Dear Eric: I need help in knowing how I should have responded to a cashier who I believe overstepped. I am currently about 15 months postpartum with my second child and I’m fortunate to still be breastfeeding. Breastfeeding plays a role in how/when a menstrual cycle comes back.

The customer has many mixed feelings about the results of this test, and the cashier's cheery comments didn't help at all.

In today's Asking Eric column, R. Eric Thomas responds to someone who believes a cashier overstepped a boundary.

I need help in knowing how I should have responded to a cashier that I believe overstepped. I am currently about 15 months postpartum with my second child and I’m fortunate to still be breastfeeding.

At checkout, the cashier congratulated me. I bit back my initial “colorful” response; I was honest and told her that I am hoping it’s negative as I’m not ready to have my third C-section at age 42. She then said that I should enjoy any life I create,

"I really felt like she was being intrusive and nosy. What would have been the proper response in this situation without being rude?"

There are many reasons that people buy pregnancy tests. One of the most common: they don’t know if they’re pregnant. So, a hearty “congratulations” shows a basic misunderstanding of how tests work. You responded in a way that was generous and probably kept you from being baited into further conversation about her inner world.