Trusting Tuesday: Listening

Do you trust who you listen to when you are pregnant?

Do you think about those things you hear?

Almost daily I have a patient come to my office to have me dispel some myth that someone told them. These can range from caffeine is killing my baby by turning into formaldehyde inside my body... to... if I raise my hands about my head my umbillical cord will strangle my baby... to... I can't eat meat in pregnancy.

Reading them on a blog might make you laugh. How could anyone believe anything like this? What if it is someone you trust who told you this? Do you still laugh? Some of you might, but during pregnancy we need to learn to not believe and trust everything that people tell us. We need to listen with our ears and minds wide open, then filter through that information and find out what is true. Do the research, ask your provider, ask the source of the information where they heard that from.

There are wonderful people out there with great experience and knowledge, but listen closely and don't trust blindly. Don't believe everything you hear. If it doesn't make sense when you hear it the first time- it probably isn't.

Here is a little exercise. See how well you can trust your gut instincts:

True or false- Raw meat, like sushi, is safe in pregnancy.

True or false- You have to take your prenatal vitamins every day or your baby will be stupid.

True or false- You have a healthier pregnancy if you are really sick in the beginning of pregnancy.

True or false- If you have a miscarriage once you will mostly like miscarry every time you get pregnant.

True or false- If you eat lots of peanut butter in pregnancy your baby will become allergic to peanuts.

True or false- It doesn't matter what you eat in pregnancy, as long as your weight stays within the normal range for your body type.

True or false- If you spend time in a hot tub or a hot bath you might cook your baby.

If you haven't figured it out yet--- all the answers are false and I have heard these all come from patient's mouths. Not that they aren't smart, it is just that they are too trusting of the people around them who tell them things. Listen when people talk to you and think it through. If it sounds ridiculous, then it probably is.

If you aren't sure- ask your provider.