It is said that a woman is not complete until she gives birth to a baby. This is the most exciting time for both husband and wife. But for a mother to be, it is the most precious and the happiest moment, when she notices the positive marks of pregnancy. She would like to be sure that actually, she is going to be a mother. She goes for different tests, and when the news is confirmed she wants to know what she should do and what a pregnant woman should not do.
The first step or prenatal care of the pregnant mother
In case this is your first pregnancy, you have to take care of your health in a very professional way. You should take care of your health side by side the baby’s health too. You should make a regular visit to the doctor. Also, you should call midwife or nurse whom you would like to visit and appoint all through your pregnancy so that you can give a safe delivery.
The health care professionals take a total physical exam along with a Pap test and pelvic test, blood pressure test, too. The health care professionals also test your sexual transmitted infections too. Remember, after going through all these tests you are given the due date or the delivery date.
On your future visit every time you need to be weighed, blood pressure check should be taken, your belly should be measured and you will have to go through a urine test for protein and sugar. Also, doctors do check baby’s heartbeat to confirm if the baby is growing up in a normal way.
Precaution in the first trimester
Trimester means the three months and first trimester means the first three months of the pregnancy. Normally, a woman keeps the baby in her womb nine months and gets three trimesters.
Your first trimester starts when you first time conceives the baby. It goes on through fourteen weeks of the pregnancy. The professional health care provider may talk about your pregnancy in weeks instead of talking about months or trimesters. The first trimester is very important to you because in these three months you should follow the instructions of the health providers. They can also give you a brief idea about your behavior or activities.
- Make sure about your pregnancy
In most cases the home test of your pregnancy can detect accurate pregnancy in the week after your period is normally due, that is two weeks after you ovulate. If you get the test result in faintly positive or negative, then you should wait for a few more days, say a week, then you try again if you still have not got your period.
- Take vitamin to avoid baby’s risk
The Vitamin is very important for a pregnant lady particularly in the prenatal stage. In her first trimester, she should start to consume vitamin because during this first trimester period she must have enough folic acid, particularly when she is trying to conceive at the time. Folic acid reduces the baby’s risk of developing neural tube birth defects such as spine Bifida.
- Plan for health insurance
You must get ensure that your insurance plan covers the prenatal care and the cost of delivery along with the cost of care of the new baby. You can talk to your Health Insurance Company or health insurance benefit department. If you still do not have any health insurance policy, then you can try to get it earlier.
- Select your health care, provider
If you have already appointed a doctor and have midwife then you are set. But in case you do not have the doctor or midwife, then you are required to talk to your friends and relatives. You can also talk to other providers also so that they can recommend someone. You can include the preferred providers under the health insurance plan or search online.
- Ensure prenatal appointment
You are required to jot down your first day of your last period so that your provider can get the due date and can start making a list of any questions that arise. You just collect the medical histories of both sides because the provider will require the history to know whether any chronic conditions or genetic abnormalities run in either of the families.
- Confirm of the medication
You must get it confirmed from the healthcare providers that the medicine that you are taking whether they are safe in pregnancy or not. You just mention everything, even supplements, or vitamins or herbs if those should be taken or not.
- Stop in-taking of alcohol
During pregnancy, you should avoid alcohol consumption because it can lead to low birth weight. Moreover, it can harm the child in the womb and will recur problems in speech, learning, attention span, and hyperactivity.
- Stop smoking, and in taking caffeine
During pregnancy, your smoking will affect the baby. If you consume excess caffeine then there will be chances of miscarriage and other pregnancy problems.
Always remember that your activities, job, or hobbies should not be hazardous so that you and your baby both can remain safe. You should avoid cleaning products, pesticides, solvents. You do not take too much spicy and junk food because it may contain bacteria, toxins, and parasites. You should avoid under- cooked meat, unpasteurized soft cheese, raw eggs, raw fish, etc. for the safety of your baby.