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People reveal the 'unwritten rules' of their households and they're delightful bizarre

"If you have a cat on your lap and want something from the kitchen someone else has to get it for you. Cat must not be disturbed."

cat sitting on someone's lap
Photo by Andrew Kota/Pexels

Rule: The cat must not be disturbed.

In our house, we have a rule called "I Have a Cat." If one of our two cats is sitting in your lap, you are automatically exempt from having to do anything. Everyone else in the house has to serve you until the cat decides to vacate.

This rule isn't written anywhere, and we never actively decided it was a rule, it just became one because no one would dare to disturb Princess Nala when she's comfy and cuddly.

We're apparently not the only family with such a rule. Most families have unwritten household rules that others might see as strange when "enforced," which is why when someone on Reddit asked, "What’s an unwritten rule in your household that would seem bizarre to outsiders?" people delivered with some delightful, hilarious and sometimes even helpful examples.

Here are some of the best:

The 'loud noise' and 'I’m ok' rules

If you know you’re going to make a loud noise, say dropping a heavy bag down the stairs you had to yell 'loud noise' to warn everyone that the noise was coming and planned

If you made a loud noise unplanned you had to yell 'I’m OK' so no one came running or did come running I’d you were NOT ok. Side note this rule was created when grandpa dropped a toilet on his finger."

"Any loud noise coming from the shower/bathtub must quickly be followed by an audible 'oh sh_t'/'dammit'/'heck!' and change to the shower spray sound, proving movement.

Failure to acknowledge will result in a 'you good in there?' from the outside party."

Rules for getting out of doing dishes

"This is at my mom's place: If you are wearing long sleeve shirts you are exempt from doing the dishes."

"We just had a rule that once the dishwasher (one of us kids - the actual dishwasher was used as storage for go cups since mom was convinced they were shitty at cleaning dishes) was done with all the dishes that had been cleared from the table and shut the water off, any additional dishes were not their responsibility. This led to the designated dishwasher racing through doing the dishes and slower eaters racing to finish their food. “Haha sucker - the water’s off!” was commonly heard growing up."

"When we don’t feel like cleaning the kitchen entirely after dinner or we leave junk in the living room, whatever the case may be, we’re obligated to declare 'who closed last night!?' And then we blame it on the baby."

The empty paper towel roll goes to the doggo—appropriately announced

"When you use the last paper towel from the roll you have to take the cardboard tube and yell 'do-ta-do' in it and then give it to the dog when he comes running so he can shred it!"

"We call these cardboard bones and they also require some sort of announcement through it before giving it to the dog."

"Growing up we'd blow into it like trying to blow a trumpet because it made the dog go apeshit. Then you 'beat' the dog with it along her back which gets her more excited, then you give it to her for destruction."

dog being hand fedGotta pay the dog tax.Photo by Karolina Kaboompics/Pexels

Dog taxes must be paid

"If you get ice from the freezer for whatever reason, you must pay the ice tax to the dogs."

"We have to pay the ice tax AND cheese tax. Brutal."

"It's the peanut butter tax and the cheese tax in my house. My dog is so psyched for the cheese tax that she comes running from pretty much anywhere in the house if she hears something that sounds like crinkling plastic in the fridge."

"We have ice tax, cheese tax, popcorn tax, bell pepper tax. These pups are ruthless!"

Meow back, always

"If a cat meows at you, you meow back. It's impolite not to answer."

"I have full on conversations with my friends cat and you can tell by the tones he uses he is actually speaking to you lol it's hilarious and I never get tired of it. I usually just keep meowing back and forth until I can tell he's had enough chit chat 😆"

"This is the only way to get my cat to stop meowing at me. If I ignore him he'll keep going. If I get up to see what he wants, he just looks at me. If I meow back a few times, he comes into the room I'm in and chills with me."

If I have to come find it for you when I just told you exactly where it is…

"If you tell me you can’t find something after I’ve told you EXACTLY WHERE IT IS, and I walk over there and find it EXACTLY WHERE I TOLD YOU IT WAS, I get to hit you with it."

"This is also a rule in my house, which led to this exchange -

'Mom, I need help finding something!'

'Okay, but if I find it right away, I get to hit you with it!'

'NEVERMIND I'LL FIND THE SCISSORS MYSELF.'"

"I started charging my kids $5 finder's fee each time."


board game piecesWinner cleans up!Photo by Pixabay/Pexels


Game winner does the cleans up

"Winner of a board game is charged with putting said game away."

