Planning a pregnancy: 12 things the right parents do

2024 Author: Malcolm Clapton | [email protected]. Last modified: 2023-12-17 03:44

Do what you really need to do and don't waste money on useless examinations and vitamins.

The first thing to remember:

Pregnancy is not a disease.

In general, a healthy woman may not prepare for anything at all. But, firstly, who knows how healthy we are, and secondly, there is no limit to perfection. Therefore, 2-3 months of life can be devoted to preparation. In order to have time for everything that is needed during this time.

1. Collect information about pregnancy

You should always start with information. Understand why pregnancy occurs at all, how it goes, how the fetus will develop and what to expect from childbirth. This must be done in advance. Then at least it will be clear how the organism will behave.

You need to ask and learn from specialists, not from people's experts from the forums. There are schools and courses for future parents that can and should be attended not only during pregnancy, but also before it.

Collect information with a partner. This is not only a woman's occupation

2. Visit a therapist

First, you need to go to the doctor if you have a chronic illness. Ask what to do if you are planning a pregnancy. You may need to adjust your diet or replace any medications.

Secondly, if there are no diseases, you need to make sure of this and at least donate blood to check your sugar level.

3. See the dentist

You still have to go to the dentist after registration for pregnancy. But it is better to treat teeth before that, so as not to take additional medications (the same painkillers) and not to get nervous. Moreover, during pregnancy, the incidence of tooth decay and gum disease increases.

4. And to the gynecologist (and the future dad - to the urologist)

The gynecologist and urologist should check how healthy and ready you are in general for pregnancy. You can go to specialized doctors last. At the same time, pass the mandatory tests for sexually transmitted infections and standard smears.

This concludes the main list of doctors.

There is no need to run to a geneticist. Only those who have had genetic diseases in their family to check if there are any risks. Otherwise, the examination would rather sow unnecessary doubts than help.

5. Get tested

In addition to tests for STIs, which will be done by a gynecologist and urologist, several more important examinations will be required. They can be combined with a visit to a therapist or done independently.

Both men and women need to know their HIV status and be tested for antibodies to hepatitis B. Even if you think that such diseases will never affect you, make sure of this again.

It is advisable for a woman to check whether she is immune to rubella and toxoplasmosis:

• Rubella

  A viral disease that is most dangerous for pregnant women. Infection leads to defects, due to which the fetus becomes unviable. Therefore, rubella must be vaccinated. After this procedure, pregnancy is recommended to be postponed for three months. If a woman was vaccinated or had rubella in childhood, re-vaccination is not needed: immunity is already there.

• Toxoplasmosis

  It is an infectious disease that is transmitted by cats. It is dangerous if caught during pregnancy. There is no vaccine against it. Therefore, if there is no immunity to it, then it is better to stay away from cat litter and street cats throughout pregnancy.

We are usually sent to be tested for TORCH infections - a screening that shows the presence of antibodies to toxoplasmosis, rubella, cytomegalovirus and herpes. But this is a rather expensive and not particularly informative analysis: almost everyone is infected with the herpes simplex virus, as well as with cytomegalovirus. There is nothing to protect against them, but you can get infected at any time: even a day before pregnancy, even during it. Therefore, it is better to be examined for these infections according to the indications Preparation for pregnancy.

6. Start taking folic acid

Folic acid is a vitamin that is needed for the future fetus to properly form the neural tube and have no defects in the nervous system.

To prepare for pregnancy, we recommend taking 400 mcg of Planning for Pregnancy folate every day. Reception continues until the 12th week of pregnancy. For some diseases, such as diabetes or epilepsy, the dose may be increased, but this should be discussed with your doctor.

But vitamin E, which they also like to prescribe for preparation for pregnancy and in the early stages, is not needed. In fact, there is no conclusive evidence that this vitamin somehow prevents miscarriages or helps you get pregnant.

7. Quit smoking

Smoking during pregnancy leads to a host of problems that can affect the health of the baby, and fatally. For example, mothers who smoke are more likely to have miscarriages, premature births, and children are more likely to die from sudden infant mortality syndrome.

Relatives also need to be taught in advance to stop smoking in the house: secondhand smoke also affects health. It is necessary to get used to the new regime without cigarettes before pregnancy, so as not to endanger the child.

8. Stop drinking

And even a drink - just in case. So far, there is no evidence that alcohol has any effect on the mother's eggs. But it has been proven that it harms the child. Alcohol crosses the placental barrier, and the undeveloped liver of the fetus cannot process it. As a result, the risk of miscarriages and premature birth increases, and the child may subsequently suffer from developmental disabilities.

Early pregnancy is difficult to notice. Therefore, if you are planning a child and are working on it, give up alcohol. Chances are, half a glass of champagne at a party won't do any harm. But why risk it when you can just not drink?

9. Lose weight

Usually they begin to get in shape after childbirth. But if you are overweight or obese, then it is advisable to lose weight in advance. It’s about a medical problem, and not about having to fit into XXS size clothes.

Overweight starts when BMI is over 25, and obesity starts when BMI is over 30. In general, this is not the most accurate parameter, because everyone has a different ratio of muscle to fat mass. But, most likely, a BMI with a value approaching 30 will be either in athletes (who closely monitor their condition and know if they have weight problems) or in obese people.

And this can be bad for pregnancy. Due to excess weight in pregnant women, blood pressure often rises, blood clots form and gestational diabetes develops. These conditions can harm both mother and baby, jeopardizing the entire pregnancy.

10. Find your favorite sport

Physical activity is very important during pregnancy. But not every sport is good for mother and child. Therefore, it is better to decide in advance which option you prefer: swimming, yoga or walking. Start exercising while planning so that you don't get an unexpectedly heavy load during pregnancy.

11. Recalculate your budget

Pregnancy is expensive. Children are also expensive. Not that sky-high, but expensive. How not to go broke on a child and everything connected with it:

• Count money

  Should I choose a paid or a free clinic? How much is it? Who goes on maternity leave, because according to the law, this can be done not only by mom or dad, but even by grandmother and grandfather?

• Make a shopping list

  What do you have to buy and what not? Take new things or buy used ones, but much cheaper?

• Start saving money

  If before the birth of the child you could afford to live from paycheck to paycheck, then in the status of parents, such a regime will not work. There must be an airbag.

12. Get started

Don't try to get pregnant as soon as possible. This may take several months, up to a year of Treating Infertility. And this is completely normal.

The desire to have a baby sometimes pushes parents to do strange things: constantly calculating ovulation, sex on a schedule and endless searches for miraculous means and positions, while the best way to get pregnant is to relax and make love regularly. Don't get hung up on compulsory conception, read the best articles about sex on Lifehacker. And may you have the best memories of the period when you were going to become parents.