VERY worried about baby after attending a Taoist funeral. Help!

[jesslcxp]

Hello, Last week I had to attend a Taoist funeral of a close relative and for 3 days I was exposed to thick Joss Stick fumes for about 3-4 hours straight. Should I be worried? I am VERY worried at the moment :(

On a side note: As a teacher, I am exposed to paint and glue and usually it feels fine and we also use non toxic kid friendly stuff. Yesterday however we were using some apparently non-toxic fabric dye and the smell was quite unbearable. I began opening the doors and windows when the smell hit me. Again, should I be worried? Thank you for your time and I hope to get some of your opinions on these matters.

I forgot to add the important bit- I am 18 weeks pregnant.

Your body is very good at processing the chemicals we are exposed to everyday. One off exposure - except to very dangerous chemicals or radiation - is very, very unlikely to do anything. Plus by now all your babies organs are developed so can't be affected which is why exposure to medication is generally mor of a problem on first trimester.

No need to worry, honestly!

Hi LadyMedea,
Thank you for your reply. I don't think I have worried this much in my life as I have since getting pregnant!
I have been trying to keep safe and the Taoist funeral was a first-time experience for me (and for 3 days)! But I will take your advice to heart. Thanks again.

Unfortunately I think you are just beginning on your journey of worry. It's all part of being a mother

Obviously it's best to avoid these things but you have to remember that when our mothers were pregnant with us we were exposed to fumes constantly as people smoked EVERYWHERE and we are all fine. I'm sure your baby will be too.

Maybe speak to your midwife if you are really worried? Pregnancy makes us hypervigilant which is great, but stress is not good for your baby.

YY to what JJJ says!

Joss sticks are not harmful, although long-term exposure to the smoke can irritate the lungs ( just like burning lots of scented candles can). There is nothing that would directly harm the baby, the basic componentis like cinnamon stick and few other plants/herbs thrown in.

Smells are probably hitting you harder than normal at the moment because you are pg. This is normal. My boss knew she was pg second time when her husband made her a cup of coffee and the smell made her sick. When I was pg I had to move the lemon soap out of our tiny en suite shower room, as I could smell it in bed and made me feel sick.

Thank you so much everyone... I really appreciate having people with experience telling me it's OK!

Will try not to stress.