Thinking about how Mumsnet changes language - would you know what 'sticky wishes' means and when did you first hear it?

[SarahAndQuack]

That's it really.

If you know what the phrase means, or you've heard it, when would you say you first heard it? Was it on here or somewhere else?

(I am loosely asking this for research purposes, but only fairly loosely!).

I've never heard it before.

Never heard of it....it sounds gross

Heard sticky wicket but not sticky wishes

Never heard the phrase. Did you mean ‘sticky wicket’?

Never heard it before.

What does it mean?

Nope, no idea.

In the context of Mumsnet I'd assume it meant 'hope you don't have a miscarriage' in other contexts I'd think it sounded very funny/weird/possibly sexual?

I used to think pfb meant precious fucking baby, though, so I could be wrong about sticky wishes!

Yes. Probably on here when I first started posting, which was around 2007. I haven't seen it for a long time, but my youngest child is 11, so it's not really relevant to my stage of life.

Is it from the TTC board? I've never TedTC before but I've heard about the cutesy language people use...

Thanks all. @Tallisimo, no, I don't.

I didn't want to post what it means in case it skews replies but that's probably just daft. It's a term used in the context of trying to get pregnant, perhaps especially if doing fertility treatment. So people might say 'sending sticky wishes' to someone who's had an embryo transfer. I assume it comes from the idea of hoping a pregnancy would 'stick'.

It's certainly been in use on MN for a long time, but I've also seen it in hashtags on instagram. I would love to know if it's used more widely, but it's really hard to search that kind of thing!

Think I've seen people hoping a pregnancy would stick, but can't remember when

Yes never heard it here but assume it's a ttc thing like baby dancing or rainbow baby or DTD

Ah never heard it before

But it would be easily understood phrase to anyone in the context of a ttc thread/post. But not just posted randomly.

@MakkaPakkas

Think I've seen people hoping a pregnancy would stick, but can't remember when

I think wishing a pregnancy would stick is older; I'm specifically interested in when people start saying 'sticky'!

To give context, I'm interested in the ways people who have fertility issues use language. Someone mentioned 'cutesy' language and I've read anthropologists suggesting there's something interesting going on with 'cute' imagery and pregnancy loss. So I wondered if this were similar.

It's definitely an unusual phrase, isn't it? I've heard people being quite revolted by it as well as quite heartened, and it made me think how complicated emotions around this sort of subject can be.

Never heard of it before. I know well “let’s hope this one sticks” in a ttc after miscarriage context but haven’t heard that exact expression.

Never heard of it but have never been in the ttc board or any threads.

When I read it I thought it was going to similar to ‘eager creamies’ a phrase I heard in the 70s to denote the wetness a woman gets when aroused.

Having had issues I give a free pass to most of the language people struggling to ttc use. The one that makes me want to yack is baby dance. But though I’d never use I try not to judge!

I’m saying no idea before I read the rheey

Never heard of it despite being here 10+years but I joined after my DCs were born and I hid the TTC and pregnancy boards as not relevant.

*thread

I hadn’t heard of it, but I have seen women on fertility forums wishing each other “sticky beans”.

Thanks all! This is really useful.

Never heard it before, really sets my teeth on edge. I'd have probably guessed that it was a typo for 'sticky wicket' which I also can't stand!

Speaking of MN phrases that I can't stand, 'boobing the baby' is another godawful one that I've only ever seen here...We seem to have a real collection of them.

I think I'm with @annelovesgilbert in giving people a free pass on language when they're in a rough spot, but I do get why it generates some visceral reactions.

It's really interesting to me.