“That’s It, I’m Pregnancy Announcement Shaming”: 30 Cringy And Embarrassing Ways Parents Announced They’re Expecting (New Pics)

As you can see from the pictures, these announcements come at different stages of pregnancy. But experts think that there is actually no wrong time to make one.

"Patients ask me all the time, 'When is it safe to tell everyone we're expecting?'" Heather Bartos, an OB-GYN in Cross Roads, Texas, told Today's Parent. "And I always tell them the same thing: 'Use your discretion. The decision is entirely up to you.'"

It can also be a slow roll-out, if you want to. "Announcing your pregnancy to one person—or one group of people—does not mean you need to tell everyone all at once," Bartos added. So your boss doesn't need to know at the same time as your mom or your best friend.

With that being said, "It's usually pretty traditional to wait until the end of the first trimester, around 12 weeks, when miscarriage risks greatly decrease," Bartos said. “But there are several good reasons to share earlier." For instance:

IVF babies

"I shared the news with family at six weeks,” Bartos, who is also a mother of two, said. "We had IVF pregnancies. In fact, most of the earlier announcers in my own practice have gone through IVF, too."

When everyone close to you already knows you’re going through in vitro (which often requires daily blood work, many months—or years—of treatment, and lots of medical appointments), it’s almost unnatural not to disclose the latest developments.

Extreme morning sickness

"This kind of physical burden coupled with not sharing the news can be quite isolating for some women," Shara Brofman, a clinical psychologist specializing in reproductive and perinatal mental health at the Seleni Institute in New York, said. "Telling early is a means to garner support."

Remember that if you’re unable to work, or feeling ill all day (and all night) long, coworkers and family are bound to notice. One way to deal with extreme morning sickness is to discuss accommodations with your workplace.

Past miscarriage

This might seem counterintuitive, but for some women who have experienced pregnancy loss in the past, informing others early on is exactly what they need.

Pregnancy after miscarriage can be a roller coaster of emotions, and some couples know they will want support and extra check-ins from loved ones, no matter what happens. "Ask yourself how you tend to cope with stressful situations," Brofman said. "If, for you, it often helps to have a few friends and family to safely share your feelings with, you might want to announce to some early.”

Early ultrasound

While The Society of Obstetricians and Gynaecologists of Canada (SOGC) recommends that women have their "dating" ultrasound—meaning the scan when you find out your due date—from 11 to 14 weeks, some get their scans earlier. (This might be recommended, for example, if you have irregular periods or aren't sure of the date of your last period.) Practitioners can often determine gestational age via ultrasound (either using a traditional abdominal ultrasound or an internal vaginal probe) after seven weeks.

Some genetic screening is back

Some pregnant women receive non-invasive prenatal testing (sometimes called cell-free DNA or cfDNA, or the Harmony test) as early as 10 weeks (depending on your age, whether the pregnancy is a high risk, and other factors).

Here, parents-to-be can learn whether there are any indications of Down syndrome or other chromosomal abnormalities a bit earlier than the more traditional screening that’s typically completed between weeks 11 and 14.

As a bonus, if you choose, the NIPT can also determine the sex of the baby, without waiting for the anatomy scan. (If you do not do the NIPT, you’ll get a nuchal translucency scan, an ultrasound that measures the fetus’s neck fluid—see below.) "For some, getting more information helps them feel more confident to announce," Brofman explained.

Primetime for pregnancy announcements is around the end of the first trimester and the start of the second. This is because:

Miscarriage rate drops

Come trimester number two, most women's chances of a miscarriage drop to roughly 1-5%. “[At this stage], many couples now feel more comfortable bringing people in on their excitement—and even allowing themselves to feel their own excitement more fully,” Marissa Long, a licensed clinical and reproductive health psychologist in Southern California, said.

Some genetic screening is back

Between 11 and 14 weeks of pregnancy, most women receive a blood test and/or an ultrasound that, together, look for markers that could indicate an extra or missing chromosome, such as Down syndrome (trisomy 21), trisomy 18, and trisomy 13. “Getting the results can be reassuring; parents-to-be have more info that can encourage them to share their news,” Brofman added.

Morning sickness and exhaustion may reduce

Most women generally start to feel less sick right about this time too. So they might be excited to share the news because they’re no longer bogged down with nausea or feeling cruddy.

There are, however, reasons why couples may want to wait even longer.

Feeling ambivalence

Whether your pregnancy was planned or not, many women are unsure of their feelings about becoming a parent. "When you’re aware that others will react with excitement and they’ll expect the same from you, it can be easier to avoid that pressure rather than pretend or force an emotion that you don’t have," Long said. Additionally, a pregnancy announcement often puts the spotlight squarely on the mom-to-be. If you’re attention-shy, you may simply want to savor your privacy for as long as you can.

The anatomy scan

Between weeks 18 and 20, women get their anatomy scan (also known as a level two ultrasound), at which they can learn their baby's sex (if they desire to). At the same time, a clinician checks to see if the baby's size and position are on target and if the baby’s brain, heart, lungs, and other organs are developing as expected. "For those who have a very real concern about genetic disorders, they may not share their news until this scan offers some reassurance," Long noted.

For the majority of first-time mothers, the tell-tale baby bump usually "sticks out" at about 14 to 16 weeks of pregnancy, making it harder not to share (without some very strategic wardrobe decisions).

In the end, there is no single right time to announce your pregnancy. In fact, the mere idea that there is a ‘right’ time can cause distress and create worries.”

Just go with your gut. Unless it tells you to make a pee stick popsicle.