The Contestants on This New Game Show Must Be in Labor—IS THAT EVEN SAFE?

Dr. Pari was featured as a guest contributor in the article below, originally posted for Women’s Health by Korin Miller, May 6, 2015.

Remember how floored people were at the idea of having two Bachelorettes this season? This is so much crazier. TLC has a new show premiering tonight called Labor Games, where expectant couples answer trivia questions about babies and child-rearing. Questions include things like, “According to healthychildren.org, how long should your child’s ‘timeouts’ last?” There’s also a participatory element where a father-to-be must identify baby foods by taste.

Participants can win a bevy of baby stuff or even a $10,000 college fund for their impending bundle of joy. Oh, and just to be clear: the woman is in labor at the time—you know, minor detail. Lest we forget how crazy that is, the show keeps us updated on the strength of the woman’s contractions as she answers questions with her partner.

Here’s a clip from the show:

Of course, the whole “appearing on a trivia show while you’re in labor” thing sounds a little iffy since, you know, someone is trying to push out a human being at the same time. But the moms featured in snippets released from the show seemed totally cool with it and surprisingly relaxed.

According to board-certified obstetrician-gynecologist Pari Ghodsi, M.D., the whole thing actually seems pretty safe. The woman is in bed in the delivery room, she’s still being monitored, and nothing strenuous is demanded of her, says Ghodsi. It’s basically the same as chatting with a family member in the room or watching TV.

Ghodsi says being on the show could actually be a distraction from the pain for women, but if they have had epidurals, they may not be uncomfortable at all.

But there are flashing lights that go off when a family answers a question correctly—could that be an issue? Probably not, says Ghodsi.

However, she says it’s important for a woman to check with her doctor before signing up for something like this. If a woman has any pregnancy complications like high blood pressure, the excitement and stress of waiting to see if she gets the right answer could make things worse.

So if you get the urge to participate in a game show while you’re in labor, go for it. Just get the thumbs up from your doctor first.

A sneak peek of Labor Games will premiere on TLC tonight at 10 p.m.