"My family did this too! It's a great way to minimize competition drama because the winner gets to gloat about winning while tidying up and the rest get to gloat about not having to tidy up."

"This is so much better than the tradition my siblings and I got into of actively making messes while singing 'Loser picks it up!'

We grew up into civilized people, but this rule would have set us on the path sooner."

"The real competition would be making it clear you COULD win, but instead forced the cleanup on someone else."

You complain or give unsolicited advice, the job's yours

"If someone is voluntarily doing a chore, no one shall tell them how to do it differently unless damage is going to be incurred. If unsolicited advice is given without the intent to actively roll up sleeves and help, the task then belongs to the giver of the unsolicited advice."

"If more people tried to adopt even a fraction of this mind set then so many households would be so much happier. Yes weaponized incompetence is a thing and messed up when people do it but many times it's just priorities and preferences are different. My spouse folds the towels differently than I do. In our case it doesn't impact anything. So why would I get on their case about something so benign and add stress for no reason."

cat sitting on someone's lapThe Cat Lap Rule is universal, it seems.Photo by Andrew Kota/Pexels

Sorry, can't. I have a cat.

"If you have a cat on your lap and want something from the kitchen someone else has to get it for you. Cat must not be disturbed."

"I'd add we had as many as 7 cats at a time growing up so often everyone had a cat on their lap so the youngest cat would be the one chosen to be moved. Senior cats had great privilege."

"We call this 'Cat Rule' and over the years it has sub rules. For example, one cannot invoke Cat Rule more than three times in one lap sitting 😂"

"We call it being 'cat-atonic.'"

"We call that 'the prime directive'-- a sleeping cat must not be disturbed."

"We call that, 'the sacred law' 😂 Our cat is only affectionate on her terms so if she’s cuddling us, it’s a very special moment."

"We call this feline paralysis, love seeing everyone else’s names for this rule!"

And these extras, just for funsies…

"Bandit, our aged Great Dane, gets the cushion on the far right of the orange couch. No exceptions, no asking him to move, that’s his spot."

"Sometimes, my cat will carry a ball toy into the room and meow loudly. As soon as she drops the ball, every human in the house must clap and go 'Yaaayy!!' It is law."

"If you are going to use the kitchen tongs you must perform an OSHA approved test click to ensure that they are functional."

"In our household, the unwritten rule is that you must perform a full interpretive dance routine to earn the right to use the TV remote. It keeps the peace and provides nightly entertainment."

"You have to choose the topic of your fortune cookie before you read it. "this is about my new job" many a big life decision has been made this way.

Inside spiders are named Franklin. Outside spiders are named Fronklin. They are all good boys."


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Her groundbreaking theory on the origin of life was rejected 15 times. Then biology proved her right.

Lynn Margulis had the audacity to challenge Darwin. And we're lucky she did.

lynn margulis, lynn margulis symbiosis, biology, scientific breakthroughs, darwin, darwinism, women in science
Facts That Will Blow Your Mind/Facebook

A photo of Lynn Margulis.

Throughout her prolific and distinguished career, biologist Lynn Margulis made several groundbreaking contributions to science that we take for granted as common knowledge today. For example, she championed James E. Lovelock’s “Gaia concept,” which posited that the Earth self-regulates to maintain conditions for life.

But by far, her most notable theory was symbiogenesis. While it was first written off as “strange” and “aesthetically pleasing” but “not compelling,” it would ultimately prevail, and completely rewrite how we viewed the origin of life itself.

In the late 1960s, Margulis wrote a paper titled "On the Origin of Mitosing Cells," that was quite avant-garde. In it, she proposed a theory: that life evolved through organisms merging together to become inseparable.

In essence, cooperation is the driver of life, not competition and domination. This directly went against Darwin’s “survival of the fittest” principle that was considered gospel in scientific circles. Margulis’ paper was rejected by fifteen journals before getting accepted into the Journal of Theoretical Biology.

- YouTube www.youtube.com

Time would be on Margulis’ side, however. By the late ‘70s and early ‘80s, research proved that the two major building blocks of plants and animals, chloroplasts and mitochondria were at one time independent bacteria. This solidified the fact that on a biological level, connection trumps autonomy for longevity. And now that fact is written in textbooks, with no real story of the adversity it overcame to get there.

While it is customary for most new scientific theories to be met with criticism, especially those that completely shift the current narrative, many have noted that sexism played a key part in Margulis’ initial lack of acceptance. On more than one occasion, she herself had hinted that women were seen as mothers and wives first, and scientists second. She recalled that while married to fellow scientist Carl Sagan that “Carl would finish his sentence, unperturbed” while she was expected to “handle all the duties of a 1950s housewife, from washing dishes to paying the household bills.”

