Pregnancy Care: Taking Care of You and Your Baby While You're Pregnant

What is Pregnancy Care?

Pregnancy care can be a lengthy process for an expecting mother. It consists of pre-pregnancy, during pregnancy, and post-pregnancy care. This could be a long duration and needs complete assistance throughout the pregnancy. Pregnancy care combines a healthy diet, on-time treatments, necessary diagnostic tests, regular physical activities, maintained body weight, etc. Giving birth to a new life needs extreme consciousness, and one needs to nurture their bodies absolutely to prepare for pregnancy. Consult the best gynecologist for guidance and assistance throughout your pregnancy journey.

Types of Pregnancy Care

Antenatal Care– This is a necessary step to take care of before giving birth to a new life. Antenatal care is about preparing a body for conception and getting a brief knowledge about pregnancy from conceiving a baby until delivery.

Prenatal Care– This is an essential part of pregnancy duration, it helps in minimizing the complications during the pregnancy. Prenatal care also reduces the health risks of the expecting mother.

Postnatal Care– This is necessary for the mother and a newly born child. The duration is usually considered as six weeks post-delivery, where both the mother and baby need extreme attention and care.

Neonatal Care– This is specifically for newborn babies. It is imperative for babies to reduce the chances of health conditions in the future. This is usually considered to last six weeks, where vaccination is also done for the immunization of the child.

Pregnancy Care - Tests and Diagnosis

Pregnancy Tests

The gynecologist may recommend a few diagnostic tests to check the healthy pregnancy or to detect any underlying condition:

• Breast exam– The test is usually done to detect any lump in the breasts. The ultrasound is done without harmful radiation and is safe during pregnancy.
• Pap smear test– The doctor will take tissue from the uterus while inserting a speculum in your vagina. The collected sample will be sent to the lab for culture to detect cervical cancer.
• Blood test- This is usually recommended to detect the level of hemoglobin, sugar level, or any underlying cause that can turn into risk or complication in due course.
• Urine test- This is the most common lab test, which is suggested to find any infection in the expecting mother’s body.

Self Diagnosis

Though the results are not 100% accurate of self-diagnosis tests, there are few pregnancy tests that a woman can do at home for potential confirmation.

Pregnancy kits– You can easily get a pregnancy test from a chemist shop. Use the kit by collecting your morning urine and put three drops on the area mentioned on it. Read the results after 5 minutes to know about the conception.

Missed period– This is one of the most considered factors to find out conception. If you have your expected menstruation cycle and not getting even after the expected week. There are high chances that you are pregnant.

Diagnosis by Doctor

The doctor would conduct a physical examination to check the condition and eliminate any complications by initiating a treatment if needed during pregnancy. A few of the physical exams are:

• Pelvic exam– During pelvic examination gynecologist will use one or two-finger while lubricating it and insert it in the vagina. This is done to check the size and shape of the uterus and pelvic area to detect any infection. This is mostly done during the antenatal duration.
• Cervical exam- A speculum is inserted in the cervix to check the uterus and to find out if it’s healthy or not. There are chances that an exam will be conducted 2-3 times in the duration of the pregnancy to check the changes in the cervix.

Pregnancy Care - Risks & Complications

There could be a few risks and complications during pregnancy duration. Some women with health conditions usually have high-risk pregnancies and need extra care and assistance-

• Women having a history of miscarriages are at higher risks.
• Health conditions like diabetes, irregular blood pressure, cancer, genetic defect, etc could affect pregnancy.
• Women with early age conception of late conception after 35 years old may experience complications and need to consult with their gynecologist throughout pregnancy duration.
• Irregular body weight, like obese or underweight, can also affect the pregnancy.

Preventions for Healthy Pregnancy

There are few tips for expecting mothers to follow for smoother and healthy pregnancy while taking care of themselves:

• Maintain healthy lifestyle practices like a minimal physical activity routine for a healthy pregnancy.
• Go for regular checkups scheduled by your gynecologist to minimize the risks of pregnancy.
• Attend counseling during your pregnancy duration to be around other expecting mothers for positive energy and to accept the body and hormonal changes.
• Follow all the guidelines given by your gynecologist regarding dietary changes for healthy digestion.
• Maintain regular body weight to have a healthy pregnancy.
• Avoid smoking and consuming alcohol, and it can cause side effects and other complications during pregnancy.
• Take medication on time prescribed by your gynecologist if you have any condition to avoid any risks.

Treatment Options of Pregnancy Care

• Postnatal Care

C-Section Delivery Care

It is a surgical procedure in which an incision is made on the lower abdomen to remove the baby from the uterus. As reported by gynecologists, the mother can resume normal activities within a month. However, a complete recovery may take 3-4 months. The doctor advises a set of guidelines that need to be followed post-cesarean delivery to make the recovery process smoother and faster.

• Vaginal Delivery Care

Normal Baby Delivery

The mother may feel soreness in the vagina after delivering a child. If a tear occurs during a delivery or if the gynecologist has made an incision, the cut may take time to heal. It is advised to take care of yourself after vaginal delivery to regain strength. The doctor provides instructions for the healing process to ease the discomfort and soreness.

Post-delivery Recovery Rate

The recovery duration post-delivery would take 2-3 months, where you can resume normal activities. However, the complete recovery may take 6-8 months. The woman can resume a healthy routine after recovery. There are a few tips that may make your healing process easier:

• Eat healthy diet
• Take rest as much as you can.
• Walk slowly in the initial days post-delivery.
• Sit on a pillow to avoid excessive pressure on the vagina.
• Clean your wound without putting pressure to avoid infection.
• Eat fiber-rich food to avoid constipation.

Why choose Pristyn Care to get connected for pregnancy care?

Pristyn Care is a full-stack health care provider that fills all the necessary gaps during the treatment journey. Pristyn Care offers several additional benefits during your pregnancy journey to make it smoother:

• Experienced Ob-Gyn and gynecologist- There is an in-house team of highly experienced ob-gyn and gynecologists. They provide comprehensive care to women during their pregnancy. In addition, they offer complete guidelines to make the pregnancy smoother and less complicated, if there are any.
• Insurance Approval- We have a team of insurance experts. They assist you in filing the medical insurance claim paperwork from beginning to end.
• Diagnostic tests- We offer a 30% discount on all kinds of diagnostic tests, and an expecting mother needs to get them done during pregnancy.
• Transportation- A free cab service is provided on the day of the delivery to make the commute easier.
• Follow-up consultation- We understand how vital recovery duration is post-delivery, so our gynecologist offers a free follow-up consultation to support the healing process and make it smoother.