Pregnancy rules

And I don't mean that it's the greatest thing ever, so far, I can say it's not, and although the second trimester is supposed to be great, that seems to be the exception, not the rule. Part of what makes pregnancy not rule, is the rules. And some of them are asinine - old wife’s (or doctor's) tales that people seem to follow blindly without thinking. Let look at some of the rules.

Don't eat sushi.
Don't eat soft cheese.
Don't eat deli meat.
Don't dye your hair.
Don't eat too much.
Don't eat too little.
Don't exercise too much.
Make sure you exercise.
Don't take hot baths.
Don't drink any alcohol. At all.
Don't smoke.
Don't clean the cat litter box.
Don't Don't Don't.

Sigh. Some of these are obviously true - there is evidence that smoking during pregnancy leads to low birth weight, which is associated with a host of other problems. Some are known to be harmful at certain levels (alcohol is known to cause problems at an intake of 4 or more drinks per day, but no one knows if there is a 'safe level', which presumably there is or there would be many more developmentally disabled children in Europe). But some of them are patently untrue, while most of them should be taken with a grain of salt (but not too much!!). The thing that bothers me the most about all the rules, and the fact that people like to remind you of them, is that it implies that the pregnant woman is incapable of logically thinking through her choices and then making a choice. As if she is incapable and irresponsible. It's infantilizing and condescending.

I think a lot of the rule spouting comes from doctor's who are scared of liability. If they tell you it's ok to eat sushi, but then you get some parasite, you could come back and sue them for malpractice. So they simply say no, rather than explaining the risk and allowing the woman to decide for herself. Concern also comes from family and friends, or even strangers, and it's fine to be concerned, but it's not ok to tell someone what to do, pregnant or not.

I was thinking about this while racing this weekend. A know some people thought/think that racing is a bad idea while I'm pregnant, however in the first trimester a woman is capable of going whatever she was doing before she was pregnant. It would not be ok for a pregnant woman to go out and do a 24 hr race if she wasn't used to doing it, but I am used to it, and my body is used to it. The point is that you can do what you are used to doing. Racing for me is not dangerous because I'm trained for it. I plan to keep working out and keep riding my bike to work as long as it's comfortable. At some point, it won't be, but until then and after, I get to decide what is right for me and what risks I'm willing to take.

And I'm planning on eating sushi too.