Your Ultimate Guide to Pregnancy Lingo
Search the internet for anything related to pregnancy and you’re likely to stumble upon a forum filled with acronyms.
Scroll down for the definite list of acronyms and expressions you’ll encounter during pregnancy. Keep this guide handy as you go!
Tracking
AF - "Aunt Flow" aka your period
BBT - Basal body temperature (daily tracking can indicate spikes of fertility windows)
CD - Cycle day, followed by the number of days a woman is at in her menstrual cycle
DPO - Days past ovulation (countdown to window when pregnancy tests are accurate)
O or O-Day - Ovulation, ovulated, or ovulation day
OPK / OPT - Ovulation predictor kit or test (urine or saliva tests that detect upcoming ovulation 12-24 hours beforehand)
LMP - Last menstrual period (starting at the first day)
Conceiving
AI - Artificial insemination (sperm is inserted into the uterus)
BC - Birth control
BD - "Baby dance" aka have sex for conception
IF - Infertility
PG - Pregnant!
TTC - Trying to conceive
IVF - In vitro fertilization (procedure where egg is fertilized then implanted in the uterus)
Testing
HPT - General term for home pregnancy test
BFN - "Big fat negative" aka negative pregnancy test
BFP - "Big fat positive" aka positive pregnancy test
"Cheapies" - Inexpensive testing strips from the internet (like Pregmate)
FRER - First Response Early Result (brand of extra-sensitive test)
HCG - Human chorionic gonadotropin (hormone produced during pregnancy and what's tested)
POAS - "Pee on a stick" aka take a home pregnancy test
TWW / 2WW - "Two week wait" aka the window between ovulation and testing
Wishing Luck
"Sticky Bean" - Hoping for an embryo or fetus (baby is "bean") to develop into a full-term pregnancy
"Baby Dust" - Wishing someone luck while trying to conceive
Pregnancy
EDD - The estimated date of delivery, aka baby's due date
FTM - First time mom
GD - Gestational diabetes
MC - Miscarriage
MS - Morning sickness aka all-day naseua
US - Ultrasound
VBAC - Vaginal birth after cesarean
Professionals
CNW - Certified nurse midwife (a nurse specially trained and licensed in widwifery)
OB / OB-GYN - Obstetrician or obstetrician/gynecologist
PCP - Primary care physician
RE - Reproductive endocrinologist (a doctor specializing in infertility care)
Supporters
DH / DP / DF - Dear husband / Dear partner / Dear fiancé
DD - Dear daughter aka a previous female child (followed by a number if multiple children)
DS - Dear son aka a previous male child
LO - Little one aka the child under discussion
MIL / FIL - Mother-in-law / Father-in-law
