Families and friends

In some ways pregnancy is very private, just to do with you and your partner, but there may be a lot of people around you who are also interested and concerned about your baby – parents, sisters, brothers and friends.

People can offer a great deal of help in all sorts of ways and you will probably be very glad of their interest and their support. But sometimes it can feel as if you’re being taken over. If so, it can help everyone if you explain gently that there are some decisions that only you can take and some things that you prefer to do on your own.

You may also find that being pregnant puts you on the receiving end of a lot of advice, and perhaps a bit of criticism too. Sometimes the advice is helpful, sometimes not. Sometimes the criticism can really hurt. The important thing is to decide what is right for you.

After all, it is your pregnancy and your baby            

‘There’s the feeling that you’re being looked after. Not just by your husband and your parents and the hospital, but by your friends, by everybody. They’re there behind you. I suppose they’re wrapping me up in cotton wool, but it’s still a nice feeling.’    

‘My mother starts telling me “You must have this for the baby, you must have that”, and trying to tell me what I should do. And bringing things like nappy pins and saying “I didn’t think you’d remember to get them.” It’s irritating.’

‘We seem to have got a lot closer. We often sit and talk and my  mum remembers when I was tiny.’

‘It’s no good listening to other people. They only tell you about what happened to them. They tell you the bad parts too, not the good.’

Information provided by Health Promotion England.