tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4738062031052371885.post8126323530745342914..comments2024-03-17T10:07:53.205-07:00Comments on The Well-Rounded Mama: Second Annual Turkey Awards: Scare-mongering and Shaming TacticsWell-Rounded Mamahttp://www.blogger.com/profile/04129621631406155340noreply@blogger.comBlogger11125tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4738062031052371885.post-28840794682547786412010-02-02T19:48:38.302-08:002010-02-02T19:48:38.302-08:00What this article (and every article I've ever...What this article (and every article I've ever read on weight and pregnancy) don't seem to acknowledge is that 1. birth prevention is not 100% effective, 2. many Americans don't believe in abortion, 3. there are Americans that due to religious, moral, health or other beliefs do not use artificial birth prevention, and 4. "unplanned" doesn't mean "unwanted".<br /><br />Every article I've ever read talks about planning your pregnancy a minimum of six months in advance, particularly by losing weight, and if you got pregnant while being overweight, you shouldn't have been pregnant in the first place, and since you were either stupid enough to try while overweight or even more stupid as to "allow" yourself to get pregnant, the (sometimes) unsaid implication is that you should abort. <br /><br />I'm not trying to so much get into a birth control or abortion debate as to simply say that industrialized nations are much more eugenics minded then they wish to admit to themselves. It's not quite as bad, but being lower-income and pregnant gets a lot of the same treatment. And if you're overweight and low-income...well, lets call CSD to take the kid as soon as it comes out. <br /><br />I'm so grateful to have found this blog...I'm pregnant with my sixth and am dreading my first appointment due to the weight issue. What angers me the most is no one thinks of what came first- the underlying health issue or the weight gain?Anonymousnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4738062031052371885.post-64116274730769302182010-01-23T02:30:07.286-08:002010-01-23T02:30:07.286-08:00It's amazing the number of articles I'm se...It's amazing the number of articles I'm seeing against overweight pregnancies this time around that I'm pregnant compared to just four years ago. I'm sure they were there then too but not so much in the media like they are today. I'm constantly reading SOMETHING about how an overweight woman should make sure to lose weight before becoming pregnant or how overweight women shouldn't gain weight during pregnancy (it may even get so bad as to say NO woman should gain weight while pregnant since low-weight babies aren't an issue anymore). The WORST was an article that was all about how moms who had bariatric surgery after one pregnancy went on to have a healthier child the next pregnancy. I really wanted to call BS on that one because it was from a SURGERY website! On Facebook, I see articles and comments towards women of size and it's disgusting. I became pregnant for the second time at the exact same weight I was the first time around. I didn't want to get pregnant at that weight but well, baby was a surprise. I'm doing the best I can to have a healthy pregnancy but you know, when I look at it, I realize something. I don't eat anymore while I'm pregnant than I do when I'm not. If anything, I might eat less because food doesn't attract me as much. This time around, I see myself eating more often due to nausea so I can't go skipping meals like I usually do (and I didn't do that for weight loss but just because I get involved with things and don't eat as much). But, I'm not of the mind to go eating for two and looking back on my weight gaining years and my pregnancy, when I go and gain weight in either a one or two year period, it's usually around 50 pounds. I gained 25 pounds during my pregnancy. My daughter was 9 pounds, 7 oz, just half a pound more than I weighed at birth. My mom was overweight when she had me but had lost weight while pregnant with me, not much but a couple of pounds. Having a baby that's half a pound heavier but having gained 25 pounds during the pregnancy, that's not bad. And I lost all of that weight within the six weeks and while I gained some of that back, it was nowhere near what I would have normally gained when my weight bounced back up after losing it. I didn't gain it ALL back and then another 20 pounds like I normally do.