April Fools’ Day jokes are usually pretty lame, but sometimes they can be downright hurtful.
April Fools’ Day
Monday was April Fools’ Day, which is typically the worst day to be on the Internet. It’s hard enough to know what’s true and fake online to start with, so April 1 only makes it that much worse.
Fake Pregnancy Announcements
But while most jokes made that day are just kinda lame, there’s one trend that can be very hurtful — people making fake pregnancy announcements on Facebook.
We See It Everywhere
This type of joke can be seen across social media, with fake gender reveals, Facebook statuses, and friends “pranking” their loved ones with a false positive.
Even Celebs Contribute
It’s not just everyday people who think this kind of joke is okay. Just yesterday, a newly married Justin Bieber and his wife Hailey shared a sonogram, and even staged a doctor’s appointment on Instagram.
All A Big Joke
They later shared a sonogram with a puppy, and admitted that it was all a big joke. But to many who struggle to conceive, none of this is comical.
Not Everyone Agrees
Many women struggle with the ability to get pregnant, or have lost their children due to any number of reasons — and regardless of their experiences, the topic remains controversial.
The woman at hand had a message for people who consider pregnancy an appropriate joke for April Fool’s Day.
Not Funny
A mom named Kayla Lee Welch explained on Facebook why these April Fools’ announcements are problematic in a viral post from March of 2017:
This is why your April fools joke isn’t funny. This is why it’s not funny to lie and joke about being pregnant.
‘This is what it looks like to have a miscarriage.’
She continued her heartfelt open letter:
This is what it looks like to have a miscarriage. A week ago today I started spotting. I convinced myself it was normal because I did it with Keegan. This time it wasn’t.
Think Twice
She went on to say that all she can do is cry and mourn the loss of her unborn child. She asked people to please reconsider their “joke”:
Please think twice before you post that April fools joke. Because what’s funny for a second in your eyes crushes someone else’s heart for eternity. #pregnancyisnotajoke
Never Liked Them
POPSUGAR caught back up with Welch to get her feelings on the topic now. She says she always disliked the pregnancy jokes:
“I had for years seen people on my Facebook do this joke every year, and even before I had kids, I didn’t find it funny. I felt it was cruel to women who have actually had to say ‘We are pregnant!’ followed by a ‘We are no longer pregnant.’ It was like slapping them in the face to me and I hated seeing it.”
Why She Spoke Up
She says she knew other women were offended by the pregnancy jokes, so she felt the need to speak up on Facebook:
“[That experience] absolutely destroyed me. I knew I wasn’t the only one who didn’t like the joke and I felt no one really explained why it’s not [funny]. It was important to me to educate people who may really not understand why it’s not funny to pull that as a ‘joke’.”
A Reminder
Welch finished with an important reminder:
“After all, a joke should be funny, and it’s never funny to actually have to say you’re no longer pregnant in real life.”
So stick to the classics, like put plastic wrap over the toilet seat. Or better yet, let’s just cancel April Fools’ Day forever.
