being pregnant as a 1L... is it possible? Forum

[NU_Jet55]

I would wager that many 0L 20-something females also don't know what it's like to be pregnant. Who cares what gender you are? The OP is asking for advice, and if you have an opinion (or guess), give it. It's up to the OP to decide whether to follow it or not.

just like how the general public who knows nothing about certain issues will still vote on it regardless... maybe you should sign up for a forum that gives advice on medicine even though if you know nothing about that, and just give made up opinions on it and its up to the people who decide to follow it or not.

i don't mind people giving advice on things they don't know about. i just found it humorous that it was mostly males who doesn't have children or even a wife to give opinions like its a fact.

You know very little to nothing about any of us. You don't know my gender, my marital status, my age, or how many children I may or not have. How about we start discussing advice given based on the merit of the advice instead of the "life experiences" of people you've never met.

[finalaspects]

lol yes i know its not the same. that was not my point. the fact of giving advice without knowing it was.

No one can prove that he/she knows anything for sure on an Internet forum. We should all cease giving advice all together by your logic.

lol look. i never said to stop giving advice. i just said i found it funny that everyone who did were males. i was not arguing no one should ever give advice whether or not they know about the subject.

i don't know where you're getting all the arguments from. someone asked me why it mattered, and i stated that females would know better than males. women who had children would know even more. and a woman who had a child during 1L would know even more.

[erniesto]

My response is based on the expected stress you'll have during 1L and beyond. I can't imagine that will be beneficial for you nor your unborn baby.

Even though you'll be going to C/N your future is still uncertain, and perhaps it would be best to stabilize before making this decision. Having a new born child, unemployed (albeit unlikey), and with large debt doesn't sound like a good time for you or your partner.

[jks289]

My husband and I are looking at the same choice. Because 1L seems disproportionately more difficult, we are aiming to get pregnant at the beginning of 2L. If all goes according to plan, I'll have a newborn during 2L summer and will have to make it work in terms of 2L employment. My sister did this, had me bring her the baby to nurse twice a day, and was still offered a position at a major firm. I only see this working if you have a husband with flexible work hours (mine gets the summers off) or the resources for a nanny. In her case, her law school (HYS) was incredibly accommodating of her pregnancy and motherhood. In fact three women in her section had babies within 3 months and ended up sharing a nanny and watching each other babies during class.

As far as I can tell, it only gets more difficult after school. I think it really makes sense to try to enter the workforce with a 1 or 2 year old, instead of a brand new baby, or deferring work. Besides, there really is no such thing as the perfect time. You just make it work.

It's really nice to hear other people thinking about the same choices. I wouldn't be discouraged by people saying you are nuts in this thread. I can imagine as an unmarried 22 years old it seems INSANE to be thinking about kids in school, but everyone's family, financial, emotional, etc situation is vastly vastly different. PM if you want more details on why we decided against 1L.

[Pearalegal]

just like how the general public who knows nothing about certain issues will still vote on it regardless... maybe you should sign up for a forum that gives advice on medicine even though if you know nothing about that,

Woah woah woah. NOT the same AT ALL. Medical advice does NOT equate to opinions about lifestyle and academics. Come on, now.

lol yes i know its not the same. that was not my point. the fact of giving advice without knowing it was.

Then as long as you admit its a ludicrous comparison that leant no weight to your point....ok.

And I'm not even sure what your point IS. Almost every woman and man has experience with pregnancy. While a woman will be able to give advice based on her pregnancy, does that really make her words any more valuable than a committed father reporting what his wife said about her own pregnancy (with may be more or less similar to the person looking for advice)?

And what about children who come from working mothers and fathers, and watched their parents work through situations with both themselves and their siblings. Are their life experiences any less valuable that those related directly to pregnancy? Wouldn't you want to hear a child that was raised in a similar situation's take?

I find the fact that you rank opinions as more or less valuable (as you said in a previous post) based on gender and age when OP was asking an internet forum for opinions. Opinions not just on how to deal with a specific part of pregnancy, but lifestyle and career decisions.