<br /><br />So yeah, these articles are really starting to tick me off, I think it's horrible. I even left a Birth Rights group on Facebook because the person decided to go all, "You need to lose weight before you get pregnant so that you and your baby are both healthy and you have no problems" type of thing. I left a comment of my own and then left. Sorry, a birth rights group should NOT be pushing weight loss. It's just despicable.Janeenhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/12085755609836623027noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4738062031052371885.post-53196459272260807752010-01-16T11:28:01.827-08:002010-01-16T11:28:01.827-08:00I am struggling with getting pregnant for a variet...I am struggling with getting pregnant for a variety of reasons and just had a very depressing talk with my reproductive endocrinologist. She is cautioning that since my BMI is above 50 that I have a VERY low chance of becoming pregnant and also telling me that I WILL have a high-risk pregnancy. I feel stuck and unsure of even what to do at this point. Do you have any info that would be useful to read? Thoughts? I know you know so much on this topic!!Anonymousnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4738062031052371885.post-71888468871619167092010-01-12T09:48:23.173-08:002010-01-12T09:48:23.173-08:00It would be one-sided to depict Abe Sauer as merel...It would be one-sided to depict Abe Sauer as merely anti-fat--cf. <a href="http://www.theawl.com/2009/11/real-america-with-abe-sauer-a-visit-to-new-york-citys-jc-penney#more-17072" rel="nofollow"> his extended critique of Cintra Wilson's NYT J.C. Penny's review</a>. His unfortunate rush to pull the trigger on the "fat + IVF = Personhood Movement hypocrisy" kicker obscured his generally charitable and sympathetic depiction of Midwestern and Southern Americans as exploited politically, medically, and commercially. I would hate for your readers to miss out on his more tempered and insightful articles! <a href="http://www.theawl.com/2009/08/the-last-of-the-hot-summer-town-halls-how-weve-all-been-fooled-by-the-health-care-debate" rel="nofollow">This older article</a> on the summer town halls strikes me as more representative of his style.Anonymousnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4738062031052371885.post-13496526704967898552010-01-10T23:41:28.206-08:002010-01-10T23:41:28.206-08:00I am in week 35 of a high-risk pregnancy (high ris...I am in week 35 of a high-risk pregnancy (high risk for other medical reasons, the bottom of which is my weight). This is my fourth time being pregnant, and I have one child who is the most amazing kid I've ever met. I have PCOS, hypothyroidism, insulin resistance, and a rare genetic mutation, MTHFR C677T, which causes blood clots and was the reason I lost two babies (9 and 19 weeks) in between my son and this one due in February. As a result of those two losses, I suffer from PTSD and a severe anxiety disorder.<br /><br />My weight comes up at every appointment, even though my FrauenArtzt (I live near Munich) started off as very size-accepting. This whole pregnancy I have been told, "Because you are overweight, we are doing this" and "Your weight is a risk for..." I got tested for gestational diabetes which everyone was sure I'd have, and I don't have it. I've been under Pre-Eclampsia watch because my BP has spiked a few times, and I'm fine. My blood gets drawn every week for SOME NEW HORROR THAT SHOULD BE HAPPENING. Every doctor I've seen acts surprised that this is such a normal, healthy pregnancy...they keep expecting something to go wrong.<br /><br />Before I fell pregnant, I lost 30 pounds (I had to, for my own comfort) by moving here and biking 10-15 kilometers a day and working out on days I couldn't due to weather. Throughout this pregnancy, I have kept up with my WiiFit workouts (yoga, boxing, running) because it's fitness I'm keeping in mind...and because the exercise keeps The Crazy at bay.<br /><br />No one has said to me, "You're doing great and clearly weight is not affecting you at all. Relax and enjoy your pregnancy" (it's my last one, as I'm 38).<br /><br />With all this scare-mongering with overweight/fat women being pregnant, I keep wondering about the women who start off at "normal" weight then gain a whole bunch. I have a friend who started at 140 and shot up to almost 200 because of pre-eclampsia. She was incredibly ill and delivered her daughter 3 months early. Are those women condemned and told, "Stop troughing it, pig lady...you're killing yourself"? No, because pre-e is not something you can control.