Posts by Bradley Stewart

It honestly eats at me. For the first six months of my pregnancy, I was juggling three different jobs, traveling constantly for work, and keeping everything running perfectly smoothly... everything was handled exactly as promised. Then, I go on vacation right before my maternity leave kicks in, and they suddenly tell me they won't be renewing my contract. It was all supposedly settled once my replacement arrived... everything was set.

I’m just losing my mind. The stress is overwhelming, and now I’m supposed to just sit here and rest...

Then, three days later, they come back and say they actually *will* renew my contract after all.

But the damage is already done. Everything I had mapped out for myself has just completely fallen apart. Those people are unbelievable... at first, I was absolutely furious, but now I just feel miserable.🙂

I wish I could just say "to hell with them" and move on, but I can't even find the energy for that. Even that feels off-limits now.

The other day I was standing in line at Lidl, and they only had two registers open. The line was massive, and there were at least three people right behind me. This guy starts walking toward us, and I could tell he was trying to cut right in front of me. I tried to sidestep a little to block him, but he just stepped right in front of 🤦

I told him, "Excuse me, sir, the end of the line is way back there..." and he just gives me this look like, "Just move aside." Then he actually let me pass 🤦

Of course, I just went right back to my spot in line. Some people really lack basic manners here...

And on another note, my stomach has been acting up during sex :/ we're definitely going to have to try some new positions 😁

When it comes to those horror stories about childbirth—you know, the ones filled with gruesome details that make your blood run cold—and people asking if I’m actually ready for all that... honestly, I just tell them I’ll cross that bridge when I get to it. I’m trying my best to stay level-headed and not let the scare tactics get to me. I want to stay calm right up until the big day. I’ve read enough to know that panicking isn't going to help me one bit... just gotta stay steady...

And regarding waiting in lines—I am right there with you. It’s not like I’m being difficult; I’ll wait as long as I can, but at least have the decency to ask. Seriously, every single time I’ve seen a pregnant woman, I’ve offered her my seat or let her cut ahead of me in line... and I fully intend to keep doing that once my little one arrives. As for those women who seem to have completely forgotten what it's like, and their husbands too—well, that says a lot more about their character than mine.

The other day I was riding the subway, it was packed, and I was standing right by the doors. The train pulled into a station where a huge group of high schoolers needed to get off, and since I was blocking the way, I told them I'd step out so the kids could clear the exit and then I'd hop back on. Just as I was trying to move, this old guy with a cane gets in my way. He starts shoving past me and my baby bump, trying to force his way onto the train. I said, "Sir, could you please wait a second so people can actually get off?" and he snaps back, "If you weren't blocking the door, they'd be out!" So I told him, "If you weren't pushing, you might actually be able to get through." He starts waving his cane around like, "I handled much tougher things back in college, you youngsters... blah blah blah..." I just looked at him and said, "It seems you didn't learn the basics of manners in college." What a jerk.

Anyway, he eventually calmed down, picked someone else to bother, sat for one stop, and then hopped off🤦

Sometimes I wish we were Eskimos so we could just bundle up those ancient fossils and send them out into a blizzard with nothing but a single stick of firewood😁

When people asked me what I was going to do about my dog, I just gave them a blank stare and told them we’d be getting rid of her😁

Then they actually had the nerve to ask me *how*🤔

And I just looked at them... honestly, give me a break... of course she's staying with us. She's our first little princess, and we've got a second one on the way soon anyway🎉🎉

Anyway, I don't mind standing on the subway—for now😁 but it really gets under my skin when older ladies stare me down, crossing themselves and turning their heads away like I'm some kind of omen. Don't worry, lady... I'm not trying to steal your seat... it's not like you haven't been pregnant before... but whatever.

Oh, and then there was that comment from my former neighbor... she asks me how far along I am, and I tell her I'm six months, and she goes, "Oh, you aren't even that pregnant yet"
What does that even mean? How can you be "a little" pregnant?

Jonathan Cox4 said:Then I guess I'm even worse 😂
We actually sat down and talked about this before we ever considered marriage (because it's not like I'm getting married just because I'm pregnant), and we agreed that I would keep my own name. I wouldn't just add his to mine; I'd stick strictly to my own.😁

In my case, I ended up taking my husband's name, and people started giving me grief about why I didn't just hang onto my maiden name. They argued that in this modern era, where I'm a woman with my own established career, how are people supposed to know who I am? 😁 Plus, they claimed they'd have a hard enough time remembering my new last name anyway 😉

Well... I guess I just picked a new one so nobody would recognize me, and to make it extra difficult for them to memorize > hahahahahah Jambrišec 🤣

There really is something to be said about finally being able to catch your breath... 😁

Yeah, all that unsolicited advice is honestly so grating. I’m really not the type to lecture people on how to live their lives. Like—if you need a changing table for the baby, you need one. It’s just practical. You’ll get so much use out of it later on, too. I used mine constantly and I still use it today...

Honestly, I couldn't care less what you use when I don't even have the room for it in my apartment🤦

It’s like people don't grasp that I'm not them, and they aren't me, which is just bizarre. Just let me be. Anyway, today's workday is officially wrapped up... only three more to go🎉

I actually decided to call myself Bradley Stewart Jambrišec because I'm always rambling😁 even though that's not usually my thing... but lately, I've been feeling a lot like Jambrišec😛

I don't usually let comments get under my skin too much, but now that my belly is starting to pop out on its own—because, you know, the little one is growing—🎉, my chest has gotten so huge 🙂 (and let's be honest, they weren't exactly small before either). It’s making me feel a bit self-conscious, so those comments just hit harder than usual... plus, I'm just exhausted... I tried to save up all my vacation days from last year to tack them onto this year's leave, hoping to have one big, uninterrupted stretch of free time... just five more days to go...

