pregnant - Profile (original) (raw)

on 4 January 2002 (#429578)

preconception, conception, pregnancy, labor, birth, newborns

There is a lot of information here. To help you find what you need, we've created a table of contents!

Rules
Need to contact the moderators? pregnant.mods@gmail.com
Other Communities of Interest- Please check to see if your post might fit better somewhere else - there are communities for EVERYTHING!

Before you become an active member within the community please make sure you have read and understand all of the community's rules and recommendations. BY BECOMING A MEMBER OF pregnant, YOU ARE STATING THAT YOU HAVE READ AND AGREED TO ADHERE TO THE COMMUNITY RULES OF CONDUCT.

This community is for those of us who are pregnant, want to be pregnant, or are just looking for a place to vicariously live through other pregnant people. Whether you are planning on continuing your pregnancy or not, you are welcome to join. Please note that specific communities for 'Am I pregnant?' queries and TTC questions exist, and while such posts are allowed here, they may be better received in those communities.

Remember- there are NO "stupid" questions. This is a great place to talk about problems and concerns, share joys, and babble on about babies and breasts and stretchmarks when everyone else you know is tired of hearing about it! Members of any age, race, socio-economic status, sexual orientation, gender, etc. are welcome here. Please feel free to post an introduction (though please do leave the intro memes and surveys in the due date communities) and jump into conversations. Welcome everyone, we are glad you're here.

This community has a few rules and recommendations:

1. Be respectful

Do not use racial/ethnic/social slurs (no comments based on sexual preferences or physical/mental capabilities, etc.)
Do not call each other names
Do not insult someone's intelligence
Abortion, breastfeeding/formula feeding, circumcision, etc. are sensitive topics, and each of us is entitled to his or her own opinion. But this community is not the place to debate it. If someone mentions terminating a pregnancy, or formula feeding, or circumcising, and you do not support that choice - respond respectfully or ignore their post without commenting. Disrespectful comments containing words such as "murder/killing," "poison," "mutilation," "child abuse" or any similar terminology in relating to one of the aforementioned topics will be screened or frozen, the member may be warned, and repeat offenders will be banned. We do ask that you use discretion when posting sensitive topics, and consider using a cut while respecting that some readers may not feel comfortable with the subject matter.

It can be hard to realize the weight of our words and we all need to work on understanding that.

2. Font face/size/color
DO NOT change the font face, size, or color.
We're glad you can use LJ's rich text editor (or know basic HTML), but please leave the font alone. What looks amazing to you will probably bother just about everyone else. Don't get insulted when people ask you to change the font back to the default settings - just do it.

3. Comments & Posts
No deleting. No screening. No freezing.
OWN YOUR WORDS! Deleting comments or posts is a bannable offense. If you don't want to receive comments in your email inbox, you may disable THAT option in your post, but nothing else. If you have a problem with something said by other community members, please email us and we will take care of it ASAP. This is a community and we expect our members to embrace that ideal by learning from each other and not shielding what's being said from one another.

Mods reserve the right to freeze and screen comments that break community rules, are offensive, or are part of a flame war. If a thread is frozen, that indicates that the issue is not to be revisited in another comment or post.

4. Tags
We have an active tag system in place in this community. Feel free to browse our extensive tag list. All of our tags are also linked and organized in the sidebar, so please remember to utilize this resource before making new posts. You may find that your question has already been answered, sometimes quite recently! The tag system is great for reducing the number of repeat questions. The tagging system has been reopened to community members. Please remember tag your posts! Please note that moderators reserve the right to add/remove/modify tags at any time.

5. Profanity
Please avoid excessive profanity. In certain cases, mild usage may be okay, but we still need to be respectful. If you are unsure, put it behind a cut with a warning for those who are sensitive or who are at work.

6. Advertisements and Promotions

Post advertisements only once - pregnancy-related only. Avoid excessive and frequent advertisements. Please run it past the mods first.
No community promos without permission. For permission, email the moderators at pregnant.mods@gmail.com.

7. Advice
If you ask for advice, be aware that you may get advice that differs from what you want to hear; conversely, if you give advice, please be aware that your advice may not be received the way you want it to be.

Also, know that even if you don't explicitly ask for advice, some may be given. This is human nature in a community setting. This advice should be given constructively, and received as such. If you don't like the advice, ignore it.

8. Photos & Videos
ALL images and videos need to be behind a cut with a description of what they are, so members can decide if they should look. This is not because we don't want to see your beautiful bellies and babies, but not all the members have high speed internet access and they can take a long time to load otherwise.

Tasteful nude shots are okay. Nursing photos are okay. Birth shots are okay. If nudes are posted, put them behind a cut WITH A WARNING (ie: "nude/graphic photos behind cut, not work safe"). Information on lj-cuts can be found here.

9. Problems/complaints/drama/etc

If you have a concern, PLEASE bring it to the attention of the mods. You can email us at pregnant.mods@gmail.com. There are so many posts and we cannot read each and every thing - especially new comments to existing posts! Please understand that if we miss something, it's not because we are ignoring it.
With over 6000 members, there is just no pleasing everyone. Just like in any real life group of 6000+ people, you will have choices on how you want to interact here. If you don't like what's going on and don't want to continue to participate, you are free to leave the community to spare yourself the stress of spending e-time with people you don't like. You are also free to model the type of behavior you'd like to see and hope that the other individuals in the community will take the high road as well. What you are not free to do is comment or post complaining about the community; that's just an insult to the other 6000+ members who do want to be here. If you are the type of person who feels the need to complain about everything in life that you don't like, you have the following outlets:
- You may vent in your personal journal.
- There are alternative pregnancy communities on LJ that might suit you better; you may join one of those instead.
- You may email the mods at pregnant.mods@gmail.com and air your grievances.

