This story is free to read because readers choose to support LAist. If you find value in independent local reporting, make a donation to power our newsroom today.
This is an archival story that predates current editorial management.
This archival content was written, edited, and published prior to LAist's acquisition by its current owner, Southern California Public Radio ("SCPR"). Content, such as language choice and subject matter, in archival articles therefore may not align with SCPR's current editorial standards. To learn more about those standards and why we make this distinction, please click here.
This Woman Just Found Out She's Eight Months Pregnant
A North Hollywood woman had no idea she was pregnant until a doctor informed her she was eight months along. Abby Wake said that both she and her boyfriend, Jarryd Gorman, assumed at first that the extra bulge in her belly was just ordinary weight gain,CBS LA reports. Wake is also lactose intolerant, so she thought she might be bloated and passed off any movement in her womb as gas. "There weren't like kicks or huge movements," she said. "It was just like gurgles."
Wake already had an irregular period, and said she had no other common pregnancy symptoms, such as back pain or morning sickness.
Wake's boyfriend finally decided they needed to go see a doctor when he put his hands on her stomach and felt a kick. The couple booked an appointment with Payman Joseph, a Van Nuys-based obstetrician-gynecologist. Joseph revealed that Wake was 32 weeks along.
He also said that it's surprisingly common for women to not know they're pregnant, although he says it's not as common for a very slender woman like Wake to get this kind of surprise.
The couple is now seeing a specialist, but Joseph thinks that Wake will deliver a healthy baby despite receiving prenatal care late in her pregnancy. Gorman, who is from Australia, is now looking for a way to remain in the U.S. for his child's birth as his Visa expires at the end of May.
The baby is a boy, and the couple plans to name him Isaiah. Given the lack of time the couple has had to plan, Wake and Gorman have set up a virtual baby shower for family and friends via GoFundMe here. The post is written in their unborn son's voice: "My mommy loves you all very much and just needs a little push to help her while prepping for me and for when I arrive."