Tawana, 21, discovered she was pregnant after fainting and ending up in hospital.
Having a child at 21 wasn’t Tawana’s plan.
He was, in his own words, “living a crazy, wild life,” partying and having fun with friends.
Until she ended up in the hospital after fainting.
Tawana had no idea why. It was then that she discovered she was pregnant and that she would give birth to her in four weeks.
“I started having a panic attack,” Tawana told the BBC’s Reliable Sauce podcast.
She was completely surprised by the news.
“Someone is telling you: yes, you have four weeks to get your life back on track.”
After admitting her to the hospital, doctors ordered a pregnancy test before subjecting Tawana to an MRI.
She considered the concern ridiculous: after all, she had a contraceptive implant in her arm and had no pregnancy symptoms.
And when the test came back negative, he became even more convinced that he was right.
But a nurse convinced the doctor to give her an ultrasound as he still believed Tawana might be pregnant.
The baby’s father, Emmanuel, says that when Tawana told him she was about to give birth, he didn’t believe it.
“It just didn’t make any sense,” he recalls. “He seemed too miraculous.”
Having a baby without any of the classic pregnancy symptoms, such as nausea or a noticeable bump, is called a cryptic pregnancy.
It’s rare, but Tawana says doctors have said “it’s more common in the black community.”
“[Me disseram] because of our hips and bone structure, the baby doesn’t grow outward, it grows inward, and we’re more likely to have a breech birth,” she says.
“So when it came time for the birth, my biggest concern was whether she would stay in the (head-down) position.”
While data on cryptic pregnancies is not readily available, Alison Leary, a health professor at London South Bank University in the United Kingdom, says there is broader data that suggests there are disparities in the maternity care received by minority women ethnic.
“There are many studies that show that women, especially black women, have poor pregnancy and birth outcomes,” Leary told BBC Newsbeat.
In her opinion, more research needs to be done on the specific issue of cryptic pregnancy.
“Here because [é] It’s a very important issue, even if it affects a small number of people, because if you don’t have timely access to good maternity care and good prenatal care, you’re more likely to have poor outcomes.”
Four weeks and four days after finding out she was pregnant, Tawana gave birth to River following her baby shower.
She says she suffers from postpartum depression and turned to TikTok for advice on becoming a young mother in such a short time.
But he says he found no one else other than a woman in the United States who had experienced something similar.
“I went through a very deep depression because it was like no one was giving me any guidance.”
“Nobody talks about it. Like, what’s it like? I think I saw a video, which had like 100 views, of a girl in the US talking about it.”
“And she was literally the only one who mentored me.”
Subsequently, Tawana decided to share her unique experience online, in a video that has already received almost 400,000 likes.
She also started a podcast talking to other moms.
Tawana says she shared her story in the hope that it will generate more support for young mothers who find out about their pregnancy at the last minute.
She acknowledges that she was fortunate to have her mother’s financial help, but she knows that other people may not have the same privilege.
Ideally, he would like to see a charity created.
“There is no help, so if this happened to you, how do you handle it?”
What is a cryptic pregnancy?
The term is used when a woman has no idea she is pregnant: some report not knowing until they go into labor.
Around one in 2,500 births is a ‘cryptic birth’, this equates to around 300 births per year in the UK.
Some cases are associated with a period of stress, in which the woman may not have or feel the usual symptoms of pregnancy.
Women who have an irregular or absent menstrual cycle also have other pregnancy symptoms.
Source: Helen Cheyne, Professor of Obstetrics for Midwives at the University of Stirling, UK.
Source: Terra
Ben Stock is a lifestyle journalist and author at Gossipify. He writes about topics such as health, wellness, travel, food and home decor. He provides practical advice and inspiration to improve well-being, keeps readers up to date with latest lifestyle news and trends, known for his engaging writing style, in-depth analysis and unique perspectives.