As for food, I'm having a really hard time finding anything I can actually stomach. I'll cook this absolutely magnificent lunch... a beautiful meal... but then I get hungry, take a bite, and suddenly I feel like I'm going to throw up... and I'm already six months along...

I had some nausea earlier on, but I managed to figure things out through trial and error 😁 by finding a few things that were decent enough to keep me full... but now 🕺

It’s honestly driving me a little crazy. I have exactly five days left at the office before I finally kick off my maternity leave, which leads right into 45 days of pre-baby downtime... but just a few days ago, the back pain and pelvic pressure started hitting me hard. It feels like everything is aching all at once. Part of me thought, "Hey, at least I'll have plenty of time to rest," but now I'm worried I won't even be able to manage a simple walk around the block 😢

And don't even get me started on my coworkers. They keep making these incredibly condescending comments about how I'm "definitely" going to be so swollen with water retention that I won't even be able to walk. They act like they're being sympathetic, but it just feels patronizing and annoying 🤔

Just five more days. Only five more days. I can do this 😢

Kenneth Rodriguez9 said:The only thing driving me absolutely insane right now is the constant urge to pee. It’s relentless, and honestly, I’m exhausted. I feel like I know the layout of every single restroom better than my own living room—from the stalls at Starbucks to the ones in Target and Walmart, all the way to every single gas station on my commute from work to the house. And the worst part? I can't even get a decent night's sleep because I'm waking up every hour to run to the bathroom 😵
I swear, I’m going to spend about half of this entire pregnancy just sitting on the toilet 🙂🙂

LOL, me too... though it isn't quite as relentless for me. Some days and nights I find myself wondering what I even drank, because it feels like I haven't had that much water, and then other days it's totally normal 😁

It’s honestly so frustrating when I get a craving, go out and grab all the ingredients, spend all that time prepping everything, and then suddenly... I just don't want it. It feels totally unappealing...

Everything seems to have an odor lately... even things that shouldn't... and heaven forbid I happen to be near anything that's gone bad, because the nausea hits me instantly...

One day I feel like I'm constantly starving and could basically devour everything in sight like Pac-Man, and the next, I'll spend hours agonizing over what to eat because nothing sounds remotely appetizing...

And then there are the people at work who just won't quit. They’re constantly commenting on how my stomach isn't showing yet, or questioning if I've gained weight since I look exactly the same as before—mind you, I'm five months pregnant... and they do this every single day. As if a baby is just going to pop out overnight... I do have a bump, it's just less obvious because I have a bit more of a fuller figure right now🙂

The constant exhaustion is really getting to me, too. I absolutely love spring and summer, and I'm genuinely worried I'm going to sleep through the whole season... I really wish I had the energy to wake up earlier and actually go out and enjoy all that beautiful weather...

At first, everything was actually fine... nothing really bothered or annoyed me. During those first three months, I didn't even look pregnant. But then my belly started showing, and my chest just... exploded. Now I'm getting all these comments at work—I work at a hospital where I'm actually the only pregnant person because all the nurses, doctors, and other women automatically take maternity leave, which makes me quite the local celebrity 🤦—about how huge my breasts have become, or how much weight I've put on 🤔

like, why am I even working while pregnant?

people saying that back in their day, they were out digging up potatoes in the garden during their eighth month, yet here I am with a desk job, so what else should I be doing? 🤦

that I eat way too many fruits and vegetables

or that I shouldn't eat fruit and veggies at all because the baby might catch some kind of bacteria

that I'm not allowed to drink sparkling water (so I immediately had to go on Google to see if that was even true)

as if I think I'm being special just by having a cup of Nescafé

that I carry crackers around just in case I feel nauseous

or that I shouldn't eat the crackers because I'll gain weight

But honestly, the thing that got to me most was when I was about a month and a half along... mm, we moved our wedding up a few months so it wouldn't be too difficult later on. So, when I was about six weeks in, I bought a dress for the wedding, opting for a slightly larger size just in case I gained weight since the wedding was supposed to be two months after the original date. Well, those hens at work attacked me, telling me I should go get a dress two sizes bigger because there was "no way" I'd fit into it. Anyway... I fit perfectly 🎉 so there you go...

My husband is driving me crazy, mostly because he's the one who has to deal with my venting. Since I can't just snap at everyone at the office, he ends up catching the "best of me" once I walk through the door

It irritates me that I have to work; I could have taken maternity leave earlier, but we really need my paycheck... It also bugs me that I work with people and they drive me nuts, especially since my profession is actually psychology and psychotherapy...

And then there's this colleague who's turned my pregnancy into her own little drama, acting like it's so hard for *her* just because I'm pregnant 🤦🤔. Like, what if I do end up taking medical leave or heaven forbid something else happens? I've only been on sick leave for four days total in the last month, and that was just because a heatwave hit and I felt dizzy. As for the nausea and everything else, I just suffer through it in my office because, frankly, it doesn't matter to me whether I feel sick at home or at work ☕—it's all the same. I just don't wander around the hospital complaining about how hard it is 😵

Anyway, I'm done...

I'm just full of frustration, but today is one of those days where—hopefully 😁