Family - Woman: Light Skin Tone, Man: Light Skin Tone, Baby: Light Skin Tone

Pregnancy is such a big deal in most cultures, it's like this invisible crown people start talking about before you even mention it. My mom always says if you're not pregnant, you're just 'living' but once you are, you're 'becoming' something more. And if you're poor or young, that 'something more' can be both a blessing and a burden wrapped up in one tiny belly.

On social media, being pregnant turns you into a content generator overnight. Every bump and belly button photo gets likes, comments, and even unsolicited advice. My cousin posted her first positive test and within an hour, her feed was flooded with 'congrats!' and 'are you keeping it?',like she was a surprise to everyone, even though she and her partner had been trying for years.

At work, if you're a woman and you're pregnant, suddenly your career potential gets a question mark. I had a coworker who was told point blank that her promotion would be 'held in abeyance' until after her maternity leave. It was like, if you're pregnant, you're not fully present anymore,your body is off the clock, but your brain better keep working twice as hard.

In relationships, pregnancy can be this unspoken test. My sister and her husband were together for five years before she got pregnant. The second she did, her partner's whole game changed,like the pregnancy was proof she was 'worth' staying with. Now she jokes, 'I didn't get him for free, but at least I got him for the price of a child.

Among the older generation, especially in traditional families, pregnancy is like this sacred event. My grandmother treats every pregnant woman like royalty,'eat this, don't eat that, rest, don't lift a finger',like the baby's future depends on how you behave in those nine months. For them, it's not just a personal thing, it's about continuing the family line with care and ceremony.