How Life in Pieces Is Tackling Pregnancy With a Realness Rarely Seen on Sitcoms

A woman pooping during childbirth isn't something you expect to see on television. It's definitely not something you expect to see on a network comedy. In fact, there's only one sitcom I can think of that's done it: Life in Pieces, when it premiered on CBS in 2015. “I got a lot of feedback from that episode,” actor Zoe Lister-Jones tells Glamour of the scene in which her character, Jen, gives birth. “It was so unabashedly real about what labor is really like…the things that don’t get talked about. I have to say, my friends really loved seeing that.”

Now in its fourth season, which premieres today, the show's executive producer and writer Barbie Adler wants to keep that momentum going, by continually showing the humor in these very real situations. A lot of that comes from Jen's storyline. She's pregnant again—and though she’s been on this journey before, there’s plenty of new material Adler wanted to explore.

“There’s an episode about food sensitivities and smells for Jen, and I went through it with my husband,” Adler says. She drew from her own pregnancy for the episode; for a time, she couldn’t be around her spouse, Life in Pieces creator Justin Adler, because she was so sensitive to smell. “That’s just a miserable part of pregnancy, and it can last a long time. It causes tension in a relationship. The woman is pregnant, but the partner feels pressures as well, and obviously he can’t quite voice that when she’s vomiting on the floor.”

Other topics this season include a leaky bladder, hot flashes, and what happens when a relative walks in on an exposed breast. “They're just about as real as it gets,” Adler says of the storylines. “Jen has a really strong sense of humor about the circumstances. You’ve got no choice but to go with it when you sneeze or cough and pee comes out. Those things happen!”

It’s also why, four seasons in, Lister-Jones is still loving the role of Jen. “There’s a lot of truth to what we’re playing," she says. "The more that these parts of women’s lives are represented authentically, the better. Telling the realities of pregnancy or motherhood or marriage in a way that feels relevant and unapologetic is always exciting.”

And as long as the audience keeps tuning in, Adler is happy to draw from her own life to make women feel less alone. “You want to feel what you're writing is funny but can connect to people. I had miserable pregnancies. During each one there wasn’t a moment where I felt it was beautiful and my body was changing in a wonderful way,” she says, laughing. “I had seen so many portrayals of perfect pregnancies, and I was like, ‘No, that’s not what happened to me.’ It’s gratifying to know I wasn’t the only person that went through that.”

It’s also why Adler and the team are excited to give a voice to women—and men—who are experiencing fertility issues. Colleen and Matt (played by Angelique Cabral and Thomas Sadoski) explore adoption this season, among other twists and turns in their journey to parenthood. “There’s so many ways that people are making their families,” Adler says. “For some people it comes with such ease, while others have had heartache for five or 10 years. It was important for me to show the different experiences and finding the light at the end of the tunnel, even if the tunnel keeps getting blocked by a boulder. You just keep finding options. Most important, these couples have each other to get them through it.”

Jessica Radloff is the Glamour West Coast editor.