Should Pregnancy Be Considered a (Temporary) Disability?

To claim a disability is not something one ought to do lightly. Pregnancy, however, presents a very difficult and interesting case. Pain, discomfort, and inconvenience are often daily aspects of pregnancy, and pregnancy itself can cause physical, as well as social, impediments that substantially interfere with one's day-to-day work and life. The kind of "pregnancy-related disability" that is built into current laws falls short of addressing the real question of whether pregnancy itself, rather than certain conditions brought on by pregnancy, ought to be understood as a temporary disability. I suggest here that pregnancy may, at present, warrant such designation.