Why Big Bang Theory Fans Are Still Confused About Bernadette's Bed Rest

After coming aboard the CBS mega-hit "The Big Bang Theory" in its third season as a fellow Cheesecake Factory waitress alongside Penny (Kaley Cuoco), microbiologist Bernadette Rostenkowski (Melissa Rauch) becomes a series regular by Season 4. She quickly fits in with the show's high-IQ circle of geeky Caltech friends, including easygoing experimental physicist Leonard Hofstadter (Johnny Galecki), tongue-tied-around-girls astrophysicist Raj Koothrappali (Kunal Nayyar), high-maintenance theoretical particle physicist Sheldon Cooper (Jim Parsons), aerospace engineer and wanna-be ladies' man Howard Wolowitz (Simon Helberg), and earnest neuroscientist Amy Fowler (Mayim Bialik).

A bit awkward and shy on her first date with Howard, Bernie is eventually revealed as a superconfident and high-powered young woman more than able to hold her own among the show's Mensa-level gaggle of pals, and she ends up marrying Howard, with whom she has two children. During her second on-camera pregnancy, however, Bernadette spends an extended period of time in bed. And while the rest is explained in the series by her character pushing herself too hard at work and needing to take it easy, some fans simply find it hard to believe that she would need to be off her feet for as long as she is.

In the show's subreddit, u/DawnsLopunny started the discussion by wondering why Bernadette is bedridden for so long. However, Redditor u/Significant_Curve286 quickly put the mystery to rest, noting, "In reality, that was an attempt to accommodate Rauch, who had suffered a miscarriage in her previous pregnancy." They also supplied a link to Melissa Rauch's essay published in Glamour discussing the issue of her earlier miscarriage and announcing that she is pregnant again.

As detailed by ET, following her essay in Glamour, Rauch set out to further address this issue in a powerful, deeply moving public service announcement, for which she was joined by other celebrities, including Kiele Sanchez, Vanna White, June Diane Raphael, and Nancy Kerrigan, all of whom have themselves experienced miscarriages. They point out that as many as one out of four pregnancies ends in a miscarriage but that no one needs to feel stigmatized or face this challenge alone. Rauch's heartfelt PSA can be viewed on Instagram.