5 things you should prepare for when you tell people you’re Pregnant

There are some things that all the pregnancy websites, books and classes in the world can’t prepare you for. The things that people say and ask can shock you! Here are some of the things I wasn’t really ready for:

 

People will show interest in personal things – things you would rarely engage in conversation about if there wasn’t a bun in the oven. Private things. Like heartburn, morning sickness, itchy skin, swollen limbs, doctor’s visits, I could go on – I mean, if someone told me they were at the doctor yesterday I would respond with a polite “Hope everything’s ok”, I wouldn’t be asking for their medical history and bodily function patterns!

 

Opinions will be rife. Everyone will offer an opinion on some aspect of your pregnancy, even especially people who don’t have any children! You’ll be getting lots of “advice” on every possible subject surrounding babies and parenting, whether or not you’ve asked for it. Just remember that every baby is different and every parent is different, and you will work out what is best in your little family. Nothing else is important.

 

You will be asked “How are you feeling?” at least 47 times a day and even though you respond with “fine”, “not bad” or even “not great today but it’ll pass” the interrogator will want to know more! Have you puked? Are you tired? Is baby playing football with your bladder? I suggest preparing a speech with just enough detail to satisfy, and reeling it off whenever you’re asked how things are going.

 

Your bump will never be the “right” size. If it’s neat – is the baby underweight, are you eating properly, maybe you’re carrying towards your back, has the baby been measured lately? If it’s big – are you sure you’re not further along than you think, are you overeating, are you watching your fluid retention, is there more than one baby in there? Practice smiling and nodding along with all the concerned questions, then replying with something polite (but firm) like “everything’s normal, that’s just how my bump is”.

 

“Is it a boy or a girl?” – There is no way of answering this question correctly. If you say which it is, then the next question will be something along the lines of whether you’re happy about it. Who on earth asks that?! If you say you haven’t found out and want to keep it a surprise, you’ll be met with shock, awe and proclamations of how they could never wait to find out because it would drive them mad. As I keep saying, I’m going to go through a million few hours of labour, I want to look forward to the surprise of finding out afterwards.

 

 

What have you been asked while pregnant?

I’d love to hear some of your stories in the comments!

Thanks for reading,

Aoife X