Belly Envy

In the depths and trenches of my pregnancy symptoms, my husband used to tell me, "Honey, I would do this for you if I could."
"Yeah right!" I would say. I know he only said that because he didn't have to. I mean really, morning sickness, bloating, cravings, sleeplessness. . .who wouldn't want that?? My husband didn't and even though he said he would do it, he also let me know how grateful he was that he didn't have to!
For some husbands though, want it or not they DO have too!! Couvade Syndrome is in my opinion just BELLY ENVY, while most call it sympathy pains, I think it's a man's desire to better understand and relate to a woman, specifically their wife. They never get to experience life growing inside them. Yes, they do have small role, but a woman gets to experience creation up close and personal. I think some men are simply jealous!! But that is just my opinion!

If you can believe it, research has shown approximately 80% of men actually do go through some kind of sympathy pains or symptoms. I think the most common is that a husband will gain weight right along with their wife (an excuse to over eat??). Others include morning sickness, bloating, back aches, and even labor pains!! While some theories suggest that this is brought on by a man feeling helpless as he watches his wife endure difficulty and pain while he can do absolutely nothing about it, it could also be an actual biological phenomenon of a man's hormones actually changing as well. (Sort of like when women menstruate at the same time.) Couples that spend extra amounts of time or are particularly close might see this happening more often. That's not to say if your husband doesn't experience sympathy pains you are not close. My husband and I (I think) are very close and he never had sympathy pains. I think it is also about each individual person and their physiological and mental make up. What do you all think? Have any of your husband's had belly envy?