You have finally seen the two pink lines on that stick. The absent period, the unexpected fatigue, the slightly tender breasts…. they all make sense now ! Yes, you are carrying a tiny precious life inside you. 🙂
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Pregnancy is an amazing journey in a woman’s life which comes with equal proportions of responsibilities and joys. One very big responsibility of any woman planning to conceive is to identify a good gynecologist and get a thorough heath check up done before embarking on the journey of motherhood. Your doctor may check you physically and may assess your body’s immunizations through some blood tests. He will assess your diet to put you on some nutrition supplements. One very important but less know vitamin called Folic Acid/Vitamin B9 plays a crucial role during conception and early pregnancy.
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Adequate intake of Folic acid before conception and during pregnancy will do wonders in developing your baby’s brain and spine during the early stages of pregnancy. It may also protect the baby from a dreaded birth defect called Spina Bifida, affecting the development of neural tubes. Hence, as soon as you make up your mind about expanding your family or discover that you are about to bring in a new life into this world, you must consult your doctor and make sure your body gets adequate amount of Folic acid.
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Additionally, your healthcare provider may confirm your pregnancy through blood tests measuring the hormone levels in your body. The doctor will guide you about the baby’s due date by calculating your last period and this will be a good time for you to discuss various pregnancy do’s and don’ts with him/her. You must also be sure about not taking any medicine or vitamins without prescription during the entire pregnancy and lactation period.
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We often view our visits to the doctor with a lot of hesitation and fear. But with pregnancy, we need to see our healthcare provider in a different light. You should be extremely comfortable discussing all your doubts with him/her. Also, the doctor should preferably be available to you on phone/via email as it may not always be practical to have all the medical discussions and address many pregnancy complaints face to face. If your preferred doctor appears to be very busy, it will be a good idea to also get in touch with a certified childbirth educator, trained doula or a midwife who can support you throughout pregnancy & post delivery by answering many of your health related queries. They are trained to provide expecting mothers with evidence based knowledge about pregnancy, child birth, lactation and new born care. However, it’s important to know that they may/may not be qualified to provide a medical opinion and in most cases, will not be able to write you a prescription.
Thus, by fulfilling some responsibilities, you can definitely enjoy what is known as the most beautiful and fulfilling experience of a woman’s life – motherhood ! 🙂
Feel free , to ask any questions that you might have!
Disclaimer:
The information given in this article or any associated Internet links is not be interpreted as medical advice. Please consult your doctor before taking any decisions regarding your body, child or your health.
The author is a CPPA certified childbirth educator.
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1 comment
Very useful knowledge