Please don't email mods at their personal email addresses or comment in their personal journals regarding the community. Moderators can be reached by emailing pregnant.mods@gmail.com. If you have a concern, please use the above email address. If you harass moderators elsewhere, you will be banned from the community.

Other Links and Communities of Interest
If you are involved with another community that would fit our list, please contact the mods (pregnant.mods@gmail.com) to have it added! We would love to add more links and communities to this compilation!
Due Date Communities
These groups are a great way to meet and chat with parents who are at the same stage of pregnancy as you! These groups tend to be a little more intimate and social, and more forgiving of off topic posts.
april2015babies
Trying to Conceive?
You might find making_babies, trying4ababy, and fam of use.
If you are still in the "babylust" phase, maybe clucky is a good match for you!
Think you might be pregnant?
No one here can determine if you are pregnant, no matter what symptoms you may or may not have. Thus, while within the relevant context of the community, such posts are generally not well-recieved by members. Take a pregnancy test and ask about your chances and circumstances in amipregnant or am_i_pregnant for the best responses.
Special Interest Pregnancy Groups

If you have experienced pregnancy loss, you might find support in miscarriage or our_angels.
Pregnancy after loss? Consider subsequent_preg to share with other mothers who are going through similar things.
Are you considering placing your child for adoption? adoption might be a good place for you.
Have questions about abortion? abortioninfo may be able to help you out.
For those interested in pursuing a normal, natural birth - try naturalbirth
Interested in a homebirth? homebirth
For natural births specifically in hospitals, consider hospitalbirth.
highriskcrunchy is available for those balancing natural pregnancy and parenting with a high risk label.
Are you a freebirther at heart? unassistedbirth & uc_help
Overweight and pregnant? - big_mother
Have you been diagnosed with Gestational Diabetes? - gdiabetes
Are you a young/teen mother? - pregnant_teens or youngmoms
Having twins and looking for the support of others in a similar position? - twin_pregnancy
Are you dealing with depression during pregnancy? - pregdepression
Did you have a premature child in the NICU and are looking for support from others in a similar situation? - preemies and micropreemies
Visit 2_mommies if you are looking for a community for same-sex partners.

Special Topics
These topics often require more in depth explanations or may be controversial in the general pregnant community. Feel free to ask for info in pregnant, but you might get more support or better information and replies in these communities! For several topics, there are only one sided resources - if you are aware of a website or community with a different perspective, email the moderators at pregnant.mods@gmail.com and we'll check it out and (likely) add it.

Names

Naming your baby is fun and exciting- check out baby_names for others to share your excitement!

Feeding Your Baby

Breastfeeding is natural and normal but it can be difficult to find accurate information in a formula feeding culture. We recommend joining breastfeeding during your pregnancy. adopt_a_mom is another excellent community, devoted to pairing experienced breastfeeders with less experienced nursers for one on one support!
Try exclusivepump and working_cows for information on pumping breastmilk and bottlefeeding.
And there are few active formula related communities, but formulafeeders and bottlefeeding are the most frequently recommended.

WIC

wicparents was created to ask questions about the US federal program called Women, Infants, and Children.

Vaccinations

If you are wondering about alternative vaccination schedules, please check out the vaccination boards at mothering.com. moms is another relevant LJ community. If you are looking for a pro-vaccine community, try pro_vax.

Circumcision

Circumcision is a decision that may be difficult for you when expecting a baby boy. LJ communities include theunkindestcut and intactparenting. Please learn more at the WHOLE Network. Mutilation Nation is also a popular and well written essay on LJ.

Thinking about cloth diapering your baby?

Check out clothdiapering for a wealth of knowledge on the subject. These aren't our parent's cloth diapers!

Babywearing

Join babywearer and look into The Babywearer for more information on different slings and baby carriers!

Stuff For Sale

If you have things to sell or are looking for things to buy, check out baby_stuff4sale.

Beyond Pregnancy

Congratulations on your new child! Feel free to stick around pregnant and share your experience with newly pregnant women. For questions about parenting, check out parenting101. For the parents that gravitate toward attachment parenting styles, try attachedparents. naturalfamily is a good place for all things pertaining to natural family living principles. And singlemoms is a good place for women who need the support from other single moms.
Unfortunately births do not always go as planned. If you are looking for a place to talk about your birth experience, please look into cesarean_rage and/or birthtrauma. And if you are coping with postpartum depression, ppdsupport and postpartdepress are available for support.

Any posts, links, or other information found in this community are designed for support and educational purposes only. Your choices concerning your own healthcare belong to you. The mods, members, authors, publishers and contributors can assume no responsibility for your decisions.

Your mods are latemove, magicpointeshoe, muirichinnahali, noonle, and rachellynne. We're here for you - contact us with any concerns, questions, or suggestions! Our email address is pregnant.mods@gmail.com.

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