How did you manage to not drink during pregnancy?

[enkelt2]

Just that, really. I've never been pregnant. Out of all the things pregnant women do for their children, the one thing that impresses me the most is that they can manage to not drink! For such a long time!

I'm not an alcoholic but just cannot fathom not being able to get a beer or two every couple of days, whenever I want.

So for people who used to drink regularly before your pregnancy, do you just... go cold turkey out of sheer will power?? Or did pregnancy make you alcohol-adverse?

Genuinely curious.

Just the idea of what alcohol could do is enough for most people tbh, look up Fetal alcohol syndrome for some ideas and maybe look into non alcoholic beers or mocktails, try and find a new satisfying drink as your go to.

Literally everything except crisps made me feel sick, so alcohol was not on my radar at all.

I think most women just don't want to risk potentially hurting their unborn baby in any way. Not drinking is a tiny but so important part of that.

You put the baby first and don't drink, very easy really.

Will power.

It’s the first step towards all the other ways you have to subsume your life and existence for the sake of your children. (I’m only partly joking…)

Didn't really have a choice tbh!

Read up on fetal alcohol spectrum disorder and it will be easy to skip the drinks.
https://www.nhs.uk/conditions/fetal-alcohol-spectrum-disorder/
A refreshing beer every couple of days is less appealing knowing it could cause permanent brain damage to your baby.
They make plenty of non-alcoholic beers now too.

I’ve never carried to term but I just don’t drink. My last drink was probably last year as I don’t really bother. If you can’t abstain for 9 months then you have a problem.

Just not knowing where the line is, what harms one baby won't harm another baby, so couldn't risk even a small amount. Pregnancy was such a worrying time I just couldn't add to it.

You just know you can’t 🤷🏼‍♀️ I used to love wine (don’t drink at all now) but found it easy to stop in pregnancy

Yeah this wasn’t an issue, I just didn’t drink because I had a tiny life growing inside me. That’s one of the easier sacrifices of motherhood!

I went off alcohol to be honest. So much so I thought I may never like wine again! But I did recover the taste lol

You just do.
It's easier than you think because all you can think of is the welfare of your baby.
(In most cases anyway).

Honestly I love a drink and I found it really easy not to drink in pregnancy. Unless you think you have a problem, it won’t be hard.

I was a fairly heavy wine drinker but when I was pregnant the smell of alcohol made me heave for the first 4 months. After that I didn't want to risk fetal alcohol syndrome. Then for the first few months after the birth I was breastfeeding so only had the odd glass once all the day feeds were done and I'd pumped for the night feeds. Ramped up again once dc were on bottles.

I have always enjoyed a drink.

I wouldn’t say it took a lot of willpower to not drink when pregnant, but some occasions I did find challenging - usually less about my own having a drink, and more being around others who had drunk several…!

In the third trimester I might allow myself a 125ml glass of wine once a week if I really wanted it.

I also probably replaced alcohol as a ‘treat’ with other treats - sweets, mainly!

I am not an alcoholic so it was easy

My (adopted) son has fasd. It made not drinking during pregnancy ridiculously easy.

Yea I get all the harms it will do to your baby. But so are so many things in life, in general, that harm people, and people still do them regardless! So just curious is the will power stronger when it comes to your baby?

Truly in awe of what women would do for their babies!!

It's very easy if you're not dependent on it. If you really can't manage, find an alcohol free version of your favourite drink.

for people who used to drink regularly before your pregnancy, do you just... go cold turkey out of sheer will power??

Yes.

I do miss alcohol! Not a huge drinker so it is easy for me to leave. Maybe once a month I had an edible (semi legal where I live), had to stop doing that too.

For me the hardest thing to leave is pate, I struggle with low iron so pate was always a good food for me.

I still eat brie and other soft cheeses from pasteurised milk.

Yeah, exactly what @Futurethinking2026 said 🤷🏻‍♀️ motherhood is the best choice I ever made but it certainly comes with a lot of sacrifices. The no-alcohol is one of the smallest!

I personally chose to stop all alcohol before TTC. DS is now 4 and I’ve had 2 drinks since he was born 😂😂😂 I can’t fathom the idea of a hangover and a child 😳

Same. And I did drink a few times before finding out about my unplanned pregnancy.

if you find it hard to even think about abstaining from alcohol then that’s a bit worrying! I could give up anything if I had to.

This for me too!

I felt way too sick the first 20 weeks, the next 20 I had a bump and regular kicks reminding me not to!

I like a drink, but during both of my pregnancies, I just didn't fancy one at all.