“Pregnant for a Day: The Empathy Belly Project”

Mrs. Pisano’s Human Development class has been learning about the miracle of life, including the stages of pregnancy. Recently, the class got to participate in one of the more intriguing aspects of the course — The empathy belly project. The empathy belly is a multi-component, weighted vest that is meant to simulate pregnancy. According to Empathy Resources LLC, the original creator of the garment, the “belly” provides a medically accurate simulation of pregnancy. This includes symptoms and effects like:

• Gaining 30 pounds
• Increased blood pressure, pulse, and body temperature
• Shallow breathing and shortness of breath
• Bladder pressure and frequency of urination 
• Low backaches; shift in center of gravity; waddling
• Fatigue
• Irritability  

When asked about the conducting of this project in her class, Mrs. Pisano had this to say about the matter: 

“This unit in class is always a fan favorite and generally asked at the start of the semester when we’ll be doing it; I think students are very curious by the whole idea and want to see what it’s like.  This year with Covid, we weren’t sure if we would be able to run it or not, and fortunately, we were able to make it work.  Although students are wearing the belly for the school day and not nine months, most will vouch that 7 hours is long enough!  Coincidentally the empathy belly was done close to Mother’s Day; I believe there will be a little extra appreciation for the moms out there this year.”

Two of our staff writers, Emily McLaughlin and Kirsten Carman, both had the opportunity to wear the belly and be “pregnant” for a day. 

Emily’s POV

I strapped the belly on at 8 AM with the help of Mrs. Pisano. Immediately, I wanted to look at myself in the mirror. I started at my “pregnant” reflection in awe; it was astonishing to see how different my body looked. To put it simply, I was HUGE. The belly is supposed to imitate 32 weeks pregnant, but I felt much bigger than that. 

I had to go to my first-period class, so I made my way up the stairs. I was extremely out of breath by the time I got to my class, after just a few minutes of walking. When I entered my classroom, I was greeted by my peers “congratulating” me on my pregnancy. I joked that I was having a baby girl. Then, I attempted to squeeze into my desk. It worked fine for me, but a real baby would have been squished. 

Second period, I had Mrs. Pisano’s class. She is around five months pregnant now, and I looked about eight months, so we took a picture together to compare our bellies.

Overall, the first few periods were a breeze. I felt energized, and I was excited to be participating in this project. I even bragged to Zach Frantzen, who had worn the belly the day prior, that I was handling it better than him. I felt invincible — If I could conquer pregnancy, I could conquer anything. 

During fourth period, I had lunch and planned to go off-campus. My friend, Maddy Prucha, and I decided to get bagels. I drove us to a local bagel store, pregnant belly and all. Initially, the belly pressed against my steering wheel. I had to move back my seat quite a bit to fit in the driver’s seat. Driving was absolutely exhausting; each turn was a workout. I was relieved to park, but that meant I had to now waddle into the store and face new people. 

While standing in line, I wondered if anyone thought I was actually pregnant. I couldn’t tell, though I do recall receiving a few stares. 

Once back in my car, it was time to eat my bagel. I expected to use my belly as a surface to eat off of, but in reality, it was just in the way. I no longer had a lap, so lunch was certainly a challenge. 

After lunch, I was able to take a picture with Mrs. Refino, who was nine months pregnant. Coincidentally enough, she had her baby boy the very next day! 

Sixth period was when it all hit me. I felt myself getting hot, and I needed to sit down and stay seated. However, I could not figure out a comfortable way to sit at my desk with my lower back now in pain. 

By the time I got to seventh period gym, I was miserable. My head, back, ribs — they all hurt. All I wanted to do was lay down and close my eyes. The best I could do for myself at that moment was sit to the side in the gym and watch my classmates play Badminton. Some of my other classmates played badminton when it was their turn to wear the belly, and I cannot imagine how they did it. To put it simply, I did not want to move at all. 

I visited Mrs. Perrone 8th period. She is currently pregnant with her third child. I felt silly complaining to her about my struggles because I could take the belly off before going home. She could not, of course. My pregnancy was a school project, and hers was the real deal. Regardless, I couldn’t help myself from venting to her about my day. I remember asking her, “Is this actually what pregnancy is like?” She went on to tell me about how it is worse but ultimately worth it in the end. Mrs. Perrone had this to say about the importance of the project:

 “I think teenagers see pregnancy as something cute. It can be cute, but it’s not easy. When your full-time job is to be a student, sometimes you forget that teachers are human too. Wearing the empathy belly humanizes teachers and helps students understand what we may be going through.”

