"Why is your face so red?!"

I was outside my house the other day, visibly pregnant for all to see, when a neighbor came out to her car. She attempted some small talk by saying, "Still pregnant?" I responded with a side view of my body and a smile. Then, with a grimace, this neighbor said, "Why is your face so red?!"

I have to admit I was a bit shocked. What I know is that I have had an easy and comfortable pregnancy, and the worst part (which is not that bad at all) has been the discomfort at the end and the case of hormonal acne I have had since the beginning. I know my face is red because of the pregnancy-induced acne. While I know others can see my face and the blemishes, I never expected anyone to say anything to me about it.... it's so clearly a case of acne!

So I shrugged in response to my neighbor's concern, but she was not done. "What's it from?" asked callously, was her next question. This time, I thought being honest and blunt would be the only way to get her to leave me alone, so I told her it was acne due to the pregnancy. Again, she wasn't done. "That looks like high blood pressure!" was her response. I just shook my head and said my blood pressure was fine, thank you. She continued her rant about high blood pressure for another few seconds, and I could only turn to Chris in disbelief.

Here's a tip for everyone reading: Avoid making comments about the appearance of a pregnant woman. In most cases, she probably can't help the way she looks (if she looks terrible). Bringing her inadequacies to her attention will not make her feel good about herself, and it's just plain old rude.

As you might guess, this person is not my favorite neighbor, and this experience only set my feelings of tolerance toward her. The most ironic part of this story is that this neighbor is someone who frequently does not wash her hair or wear a bra when out and about in the neighborhood. I am over her rude words, and am happy to just consider the source.