I think I decided even before I was pregnant with my daughter that I wouldn't tell everyone my "due date".  

Here's how it happened.... the first time I noticed it I was just beginning my doula career.  I was at the home visit with my sweet little first time mom and she mentioned that her phone had been blowing up lately and she was feeling pressure from her friends and family.

You see, she had made an all too common mistake... she had shared her due date.  

So naturally, once she hit about 37 weeks the texts and Facebook messages starting rolling in.  "Have you had that baby yet?" or "When are you going to be induced?"  and my personal favorite, "Are you STILL pregnant?"  

The end of pregnancy is hard.  It already feels like it lasts forever.  Add in a seemingly constant flood of annoying texts, private messages and phone calls and you have a tried and true recipe for stress and anxiety!

My solution?  A due month.  My official due date was July 15 so I told everyone I was due the end of July.  I figured (correctly) that I would go past my "due date".  I didn't want to have to deal with the annoying conversations that would happen around the first week of July so I kept it under wraps.

Yes, some of the family was a bit annoyed.  Others were totally supportive.  And you know what?  The ones that were annoyed got over it as soon as they had a sweet little baby to hold in their arms.

Pregnant folks- do yourself a favor. Skip the official due date announcement and stick to a due month instead. You'll thank me later.