Every woman who has ever been pregnant knows that she immediately becomes public property.
Strangers who under normal circumstances would not even have considered asking her the time, will now feel free to ask when she is due, talk about their own birth experiences (usually grim – and becoming grimmer with every retelling), ask whether it was a boy or a girl – or even touch her stomach.
Advertisement
Together with becoming public property, a pregnant woman becomes a receptacle for endless unsolicited advice, and a myriad of old wives’ tales, most of which are not only untrue, but also downright foreboding. Considering the fact that many pregnant women spend a lot of time feeling nauseous, people take quite a chance retelling some of the following tales, most of which are, of course, completely untrue.
The Good (or at least amusing)
If you crave sweets, you will have a girl
If you crave meat or cheese, you will have a boy
If your mother had an easy pregnancy, you will too
Suspend a needle from some thread and have someone hold it one inch above your hand. If the needle swings back and forth, you will have a girl and if it moves in a circle, you will have a boy
A boy is carried high, a girl is carried low
Think happy thoughts to have a happy baby
Massage yourself with olive oil during the pregnancy – it will help the baby to slide out easily
Babies born in April are unpredictable individuals
The Bad (especially if you have morning sickness)
If a pregnant woman looks at a mouse, the baby will have a hairy birthmark
Harelip is caused by the foetus sucking its thumb in utero
Wearing high-heels causes the baby to be cross-eyed
Wearing tights or pantyhose causes pregnant women to develop a discharge
Eating strawberries during pregnancy will mark the baby with a bright red birthmark
Nausea of morning sickness stops as soon as skin grows on the baby
The Ugly (not for the fainthearted)
Don’t borrow a maternity dress from a woman who has had a miscarriage because this will cause you to miscarry
You lose one tooth for every pregnancy
Reaching above the head or stretching wraps the umbilical cord around the baby’s neck
Very severe heartburn indicates unruly hair on the baby
If a child is born with teeth, that’s a sign of syphilis
If you believe any of the above, you will also believe in the tooth fairy, you will stay in bed on Friday the 13th and have full faith in the stork being the actual reason for the continued existence of the human race.
Bookmark with:
What are social bookmarks?