Publications
You are pregnant, the pee-stick said so and so did the scan! You are bursting at the seams with excitement (thankfully not quite preggy belly, just yet), and want to shout it from the rooftops. But you have heard that you should not tell anyone until at least 12 weeks.
Why? By 12 weeks you are through the most vulnerable stage of your pregnancy and are less likely to miscarry, and you will have had your first antenatal appointment confirming your pregnancy, and a clear indication that all is well with your baby. The lore is that you should keep your pregnancy mum until then. However, views on when it is appropriate to share the exciting news have changed. In fact, psychologists encourage women to share their pregnancy news with family and close friends earlier, so that if you do miscarry or discover that something is amiss with the developing foetus, you have support when it is most needed. Some women also experience pregnancy symptoms such as extreme fatigue and vomitting from as early as week four and may need some help coping. Ultimately, when you choose to spill the beans is entirely up to you – some women revel in all the attention and announce that they are pregnant as soon as those blue lines appear, while others postpone telling the news until they are showing to avoid the inevitable questions and advice for as long as possible.
Telling work
From a professional point of view, you may want to put off telling your boss and work colleagues until you are in your second trimester. This again depends on how you are feeling and how much support you may need at the office to deal with any symptoms, or if you need to take time off for antenatal appointments. When you do decide to tell your boss, treat it like you would any other professional matter. Do research into your rights and the company’s maternity policy as you may have a contractual scheme at work which gives you better rights, maternity pay and benefits than the basic package you are entitled to by law, so ready our contract. Happily, more and more employers are supportive of the work and life balance, and are understanding of the benefits to both staff and the company. One thing is for sure, telling the world you are pregnant goes a long way to making it all feel much more real to you.