And yet, Margulis would have other ideas that were controversial that had nothing to do with her gender. Most famously, she did not believe that AIDS was caused by HIV, and instead believed it was cause by a syphilis-causing type of bacteria, despite there already being decades of research proving otherwise. That view was seen as an endorsement of AIDS denialism, which undermined prevention and treatment effort. Then later in life, Margulis became a vocal proponent of 9/11 conspiracy theories suggesting government involvement the in Twin Towers attacks.

And yet, perhaps this is one of those “you gotta take the good with the bad” situations. Margulis’ inherent contrarian nature gave us both these unfounded, even harmful stances, in addition to entirely new paradigms that altered our understanding of life itself.

And if nothing else, it illuminated the need for science to include multiple points of view in order to unlock the truth. It seems life is, after all, about coming together.

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People are finally talking about their sneaky techniques for pooping at someone else's house

Courtesy flush, yay or nay?

bathroom, hygiene, poop, etiquette, manners, house, candles, toilet, wellness, mental health, public health
Canva Photos

Lighting a candle? That's basic compared to these advanced tips for pooping in public.

Poop anxiety isn't the most heavily studied medical field, but some estimates say up to a third of people suffer from some kind of anxiety around going to the bathroom in a public place or another person's home. That's not to be confused, of course, with anxiety poops; or the sudden urge to use the bathroom due to gut reactions to stress.

On the low end, people who suffer from pooping anxiety can feel ashamed or embarrassed. At the higher end, they may avoid social functions, public events, or leaving their own home entirely. This phenomenon also tends to affect women more than men. For some people, the worry gets so bad that they constipate themselves or refuse to eat, all because they're worried of what people will think of their bowel movements.

But you don't have to have extreme "shy bowel" to know the uncertainty associated with feeling a rumbly tummy while you're a guest in someone's house. There are a lot of unknowns to manage. How good is their soundproofing? Does their toilet actually flush properly? Will someone be waiting to go in right after me? Some people anticipate these worries and come up with elaborate rules and routines to leave as little evidence of their go as possible.

A guy took a simple question to social media: Should you always courtesy flush when you're a guest in someone's house? The answer sparked a huge debate about the secret etiquette of public pooping.


bathroom, hygiene, poop, etiquette, manners, house, candles, toilet, wellness, mental health, public health A toilet can be a terrifying sight if you suffer from poop anxiety. Photo by Point3D Commercial Imaging Ltd. on Unsplash

In a thread on the subreddit r/NoStupidQuestions, the OP asked: "My mother tells me that at other people's houses, when going to the bathroom, it's expected to do a 'courtesy flush'. Is this a real thing?"

For the uninitiated, a courtesy flush is when you flush halfway through your "go." The thinking is that it helps get rid of odors before they build up. Not only did the poster's mother advocate for courtesy flushing, she insisted on a very specific ritual when visiting other people's homes:

  1. Always carry Poopurri and spray before you go
  2. Flush halfway through your session
  3. Flush at the end (obviously)
  4. Clean toilet bowl with wand...every time!

If it sounds a little extreme to you, you're not alone.

However, some commenters were extremely pro-courtesy flush.

These are the kinds you have to think about if you visit someone else's house. But some people with bathroom anxiety live in public spaces like dorms or apartments with communal bathrooms, and it's a challenge for them every day. The courtesy flush is a commonly recommended practice by these folks.

"That’s good advice. First flush on delivery, second flush with clean up. Reduces odor and skid marks."

A few people noted that the courtesy flush is common in jails and prisons, of all places. Due to the tight (extremely tight) quarters, inmates are encouraged to repeatedly flush while they go. I don't want to know what the consequence might be for violating this code.

Others claimed the courtesy flush was a waste of water:

"Flushing twice seems very wasteful in my opinion. I would not like a guest to do that."

"No, please don't waste my water. But do make sure everything goes down."

"If someone did that at my house I'd be low key annoyed at them for wasting water."

Experts agree that the effectiveness of the courtesy flush is very much up for debate. Does it mildly lessen odor? Maybe. It's also a gigantic waste of water. Older toilets can use up to six gallons per flush—yikes! An extra flush is also questionable at best when it comes to sanitation—flushing poop with the lid open is known to spray bacteria all over the bathroom. Yuck.

