Do Your Research Before You Believe Any Old Wives Tale Myth Or Superstition About Conceiving
As a parent of two girls and a boy, I understanding I had heard and endured all the old wives tales and myths known about becoming pregnant, what gender the child is going to be, and how ‘pregnant’ the father can be (the best one yet). But I was unfriendly. Here are a few.
The ‘Old South’ has a very strong conception system that has been passed down from generation to generation of mothers regarding babies. Tales about what sex, methods that should be used to determine what sex you want your child to be, and how much pregnant a husband can get while the wife is carrying the baby are a large part of this belief system. These mothers claim this system is “tried and true” and should be followed to the letter in order to fulfill your desires. Can this be so?
My mother insisted (which had a great deal to do with my grandmother’s advice) that since I carried the unborn baby low, (first grandchild – what do I know? I was 7-1/2 months pregnant) that it was going to be a boy. I had no idea whether it was a boy or a girl because in the 70’s ultrasound imagery was not available to the average household. So II was convinced to lay down flat on my back on a very sorrowful couch not even comfortable enough to sit on, bare the “tremendous white whale” stomach, and allow these two very important women in my life to clarify that it was beyond any argument it was a boy. They put a pin on a string, held it over my bare, protruding belly button, and let it swing in a circular motion.
The sage is if the pendant/necklace swings in a circular motion it’s a girl, or if it swings in a back and forth motion, it’s a boy. I had, two months later, an 8-1/2 lb. baby girl!! So much for that argument!!
In my researching the myths and extinct wives tales of yore, I especially liked the size of a woman’s breast in determining if the unborn is a boy or a girl (if the right breast is the larger – it’s a boy and if the left breast is the larger of the two it means a girl is on the intention). This is not a decision I had to make or resolve, because both of mine were the same size. My question is, however; if you are smaller than the average woman or if by some unfortunate circumstance, i.e. mastectomy – what then?
If a pregnant woman is able to pick up a key – most of the time found on the floor – why would it matter if it’s the thinner end (a girl) or the bottom, rounder part ( a boy) or the best of both worlds – the middle (twins? ) It is a known fact if she was able to pick up the key at all speaks volumes!
My husband swore by the wives record that if your pregnant wife climbed over you (the husband) in the morning before putting her feet on the floor, that he would have morning sickness or be nauseous. I was nauseous for the first few weeks, however; he was sick for a few months. This myth was only in his head and came from his father. Could it be that his father suffered from morning sickness as well?
For eighteen months (two pregnancies) I listened to my mother, my grandmother, and my friends – “do not lift your arms above your head” – the wives tale: the umbilical cord could accept wrapped around the baby’s neck and it could choke on it. A fact: approximately 1/3 of births occur where the baby gets the umbilical cord caught around his/her neck.
Shower vs. Bath It is stated that bath water can enter through the vagina, thereby introducing corrupt bacteria to the baby. After analyzing this obvious myth, and the scientific proof, I feel if that is the case, wouldn’t this “same” spoiled bacteria affect the woman whether she is pregnant or not? Come on, some myths are the result of a vivid imagination or co-incidental. My opinion about this particular wives sage, after enduring several pregnancies, anything that will relax that acrobat, basketball player, or potential cheerleader, will be a welcome reprieve!
Remember the only true and factual way to determine what sex your baby is, by current technology – the ultrasound. However, this is not always accurate and I have proof of this. Since I had my two younger ones during my late 30’s, I was required to have an ultrasound image made. My son’s picture showed him as a girl (he covered the pertinent parts), and my daughter used her thumb as a guide (we assumed she was a boy). I enjoyed the surprise of my first being born without my knowing whether she was a girl or boy which proves to me that wives tales are a mixture of upright and wrong, but so is guessing.
Not only are there ‘tales’ for the sex of your child – conception and preplanning of the sex have their bear set of myths attached. Some mothers, in my research, stated that by “taking the mother’s age at opinion and the year of conception – if both are even or both are odd – it’s a girl. If one is even and one is odd – it’s a boy.” Wonder if the “odds” can be stale in Vegas? I especially found this one very humorous. “If your legs resemble tree trunks – it’s a boy, if they are desirable and fit – it’s a girl.” What happens to those ‘Olive Oyl’ types that are pushing a stroller with twins? I picture someone with one tremendous tree trunk let and one leg that is simply ravishing. Did someone miss basic Biology 101?
I am not going to tell you that I based the sex of my last child on the order of his father’s siblings either (G-B-G-G) or from the birth order in my family (G-G) because all of it is based on the biological facts that have proven time eternal and that old wives tales are simply beliefs passed from generation to generation. What I will end with is – I wanted a boy and planned approximately the date of his birth. It had nothing to do with eating anything salty or sweet, pimples on my face, or cravings – it had to do with simple planning of conception, timing, and the luck of the draw. Of course, it didn’t really matter either blueprint – does it?
Sources:
www.pregnancy-info.net
www.allsands.com/lifestyles/women/pregnancy.babym_rqy_gh.htm
www.storknet.com/cubbies/pregnancy.owl1.htm
www.gynob.com/wives-tales.htm
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Filed under Tips Conceiving Twins by on Dec 19th, 2011. 