Wow...

Has anyone ever been mistaken for being pregnant? I just was and I felt like shooting myself in the foot. I'm 5'2" and 177 lbs. I'm thick, I know, but I don't look pregnant. I mean, seriously, argh. It just makes me feel even worse about my weight and makes me even more insecure about how I look.

Fuhgeddaboutit.  Some people are just dumb.  Back when I was 125 lbs, I was having bad cramps one day, so I was rubbing my stomach at circuit city and some one asked me when I was due.  My husband politely told them that I was not pregnant, nor did I look pregnant, and if this inconsiderate such-and-such were to ever imply this again, he would give him the what-for!  His reaction was perfect since it saved me from giving the guy a piece of my PMS-soaked mind!  Thank goodness he understands me.

Lol thank you, that makes me feel a lot better. It was at work so naturally I couldn't say anything, but it was so insulting!

I made the mistake of congratulating a girl on her pregnency once...

Bet you never did that again, did you martalmonkey? 

That's why his username is "mortal" "monkey"...his life flashed before his eyes.

Not to worry, people are simply dumb/ignorant/stupid/self absorbed/unkind/thoughtless some of the time and you got one during one of their moments.  You're probably the right age and there was something about their life at the moment that made them wonder (perhaps they forgot to congratulate someone).

At my heaviest, a good friend (at the time, not anymore ) was describing a friend of hers. She said "She's a big girl, bigger than you"

OH WOW thanks, I'm some sort of univeral barometer of fat.

This happened to me once. I have always carried my weight in my stomach. Well a patient I was helping asked me when I was due. I told her I am not pregnant just fat. She felt bad and followed up by saying that I had the glow. And you know what I really was pregnant! I found out like 3wks later. How funny! So next time that patient came in I just had to tell so she wouldn't feel as bad.

I've always been afraid of having this question asked of me because I carry the majority of my weight on my stomach, and the result does kind of make me look pregnant.

I have an answer ready though (assuming I don't start crying, which is sadly a possibility): "Yes, I'm pregnant with ice cream's baby! The father is either Ben or Jerry, I'm not sure which!"  Or maybe "Yeah, it's pizza's baby.  They don't call him 'Papa' John for nothing!"

A few years ago I was working in a children's store while going back to school. I was working the cash and a woman and her mother came up to me and started to gush about how great I looked. I had no idea were this was coming from... but it was helping my ego at that moment... then they asked how the baby was. Well, I had no baby. I knew then that they had mistook me for my co worker, who had recently had a baby, and just returned to work. When I corrected them, we were all a little embrassed, but I wanted to curl up under a rock.

Another time, more recently after some of my weight loss, I was stopping by to see an elderly client of mine. When she saw me she asked if I was pregnant. NOPE. I tried to laugh it off and told here no baby she then she told me that my shirt wasn't flattering. It was just a pink polo shirt, which was a little on the tight side. I never wore that shirt again.

Yeah, I got it a few years back, and I really couldn't be offended, since it was coming from a six-year-old girl.

"No, sweetie, I'm just fat."

Her mother was mortified.

I only had it happen to me once, when I was moving out of my mom's house. I was wearing an empire cut shirt while I was moving boxes and the neighbor (who I didn't like anyway) asked my mom if I should be lifting heavy stuff in my condition. My mom told me about it later and she promised me she told him what's what. 

Although now I do think twice about wearing empire cut shirts.

Original Post by mortalmonkey:

I made the mistake of congratulating a girl on her pregnency once...

 

 

I sincerely hope the girl was not highly offended!

That is awfully embarrassing. I bet people who make those mistakes feel just as bad, though. I've never made that mistake before, but I've definitely made plenty of innocent mistakes before (like when I saw a woman playing with a friend and asked her if she was her grandmother - she was only her aunt!!!). Just learn to laugh it off and not take it personally. It's easy to get your feelings hurt and sulk about it, but it's much better to laugh at yourself. 

A friend of mine has a rule: Never ask a woman if she's pregnant unless you see a baby coming out of her!

I carry my weight in my stomach, even if I'm not really fat at the time.  Here in cape verde, i got asked if I was pregnant a few times by some older women in the small villages ouside the cities.  I told them nope, I just like to eat, and once I overate a lot and I joked with my hubby's host mom that I was pregnant (seriously, my tummy had a bulge after eating lol) and I told her was Baby  Helena (her name).  Everyone got a kick out of that.

In the bar bathroom once a really drunk woman asked me when I was due.  I was maybe 162 at the time (low for me, a size 10) and I was upset.  Her friend looked me and was horrified.

But here's the thing, and I don't mean to offend anyone.  I DO carry my weight in my stomach.  The night at the bar?  I WAS wearing one of those babydoll shirts that m ake you look pregnant a bigt  Here, I HAVE gained weight and I DO probably look a bit pregnant.  We can sugarcoat it, and people are insensitive but yeah, some of us probably do look pregnant in some of the clothes we wear.  I try and take it as a wake up call that Woah honey, time to get some poundage off.

Original Post by sasquatch7:

I've always been afraid of having this question asked of me because I carry the majority of my weight on my stomach, and the result does kind of make me look pregnant.

I have an answer ready though (assuming I don't start crying, which is sadly a possibility): "Yes, I'm pregnant with ice cream's baby! The father is either Ben or Jerry, I'm not sure which!"  Or maybe "Yeah, it's pizza's baby.  They don't call him 'Papa' John for nothing!"

And that is a far healthier approach than getting all upset and angry about it. I was approached by a lady in a supermarket, 8 months after my daughter was born. She asked me when i was due. I had my daughter in the trolley in front of me!! So i just laughed and said "8 months ago" She turned bright red. I didn't get angry or upset or assumed she was being rude/offensive. She made an assumption, as we all do in life, and she made a mistake. It happens.

I honestly get mistaken for being pregnant more than you would expect. It's ridiculous!

I'm small, about 5' with a medium frame and a small waist. Whenever I indulge in a large meal I get the "food baby" that everyone has experienced (though mine seems to be lower, which must be more convincing). For some reason, no matter what, someone always seems to make a comment about it.

Last year at Thanksgiving, my boyfriend's sister (who had recently given birth) quietly went up to him and asked if I was pregnant. The most terrible thing was he got all worried about it and asked me sincerely later that night ...

Goodness! You know its bad when your own boyfriend (not a stranger) thinks you might be expecting ...

I'm telling you, small meals in public from here on out.

I personally have never been mistaken as pregnant, but I do tend to gain weight in my stomache area first before it goes anywhere else. I am sure the person who mistook you for being pregnant may have felt worse than you did. That has to be so imbarressing for them too. I am sure they didn't mean any harm in saying that. I know people who have told me stories of accidently mistaking someone as such and they felt TERRIBLE! If anything, let this be inspiration to kick the diet and exercise into high geer. It may be a great motivator. I do want to say sorry that happend to you though, that would make me feel bad if it were me too.

Unfortunately I gain all my weight in my stomach, got it from my grandmother. I also had a very bad case of freshman 15 and gained 30 pounds in less than 3 months, causing many of my loving co-workers and a few of my customers to start asking when I was going on maternity leave. It was the worst feeling ever but made me realize that I needed to really start taking care of myself.