Pregnancy Diary

Archive for the ‘Mother Things’ Category

First of all there are three very honest realities about childbirth that your doctor, mother, grandmother, and maybe even your best friend will probably not tell you.Unless you have an exceptionally carefree attitude about life in general, you will be shocked if and when your water breaks.Unless you have an extraordinary ability to see into the future, you will be scared to death during the first hour or so of labor.Unless you have an extremely high tolerance for pain, you will feel excruciating, seemingly unending waves of pain.
But if you take the time to consider options to prepare yourself for that big day, you may benefit by being as ready as anyone can possibly be for the consequences of childbirth.The following recommendations valuable for reducing stress for you and your labor partner on the day you deliver your first baby.

Pack your bag to take to the hospital at least a month in advance. For Nobody can positively predict your exact due date and your baby is actually the person who decides when your delivery will occur.

Make a checklist for what you want to take: a mirror and your makeup bag, two or three nightgowns, a hair brush and hair dryer, an outfit to wear home from the hospital, Have a list of phone numbers of the people you can call anytime of the day or night for help.
Don’t worry about what other people will think about your dripping drawers when you get to the hospital. You’re about to deliver a baby -you’re not supposed to look calm, classy, elegant or graceful! Just concentrate on getting to the hospital safely. Do try to maintain your focus. Do try to preserve your precious energy (You will need it especially if you happen to be one of those poor souls whose pregnancy just won’t end and your labor lasts for longer than a day or two) Do listen to what your doctor and nurses tell you.

Do listen to what your body is saying. Do listen to what your labor partner is commanding you to do. And finally trust your gut instincts, your doctor’s words of wisdom, your partner’s suggestions to soothe you and your ears when you hear the sound of your baby’s first cry announcing his official arrival into this world.

Believe your life will never be the same from this day on. Your new job as a mommy will be the most rewarding, most exhausting, and most challenging career of your life. Nothing in the universe can begin to compete with the passion, love, and wonder you’ll experience as you watch this tiny person grow and you feel like he’s really your own heart and soul with little arms and legs.

According to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC), about 1 out of 4 women carry the bacteria that cause GBS. The likelihood therefore that a pregnant woman is a carrier is quite high. Although they are usually benign and harmless to adults, they can present a danger to your baby. The CDC recommends that pregnant be tested for GBS on the 35 to 37 week of pregnancy. When the test is positive, the mother is given an antibiotic to prevent the bacteria from harming the baby. The antibiotic is most effective when given at least 4 hours before delivery. Be sure to inform your partner and your family that you are GBS positive in case of emergency delivery. Since the most commonly prescribed antibiotic is penicillin, be sure to inform your doctor if you are allergic to this antibiotic.

A pregnant woman infected with CMV can pass the virus to her fetus and cause birth defects or even death. Luckily, the chances of getting infected with CMV are quite low. The infection can be avoided through good hygiene practices. CMV is transmitted through contact with body fluids such as saliva and urine, especially in young children. Pregnant women who are in close contact with small children, be their own or those of others (e.g. job at a daycare or kindergarten) should carefully wash their hands after changing nappies and avoid sharing kids’ utensils.

.Listeriosis is a food-borne infection caused by the bacteria Listeria. Unfortunately, pregnant women are about 20 times more likely than other healthy adults to get infected. The consequences can be quite serious – miscarriage, stillbirth and premature labor. Pregnant women are therefore advised to be very careful of the food they eat. Eat only thoroughly cooked meat and poultry products and pasteurized dairy product.

Chicken pox is caused by the varicella virus and is common in children and rare in adults but the symptoms are much more serious in people 15 years old and older. The consequences of infection during pregnancy can present dangers to both mother and child. Chicken pox during pregnancy can cause fetal varicella syndrome or chicken pox infection of the newborn. Women who are planning to get pregnant and haven’t had chicken pox in their childhood should get themselves vaccinated. Women who are exposed to the varicella virus and who are not sure of their immunity should immediately contact their doctors.

Currently, two methods are mainly used in prenatal diagnostics to detect chromosomal defects in the unborn baby:

Amniocentesis and chorionic villus sampling (CVS). These two methods require removing amniotic fluid by inserting a needle into the mother’s uterus. Although considered more or less safe, these methods are however invasive and present a small risk of miscarriage. The advantages of this new technique are:

1. Non-invasive
2. Risk-free
3. Can be conducted early in the pregnancy
4. Will end up to be cheaper
The idea is based on the fact that small amounts of fetal DNA are found in the mother’s blood. However, it has been a problem to find these small amounts of DNA considering that they occur in mommy’s blood at about 1 baby DNA to a million of mommy DNA. However, by using a shortcut “shotgun” approach that tested for both baby and mommy DNA, the researchers were able to overcome this obstacle.

The blood test has been has successfully demonstrated in 18 pregnant women who also underwent amniocentesis or CVS. The results of the new test completely matched those of the two conventional tests and identified 12 of the 18 pregnant women carrying babies with chromosomal defects. In addition, a man was also blood-tested for reference.

Many women get concerned by cramping that they experience in early pregnancy. Some might worry that this is a sign that their pregnancy is not viable and that a miscarriage is on its way. Fortunately, more times than not, that isn’t the case.

Some women might feel cramping as soon as seven days after they ovulate. If they are in fact pregnant, then this cramping is called implantation cramping and is the cramping that occurs when the egg attaches itself, or implants, to the uterus.

Some women start cramping shortly after they get a positive pregnancy test as their uterus starts preparing to carry a baby for nine months. If the cramping is constant or too intense for you to handle however it may not be “normal” and you should call your doctor if you feel you need to for reassurance.

Another type of cramping during pregnancy is called round ligament pain. This is probably the most complained about cramping in early pregnancy, and one most pregnant women will experience.

Cramping in early pregnancy is usually nothing for a woman to get worried about.Actually you can be comforted by knowing that if minor cramping does occur, then your body is probably preparing as it should to sustain the pregnancy. Cramping can also continue into the second and third trimester as the uterus continues to grow and as the body prepares for labor. But if you ever feel that the cramping is not normal, be sure to call your doctor for advice.