Online Class: Prenatal Care

Pregnancy is a common enough occurrence.  It happens all the time.  Until it happens to you or someone you love for the very first time.  Then, the questions mount and without answers your fears may begin to get the better of you.  By looking into the entire process of pregnancy, the kind of care you can select, evaluating the choices you can make will take away the fear and anxiety of this very beautiful condition. 

 

Prenatal Care will give you advice, information about the conditions you can expect to face as you journey through your pregnancy, and just what your baby is doing each week.  This course will also let you know what to expect in terms of prenatal testing to assure the health of your baby.  It will also talk about the importance of nutrition, vitamins, hydration, and rest.

Learning what could be dangerous to you and your growing baby will help you to make choices at work and at home that will ensure the safety of both of you. How you take care of yourself during your pregnancy will have a major influence on how healthy you and the baby are after delivery. The beauty of preparing yourself for the labor and delivery portion of this journey is that you will have so many more choices than the mothers who just wait for things to happen.

By adequately preparing yourself, your partner, and your healthcare giver, you will be the one in charge of your body both during and after pregnancy.  The end goal is to deliver a happy and healthy baby.  Prenatal Care lessons will assist you every step of the way.

Before Pregnancy:

The very best time to consider giving your unborn child the best is actually long before you are even pregnant. One of the most important considerations in pregnancy is the nutrition of the mother. I recall being told in high school to drink milk and eat yogurt because my body could be preparing for pregnancy even though I simply could not imagine having a baby yet.

That bit of information made an impact on me. I began to evaluate everything I did that could contribute to or take away from my nutritional health. Realizing that what I put in my mouth that day would affect my future child was amazing. Salads, seeds, and beans took on a new appeal for me, as did milk, yogurt, and lean white meat and fish. Just the other day, I turned to my daughter and told her that eating milk and yogurt are good habits. The calcium will strengthen her bones. It will also make her a strong mother if she ever chooses to be come pregnant in the future. She is only fourteen.

Pregnancy can also affect other aspects of your lifestyle.

Evaluate everything.

Change what you can before pregnancy.

Alcohol:

Every one of the above activities or conditions can have an impact on your unborn child. The first issue is alcohol. Most mothers-to-be know that alcohol is toxic to the fetus. What many couples do NOT know is that a byproduct of alcohol, acetaldehyde, is toxic to sperm. Sperm production is a 100 day cycle. Men, that means if you have had trouble conceiving, you should eliminate alcohol from your diet three months BEFORE you want to try to have a baby.

It is vital that you and your partner control your drinking now. Alcohol depletes B vitamins, contributes to a poor diet, and because of the high calorie count, alcohol is fattening. Cut out the alcohol now because most women do not realize for a couple of weeks that they are pregnant, and even one drink is toxic to a newly forming baby.

Smoking:

Smoking increases free radical damage to your body and it uses nutrients that are essential to egg and sperm development. Smoking has been linked to low birth weight of babies, to birth defects, and to learning disabilities in the child. The best time to quit smoking is before you conceive. Second-hand smoke is dangerous; your partner needs to quit too.

Drugs:

The only drugs you should ever take are those prescribed for you, or over the counter medications as needed. However, once you are pregnant, even these must be discussed with your obstetrician. Prescription drugs are only to be taken if your health-care provider knows you either are pregnant or intend to become pregnant soon.

Recreational drugs are toxic to both sperm and egg production.

Health:

Optimum health is the best start for a pregnancy. The most obvious predictor for a healthy baby is your nutritional status and your weight.

If you are overweight you could be less fertile and run a greater risk of miscarriage than a normal weight mother. You also run additional risks of complications during your pregnancy. Evaluate your weight and determine if you can lose even ten percent of your excess weight. This amount can often be enough to improve your ability to carry your pregnancy easily and balance your hormones.

Exercise is vital for good health whether or not you are pregnant. Aside from the obvious physical benefits, exercise improves your mood and your perspective on life. As a general lifestyle choice, choose an exercise that you enjoy; one that you will be willing to continue during pregnancy, or if it is too strenuous for later pregnancy, one you will pick up after the baby is born. Bear in mind, unless your O.B. doctor expressly forbids exercise, it is a good idea to walk for at least half an hour every day. Just because you have become pregnant does not mean you will now participate in aerobics from the comfort of your couch.

Sleeping Habits:

What are your sleeping habits doing for your overall health? Sleeping well allows your body to recharge; giving your brain vital rest. We can sometimes push our bodies to exhaustion, but our brains are what suffer. For good brain health and function, cultivate good sleep habits. Establish a sleep pattern, and allow your body to become accustomed to the new rhythm. It is actually a good thing to go to bed before you are exhausted. You will actually sleep better. Pregnancy is a new experience for your body, and sleep will help your body to adapt to its new state.

Stress:

We live in a society where we seem to be on the go constantly. While it seems as though we learn to adapt to such a pace, the reality is that our bodies are actually compensating. Often without us even being aware of it, our blood pressure increases, we have elevated cortisol levels, gastric reflux and irritable bowel syndrome become words we actually understand because we have experienced the conditions. Stress is a very real life issue. Learning to deal with it will help you throughout your pregnancy as well as for the rest of your life. Looking into yoga, meditation, or self-hypnosis classes can all be helpful for reducing stress. Working toward a stress-free lifestyle can help you throughout your pregnancy and after the baby is born.

Work Issues:

 

Many woman are able to work the full-term of their pregnancy with no ill effects. Initially, the first four weeks, can be difficult because of the pregnancy related fatigue that strikes. The best way to handle this is to go to bed earlier so that you get more rest at night. If there is any possibility that you can take a catnap at work, take advantage of that opportunity. Do not try to stay alert with a double shot espresso, caffeine is not one of the best substances for you or your baby during pregnancy. More on work issues later.

One thing you will need to consider is whether or not there are hazards for you and your baby at work. You need to evaluate whether or not you are in a safe environment for your developing child.

The following items are cause for concern:

 

paint and paint thinner solvents cleaning products pesticides heavy metals such as lead or mercury carbon monoxide benzene formaldehyde radiation (dental or medical office) nitrous oxide excessive lifting and standing

 

If your job requires you to be exposed to any of the above concerns, it will be necessary for you to talk with your supervisor about getting reassigned, or take precautions to prevent exposure to things that will harm you and your baby. This is the first time you will come to your child's defense, and it will not be the last.

Age as an Issue:

For women in their 30s and 40s, there are a few considerations to evaluate, but more and more older women are getting pregnant and delivering healthy babies.

While it is true, the risk of certain complications does increase with the age of the mother, many of the old wives tales about older mothers had to do with mothers who had poor prenatal care and were having the last of many children. If you start your pregnancy in good health and get good prenatal care throughout your pregnancy it is very likely that you will deliver a healthy baby.

Risks for mothers over 35 can include:

 

chromosomal abnormalities pregnancy loss multiple pregnancy high blood pressure gestational diabetes placenta previa abnormal fetal position preterm labor caesarean section low birth-weight baby high birth-weight baby birth defects