Lent for Pregnant Moms

It’s Lent, and you know what that means – it’s time to fast! But what if you can’t because you’re pregnant? While moms-to-be may not be able to go the traditional route of fasting this Lent, many ways do exist to observe, and grow from, this important liturgical season.

Offer up your suffering

Pregnancy is full of joyful anticipation but also physical and mental discomfort. Plenty of suffering is available to give back to God. Whether the discomfort is your morning sickness, your swollen ankles, or all your favorite clothes that no longer fit you, each provides an opportunity to prayerfully rely on God.

How about the anxieties of pregnancy? We hope and worry that our little ones develop and measure perfectly and that our own health will not pose a complication. Then we face the cost of raising a child, finding the right care, saving up for college, and so on. As a result, prenatal anxiety and depression are common. Every one of these concerns is an opportunity to offer up your suffering to God during Lent and after. 

What does it mean to “offer up” our suffering? I recently spoke on the Morning Air radio program about this very topic. As Catholics, we believe suffering has meaning, and we can take those instances and prayerfully return them to God: “God, today I do not feel well, I am nervous about my appointment, etc. I offer this suffering up to you, to use as you will.”

This means that any moment of suffering related to your pregnancy, whether physical or mental, can be offered up as a personal sacrifice for God to use where He sees fit. Another suggestions is to cite a specific need: a family member fallen away from the faith, souls in purgatory, or any number of other causes. For more ideas, see my article, For whom should I pray?

Add instead of subtract

As I have written before, everyone has the ability to “add,” rather than “subtract” something during Lent. For pregnant women, two great “additions” come to mind: reading and prayer.

Lent is an excellent time to dive into a good spiritual book. You could also look for a book that comes with a journaling companion to go even deeper into what you learn. 

This year I am reading He Leadeth Me, by Fr. Walter Ciszek, an American priest who spent 23 years of his life in Soviet prisons and work camps yet stayed close to God. I chose this book because of its theme of the temptation to spiritual desolation, an experience  common during Lenten sacrifice.

Many Catholic publishers sell specifically Lenten-themed books, like The Cries of Jesus from the Cross, an anthology of Fulton Sheen’s collected Lenten writings and talks. An easy online search will turn up many options.

As for prayer, try an online Lenten retreat you can do from home or infuse your current prayer routine with new life through new forms of prayer or new people and things for which to pray. Do you pray the Rosary? Now is a great time to start! How about the Litany of Trust? Pregnancy is all about trusting: your body, your doctors, your support network, and most of all, God. Use this Lenten season to examine how well you are doing with trusting in the Lord.

What about service?

Lent is also a time to give back through service. You may be loving life in your second trimester, and getting around to volunteer is no problem. But if you’re queasy, exhausted, or just too uncomfortable to do too much of anything, you can still do something for others. Think about at-home service activities, like writing letters to homebound members of your parish or preparing donations for a food pantry or crisis pregnancy center. Going back to prayer, you could volunteer from home for your parish’s prayer ministry, which usually involves praying for a set list of people. 

What about dads?

Dads: you’re an important part of this, too! Any time you provide a foot rub, make a late-night food run, clean the house, or do anything else for your wife, you have an opportunity to “offer it up.” Many dads love being a supportive partner but at times may find their own schedule interrupted or peace of mind disrupted with worry for their future family. As with pregnant moms, dads can do the same: offer it up through prayerful conversation with God.

Happy pregnant Lent!

Although you may not be able to fast from food, there are still lots of ways to partake of the spirit of Lent and use this deep liturgical season to grow closer to God. Wishing all moms- and dads-to-be a prayerful, peaceful Lenten season.