[finalaspects]

You know very little to nothing about any of us. You don't know my gender, my marital status, my age, or how many children I may or not have. How about we start discussing advice given based on the merit of the advice instead of the "life experiences" of people you've never met.

that is why i said "if" about the medical analogy. i don't know your gender and even if you told me i wouldn't be 100% sure as r6 pointed out.

is it that bad just to state that i found it funny how only males were giving advice? (assumed everyone who responded previously was a male, based on their name and responses - and yes i know that will never confirm the gender, but neither would asking since they can lie)

[r6_philly]

lol look. i never said to stop giving advice. i just said i found it funny that everyone who did were males. i was not arguing no one should ever give advice whether or not they know about the subject.

i don't know where you're getting all the arguments from. someone asked me why it mattered, and i stated that females would know better than males. women who had children would know even more. and a woman who had a child during 1L would know even more.

You said if you are not a woman, you don't know for sure. That is just plain stupid.

[r6_philly]

is it that bad just to state that i found it funny how only males were giving advice? (assumed everyone who responded previously was a male, based on their name and responses - and yes i know that will never confirm the gender, but neither would asking since they can lie)

Yes it is bad, because it is stupid. Because you don't know for sure that only males were giving advice. You guessed. You guessed that everyone was making guesses at what it feels like to be pregnant... geez your logic really is bad.

[*_sJb_*]

Thank you for starting this thread. I have been debating this same question as I am in the same boat. 26, married, preparing for law school, thinking about children...
It's just nice to know that we're not alone!!

[Mattalones]

thanks for all of the insight... this is really interesting and thought provoking.

how important is 1L summer? how detrimental would it be if I took the summer off and didn't have an internship, etc...?

Its really not a good idea. All legal employers having SOMETHING on that resume to talk about.

Why can't she talk about her baby?

[finalaspects]

I find the fact that you rank opinions as more or less valuable (as you said in a previous post) based on gender and age when OP was asking an internet forum for opinions. Opinions not just on how to deal with a specific part of pregnancy, but lifestyle and career decisions.

i rank opinions more or less valuable depending on the experiences which relate to the question. i don't know where you got age from... but in this case gender has to do with it only because a female can get pregnant. and a husband who had children might know better then a woman who never had kids, but i was not ranking opinions based on just gender and age.

looks guys. i really just made one comment on how it was funny that it was all males responding. that is all. i don't know why you're getting all worked up over this. i never said that men can't give advice on it, or shouldn't anyone else.

[lawgunner75]

I overheard an Admissions person telling a perspective student at William Mitchell that one of their top 5 students the prior year had 2 babies while in law school.

[NU_Jet55]

I find the fact that you rank opinions as more or less valuable (as you said in a previous post) based on gender and age when OP was asking an internet forum for opinions. Opinions not just on how to deal with a specific part of pregnancy, but lifestyle and career decisions.

i rank opinions more or less valuable depending on the experiences which relate to the question. i don't know where you got age from... but in this case gender has to do with it only because a female can get pregnant. and a husband who had children might know better then a woman who never had kids, but i was not ranking opinions based on just gender and age.

looks guys. i really just made one comment on how it was funny that it was all males responding. that is all. i don't know why you're getting all worked up over this. i never said that men can't give advice on it, or shouldn't anyone else.

*facepalm*

[seattlite]

My husband and I are looking at the same choice. Because 1L seems disproportionately more difficult, we are aiming to get pregnant at the beginning of 2L. If all goes according to plan, I'll have a newborn during 2L summer and will have to make it work in terms of 2L employment. My sister did this, had me bring her the baby to nurse twice a day, and was still offered a position at a major firm. I only see this working if you have a husband with flexible work hours (mine gets the summers off) or the resources for a nanny. In her case, her law school (HYS) was incredibly accommodating of her pregnancy and motherhood. In fact three women in her section had babies within 3 months and ended up sharing a nanny and watching each other babies during class.

As far as I can tell, it only gets more difficult after school. I think it really makes sense to try to enter the workforce with a 1 or 2 year old, instead of a brand new baby, or deferring work. Besides, there really is no such thing as the perfect time. You just make it work.

It's really nice to hear other people thinking about the same choices. I wouldn't be discouraged by people saying you are nuts in this thread. I can imagine as an unmarried 22 years old it seems INSANE to be thinking about kids in school, but everyone's family, financial, emotional, etc situation is vastly vastly different. PM if you want more details on why we decided against 1L.

This is very inspiring! Thanks for providing yet another example. I really think being pregnant in law school is quite common but just not talked about enough. It helps me feel more solid about this, as my husband and I are *hoping, planning, and trying* to get pregnant. Thanks a bunch for your insights!

