I Didn’t Know I Was Pregnant

閱讀Less than five minutes after her water breaks, Elizabeth delivers a baby while sitting on the toilet. 1)Paramedics soon arrive and rush her to the hospital, where she delivers the 2)placenta. Amazingly, even though she had no prenatal care, her seven-pound baby boy is healthy and nearly full term. So how could Elizabeth not have known she was pregnant? She most likely conceived in July when a condom broke. Even with proper use, condoms are only 95% effective in preventing pregnancy. Because she was used to light or even absent 3)menstrual cycles, she never noticed anything different.（節錄自 EZ Talk 美語會話誌，完整內容請見 10 月號）

中譯 Translation

在 羊水破了不到 5 分鐘之後，伊莉莎白坐在馬桶上生下寶寶。醫務人員隨後抵達，趕緊將她送醫，她在醫院產下胎盤。令人吃驚的是，雖然她沒有產前照護，她 7 磅重的男嬰仍然健健康康，且幾乎足月。那麼伊莉莎白怎麼會不知道自己懷孕？她最有可能是在 7 月因為保險套破了而受孕。就算使用正確，保險套避孕的成功率也只有 95%。因為她一直習慣少量甚至沒來的月經週期，所以始終沒發現有什麼異樣。

英檢字彙 Vocabulary Bank

1) paramedic (n.) 救護人員，救護技術員
The paramedics rushed the injured man to the hospital.
2) placenta (n.) 胎盤
The placenta provides nutrients to the baby before it’s born.
3) menstrual (n.) 月經的
Eating chocolate can ease menstrual cramps.

英語通 Language Guide

月經 (menstruation) 是發育成熟的女性具備的生理現象，月經來潮的期間（平均 5 天）稱為生理期 (menstrual period)，一次生理期結束至下次生理期到來的週期約 28 天，這種週而復始的循環就是生理週期 (menstrual cycle)。
除 了生理痛 (menstrual cramps) 的折磨之外，有不少女性會有月經不規則 (irregular period) 的問題，例如剛開始有生理期的女孩及即將進入更年期 (menopause) 的女性，常會隔很久才來 (infrequent period) ，或是經血量很少、1~2 天就結束 (light period) 的狀況。