Thursday, November 24, 2011

"Dear Non-Pregnant Person"

Dear Non-Pregnant Person, 
I hope you find these guidelines helpful in your interactions with pregnant women as failing to follow them may result in serious physical harm. If you are thinking, surely she doesn't mean me- then you should probably read this twice:

1) The appropriate response to a couple telling you they are having a baby is 'Congratulations!' with enthusiasm. Any other response makes you an a$$.

2) Through the wonders of science, we now know that babies are made ONLY by the mother and father- not grandparents. Unless the baby is in your uterus or you are the man that helped put it there, you may not ever use the phrase 'my baby'.

3) On the same note, unless you made the baby as defined in #2, the pregnancy, birth and raising of the child are not about you. You do not have input. No one wants to hear your opinion unless they ask for it.

4) The body of a pregnant women should be treated the same as any other body. You would not randomly touch someone's stomach if they were not pregnant, nor would you inquire into the condition of their uterus, cervix or how they plan to use their breasts. Pregnancy does not remove all traces of privacy from a woman.

5) Likewise, no woman wants to hear comments on her weight- ever. A pregnant woman does not find it flattering that you think she is about is pop, must be having twins, looks swollen or has gained weight in her face. Telling her she looks too small only makes her worry that she is somehow starving her baby. Making such comments invite her to critique your physical appearance and you may not act offended. The only acceptable comment on appearance is 'You look fabulous!'.

6) By the time we are 20-30 years old, most of us have picked up on the fact that the summer is hot. We are hot every summer when we are not pregnant. We don't need you to point out that we will be miserably hot before the baby comes.

7) There is a reason that tickets to L&D are not yet sold on Ticket master. Childbirth is actually not a public event. It may sound crazy, but some women really do not relish the idea of their mother, MIL or a host of other family members seeing their bare butt and genitals. Also, some people simply feel like the birth of their child is a private and emotional moment to be shared only by the parents.

8) Like everything else is life, unless you receive an invitation, you are NOT invited. This includes doctor appointments, ultrasounds, labor, delivery, the hospital and the parents' home. You do not decide if you will be there for the birth or if you will move in with the new parents to 'help out'. If your assistance is desired, rest assured that you will be asked for it.

9) If you are asked to help after the birth, this means you should clean up the house, help with cooking meals, and generally stay out of the way. Holding the baby more than the parents, interfering with breastfeeding and sleeping schedules and making a woman who is still leaking fluid from multiple locations lift a finger in housework is not helping.

10) The only people entitled to time with the baby are the parents. Whether they choose to have you at the hospital for the birth or ask for you to wait three weeks to visit, appreciate that you are being given the privilege of seeing their child.

***Complaining or showing disappointment only encourages the parents to include you less.***

Sincerely, 
All pregnant ladies in the world!

4 comments:

sizegenetics scam said...

your advice for those non pregnant people is really good .. i admire the way you put out the 10 guidelines, I have never come across this on the internet .. amazing .. thank you for this kind blog message .. I will share this in my facebook

nuratrim said...

wow, I have never thought you can come out with 10 ideas .. I would struggle to find 1 let alone 10 .. maybe you are women and I am not .. strange that I stumbled your blog .. but great read though

sawanongagirlblog said...

This is great information, from my experience, I had experienced with them few and really made me unhappy with others comment..

I will share this information through my face book and my blog..:)

Thank you.

yoaniverse said...

The thing is, in Indonesia, saying "you look like you have gained a lot of weight" is a way of showing that you are in 'that' level of intimacy, or showing that you remember that person you haven't met in ages.

for example, I haven't went to that spa for almost a year. The day I went there, they all went "WHY ARE YOU SO FAT NOW??".

Off is the general direction in which I wish they would f*ck.

Bottom line, I totally agree with you, NO WOMAN wants to hear comments on their weight. Even if it looks like she has swallowed titanic.