They’d leave your head in a spin.
Whether you’re TTC; looking for advice because you’re EBF; or just want to let off some steam about your DH; if you’re a parent, or pregnant, and trawling through the infinite number of forums in search of what you need, then you’ll know that there’s an acronym for almost everything nowadays.
Unless you’re well-versed in acronym speak (this is not the technical term), however, you might run into difficulty, or confusion, over some of the definitions.
It’s helpful to know, for example, that BF stands for ‘breastfeeding’ as well as ‘boyfriend’; and, in parenting forums, FTM stands for ‘first-time mum’ rather than ‘female to male’ transsexual. Trying to participate in online communities without this knowledge can be like trying to understand a foreign language without a dictionary on hand to translate.
This categorised list of some of the most common acronyms used in parenting forums will help parents and parents-to-be crack the code and speak the lingo:
Pregnancy
TTC – trying to conceive
POAS – peeing on a stick
PG – pregnant, or pregnancy
BFP – big fat positive
BFN – big fat negative
AF – Aunt Flo (menstruation)
BBT – basal body temperature
CD – cycle day
CF – cervical fluid
CM – cervical mucus
EWCM – egg white cervical mucus
EDD – estimated due date
LP – luteal phase
O – ovulation
O’d – ovulated
MC – miscarriage
CS – caesarean section
DPO – days past ovulation
OPK – ovulation predictor kit
Parenting
AP – attachment parenting
BF – breastfeeding (also boyfriend)
BM – breast milk, or bowel movement
CIO – cry it out
EBM – expressed breast milk
FF – formula feeding
SAHM – stay-at-home mum
WAHM – work-at-home mum
EBF – exclusively breastfeeding
PND – postnatal depression
EBM – expressed breast milk
Family
DD – dear daughter
DS – dear son
DH – dear husband
DP – dear partner
LO – little one
MIL – mother-in-law
FIL – father-in-law
OH – other half
Phrases
BRB – be right back
OT – off topic
TIA – thanks in advance
IMHO – in my humble opinion
KWIM – know what I mean
PP – previous poster
TMI – too much information
