Her: You should not be using the computer!
Me: <genuinely bewildered> Why?
Her: Because you’re pregnant.
Me: So why can’t I use a computer?
Her: <gesturing wildly to my abdomen and speaking as though I was either hard of hearing or unable to understand English> Because. You’re. Pregnant.
Me: What are the risks of using a desktop computer while pregnant?
Her: All the energy and radiation! It hurts the baby!
Me: I’m not being bombarded by radiation from a computer two feet away. And, by the way, there has never been a documented incidence of a fetus being injured by the radiation of an x-ray–we only avoid it because of the inferred risks, which are more of a concern when you’re 9 weeks rather than 39 weeks pregnant–let alone the visible light and heat given off by a computer.
Did I go too far? I tried to be patient. It’s comical but still irksome. Not quite sure what bothers me more: that she felt compelled to chastise a very pregnant stranger or that this level of ignorance is present in the library of a medical school. Am I being patronizing? Be real with me.
anna in med school 
Srsly?
yup! silly or sad?
You should not be using a computer to tell us this! You should not drive or be a passenger in a car with any electronics! You should not use a microwave or be in the same city with one!
She needs to go back to the 1908s. How old was this person, anyway!
hahahahaha! You just made me burst out laughing in the middle of the library 🙂 I’m guessing mid-twenties?? So bad!
I would have gone even farther, that level of ignorance is something that NEEDS to be addressed. Frightening.
I would have paid money for you to have been there. You would have thought of a snappy come-back for sure! BTW, I had no idea you had a blog! Love it, and love your creativity!
My sister chose not to fly early in her pregnancy because of the risk of . . . solar radiation. I kid you not. She took a 20 train trip instead . . . because apparently DVT risks are of no concern.
Wow. Uh…well, she’s your sister, so I’m not going to make fun…that’s just…adorable? I love your comment about DVT risks (she writes as she’s rocking the compression stalkings 🙂 ).
It’s ok. I made fun 😉 seriously, you’d think someone with a sister who’s almost a CRNA, a mom who’s a NICU nurse, and another sister who’s an OB/GYN resident that SOMEONE would convince her that’s she was absolutely nuts.
oh awesome! then she has no excuse 🙂 well, at the end of the day, i guess we’re all a little crazy when we’re pregnant, right? my crazy manifests more with uncontrollable sobbing that occurs without warning periodically when john leaves for work…needy much?
Duh, Anna…you forgot that when you became pregnant your body is now the concern, nay, the responsibility of society at large. Anyone at anytime has not just the right, but the responsibility to tell you what they think is best for your baby.
Oh Sarah, thank you so much for reminding me! So irresponsible of me to forget! BTW, love your political ad! xoxo
Oy. People feel entitled to say rubbish these days. I think you could have said a lot more, actually. She is such a lucky lady that I wasn’t there.
Ignorance is widespread. Remember, Bush was elected, for the most part, because Gore audibly sighed when Bush said really stupid things.
And we are perhaps about to elect a man who has been a documented liar, but folks will vote for him because he lied so beautifully.
I would have paid good money to have you there! Would have LOVED that! By the way, I have read this comment to a number of my friends–it is classic and I appreciate it a great deal!
Much love to you and Christine!
Ugh … Sorry for the late comment, but strangers who admonish pregnant women are the worst. That said, your story made me cringe, because I went through one of those backscatter security machines at the airport when I was eight weeks pregnant. It was literally the first week or so that they were at O’Hare. I had read that the new machines involved some radiation, and I told the TSA that I was pregnant, but they said that he radiation on the plane (I was going Chicago to Honolulu) was far greater than via the machine and made me go through. The timing was really terrible, not only because it was so early in my pregnancy, but because it was also just a few weeks before the controversy about those machines erupted and it became clear that one could refuse. Anyway, my son is two and healthy (well, other than the hives that are currently covering his body due to his recently-discovered amoxicillin allergy), but it still nags at me …
Hello! Thanks so much for your comment. I’m so sorry about your experience with the security machines; what an unfortunately position to be in, to say the least! So frustrating and disturbing, but I’m very glad to hear that your son is healthy. Also sorry to hear about the amoxicillin allergy
Thank you again!