Did you know that only 60% of people think it’s necessary to give up a seat for pregnant women on public transport?
Last week I was part of a brilliant crowd in Lewis Cubitt Park, Central London, hosted by Mumsnet and Mama Mio which started an interesting conversation about pregnancy and public transport. I think it’s safe to say that most of us reading this must have been there, recently or not…If you’re still to experience pregnancy, my piece of advice is to make sure you get that seat no matter what, for the sake of your baby’s health. But there’s more…
The Bakerloo and two baby bumps…
During my first pregnancy I was working in Oxford Circus at the Langham, London while living in Queen’s Park, therefore I was taking the Bakerloo line each day, Monday to Friday, until a week before I gave birth and started my maternity leave. Not sure about each of you, but during both pregnancies I felt too shy or embarrassed to even ask for a seat which I really needed especially during that first trimester when the morning/ lunch/ afternoon sickness was a real hassle. Maybe what made me very emotional was to see people seating who refused to acknowledge what’s happening around them, so they avoided eye contact by all means, hiding behind a book or in their phone or pretending to sleep, hoping no one would interrupt their quiet journey.
How about the first trimester?
Mama Mio have commissioned a survey of 2000 UK residents to see the statistics on how pregnant women are treated when it comes to public transport, should they be offered a seat or not? I was a little bit sad to find out that only 60% of people believe it’s necessary to give their seat up to a pregnant women. Other finding included the following: the general public believe holding a door open is more important than giving up a seat for a pregnant lady, only 2% of people believe women in their first trimester need to be given a seat and in fact 1/5 of women were too embarrassed to ask for a seat themselves.
You’ll love this one…
Anna aka Mother Pukka went the extra mile wearing a fake pregnancy bump trying to find out how the British public really treat pregnant women on public transport. The secret camera experiment says it all, you can watch it here.
This month, Mama Mio are providing a platform for people to discuss public transport etiquette and empowering pregnant ladies with the confidence to ask for a seat should they want it. You can read more from Mama Mio on how to ensure you get a seat and read the full survey results over on their website.
Let’s admit it.
Pregnancy is not a walk in the park
…it’s not all glowing days. It’s not all happy baby kicks. It’s heartburn. It’s swollen ankles. It’s midnight cravings. Growing a human is exhausting and often a too emotional roller coaster. Standing on a moving bus should be the last worry you have because both your safety and the baby’s depend completely on you. If you feel they also depend on the kindness of others who should be offering you a seat, you may be a little bit wrong (that’s exactly how I felt, always waiting to be offered a seat, when no one did it, I got so frustrated). The brilliant mamas on the event panel (Mother Pukka, Candice Brathwaite, Alison Perry to name a few) debated the topic and all agreed that you’re entitled to have that seat, so if no one is offering one, simply ask for it, you’re mainly doing it for the baby.
Thank you Mama Mio for starting such a great topic and for the beautifully organised event, watch the conversation further on insta here. Also, I’ve just found out a great blog post on 5 ways to get a seat on public transport when pregnant, you can read it all here.
What has your experience been on public transport whilst pregnant? Have you been offered you a seat? Have you asked for one? Do you think it’s important to offer your seat to a pregnant lady? I’d love to hear your thoughts on this…
This post has been commissioned by Mama Mio and Mumsnet. All opinions are my own.
P.S. I must say I love the events where I can have both my children with me, it’s extremely tiring watching a toddler running wild and a baby screaming for boobie breaks during a journey in Central London, but the memories in all these pixels are priceless…’Mama, you got a cool office’, he said before we left Brigit’s afternoon tea double decker ;)…
