You said WHAT to a Pregnant Woman?!

Kathryn Gibbs Photography

There is an myth of how fragile the emotional state of a pregnant woman is. That she is difficult, angry and just plain crazy. I agree with some of it. I wasn’t the difficult, hard-to-please kind of crazy; I was more the ‘cry-at-the-drop-of-a-hat', over sensitive kind of crazy.

When you break it down, between the hormones, fear, joy, exhaustion and anticipation, she doesn’t know how to feel. I can attest to that. I was pregnant with Mason, in my first trimester, over Christmas in 2010. We hadn’t told anyone yet, so I was trying to keep in the crazy. I remember watching TV with my mom and bawling at a Canadian Tire commercial. I couldn’t even speak about the commercial or I would tear up. Anything sentimental would open the floodgates.

Here is the video:

Another reason some women are seen as crazy or over emotional can be from the unsolicited tips, questions and comments from strangers, friends and family. I found this list of what not to say to a pregnant woman from parenting.com. 
The top ones I experienced were:

• You don't look that pregnant! (Trust me...I am.) 
• Are you going to nurse/cloth diaper/co-sleep…(It’s my choice regardless.)
• Can I touch your belly?

Believe me when I say you’d be lucky to be asked permission. Many people seem to think your baby belly is public domain. Imagine rubbing theirs back? I bet it wouldn’t go over well.

In case you are trying to compliment a pregnant woman; here is another list of tips on what may be insulting. It may not seem like a big deal to you, but there are many sensitive subjects! Check it out here from Huffington Post.

This isn’t meant to discourage complimenting a woman at what can be considered the most beautiful part of life, but tread lightly. She means well…try carrying a watermelon under your shirt for months with all the lovely side effects, and forget seeing your feet…

Keep strong mamas, and those who deal with mamas, it will all be worth it!

-A

Frabz.com

Ignorance is Bliss...Sometimes.

Me; 37 weeks pregnant

While I was pregnant with my first son, 
I had the mentality of 'ignorance is bliss'. I wanted to believe that I would walk into the hospital, spend a little time there and leave with a baby in my arms. Forget all the messy details involved, just as simple as that. I didn't want to hear the truth about it all because it terrified me. I hear that's a common feeling among first-time moms.

The disillusionment was fabulous, until my water broke. Waking up in the middle of the night in that manner was, at the very least, unsettling. Googling:

• how do you know you are in real labour;
• What is false labour; and
• when to call the hospital

Certainly didn't feel like that was how it was supposed to go. Quickly realizing those 'horror stories' about labour and child birth would have been mighty helpful at this point. Once I was pretty sure it was for real, I woke my husband and quietly told him what had been happening, he was up out of bed in a millisecond. (Actually, I had never seen him move that fast.)

Of course, the whole process was beautiful and life changing (and kind of gross) but I had a beautiful son out of the deal. I was ecstatic.

Shortly after Mason was born, we decided to have another. (Skip ahead 19 months.) I figured out the second most unsettling feeling about having a baby...that startling moment when you realize ....I remember this pain...oh no..... here we go again...

The MOMster saga continues,

-A