Stretching up on tippy toes, bad or good

Body: 

Hi Wholewomen

When I was having babies during the 1980's I can remember being admonished by my peers and older women for stretching up on tippy toes to hang washing up on the line, postpartum. They only ever said, "It isn't good for you", and either could not or would not expand on this admonishment, though I suspect it was because my uterus was going to fall out, and it never did, so I carried on stretching up on tippy toes to hang out the washing because it felt so nice.

Is there anybody out there in Mum land who had babies during the 1980's or before, who can shed any light on this? Was it a wives' tale meant to stop me from having a nice feeling in my body and being able to avoid adjusting the clothes line, or is there some sense in this advice. Was I setting myself up for the prolapses that have knocked on my door twenty years later?

I know that putting heavy things on shelves higher than shoulder height is a 'no-no' from an occupational health and safety point of view, but hanging babies' singlets and nappies on the line? Oh perrrlease tell me this task is not in the same category!

Cheers

Louise

I had my first in 1988 my second in 1990 and never heard a thing about this...

I cannot see how tippy toes would change a thing really - It's only for a very short amount of time...

Sue

Look into the eyes - They hold the key!
http://www.bringmadeleinehome.com/img/maddy544x150Banner.jpg

don't know...but i live in NYC and wish i had a clothesline!!!!!! lololol

.....hahahahaha!

I had my babies in the late 50's and 60's. I was told the same thing.
The reason given to me was because too much stretching wasn't good until things had returned to normal. Of course being contrary I tried it and don't think it did any harm.
Flora

This kind of reminds me of the time when I was 16 or so weeks pregnant with my daughter and was stupidly moving river rock from our front to back yard. I was understandably severely admonished by my DH who said something along the lines of "you shouldn't be doing that, it's not safe in your condition!" I retorted with "why, it's not like anything's going to fall out!" Hmm, fast forward 5 mos or so and just imagine my surprise! I think of that often now and kind of regret being so determined to do EVERYTHING a man can do but ah well, what is done is done and my babe is just perfect!

Oh and I just LOVE my washing line Louise! Here is sunny AZ we have perfect drying weather year round! :) I haven't had to stand on tippy toes too much but I will think carefully about it if I might be so inclined in the future! :)

Hi UKmummy

Poor old New Yorkers!

I knew there had to be a price to pay for having all those wonderful Jazz Clubs, Broadway and uber-cool black people. Now I know what it is! ;-)

Actually, I think the whole tippy toes stretch thing was a load of nonsense. If you do Christine's baton workout from the new book, have a look at Fig 14-78 on p142, and there it is.

But that wives' tale has stuck with me all those years, but then wives' tales are a bit like that, aren't they? Just pre-WWW urban myths.

Cheers

Louise

Couldn't resist...we just received (adorable) baby pictures from my new-mommy step-daughter and this was amongst them...a beautiful (upstate) New York clothesline!

Clothesline

Ah yes, but what about the NYC dwellers? What about stringing up Central Park with clotheslines for apartment dwellers, just for one day? You could string up an awful lot of diapers in all those trees. Christo and your orange flags, you got nothin' on all those NYC Moms!

I have a lovely clothesline from Lancaster Pennsylvania, but I can't figure out how to attach it. Can anybody tell me how to?

Louise

I grew up in Queens, a borough of NYC
we had a clothesline, but didn't use it much. first, in the summer the humidity slowed the drying, even with the heat. and then the thunderstorms at night would drench everything if we forgot to take the stuff in, and we often did forget.
and we once had clothes stolen right off the line
our clothesline was alot less picturesque than the one your step dd has, christine. behind it was a beautiful old tree, a delapidated garage, and the neighbors house.
and the clothes came in smelling like the ocean, which was only a few blocks away. if you brought 'em in before low tide, they smelled like salty-sun, if not, well, they smelled like low tide : /