How to Protect Yourself and Your Baby During your 1st Trimester Pregnancy?

You will experience several weird changes in your body, during you first trimester (first 12 weeks). Such changes are due to hormonal changes, blood pressure and the need for more nutrients. Are you eager to know how to have a healthy body and baby during your 1st trimester pregnancy?

Once you find out about your pregnancy through the homemade pregnancy test or other commercial tests, your body will transfer your food to the baby. This means that you should be very careful with how you treat yourself. There are several steps you can do to protect your baby and yourself from any defects or miscarriage.

Weeks 1-8

1- Find a professional OB/GYN: ask your relatives or friends, about a doctor that they personally had a good experience with. If you failed to find try Internet groups or clubs, they can be so helpful. Contact your doctor urgently when having:

1- dizziness
2- sever morning sickness
3- headache
4- weird body changes
5- cramps
6- fever
7- infection

2- Doctor visit: even if you know that you are pregnant. You need a medical check up to make sure that the implantation is normal and inside the uterus. In other words having a normal and not an ectopic pregnancy.

3- Make prenatal tests: the most popular tests are the urine and blood tests. They show your hormonal levels and show if you suffer from any deficiencies such as folic acid deficiency, iron deficiency or other vitamins. Moreover they show if you suffer from any infections such as Sexual Transmitted Diseases or toxoplasmosis.

4- Schedule prenatal check ups: you should be checked by the doctor every 4 weeks until the end of the second trimester; every three weeks until the end of the 31st week; every two weeks until the end of the 35th week; and every week until birth.

5- Create a saving plan: having a child can be very expensive. Your insurance can save you from paying for pregnancy tests, checkups, delivery, pediatrician, vaccines or your baby’s and your medicines. And your family and friends can be helpful by getting you what the baby needs. But still your baby has future expenses, that is why you need to set a saving plan. In case you can’t afford having a child you read about how to avoid unplanned pregnancy but before you should know when do you ovulate.

6- Have a healthy diet: what to eat during pregnancy for intelligent baby is a useful guide for you to know what is the best diet for you and your baby. It provides you with the list of the suitable grains, proteins, fruits and vegetables; and the needed vitamins and supplements.

7- Exercise: exercising is good for stress relief, sleeping and you body strength. There are certain pregnancy exercises such as yoga, Pilates and walking for only 30 minutes per day. In case you got dizzy, slow down and don’t exhaust yourself.

8- Protect yourself from sickness: some of the earliest signs of pregnancy are fatigue, morning sickness and heartburn during pregnancy. Read about morning sickness remedies and heartburn relief. Eat small meals to avoid acid reflux symptoms. You can also get enough sleep by knowing how to fall asleep instantly.

Weeks 8-12

1- Triple or Quad test: it is a blood test to check if your fetus has any defect. In case it was positive, you will be asked to go for another test such as Chorionic villus sampling or Chromosomal disorder screening. Most woman avoid these tests because they are risky for the baby.

2- Nuchal Translucency Screening: is a test done at 10-12 week, by a special trained ultrasound technologist. If the neck of the baby was larger than normal than the fetus might be suffering from trisomy 21.

3- Baby products: at the end of this trimester, you will be able to know the gender of the baby. In case you failed, you can resort to our gender predictor. Once you know the gender, you can start preparing for a good atmosphere for the baby, as the bedroom, clothes, tools and accessories. Set a baby registry checklist for the basics.

4- Movements and postures: there is no way out of working and moving, but you should be very careful. Avoid sudden and dangerous movements. Stop running, jumping and walking for long distances. And Watch our while climbing the stairs.

5- Housework: You don’t know how dangerous housework can be, especially holding and moving heavy items. Try not to bend in order to pick something from the floor.

Always remember

1- Always remember consider your pregnancy through weeks and not months. There are 4 weeks in one month and every week has seven days. Therefore, every month has 28 days and not 30 to 31 days like the calendar. That is the reason where counting weeks differs from months. You get pregnant 40 weeks starting from the first day of your last menstrual cycle.

2- Inform your doctor about any short and long term disability, or genetic disorder your partner or you have.

3- Check your calorie intake and stop coffee, cigarettes and alcohol. Avoid raw food, and seafood that contain mercury.

4- Stay away from cats to protect yourself from taxoplasmosis; and garbage to avoid nausea and vomiting.

5- Read well your insurance contract and check out how your insurance deal with delivery and pregnancy.

6- Swimming is not a good idea during your 1st trimester pregnancy, it is hectic. But you can swim during your last month of pregnancy.

7- Avoid sleeping next to a baby, it can be dangerous. There is a possibility of being kicked.

8- Constipation may cause miscarriage to those with fragile uterus. Try to keep yourself hydrated, and eat lots of fibers.

9- Bumpy rides are very dangerous. In case you were obliged to be in a car being driven on a bumpy road try to stand to decrease the pressure.

10- Never use facial creams with vitamin A, ointments, acne creams or any drug without your doctor’s prescription.

11- Try not to have a massage or get exposed to water vapor, during your 1st trimester pregnancy, this can cause opening the uterus and loosing the baby.

Conclusion

Fertility boosters help you get pregnant faster. When you get pregnant the first thing that concerns you is how to have a healthy and safe pregnancy during your 1st trimester pregnancy. A list of to dos and don’ts is available for you to avoid pregnancy worries and complications.

Are you ready for the second trimester?