Then and now… the changing world of pregnancy
The world was obviously more pregnant then than it is now, going by the quantity ‘of babies women ‘downloaded’—hardly anything below six compared to today’s average of two. But let’s hear the ‘quality’ side.
Then
The doctor says you are pregnant and you smile. You tell your husband about it and he nods his head. The rest of the people will see that when your bump demands for the two-piece A dress hanging by the market’s tailor. If you are in the village, the older women dispense on you great counsel by the riverside, and if you are in town, it is the nurse you see at the clinic that has all of your pregnancy’s 411.
Now
You see two lines on your pregnancy kit and you shout. The next minute your girls’ phones are ringing with the news and they all wait with bated breath for the doctor to confirm it. If he affirms it, your girls (a boy may be part of them) throw you a little party, and your hubby drops a line on Facebook to suggest his new status.
When you start shopping for maternity wear as your waistlines starts disappearing, nearly every clothes store you walk into has someone eagerly displaying for you a variety of maternity wear—tops, jeans, braziers, slacks, panties, lingerie, dinner wear, perfume, foot wear, bags—Just about everything to suit your taste and social status. Do you see a pregnant world?
The internet is awash with pregnancy info. Want to know how high the heel of your shoe should be as you advance? Was the slight pain you felt in your lower abdomen two days ago a good sign? How does the four month old baby in you look like’. Answers are a few clicks away! Millions of suggestions, medical articles and personal opinions grace your screen, and occasionally a pregnant women’s forum with the ‘join us’ phrase will be flickering at you. If you are not careful, you may be left more confused than you were before you ventured in for the information.
Moreover, when you do not have superfluous access to the internet, books and pregnancy highlights on magazines will be beckoning you from their stands. In addition, we have had TV and radio talk shows featuring a bevy of expectant ladies who have never been short of advice, opinion and various dos and don’ts concerning the soon-to-be arrival…you can imagine Mwalimu King’angi’s opinion.
The first, second, third and fourth estates (the executive, parliamentary, judiciary and the media) have had their members at loggerheads; short of grabbing each other’s collars—if you have been following the ‘When does life begin?’ debate, which is a reaction to Kenya’s current draft constitution’s stake on abortion. What more would a pregnant world be like?
No doubt, there are certainly more gynaecologists and obstetricians than was the case back then. These ones attentively listen to your pregnancy maladies with an encouraging smile well displayed on their faces. They are eager to give a thoroughly researched diagnosis as you wait in their state-of-the-art lounges arrayed with magazines that flatter your feminine side.
With that said, which world do you consider more pregnant?
END:PG30/17