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Mariyam Nafees opened up about her pregnancy and said that after three years of enjoying their marriage, she and her husband Amaan Ahmed, decided that it was the right time to have children.

Nafees, who announced her pregnancy in November, appeared on Nida Yasir’s show Good Morning Pakistan and said she loved children and her friends’ children but had a certain fear about having kids herself.

The actor quickly clarified that it wasn’t fear as much as having mixed feelings about how things would progress, especially given her line of work where she had to be on screen and in front of people.

“You gain weight, which I’ve gained a lot of. I think I’m feeling it because this is the first time I’ve put on weight and I’m wondering why everything is so bloated.”

Nafees added that other things change during a pregnancy as well, including relationships. She said there were many things people didn’t talk about because they were still considered taboo. In some cases, she said, women were so busy in their journey that they forgot to talk about certain things.

When prompted by Yasir about what these things were, Nafees said it was difficult to pray namaz, particularly after the first month, as well as experiencing morning sickness and lethargy.

“It’s commendable that people work when pregnant,” she said, and the host chimed in that during her third pregnancy she dealt with morning sickness while also hosting a morning show.

Talking about staying active throughout her pregnancy, Nafees said her friend, who was a gym trainer, advised her to continue the exercises she was doing prior to her pregnancy without the heavy weight lifting. The Neem actor highlighted that every pregnancy was different and women had to take their doctor’s advice into account and be careful with what they did.

“I am now doing yoga. I was very active throughout my pregnancy and walked 15 to 20,000 steps every day. I travelled, I took all the flights, I did my production work.” Nafees added that she didn’t cancel anything because of her pregnancy, emphasising that it was key to be as active as possible.

“People are still so shy when talking about pregnancies. When we announced my pregnancy we were in the safe zone because we didn’t want to announce it early due to nazar [evil eye]. However, I want to talk about these things. Why do I have to hide my bump? It’s a very natural thing. No one is saying spread indecency, but it’s something to be proud of. The journey I am going through is so beautiful and I want to share it with the people who are happy for me.”

The actor also spoke about her husband’s support during the journey, and said that while he was always very caring, he made sure to go to all of her doctor’s appointments even if he had to take time out from work. During visits to her gynaecologist, she would wonder why some women were alone, even on the weekends, something the actor found disheartening.

“It made me appreciate my husband, I didn’t even have to tell him.”

Nafees criticised clinics where the father wasn’t allowed in scan rooms and believed that the bond between the father and the child should develop before the child was born. She said her doctor ensured that her husband was allowed inside scan rooms with her.

“It was a joy to see him see the scans, it was very beautiful.”