Fact or Myth?

[Enchanted]

I have been told over and over again by my ILs that I should not be 'stretching'... they tell me this when I reach above my head into a cupboard or hang washing on the line. So I am not exactly 'stretching' as such but more 'reaching' I guess you could say. It's nothing strenuous!!

I have never been told or read anything of the sort... does anyone know anything about this??

[Pandora]

Not sure, but my mum said it to me too

[Tobily]

There's an old wives tale that says if you reach above you're head when you're pregnant the umbilical cord will wrap around the baby.
This is definitely no more than an old wives tale but alot of older people still believe it

[*EmJa*]

same here my mum told me not too!! sorry not much help!!

[Deltadawn]

Definitely a myth!I have recently bought "Preggie Training for 2" DVD which is put together by an Australian Physio and an Australian Obstetrician and they use stretching quite a lot in the DVD including stretching over a fitball - arms draped over the ball and putting your chest towards the ground. This stretch would be more "stretchy" than just reaching up to your cupboards and they say that this stretch should be done daily to stretch the abdominals.

I would think they would know what they are talking about ........... (??)

[Enchanted]

I thought it may have been an old wives tale and I did think about 'well, how come they recommend yoga etc??'.

Hmmm, ILs they drive me crazy! It does make me laugh though because as much as they tell me not to 'stretch' they won't help me do what I am doing!!

[MamaPan]

it is def an old wives tale!!!
but given they have told you that i'd be asking them to help me with all the chores so I dont 'hurt the baby'!!! make the most of it. ha ha!!

[Enchanted]

Pregpan- If I liked my ILs I would ask for help. Unfortunatley I cannot stand them though. FIL is very loud and swears a lot of is quite rude and MIL thinks she is the head of mine and DHs home and thinks she can do whatever she wants!! So I am not too keen on asking for help... IYKWIM

[TeganRheana]

Pregpan- If I liked my ILs I would ask for help.

hahaha that sounds like me!!! When my MIL offers her help, I usually say no anyway...her idea of "helping" me is telling me that I get dizzy because I have GD (which I don't) and that my baby most likely has ADD because he is always extremely active!!!! No thanks...I'll risk the "umbilical cord strangling my baby" MYTH and do it myself hahaha

[Enchanted]

TeganRheana- You gave me a good laugh! ILs are hard work aren't they?? Well mine are and it seems yours are too! MY MIL came and did my ironing one day but was too lazy to turn my expensive black pants inside out or put something over them while ironing them to make sure they didn't get wrecked. She wrecked a few other items of clothing that day too. Needless to say I now have a BIG iron mark on them now... she didn't tell me she did it but I sure know I didn't do it!! So from then on I have refrained from asking for help and the more I see them the more I dislike them... geez I sound like a cow!

[MamaPan]

ha ha girls!! i think we all have elements of feeling that way. i actually thought when i wrote to you, hmm would i actually do that as i HATE my ILs taking over things in my house.. even though i do adore them as people!

[Enchanted]

I would love to ask my ILs for help and wish I got along with them (they get along with me, I don't get along with them) as they only live around the corner... I mean a 30 second walk! So no doubt MIL will be offering her services once bubs comes along so she can be here all the time. Too bad she has no chance of that happening! We only have a small house anyway and my housework takes me forever because I am always on BB now... I am constantly on here! It kills some time while DH is at work though!!

[August]

I'd say this one is very much a myth too.

[Karina]

I wasnt told not to do it... but just to share a little story: when I was like 34 wks pregnant, I went through all the filing at work with a colleague and we pulled everything off the top shelf (meaning I had to stretch to reach up to it) and felt extremely dizzy after doing this. Maybe that is what they meant?

If they meant other stretching, such as yoga.. then thats a bit dumb. Gentle exercise is recommended, and that can include gentle stretches like yoga, stretching over a fit ball etc.

[Ezz]

I have pulled muscles from lifting things down on top of the cupboard - I'm pulling muscles much more easily than what I normally would!! I can feel it pull as I reach up, and then I hurt the next day! Trying to get DH to lift down the heavy stuff now.

[Adnil]

It's definitely a myth. People used to say that if you reach above your head you can strangle the baby with the cord - SO not true!! Maybe they just wanted the men to hang out the washing