Too early to announce pregnancy?

[S19]

I have been debating the timing of announcing my second pregnancy. Since Christmas is approaching and my entire close family will be together on that day, it seems fitting to share the news then, as I'll be 11 weeks pregnant. I've undergone three scans at 6, 8, and 10 weeks, all showing a healthy heartbeat. While I disclosed my first pregnancy to close family at 6 weeks, I've surprisingly enjoyed keeping this one private. Should I announce on Christmas Day, or should I wait until the 12-week mark due to potential risks?

It depends what you mean by "announce". Do you mean "tell extended family"? (Not sure what the difference is between close and entire close)

Personally I would tell them as you've had 3 scans and it's only a week anyway, but it's up to you what you do, I just know I'd be itching to tell.

Sorry I meant just “Close Family” not entire which is siblings

Forgot to mention both our parents know**

I think I would, all depends if you’d be comfy with them knowing if things went wrong. Which I’m sure they won’t. Enjoy , such a joyful thing telling loved ones.

When is your 12 week scan?
I personally don't mind telling people I'm pregnant early, but everyone is different.
I'd probably do it Christmas Day or New Year's Day, either a nice end or start to the year

We announced both of our pregnancies at 11 weeks. Once you’ve had the scan the risk at 11 isn’t much different from the risk at 12 weeks anyway :)

Thank you, everyone, for the advice. I'm unsure why I feel like sharing this news early might bring bad luck, but with my first child, I sought the reassurance that they'd know if anything went wrong. My dating scan is scheduled for January 4th, so if I share the news with close family, the last scan they'd know about would be at 10 weeks, making me 11 weeks along by Christmas.

I always think that you should tell people whenever you like provided if something bad did happen you’d be happy that those people would support you etc.

It's up to you.

I never bothered about the 'risk' thing and told everyone before the pee was dry on the stick, with all 3 of mine 🤣🤣

Congratulations by the way

Really impossible for any of us to advise you on something so personal. In your situation I would but I am not you!

I'd personally err on the side of caution. For your own peace of mind could you have a private scan this week to check everything is ok before telling them?

If they're people you would tell if anything went wrong then no harm in telling them now. 12 weeks isn't a magic point, it's just a guide. It will make logistics so much easier and bring a bit of Christmas cheer. Good luck.

Time for my favourite website, I think:

https://datayze.com/miscarriage-chart

There is a minimal difference between 11 and 12 weeks according to the data, so I would very happy to tell people. Congratulations!

She’s had three scans at 6, 8 and 10 weeks!

I’m pregnant with pretty much the same dates (including the NHS dating scan…) and I’ve already told very close friends/family but asked them to keep it to themselves for now. It was going to be pretty obvious to anyone I spend Christmas with (most of them know I was having IVF back in October, I’ve never turned down wine before and I vomit all day). We had a private scan this week just for a bit of reassurance (mainly before we travel the country to see everyone) - also means I have a nice picture to show my gran at Christmas as I wanted to wait and tell her in person.

TBH it seems like the main reason not to tell people is so if you have a miscarriage you don’t have to tell them and I’ve never understood that. I miscarried another ivf pregnancy earlier in the year and I wouldn’t have got through it without the support of family and friends. It’s not something that I want the entire world to know in the same way I wouldn’t want any medical information widely known but it’s not something I feel I have to be embarrassed about with people who care about me.

I'd share. There's no magic switch at 12 weeks that makes everything fine. I've never understood waiting to tell - I told early and then had a loss at 11 weeks. It helped to have the support and be honest with friends and family. Zero regrets telling early. Discussing miscarriage is avoided although it's so common, and the waiting til 12 weeks is only plays into this.

If you do announce, make sure you're sensitive to anyone you might have in your family who is going through infertility. It took me 2 years to conceive my first and I think a surprise announcement on Xmas day from a family member that they were pregnant would have been quite intense. You could pre-tell so they're not ambushed by the news on Xmas day and let them duck out when you plan to announce so they can enjoy their Xmas too!

With a healthy scan at 10 weeks I'd be happy to tell family. You can always caveat with fingers crossed for a healthy 12 week scan. But most people haven't had any scan by now so it makes sense for them to wait til they've had one.

It's entirely up to you

I told a lot of people on my last pregnancy at 5 weeks, I’m so glad I did too because I had a MMC and the support helped me so much. I think if I had to do that alone I would have hit rock bottom. I’m currently 4weeks tomorrow and I will probably do exactly the same again (giving the news to both families on Christmas Day) to me all pregnancies should be celebrated no matter how small or long they are 🥰👼

If you'd like to tell your siblings, do. If you asked them not to share more widely would they respect that?

I think the term "announce" is unhelpful. It's not necessary to make a big announcement/reveal to loads of people. And you certainly don't have to tell everyone at once.