A woman in Nebraska shared her 41-week overdue pregnancy online, saying that she doesn’t believe in due dates and that she’ll let her baby grow inside her for as long as it takes. This, in turn, was not very well received, as viewers online worried about the consequences of being well past her due date and told her she was wrong.
The pregnant woman in question is Abbey Khopesh. She runs the Encompass Farming account alongside her husband, Gio, a regenerative farm and a pasture-raised meat and egg business. The clip attached above, one of the many covering her pregnancy journey, went viral, garnering 13.6 million views, 763,000 likes, and more than 10,800 comments.
The Nebraska woman, while squatting, said that she is 39 weeks past conception. That is 41 weeks in medical terms. She admitted she was a week past her due date, but then made a statement that was the core of the controversy.
“I don’t really believe in due dates. I think a baby is gonna cook as long as it needs to and come out on its own time,” Abbey said.
She then said that she wasn’t going to induce labor, and instead focus on creating a welcoming environment. This includes nourishing foods, slow walks, warm baths, and “lots of swaying and movement.”
“I don’t worry about amniotic fluid; I don’t worry about the baby getting too large; I don’t believe my body will produce a baby that I cannot birth. I believe my design is intact,” Abbey added. “Am I human and impatient? Yes. But everything in perfect timing. We’ll get there.”
Nebraska Locals React
The video sparked multiple responses, mostly from viewers fearing for her baby’s safety and health. After all, an overdue pregnancy can cause larger-than-average birth size, postmaturity syndrome, and low amniotic fluid, which can lead to an affected heart rate and umbilical cord compression, the Mayo Clinic said.
“There’s your opinion and then there’s reality,” one user said. Another one commented, “I love how you don’t let truth and facts get in the way of your opinions.”
One viewer even shared a story of a friend of hers who gave birth to a stillborn baby at 42 weeks. The viewer wrote, “She gave birth to a full-term stillborn because she fully trusted her body and did not believe she needed medical care.” Abbey answered, “And that is life.”
In another clip, the Nebraska woman defended her decision to have a home birth instead of going to a hospital. In her own words, “There is no such thing as a risk-free pregnancy or birth.”
