Expansion of the family can be a joyous or an extremely sensitive topic, as bringing children into this world is not equally easy, if at all possible, for everyone.
For this redditor, unfortunately, bearing children wasn’t meant to be. Despite that, she told members of her family that she was happy for other expectant parents; that was until her sisters-in-law pushed their pregnancy announcements a little too far, doing it on the woman’s birthday and presenting positive pregnancy tests as a gift.
Scroll down for the full story where you will also find Bored Panda’s interview with the Assistant Professor of Health Communication at the University of Connecticut, Elizabeth Hintz, who was kind enough to share her views on the matter.
Some pregnant women want the whole world to know about their bundle of joy arriving
These expectant sisters announced their pregnancies during a sterile sister-in-law’s birthday party
It’s important to choose the right time and the right place for announcing your pregnancy
According to The World Counts, there are roughly 140 million babies born every year, making an even larger number of people incredibly happy. So it’s no surprise that said people might want to share the joyous news with the entire world; or with their family, at least. But for some people, having children might be a sensitive topic, for reasons such as infertility, which is why it’s important to present the news in an appropriate way, if you know that someone in the family is dealing with such problems.
“It’s absolutely important to both feel as though you can discuss exciting news with your family while also not offending family members who might be struggling with infertility. Family members wishing to share exciting news should consider the timing and context in which they are sharing this news to avoid potentially offending or upsetting family members who might be sensitive to news about children,” Asst. Prof. Elizabeth Hintz told Bored Panda in a recent interview.
The health communication expert emphasized that it’s important to carefully select the time and the location of the disclosure. “Knowing when and where it is appropriate to bring up sensitive information about pregnancy is essential for both sharing positive news with family while also preserving potentially harmed relationships with people experiencing infertility.
“It can also be advisable to have a conversation with the potentially affected person in advance of the announcement to ‘warn’ them about the news and get a sense for how they might respond. People shouldn’t feel as though they can’t share good news with their family members, but should also be sensitive to the potential concerns of those family members.”
According to The World Health Organization, around 17.5% of the global adult population—meaning as many as roughly one-in-six people—experience infertility. With so many individuals affected by it, it’s important for everyone to be aware of the problem and just how painful it can be. Though, for some people affected by infertility, talking about it with family members or others they trust might alleviate the load and in some cases, even bring them and said people even closer together.
“Self-disclosure can improve perceptions of relational satisfaction as well as trust. In other words, when people decide to tell other people about sensitive and personal topics like pregnancy, both parties can feel like they have a better relationship, and that they trust one another with this sensitive information,” Hintz suggested.
Be that as it may, announcing one’s pregnancy as a gift to a person who they know is sterile is inconsiderate at best and unlikely to improve the relationship between the two parties. “Revealing one’s own pregnancy information at the birthday party of a sister who is experiencing infertility definitely underscores the importance of considering the time and place appropriate for making such disclosures,” the expert said.
“It’s sort of akin to announcing an engagement at someone else’s wedding without permission. Asking the birthday person’s permission to make a pregnancy announcement beforehand is a different story,” she said, adding that the element of surprise of the pregnancy tests presented as a gift also didn’t make things any better and indicated a lack of consideration for the person whose birthday was being celebrated.
Fellow netizens were supportive of the woman, they didn’t think she was being a jerk to her sisters-in-law
