But…I am a pregnant lesbonurse! It’s exciting news, even if I have been feeling like shit for the past 3 1/2 months. I’m starting the second trimester, and things seem to be improving (which is good, because I’ve been horribly behind on my work!). In some ways, my fears about being pregnant at work have not been realized. I didn’t get terrible smell sensitivities, which I was afraid of since my patients tend towards the heavy cologne-wearing or the unwashed. I did have constant, sometimes-debilitating nausea, but I never had to throw up in one of the patient bathrooms–or an exam room trash can (which was another fear of mine). The worst part about the first trimester was the fact that I got really behind on my work–mostly the progress notes–because I had to leave work early every day and spend the rest of the day being lethargic and nauseous on the couch at home. This actually forced me to tell my bosses that I was pregnant a little earlier than I was planning to, since I started getting emails that read “So, Lesbonurse, our billing department has informed us that you are falling behind on your notes…what’s going on?” Luckily I work in a baby-positive environment, so the response to my pregnancy was supportive. Interestingly, though most of my coworkers have offered congratulations, only the other homo in the office actually asked me how my partner and I conceived. Everyone else has studiously avoided asking any questions about the process. I thought I would be fielding a lot of “who’s the daddy?” questions, but there have been none. A few coworkers have asked if my partner is excited, but most people seem content to ignore the queer parenting aspect of my pregnancy. Oh well, gotta win hearts and minds slowly, right?
So I’m slowly feeling better, and slowly digging myself out of the backlogged work. I’m hoping to move into the glowing, cute-bellied, visibly preggo nurse practitioner phase. And I’m sure there will be some pretty fabulously inappropriate patient comments coming up in the next 6 months.