<br /><br />So if an overweight woman becomes pregnant, why is she automatically villified as having weak behavioural/moral fiber? I eat such a restricted and healthy diet that I'm the envy of many people. I could do that and exercise two hours a day, and I'd still be big...fit, but big. Look at my parents, and you'll see it's genetic.ChestyLovehttps://www.blogger.com/profile/12252367020621459091noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4738062031052371885.post-14424886311613383322010-01-08T10:03:31.074-08:002010-01-08T10:03:31.074-08:00Thanks for the well-reasoned breakdown. I'm no...Thanks for the well-reasoned breakdown. I'm not officially a "woman of size"... what cracks me up is that on some labels on clothing in my locker, I am petite, and on some, I'm size 14. Seriously. I've given up on labeling myself, and I wish with all my might that doctors might give up labeling the women they see as well, and take each one as the unique biological entity she is.Laureenhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/12481258874805195562noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4738062031052371885.post-8793983564067834662010-01-07T08:03:58.772-08:002010-01-07T08:03:58.772-08:00Sadly, as bad as the US is, it doesn't compare...Sadly, as bad as the US is, it doesn't compare to South Korea. There aren't very many overweight people here (not yet anyway) and being 300 pounds when most Korean women don't even hit 200 pounds leaves me as a bit of a freak. I went to the doctor for my first appointment and they don't have a blood pressure cuff big enough, the doctor pretty much said I would be his first plus-sized patient, and when he heard my weight and the weight of my daughter started to look kind of freaked out and started answering all of my questions with "IF you don't have any complications..." and that was before he told me that before I reached term, he would want to make sure that the baby will fit into my pelvis. Um, that can't be determined before birth, last I read.<br /><br />So, I have no idea what to do. Obviously, my chance of a VBAC with this guy is low so I need to somehow find a doctor who is going to let me have the low intervention VBAC I need to have. Yeah, this is going to be fun, makes me want to run right back to the US.Janeenhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/12085755609836623027noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4738062031052371885.post-21977035627096552302010-01-06T16:17:27.886-08:002010-01-06T16:17:27.886-08:00Also, smoking=behavior. Weight=characteristic. Not...Also, smoking=behavior. Weight=characteristic. Not remotely comparable.Nicolehttp://rosenleaf.typepad.comnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4738062031052371885.post-48427358985310624002010-01-06T06:18:44.321-08:002010-01-06T06:18:44.321-08:00Bravo!
What a well written piece.
As a fat woman w...Bravo!<br />What a well written piece.<br />As a fat woman who desires acceptance but doesn't need it, I too wish people would stop the binary b*ll sh#t.Kellyhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/04040085494657860788noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4738062031052371885.post-40336100600503578022010-01-06T02:42:15.191-08:002010-01-06T02:42:15.191-08:00i just finished reading that article and its disgu...i just finished reading that article and its disgusting. im 20 weeks pregnant and weigh around 260. my blood pressure, cholesterol, iron ect..is excellent. it just amazed me how many people cheered him on. smoking is just as if not worse than being over weight. i just dont understand how someone could say those to deliberately hurt someone. and to mention making it illegal??? sick! all i got to say is good luck cuz i think it would cause ww3. lolhollifer127noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4738062031052371885.post-83949958548453635142010-01-05T15:53:21.380-08:002010-01-05T15:53:21.380-08:00Well said. I am disgusted even reading your small ...Well said. I am disgusted even reading your small snippets of his articles. As a fat woman (with an Ivy League graduate degree) who has had two perfectly healthy and uncomplicated fat pregnancies resulting in two healthy children, I resent the implication that I chose to have my kids when I did only because I was ignorant of the many risks involved.<br /><br />Let's face it. Pregnancy at any size is risky, and health is guaranteed to no one. If I had waited to get to an ideal weight to get pregnant, I never would have been able to do it, so destroyed is my metabolism from decades of dieting. And I think the world would be a little sadder without my two wonderful kids. I am a little biased though. :)Nicolehttp://rosenleaf.typepad.comnoreply@blogger.com