How to keep pregnancy a secret | Everyday Advice

How to keep the secret of being pregnant

Finding out you’re pregnant can be one of the best days of your life, perhaps something you’ve been wanting for months or even years. So, naturally, the first thing you would usually do is tell all of your friends. However, unlike most good news, this is something a lot of people want to keep quiet, for the first 12 weeks at least. But with morning sickness, a growing belly and food/drink restrictions - how do you go about keeping the secret under wraps for long?! ‘Keeping the secret’ for those first 3 months can be really tricky, especially when all of sudden it feels as though everywhere you look people are talking about pregnancy, children or baby names. You feel guilty for keeping something from everyone and can’t help feeling that they must be able to see the guilt written right across your forehead. But, don’t panic! You’re not alone, there are many others going through the exact phase like you. That’s why we’ve pulled together some of our top tips for keeping the secret during the first 12 weeks.

Social occasions

If you’re heading out with friends for drinks and you’re not usually the one to stay sober we’ve got just the excuse to keep your secret under wraps (as long as you drive)… Go along with the plan as usual and just before you’re due to leave, send out a text to your friends and tell them you got stuck in traffic on your way home from work/shopping, so you’ll have to meet them there. When you arrive, just “Oh dear” them that you’ve got your car with you, so you’ll have to spend the evening on lime and soda. If you don’t drive you could always play the classic “antibiotics” card. Just make sure you’ve got your story straight. Let’s face it, your closest friends may ask for more info. If you’ve got more than one night out lined up with the same friends, we have a Plan B to suggest. Introduce your new fitness challenge! Tell your friends you’re on a health kick and you’ve challenged yourself to stop drinking. This also works well for when you need to avoid certain foods. Although it might mean saying goodbye to that pizza you were planning on ordering on your night out – sorry! At the end of the day, it’s OK if you just cancel your nights out altogether. There might be a few complaints here and there, but you shouldn’t be afraid to be unpleasant to your mates – it’ll only last for a short time and once they find out the truth, surely they’ll be extremely happy for you!

Your growing bump

In the early days, hiding your bump is usually quite easy, especially if it’s your first child, but as you begin to grow you might need to change your style. Of course, the obvious answer is to wear loose fitting clothes. Try to avoid maternity items as they’re often designed to show off your bump. Instead opt for floatier items, or accessorising with longer scarves and cardigans. Patterned clothing or layers are also a really good way to disguise the bump. But whatever you do – resist those temptations to touch your belly in public! If this isn’t your first child you might think that you know what you’re doing. But it can actually be harder as it’s often said that you ‘pop’ faster the second time! Then again, you might be one of the lucky ones without a bump during the first 12 weeks, which means you can enjoy wearing your normal clothes. But wait for the big pop after the first few months!

Hospital appointments

In the first few months, you may need to leave work for hospital appointments and check-ups. The best advice we can give is to think long term from the beginning. Instead of switching between doctor and dentist appointments (trust us, you’ll soon run out of excuses), say you’re having some dental work done – a new crown perhaps? You’ll need lots of check-ups before the operation and probably some time off afterwards, so that makes it the perfect excuse. Plus, it can be expensive so it’s a great way to get out of those Friday night work drinks too.

Of course, the obvious answer is to wear loose fitting clothes. Try to avoid maternity items as they’re often designed to show off your bump.
Instead opt for floatier items, or accessorising with longer scarves and cardigans.

Morning sickness

For a short-term solution while you’re getting used to managing the morning sickness, you can always use the age-old excuse of food poisoning. But if your morning sickness is around for a while (and isn’t restricted to mornings), food poisoning isn’t going to cut it. If you can, our best advice would be to disclose the news to your boss. You don’t have to tell all of your colleagues but confiding in your boss is going to make it a whole lot easier to sneak out if you need to. And as for the rest of the office, just keep it vague – the more vague your excuses, the less likely they will be to ask questions. If you do suffer from morning sickness, here are a few quick tips too:

Eat little and often.
Speak to your doctor for any tips, suggestions or potential deficiencies and check with them before taking any medications.
Stay hydrated.
Get as much rest as you possibly can.