/cousin/postal worker (insert traumatic labor/delivery story)
- Hormonal Translation: I'm going to have a 36 hour labor and end up having to walk to the hospital barefoot in the snow uphill both ways.
- Safer option: You look lovely. I made some cookies. They have chocolate in them. Would you like some?
- Hormonal Translation: This shouldn't even require a translation. Common sense and common courtesy should make it obvious that it's never a good idea to tell a woman she looks enormous. I don't care if she's 14 months pregnant with a baby whale, it's not a good idea. Just don't do it.
- Safer option: You look lovely. Would you like to go out for coffee this week? I think they have hot chocolate.
- Hormonal Translation: Pass the pineapple and eggplant parmesan. I'll eat them while I'm walking down the road doing lunges. If it worked for your Great-Aunt Betty, then maybe it will work for me too. I'm feeling desperate. If you tell me that standing on my head while saying the alphabet backwards might cause labor to begin, there's a good chance you might catch me doing it. Just make sure someone is filming it, I could use the prize money from America's Funniest Home Videos.
- Safer option: Have you heard that eating chocolate and taking a nap might help labor start? Oh, and by the way, you look lovely.
 |
| 40 weeks pregnant. Belly photo-bomb courtesy of my four-year-old. |
You look phenominal! I would totally give you some chocolate (if I had any myself). I heard "ohmigosh, you're so tiny, is your baby ok"...at least no one is questioning the health of the tardy baby and suggesting that you're already an unfit mother when they're still in the womb! :) Silas was born exactly on his due date...it was a c-section because he had flipped breach at 39 weeks. He was very content and would have been late otherwise, he never dropped and I never had any indication that he was ready to come out on his own! Baby James will be here soon enough!
ReplyDelete