No mom-to-be can escape pregnancy without developing some pet peeves. Whether it’s a stranger trying to rub your belly or someone giving their two cents about how big you’re getting, let’s face it, people can easily get under your skin when you’re pregnant.
You don’t have to suffer in silence. New mom Mary Horowitz recommends speaking your mind without fear. “I feel like people see pregnancy as an open door to speak without a filter, touch without regard to social boundaries . . . So pregnant women shouldn’t be afraid to let people know ““ gently is always better at first ““ about the boundary that was crossed.”
We asked four new moms what boundaries were crossed during their pregnancy and how they handled these pregnancy pet peeves and the often annoying, hard-to-deal-with people that come with them.
Some Help, Please
For Theresa Guderian, of Winnipeg, Manitoba, one of the biggest pet peeves was when people didn’t give her special treatment when she was pregnant with her now 4-month-old twin girls.
“I know it sounds selfish, but being pregnant with twins was equal to being handicapped by the end. And I was lugging around a 28-pound toddler, and sometimes a 20-pound cat [to the vet],” explains the Canadian mom of three. “To be fair, most people were very courteous and understanding since it was very, very obvious that I was extremely uncomfortable, but the few who were not courteous made me very angry.”
“You’re Too Big”
Amanda Coburn, of West Virginia, hated comments about how big she was getting. A naturally slim woman, this mom of two gained 40 pounds during each of her pregnancies.
“My biggest pet peeve was people asking, “˜Are you sure there is just one in there,’ or when someone would ask me how far along I was. [After] I told them, I hated when they looked at me like I had absolutely lost my mind because I was too big to only be six months pregnant.”
Theresa sympathizes. When pregnant with her fraternal twins, she also received comments about how huge she was and how uncomfortable she must be.
“The worst comment was when someone told me my belly looked “˜funny,’ while literally laughing at me ““ in my face. Who does that? I handled all the comments by smiling and nodding and running away. Brave, I know,” Theresa said.
“Your Life Will End After Baby”
While pregnant with her now 7-month-old son, Jenny T. of New Zealand found it annoying when people told her to “Enjoy it while you can.”
“The implication was that once we had a baby, our lives would end and we wouldn’t be able to do anything fun ever again,” Jenny said. “Some things have changed, naturally, and our social lives have taken a dip, but life is, if anything, more fun now that our son is here.”