"Everyone poops, I don't want my guests worrying about it," wrote one commenter. "Crack a window if it's like, lethally stinky, I guess. If you clog the toilet, the plunger is in a plastic tub right there. If you need help, cool, now we have a funny story."

The courtesy flush, however, was only the beginning of the OP's tips for pooping in public.

- YouTube www.youtube.com

Some commenters were on board with OP's mother's idea of using the toilet brush if it's available:

"If there's some brown stuck to the porcelain after I flush, and if there's a toilet brush on hand, I give it a quick cleaning and a second flush. But not if things look clean otherwise," someone wrote.

Another commenter had an even more advanced idea: "You can also float a strip of toilet paper on top of the water before you poo. Gets wrapped in paper as you drop off your delivery and less likely to leave skid marks in the bowl."

Of course, commenters in threads all over the Internet sing the praises of Poo-Pourri, or even carrying a lighter with you at all times to burn up some of the stinky oxygen. And how's this for a pro-level tip?

"Tip for the courtesy flush.. if one who finds it hard to poop in a public bathroom because you don’t want people to hear you. Flush just right before you push and the sound of the water will cover the sound of gas etc and it will go right down with the water so very minimal smell."

Others insisted that they will seek out the furthest bathroom from the main area of activity, such as an upstairs bathroom, or one in the basement. "I'd say it's polite to not [go] in the downstairs toilets, especially during the day and if they open into living areas - which I suppose is the same as 'one for pee and one for poop'. It's mainly about not subjecting other people to your stench."

I mean, all you can do really is clap at the social-anxiety-fueled ingenuity on display. The experts seem to agree here. Even Healthline recommends carrying air purifier spray, lining the inside of the bowl with toilet paper to absorb sound, and flushing several times to reduce anxiety worries. Other "real world experts" on TikTok have no shortage of ingenious ideas:


@acooz31

tag urself…middle school angie is guitly of every single one of them #bathroom #bathroomcheck #publicbathroom

Whatever you do, just remember to wash your hands, especially if they're coming into contact with toilet water.

The general consensus is that, when pooping at someone's house, basic etiquette applies. Clean up after yourself to a normal degree, but remember, as the saying goes: Everybody poops.

Some people are really protective over the bathrooms in their homes, which is their right. But if that's the case, they really shouldn't be having guests over and expecting them not to partake in normal human biological behaviors.

Some of the advanced tips shared by anxious-pooers might help, but try not to send yourself into a tailspin trying to cover your tracks. In extreme cases of bathroom anxiety, experts say cognitive behavior therapy or even antidepressants may be needed. But the rest of us might just need to read that world famous children's book again.

This article originally appeared in March. It has been updated.

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15 years ago, a Russian gymnast was interrupted by her 2-year-old daughter. It became a historic performance.

"This is beyond beautiful. 🥲"

dance, motherhood, mommy daughter dance, mother daughter relationship, parenting, wholesome
Umi4ika/Youtube

Svetlana Putintseva with her daughter Masha.

In 2005 at only 18 years old, Russian rhythmic gymnast Svetlana Putintseva became a world champion, after which she retired and eventually became a mom. Then, in 2011, Putintseva came out of retirement for one special Gala performance.

Little did anyone know that her then two-year-old daughter named Masha would be the key to making that performance so special.

As the story goes, the young child refused to leave her side that night. But rather than stopping the performance, Putintseva did what so many incredible moms do: she masterfully held space for two different identities.

As we see in the video below, Putintseva simply brought Masha onto the dance floor and incorporated her into the routine—holding and comforting her at times, performing impressive moves while she ran around at others…letting it all become a lively, endearing interaction rather than a rote routine. It became something really touching:

Watch:

Now, a bit of fact-checking as this video has once again started going viral. Despite what many captions say, Putintseva‘s daughter was likely always a planned part of the performance (the tiny leotard is a bit of a giveaway). But that doesn’t really take away from the message behind it: motherhood weaves another soul into one's identity, forever. And one of the biggest lessons it teaches is how to hold someone else steady, all while becoming ourselves.

Every day, moms are engaging in a similar type of “dance”: navigating through the world while guiding and nurturing their little ones. It probably doesn't always feel quite as graceful as what Putintseva put out, and, yet, it is just as beautiful.

dance, motherhood, mommy daughter dance, mother daughter relationship, parenting, wholesome A mother hugging her daughter.Photo credit: Canva

Maybe so many thought it was an improvised moment because improvising is a very real parent superpower. That’s certainly the takeaway we get from some of these lovely comments:

“You cannot control life but you can learn to dance with it. 🤍”

"This is beyond beautiful. 🥲"

“If this isn't a metaphor for motherhood. We improvise so much.”

