I learned about pregnancy late in primary school, between standard 7 and standard 8. The only symptoms I learned were a protruding stomach, weight gain, and swollen feet. So, you can imagine my surprise when, several years later (just last month), I discovered that there is a plethora of shocking and potentially fatal pregnancy symptoms that are not widely known or discussed. I didn’t want to believe it when I discovered that pregnant women can lose teeth and experience a variety of other complications that you and I have probably never heard of. All thanks to a social media campaign which brought a lot of these complications and risks to light and to our attention.
Our culture romanticizes pregnancy and babies to the point where few women talk about the risks and side effects that can occur during and after pregnancy. They may talk about loss of appetite and other less frightening symptoms, but never about women losing teeth, gestational diabetes, or mental health issues. But don't you think it's past time for all women, men included, to be aware of these complexities? Because if we continue to ignore them, how will they be addressed?
While not everyone will experience these side effects during and after pregnancy, they must be addressed. Women have been getting pregnant since the beginning of time, and the discovery of some of these complications only recently means that women and girls are not getting all the necessary information they may need.
Everyone is aware that women die and can die as a result of pregnancy, and the mortality rate of pregnant women in developing countries is extremely high. However, many of the above-mentioned long-term complications are completely ignored. In our culture, pregnancy, like the topic of sex, is one of those taboo subjects about which people purposefully withhold information, particularly from young women and men. Thanks to a social media campaign aimed at bringing to light some of the potentially fatal complications that women face during and after pregnancy.
Some people may be concerned that this entire pregnancy social media campaign will scare women away from getting pregnant. I have a question for you: when has concealing information ever aided anything? Women should not suffer in silence any longer. And they should not be expected to bear it all silently( no pun intended).
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