People have definitely started to treat me differently since I announced the pregnancy. For the most part, it's all from a place of care and concern. They ask how I've been feeling, encourage me to nap whenever I feel like it (well, not when I'm at work, although that would be nice!), make sure I get whatever I want to eat, and keep things away from me that I find revolting.
One thing that has caught me off guard is that people now seem to think they can comment on my body, what I'm eating, portion sizes, and my body image. When talking to a non-pregnant woman, these topics are completely taboo. But I guess when you're growing a baby, the rules change.
I can't believe how many people have reminded me "don't eat too much, you'll never lose all the weight," or "don't eat for the sake of eating." My personal favorite was when I was going through my not-feeling well stage, and I would tell people that I'd been drinking a lot of milkshakes because they made me feel better. This was often met with a sarcastic, "well that's healthy."
Well geeze. I would never walk up to someone who was eating McDonald's and self-ritously announce, "you know that's not very good for you." Besides, isn't it better to get something in me that I can keep down rather than something that makes me so sick I throw it back up anyway?
As a general rule, I'm a pretty healthy person. I eat well, I work out, and while I certainly don't have a perfect body, I'm pretty happy with myself. I'm aware that my body will change during pregnancy and I'm aware that my body will never quite be the same afterwards. I'm okay with that. I've been trying to make sure I'm getting all the nutrients the baby needs and have been eating when I'm hungry. I don't deprive myself but I don't go overboard either. If I'm feeling sick and all I want is a milkshake, then dammit, I'm going to have milkshake (then again, I probably wouldn't have deprived myself of a milkshake pre-prenancy either).
I do believe the comments come mostly from a well-intentioned place, but it doesn't make it any less annoying. I will treat my body the same as I did before the pregnancy. I will try to eat a well-balanced diet, I'll eat when I'm hungry, and I won't deprive myself when I really want something. Including milkshakes.
See, this is the difference between you and I: You say, "I do believe the comments come mostly from a well-intentioned place," and I say, "These Rubenesque bitches need to quit making YOUR pregnancy about THEM." Comments like that have much more to do with their own body image issues than with you and your baby's health.
ReplyDeleteBack off, people. If my niece/nephew wants a milkshake, (s)he's getting a damned milkshake!
...just sayin'.
My grndchild can have as many milkshakes as she/he ( Jenny notice the placement of the pronouns)wants to have!! Tell people to SHUT UP and leave you alone about what you eat!!!!!!
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