[finalaspects]

is it that bad just to state that i found it funny how only males were giving advice? (assumed everyone who responded previously was a male, based on their name and responses - and yes i know that will never confirm the gender, but neither would asking since they can lie)

Yes it is bad, because it is stupid. Because you don't know for sure that only males were giving advice. You guessed. You guessed that everyone was making guesses at what it feels like to be pregnant... geez your logic really is bad.

sigh. look, an assumption is not logic. and if i offended anyone, i apologize because it was not my intention to do so. but let me get this straight. its bad because i assumed it was all males (which i was probably right when i posted that first comment) but all the other males who are assuming how a pregnancy feels like and is giving advice on it is ok?

your advice is more valid being a father and all and i noted that.

[IAFG]

As someone who has neither been to law school nor had a baby, I say suck it up and have the little bastard during 1L. How hard can it be? Animals have babies and they don't even have houses.

insensitive douchebaggery acknowledged

[NU_Jet55]

Well, I give up. I think I'll just enjoy the stupidity from here on out.

[09042014]

As someone who has neither been to law school nor had a baby, I say suck it up and have the little bastard during 1L. How hard can it be? Animals have babies and they don't even have houses.

insensitive douchebaggery acknowledged

Ah thanks IAFG I needed that.

[mrsdraper]

It would seem to me that being pregnant during OCI would be a no-no because, like it or not, i doubt interviewers would look highly on pregnant women to hire for the following summer. Right?

any thoughts?

[finalaspects]

You said if you are not a woman, you don't know for sure. That is just plain stupid. You are stupid. There, I am being direct now. Of course I don't really know what it feels like to be stupid because I am not... Go troll some other thread please, and leave people who wants to give advice in peace.

yes i said if you are not a woman you won't know how it feels to be pregnant. only way to know for sure/ is by going through it and males cannot. otherwise husbands can go through it with their wives and they can get an idea of it but still not know how it truly feels... i don't know why that's stupid but ok... you win.

[IAFG]

It would seem to me that being pregnant during OCI would be a no-no because, like it or not, i doubt interviewers would look highly on pregnant women to hire for the following summer. Right?

any thoughts?

i, personally, would not put myself at any sort of disadvantage at OCI. it's hard enough.

[NU_Jet55]

yes i said if you are not a woman you won't know how it feels to be pregnant. only way to know for sure/ is by going through it and males cannot. otherwise husbands can go through it with their wives and they can get an idea of it but still not know how it truly feels... i don't know why that's stupid but ok... you win.

[Mattalones]

Can it be done during 1L? Sure! ... Does that make it a good idea? No!

An analogous point from our friend Chris Rock about being a single mother (no comparison of topics intended):

A bunch of girls think that you don't need no man to raise no child... shut the fuck up with the bullshit! Yeah, you can do it without a man, but it don't mean it's to be done! Shit! You can drive a car with your feet if you want to; it don't mean its a good fucking idea!

People on this thread (most, not all) are assuming the choice is 1L or after LS. Not having a baby during 1L still leaves 2L, 3L, AND after LS.

1L - Not much free time and grades matter a lot!
2L - Good amount of free time is possible if you set your schedule right (good time to be pregnant)
3L - A lot of free time is possible, especially if you take pass/fail ... you'll having padding for a performance dip b/c you just have to pass (best time to have a young baby b/c you'll have to be at home with it a lot)
After LS - Huge life change: going from student to busy professional. It will be even harder going from student to busy profession AND mother all in one jump. It will be easier to go from being a student/mother to profession/mother b/c you'll already have familiarity with the mothering part.

... Just because you CAN do it in 1L doesn't mean that you SHOULD do it that year.

My SO is in 3L at a T14 and has so much free time (like she did as a 2L too). Having one during LS isn't a bad idea, but having one during 1L may be jumping the gun a year or two.

You'll have to (hopefully) do a summer 2L thing, so you won't want to HAVE the baby during summer of 2L, but being preggers will be okay. Having it at beg/mid of 3L fall will be good b/c you'll have the rest of that relaxed year to 1) recover from pregnancy, and 2) spend time with your new baby!

[facetious]

tbf there is no good time to be pregnant or have an infant to care for.

[finalaspects]

i apologize in thinking you were a male. thanks for correcting me by posting a picture of yourself.