For most women who have had children, it seems inconceivable to carry a baby nearly to term without ever realizing you were pregnant. Certainly in my case, my pregnancy came with a myriad of bodily changes -beginning with horrible nausea, headaches and tenderness all over. Even if I missed those signs, it wasn't long after that passing strangers would congratulate me based on my swelling belly, and kicks and the rhythmic thumping of baby hiccups signaled something major was happening inside of me. Still, there are enough stories about women who were unaware of being pregnant until delivery to create an entire show around the topic.
According to How Stuff Works, there are a number of easily explained reasons a woman might not know she is pregnant. If typical symptoms are mild, they can be attributed to illnesses like a lingering flu or indigestion. Women who have irregular periods (and the 20% of women who continue to bleed or spot during a healthy pregnancy) might not know to take a pregnancy test. Women who are under a great deal of stress could blame their emotional state for any weight gain or body aches, but it also leads some to unconsciously deny symptoms of pregnancy. About 1 in 500 births after 20 weeks are estimated to be the result of a denied pregnancy.
Because I still can't quite wrap my head around being unaware of a pregnancy, I am inclined to believe that Danille was one of those women in pregnancy denial. Balancing parenthood with work is always stressful, but I can only imagine how difficult her life was as single mother of three young children. Surely another child was not going to make her life any easier. Amazingly, despite no prenatal care whatsoever, Danille delivered a beautiful baby boy with the help of her coworkers at a fast food restaurant.
Do you know anyone who went so long without realizing they were pregnant? What do you think of stories like this? Please let us know by commenting below.
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