When to Announce Pregnancy

If you’ve just found out that you’re pregnant, congratulations! You’re probably excited to tell people — but not sure when the appropriate time is to announce. In any case, here are some tips for when and how you should announce your pregnancy:

Wait until you’re out of the first 12 weeks.

The general rule is to wait until the end of your first trimester, which is 13 weeks into the pregnancy. It is becoming more common now to announce your pregnancy any time after 12 weeks.

The risk of having a miscarriage significantly decreases after 12 weeks, which is why most people wait until then to share. Obviously you can tell people you are pregnant WHENEVER you want, but if you lose the baby, you might be setting yourself up for a harder time and awkward situations.

Benefits of waiting after 12 weeks

• If you have a miscarriage, the world doesn’t know and you can process it with your intimate family.
• It helps the pregnancy go quicker.
• When you tell people, you are already 1/3 of the way through pregnancy. This helps “break up” the long months of pregnancy.

Benefits of telling before 12 weeks

• In case you would have a miscarriage, people would know and be able to support you in this difficult time.
• It is easier to “let the cat out of the bag” instead of trying to keep secrets for weeks.
• No lying to others when they ask questions about refraining from drinking, avoiding caffeine, etc.

It’s okay to wait.

It’s okay to wait. If you feel like announcing your news is something that needs to be done in person, and not over social media, it’s perfectly fine to wait until a later time. You can tell people after you’ve had your 20 week ultrasound or even wait until after baby is born and skip straight to a birth announcement.

There are no hard and fast rules about when is the right time to announce your pregnancy — only what feels right for both of you!

Tell parents before anyone else.

The best thing you can do is to tell your parents first, before you share the news with anyone else. Not only will they be excited and supportive, but they will also be able to help you through your pregnancy.

Your parents have gone through this before, don’t be afraid to ask for advice and hear how pregnancy, labor, etc. went for them. God loves a humble heart. Learn from others.

Telling your boss.

Your boss does not need to be the first person to know you are expecting, but it is common courtesy to let them know when you are making it public. A pregnant employee DOES affect them and it is nice to keep them in the loop as much as possible.

If your job requires physical labor or involves working with dangerous equipment or chemicals, waiting until the second trimester could be too late.

It’s important that whatever decision you make feels comfortable for everyone involved: yourself as well as other people around you (like co-workers). It might take some time before figuring out what works best for each person involved in this situation—so don’t rush things!

If you want it on social media, it’s up to you.

It’s up to you IF and WHEN you want to announce your pregnancy on social media. There are no hard-and-fast rules about when to post your news.

If you do decide not to share your news on social media, here are some tips to still get the word out there:

• Send out a written note, email, or text to your family and friends. It will mean a lot to them that you took the time to let them know personally.
• Be sure that everyone in your inner circle knows the exciting news. It can hurt feelings when some people are in the loop and others aren’t.
• If you don’t enjoy the attention, just tell a few people and ask them to help spread the word.

Conclusion

We’re sure you have a lot of questions about how to announce your pregnancy. We hope this guide has helped you feel more comfortable with the process. Remember that there are many ways to announce a pregnancy, and what works best for one couple may not work at all for another! You don’t need an elaborate plan or even tons of people in on it. Just be honest and let those who care about you know about your exciting news.

Pregnancy Announcement Resources

• 100 Creative & Funny Pregnancy Announcements
• 190 Pregnancy Announcement Ideas
• 27 Fun Ways to Announce Pregnancy on Social Media