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Spending Christmas with someone pregnant? Read this before you open your mouth

Spending Christmas with someone pregnant? Read this before you open your mouth

Christmas is full of surprises – don’t let your comment be one of them

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Ruairidh Pritchard

Published: December 23, 2025 at 12:43 AM

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Christmas is the season of giving, but if someone at your table is pregnant, it’s also the season of giving… unsolicited advice, awkward comments and terrible jokes.

From uncles with mince pies in one hand and bump banter in the other, to partners who think “you’re glowing” counts as a personality trait, we’ve all heard things that should never be said.

So before you open your mouth, read this. Whether she’s your partner, daughter, cousin, or the brave woman navigating Christmas dinner with a second-trimester appetite – this is your festive etiquette guide.

What not to say – and the one thing that’s always okay.

“You sure it’s not twins?” and other festive fails

The internet is full of things people say to pregnant women – and not in a good way. US mum and parenting blogger Jill Krause knows the feeling all too well.

She went viral after sharing her supermarket horror story: a man asking her when she was due, then immediately quipping, “Damn. You SURE it’s not twins?”

“There was nothing kind about this exchange,” she explained. “People just openly comment on the state of a pregnant woman’s body whenever they feel like it.”

And it’s not just strangers. Reddit is a goldmine of things never to say to a pregnant woman, especially if you’re married to one. One woman shared that her husband said:

“Millions of women have had babies before you – and they all turned out fine!”

(Don’t worry, she didn’t smother him with a stocking. But it sounds like she considered it.)

‘Just hormones’? That’ll earn you a fork in the shin

Being around someone who’s pregnant is a privilege – but let’s be honest, it’s also a minefield.

A few more festive fails to avoid:

“It’s just your hormones.” No one in history has calmed down after hearing this.
“Your body’s really changed!” Do you comment on other medical conditions over pigs in blankets?
“What’s for dinner?” Unless you’re offering to cook it – don’t ask. Ever.
“Relax.” Just… no.
“It’s only a phase.” So is Christmas. We still make a big deal out of it.

If you’re lucky enough to have a pregnant person at your table this year, don’t make them feel like a sideshow. You don’t need to be their midwife. You just need to be decent.

How to be a hero: say this, do that, then fetch snacks

So what can you say?

According to Jill (who’s grown four humans and has zero time for nonsense), the list is short.

Tell her she looks amazing. Say she’s glowing. Congratulate her. Even if she looks like Jabba the Hutt incubating a small planet – lie anyway.

Parenting blogger Jill Krause

That’s it. That’s the list.

And if you can’t say one of those things with a straight face? Do us all a favour and keep it zipped.

Bonus hero behaviour:

Offer to do the dishes
Hand her the comfiest seat
Bring snacks – and don’t ask to share
Tell her the sofa’s hers for the King's Speech (or nap)

The only gift she wants? Kindness. And maybe a nap.

Here’s the thing: being pregnant is magical, exhausting, emotional and often really hard.

Being pregnant at Christmas – when everyone’s either slightly tipsy or slightly judgy – can feel like surviving a marathon in a party hat.

So if you’re about to spend time with a pregnant woman this festive season, be the person who makes her day easier – not weirder.

Tell her she looks amazing. Hand her the last roast potato. And if you feel the words “When are you due?” forming on your lips?

Don’t.
She knows when she’s due.
She’s very aware it’s not twins.
And no – she doesn’t want to hear about your mum’s labour in 1987.

Pregnant woman at your Christmas dinner?

Save this. Screenshot it. Send it to your dad. Stick it on the fridge.

And from all of us – happy Christmas, and good luck. You’ll need it.

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Authors

Ruairidh PritchardDigital Growth Lead

Ruairidh is the Digital Lead on MadeForMums. He works with a team of fantastically talented content creators and subject-matter experts on MadeForMums.