Ways to hide pregnancy?

[Catarinah]

I'm only 4 weeks pregnant and we aren't going to tell anyone until after 12 weeks. We have a lot of things coming up e.g. Friends coming to stay for a weekend, a festival with work friends, weekened away glamping, bbq parties etc... How am I going to hide that I'm pregnant!? They'll definitely suspect it and some of the same friends will be the different events weeks apart but we really want it to keep is quiet... Any advice other than antibiotics I could use?

Yea... mocktails and soda water in a gin glass it is then haha thanks everyone x

It’s the Quinine, it can cause birth defects.

To be fair if you're anything like me you'll be vomiting multiple times a day from 6 weeks onwards so tummy bug is always an easy excuse!

Don't say you're on Metronidazole for Thrush as suggested above - it may cause it but it certainly won't cure it (thrush being fungal and Metronidazole being a treatment for bacterial infections). So anyone with medical knowledge will see through that ruse in a second.

Sorry, I meant STD, not thrush.

Congratulations! I agree with other posters, by making something of not drinking it will draw more attention.
If you have/ are able to acquire an old gin bottle fill it with water and strategically empty it out when no ones looking, and just drink lemonade/water in a gin glass throughout the events. Everyone will be too involved in their own drinking to notice.
Also alcohol free wines are pretty convincing if people aren't paying too much attention.

Yea none of my friends would fall for any medication excuse. I'll stick to pretending to drink and hoping no one notices and the hangover line I think. On another note, I run, and have done so for 8 years, only a few miles every week (to clear my mind or when my jeans get tight). Am i safe to continue running?

Antibiotics excuse = pregnant. In my opinion no one ever believes that one. I also order a drink and then nurse it for a few hours. No questioning or looks.

I did the whole health kick/not drinking alcohol for three months and I also had the excuse of a wedding and the couple weren't drinking until their wedding so just made up that I was doing it with them. Worked well and no one really suspected!

But soft drinks that look like alcoholic ones (e.g. lemonade vs gin and tonic). Cocktails can be good as well.

Health kick for summer can work too.

Really what I'm finding (I'm 6 weeks) is that I feel more paranoid than I need to but nobody really notices that much what other people do and wear. And if anyone does notice then the sensible thing to do is keep their mouth shut.

On another note, I run, and have done so for 8 years, only a few miles every week (to clear my mind or when my jeans get tight). Am i safe to continue running?

You’re fine to continue any exercise you already did pre-pregnancy, providing you feel well enough to do so.

You can drink tonic water in pregnancy. It has minimal quinine in it. It’s not like taking anti-malarial tablets. Look at the NHS advice for what to avoid rather than randoms on the Internet.

Drugs.com is a very reputable website.

Let them suspect, you don't need to confirm anything. There is so much pressure to socially drink in this country.

The alternative is fake drinking, just holding a glass and not drinking it. Or if you are hosting say it's a gin and tonic when it's a lemonade, no one really notices...

I've had alcohol free cider, offered the alcohol version to others when entertaining. A couple of friends do dry January on an alternative month due to birthdays, but would mean your DH/ DP not drinking too.

I have done the tip the wine away one but it looks weird in the glass, might be reading into it a bit too much. I found it quite stressful. --

Didn't drink at a family lunch the other day and 3 people commented, my parents making a big thing of it. Called me very strange and kept going on about it. You would think they might of twigged and shut up. To be honest I don't drink regularly since having my first DC, but I would usually on an occasion . We don't have alcohol at home unless we have guests these days just due to money and a hangover with a DC is killer.

If someone mentions antibiotics I always assume pregnancy.

Hangover is always the best excuse IMO!

Another off thread topic, i am 4+6 weeks gastational now, but fetal age 2+6... I'm hoping to tell family after the 12 weeks scan, will the 12 weeks scan be when im 12 weeks fetal, or 12 weeks gastational?

Gestational. You will be dated from your lmp until they measure at 12 weeks then it will be adjusted if needed

Definitely safe to continue running!

Regarding alcohol, I’m another vote for just not making a song and dance about it. I stopped drinking for a couple of years for health reasons and surprisingly few people ever noticed. If someone’s wanting to specifically hand you an alcoholic drink, just take it and then eventually hand it over to your DP or “forget” it on a table somewhere.

Or you could be really cheeky and get people to sponsor you to do a dry May/June for charity

As others have said DO NOT mention antibiotics. A friend did this to me recently and every time I see her I am trying to work out if she is pg or not.

If you're a gin drinker I would buy Alcohol free gin and put in a gin bottle. Think there's a brand called seedlip which you can get in supermarkets. You can easily re-close these bottles (not so easy with alcohol free beer sadly - unless you are at home and can pour into a glass) and no one is any the wiser. Will be helpful on your trip when you could drink the whole bottle and win the competition!!

Ditto with tonic and soda water - one can replace the other.

My issue atm is not so much the drinking - I drive a lot anyway - its the tiredness and the ever expanding boobs and massive bloatedness that I think will give me away! Im only 6 weeks but feel like 16!!

I’m 8 weeks and feeling constant nausea, baby brain & expanding boobs. I came on this thread to get tips to hide this when I want to try and be sociable. Tbh people noticing me not drinking is the least of my worries! I would go with the flow and try and act natural. If you pretend to drink then won’t your friends think it a bit odd after you’ve told them? I had a friend who was genuinely upset I hadn’t told her with my dc1. I don’t regret keeping it to myself till he first scan but subterfuge is going a bit far.

Nah my friends would understand, I'm a private person anyone and with something this precious I'd never get upset if they didn't tell me. Hang on, so when I have my 12 week scan, and I'm actually fetally 10 weeks, will I be able to tell people then or wait an additional 2 weeks so im actually fetally 12 weeks? What do most people do?

You’re overthinking the gestational/fetal age thing. When they date you at the scan, that is how far along you are. I was 10+5 at my first ‘12 week’ scan, as I was found to be not as far along as we’d initially thought based on my lmp (I generally have irregular cycles and I must have ovulated later than I thought). I then had to go back a week and a half later when I was 12+ for a further scan so they could do all the measurements. At that point they confirmed I was now 12+3, and my due date.

I am slim but after DC1 tummy was somewhat wobbly, so certainly not flat but now I look pregnant, but I'm only 8 weeks. Very obvious eeek. I'm doing the carrying things infront of me thing. My looser tops look so baggy, but my normal ones are too tight. It's much worse by afternoon, evening. I'm hiding from the neighbours, as they so nosey around here. Can't believe it will be another 4 /5 weeks until my scan.

I remember with my first I wore looser fit stuff and my jeans top button undone etc, but not so bloated.

Don't start wearing a voile neck scarf, it was a joke in my office that was an early sign of pregnancy !

Pretend drinking is your best bet here unless you want people to question why you're not drinking. It was easier for me to do that and it worked a treat no one knew lol.