“A mother’s unconditional love 🥹❤️ She just made my whole month.”

“I do this sometimes while deejaying. My daughter comes up so I hit the slicer and let her chop it up. A few chops and she is happy and goes about her business. 🥰”

“I can see my daughter doing this to me soon whenever I get up on stage on perform. She already stares long and hard at me whenever I am onnstage singing. She doesn't take her eyes off me. Sure she would be running up to stand with me when she starts walking 😂😂 i look forward to it tho”

“Sobbing 😭😭😭😭 As a dancer who hasn’t performed since having a kid, this inspires me in so many ways 🥹🥹 So beautiful and it’s clear that she admires her mom so much 🥰”

- YouTube www.youtube.com

Though not much is written on Putintseva following this performance, one blog post says that Masha has followed in her footsteps by getting into rhythmic gymnastics. Maybe it all started with this one performance. ❤️

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Bridgerton superfan shocked to win her very own ball after incredibly clever hidden camera stunt

Her face says it all.

bridgerton, bridgerton season 4, bridgerton season 4 premiere, bridgerton contest, netflix, television, pop culture
Still Watching Netflix/ Youtube

Some hidden-in-plain sights wigs (left) Sarah's surprised reaction (right)

There’s no such thing as a casual Bridgerton fan and the creators of Bridgerton know it. So, as the latest season approached, it was announced that one lucky winner (or “diamond of the season,” better yet) would mark the occasion with the surprise of a lifetime.

That winner was a woman named Sarah from County Durham, England. According to Sarah's bestie Hannah, who nominated her, Sarah works with kids struggling with trauma and mental health issues and takes care of her disabled sister.

In addition, Sarah "absolutely 100 percent is Bridgerton’s number one fan,” says Hannah.

Win a chance to go to Bridgerton season 4 premiere via NetflixUK
byu/Debt-Mysterious inBridgertonNetflix

Assuming she’s applying for a quiz show, Sarah gushes about how she identifies with Penelope Featherington, even dying her hair to match Penelope’s reddish-gold locks. She also mentioned that she would “climb Luke Newton like a tree” before giggling, “this isn't [going to be] shown to anybody, is it?”

In the promo clip, we hear Lady Whistledown's voice saying “a most elaborate ruse” was prepared, and let’s just say that truer words were never spoken.

Thinking she and Hannah are on the way to a first aid course for work, Sarah completely misses clues being strewn upon the path, like the voice of Luke Newton announcing an incoming train, a passing carriage, and a wig shop featuring Queen Charlotte’s famously flamboyant bouffants.

Sarah even naively agrees to sign in with a feather quill, which is adorable.

Finally, once the “class” assembles, the “teacher” asks Sarah to come up to the front and write her favorite TV show on a whiteboard. As soon as she does, the walls magically come apart to reveal an extravagant ballroom with Regency-clad dancers like a scene from the series that she can, quite literally, waltz into.

- YouTube www.youtube.com

Clearly at this point, Sarah (make that “Lady Sarah”) is stunned. But the gifts just keep on coming. She is then asked to make her way to the throne, where she is honored as a “most deserving and admirable person,” and told that “in celebration” of all she has done, she and Hannah will be attending the Paris premiere.

Understandably, Sarah cannot contain herself at this point. Between gasps and tears, she jokes, “I think I’m going to have a heart attack.”

The next clip we see is her and Hannah both looking fabulous in Paris as Lady Whistledown’s voice says, “ a reminder that fairytales do not belong solely in make-believe.”

- YouTube www.youtube.com

Everything about this is just so lovely, from the truly impressive attention to detail to seeing how delighted Sarah was to have her dreams come true. It's certainly the little spark of joy we all need right now.

You can now stream Bridgerton Season 4, Part 1 on Netflix. Part 2 drops February 26th.

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Women's Health

Video compares giving birth in America to giving birth in France, and the difference is eye-opening

It's good to know what's possible.

maternity care, maternity leave, childbirth, having a baby, healthcare
Photo credit: Canva

Having a baby in the U.S. is an outlier experience.

Welcoming a child into the world and your family is a momentous occasion, and one that should be handled with great care. In some places in the world, it is treated as such. The medical care you might need is available and affordable, the expense of caring for a newborn baby isn't a concern, and you can relish the magical newborn time as you begin the physical recovery from childbirth in relative peace and comfort.