Mrs. Perrone had an interesting perspective on the project that I had not thought of before. This project helps me explicitly empathize with the women in my life.

By the end of the day, I was READY to take the belly off. Reflecting on my day, the empathy belly delivered its promise. I experienced a few symptoms — increased body temperature, back pain, fatigue, and irritability. These symptoms were minor, of course, and only a fraction of what an actual pregnancy would feel like. 

The empathy belly was definitely more of a challenge than I expected. Interestingly, my classmate, Grace Wayar, had a much more pleasant experience. After her day with the belly, she had much fewer complaints than me. In a way, this shows that even in a simulation, everyone’s experience with pregnancy is unique. 

Kirsten’s POV

Unlike Emily, I waited until second period to start my pregnancy experience. I spent the entire morning before school trying to plan an outfit that I would be comfortable with throughout the day, but that also accentuated the empathy belly. I eventually went with a pair of leggings and a light quarter zip, and it turned out to be the perfect outfit I could’ve chosen for that day.

I was the fourth person in our second period Human Development class to wear the empathy belly for the day, so I got to hear all the feedback about the experience before it was my turn. Although they all spoke about the back pain and how uncomfortable it was to sit down, I didn’t think it would be as hard as they made it out to be. Quite frankly, I was wrong! What most people can’t see from the outside is that under the empathy belly is a strap with two balls in it that when pressure is applied, they dig into your ribcage to replicate the “feet” of a baby. For me, this was the most uncomfortable part of the empathy belly from the beginning. 

From the second I stepped out of the Human Development classroom, the looks I got were hilarious. The students that went before me never really mentioned the looks you get in the hallways between classes, so I never really thought of it until I walked through the main hallway to get to Spanish and had little middle schoolers staring at me with the most confused look on their faces. When I walked into room 128, my friends busted out in laughter because I looked huge!

I sat down and leaned back and forth, trying to find the most comfortable position to sit in (Spoiler alert: there wasn’t one). As the forty minutes passed by and I got ready to leave for my next class, I must’ve forgotten that I had thirty extra pounds strapped to me because my legs gave out, and I sat down and tried again. This happened multiple times throughout the morning but I eventually wobbled my way up the stairs to my fourth period AP World class taught by Mrs. Parasmo, who is expecting her third child in late August. Of course we had to take a picture! Our entire class (which is really only nine people) got to watch as Mrs. Parasmo and I held our pregnant bellies and posed for a picture. 

“The empathy belly helps students understand, being a working parent who is pregnant is tough.” – Mrs. Parasmo.

By seventh period, I was exhausted and unfortunately when I arrived at Chemistry, I couldn’t fit in my desk. Eventually, my squished baby and I just sat sideways the entire period, and honestly, I can’t recall what lesson we went over that day, the belly had me so preoccupied. Even though it wasn’t the most comfortable period, I spent most of it looking forward to Phys. Ed right after because never in my life have I seen a pregnant woman playing badminton. And let me tell you, it was entertaining! Bending over to pick up the birdie was a workout in itself, along with chasing it if it was hit short or really far back. Thank goodness I was playing with my friend Clare because after a while, she just started to go and get the birdie for me.

I finished my empathy belly experience at the end of eighth period because I had to leave school early that day. Obviously, I had to get a picture with Mrs. Pisano, too, who is expecting her first child in September! Although it was exhausting, and I felt like I was floating after I took it off, I felt like I looked at pregnant women with a whole new light and perspective that I hadn’t before. For all the pregnant teachers in our school right now, words can’t express how much I appreciate all you do for your students despite the fact that you go through these symptoms every day. This experience wasn’t easy, but it was educational and VERY entertaining for not just me, but my friends who got to watch as I struggled to complete easy tasks like walking up the stairs and picking up something on the floor. I truly believe that everyone needs to experience this at least once in their lives because being “pregnant” for a day changed my perspective on pregnancy forever.