As more women speak openly about the risk and pain of miscarriage, announcing pregnancies earlier becomes another way to combat the isolation that comes with losing a baby in its first several weeks. If moms who grieve miscarriage never shared their pregnancy news in the first place, they’re left with the dilemma of whether to tell when the baby doesn’t make it.
It used to be considered standard for women wait until they were 12 weeks along before announcing they’re expecting. Past this point, they breathe a sigh of relief knowing the risk of miscarriage has greatly diminished. After the first trimester, women slowly move past some of the initial exhaustion and nausea and feel more comfortable with their pregnancies.
While parents still typically wait until then to make it public, we’re starting to see a shift toward announcing earlier. Some expecting couples share their pregnancy news just weeks after they find out, or upon seeing their baby’s ultrasound for the first time.
Even as we celebrate with them, we instinctually do the due-date math and realize the baby is just six, seven, or eight weeks along. It can seem naïve to us to go public with a pregnancy so soon.
The rise of social media, a go-place for pregnancy announcements, may play a factor. Couples carefully compose clever sayings and cute pictures themed around the coming baby. Some parents-to-be are too excited to keep the pregnancy a secret. And there can be other reasons, too. Kate Middleton was forced to announce both of her pregnancies early because of extreme morning sickness that led to her hospitalization with Prince George and at-home medical care with her current pregnancy.
But the biggest reason for the recent movement to announce earlier is a changing view of miscarriage. Jill Duggar made headlines last year when she told the media that she was expecting a baby shortly after her wedding, and long before she was 12-weeks along.
It wasn’t a lack of knowledge of miscarriage risks that led Jill Duggar to announce early, but because of them. She explained that they see every life as valuable and wanted to honor that life for as long as it was given to them.
Writing at The Federalist, Bethany Mandel celebrated her decision, saying:
The more I thought about the Duggar/Dillard announcement, however, the more I came to admire their bravery. What is brave about announcing to the world you’re pregnant while still in the first trimester? The terrifying possibility of making another, much sadder announcement several days or weeks later.
As more women speak openly about the risk and pain of miscarriage, announcing pregnancies earlier becomes another way to combat the isolation that comes with losing a baby in its first several weeks. If moms who grieve miscarriage never shared their pregnancy news in the first place, they’re left with the dilemma of whether to tell when the baby doesn’t make it.
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