In some places, that's the way birth goes. A video from @Anima_Honey compares having a baby in the U.S. vs. having a baby in France, and we see the stark difference between a system that prioritizes profits over a system that prioritizes people. In the U.S. birth, the mom is pushed out of the room because it is needed for someone else. She is charged an exorbitant fee because, even though the hospital was in her insurance network, the doctor and anesthesiologist were not. She is hurried back to work to pay for the hospital bills because she doesn't have any guaranteed paid maternity leave. Meanwhile, in France, the mom not only gets three days in the hospital all paid for, but she also receives a birth grant and other social security funds to help cover the expenses of having a child.

- YouTube www.youtube.com

Americans in the comments shared their birth experiences, making it painfully clear that the video is not exaggerating:

"My son and I were in the hospital 3 days... he was in the NICU for 24 hours...our bill was $40,000 with no insurance and after discharge the finance dept said I needed to pay $20,000 before leaving, I laughed and said 'Nobody has that kind of money on them, including millionaires.'"

"I had a rough birth and was kicked out of the room and the pediatrician who NEEDED to see my baby was out of network and cost almost $1000. She saw my baby for 5 min!!! It’s nuts this healthcare system."

"As a NICU Mom who is still paying off my daughter's hospital birth 2 years ago, and just battled with our insurance company to cover her recent surgery this resonated with me. Our health system is SO BROKEN. There is not enough support for parents. Especially NICU parents! My husband and I couldn’t even get the therapy we needed paid for after all the birth trauma from our daughter’s near-death experience. It’s not right."

maternity care, maternity leave, childbirth, having a baby, healthcare NICU care can be extremely costly without full insurance coverage. Photo credit: Canva

"That bit about some providers were in network but others weren't is so true. They act like you get to choose each provider in the room and not the doctor or hospital themselves. When you go to a hospital you don't vet everyone that walks in your room. Crazy!"

"Speaking as someone who works in insurance, this is chillingly accurate. You can go to a hospital that's in network, but your rendering provider may be out of network, same with the anesthesiologist. I tell patients to check with their insurance to verify if the doctors are in network as well, but even then, the bill could still be sky high, depending on how the insurance plan is set up."

What giving birth is like in other countries

People from other countries shared their own experiences with childbirth where they live, which further highlighted what an outlier the U.S. is on this front. Check out what is possible:

"Same in Trinidad and Tobago. Free pre-natal, delivery and post-natal care, 8 weeks paid maternity leave and a maternity grant."

"In Sweden, you don’t pay for giving birth and every parent gets 180 days from work. And every month until the child is 16 we get childsupport."

maternity care, maternity leave, childbirth, having a baby, healthcare Having a baby shouldn't leave you worried about paying hospital bills.Photo credit: Canva

"In Germany you don't have to pay anything. But you or the father of the child can stay home for up to 3 years, getting parental allowance. And you get child allowance."

"In India we have 6 months maternity leave, and hospitals take care of you until necessary mostly minimum 3 days."

"In Canada we dont pay anything for delivery, 365 days maternity leave with half salary or one and half year whatever you want, your job is secured, paid $500 per child until they turn 16."

"In Costa Rica you get your maternity leave 1 month before delivery and 3 months later. Public hospitals treat you like a human being for free.."

"Well in Slovakia you have 8 months of paid maternity leave and then paid parental leave till your baby is 3 years old (all from social services) and you stay in hospital until you two are ready to leave (4-7 days if you are alright) also you dont pay anything for delivering a baby and you are entitled for almost 900€ from social services, because you gave birth to a human."

maternity care, maternity leave, childbirth, having a baby, healthcare Maternity care looks quite different in other countries. Photo credit: Canva

"In México you don't have to pay anything as well in public hospitals. They give you maternity leave plus your full salary while taking your maternity leave, moreover it has recently approved the paternity leave for both parents to bond with their newborn."

"In Romania the mother can stay at home 2 years with 85% of her salary. Free medical care during birth."

Seeing the contrast between childbirth experiences in the U.S. and most other nations around the world is eye-opening. While some of us might feel enraged by our system in comparison with other places around the world, we can also celebrate knowing what is actually possible. It's easy to normalize what's normal to us, but there's nothing objectively normal about the way maternal care functions and the way maternity leave is handled in the American system. What can we learn from these other countries about how to make our system better? Let's encourage our legislators to find out and advocate for the changes that put people before profits.

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