How often you should go to prenatal appointments?

Prenatal Care

Going through a pregnancy, no matter how rewarding is quite a daunting task and can take a lot out of the mother. Just as with any other medical condition, it is important to get constant care and medical advice on the best ways to take care of yourself and your baby right through the pregnancy from either a pregnancy coach or maternity doctor. Prenatal visits are the best way to avail of this information and guidance and are likely to be a regular part of your schedule over the course of the months of your pregnancy. Most pregnant women will have somewhere between 10 and 15 prenatal visits throughout the term of the pregnancy. During the first and second trimester, the expecting mother will normally visit the doctor or midwife almost every 4 weeks while the frequency will increase to almost every 2 weeks in the third trimester. However, it is important to keep in mind the fact that there is no set rule about the frequency of prenatal visits and the frequency may need to be increased or decreased depending on factors like your medical history, and noticeable signs or symptoms of complications with the pregnancy or even the development of new medical conditions that may or may not affect the pregnancy.

Normally during a prenatal visit, the medical practitioner will ask you about your physical and emotional condition and try to gauge the amount of stress that you are under at the time. It is important to be open and honest with the doctor when answering any questions he or she might have because even the smallest and seemingly insignificant things and your reactions to them has the potential to affect the pregnancy in some way or the other. The doctor or midwife will also conduct a few medical tests in order to check your weight, blood pressure and urine while also measuring the size of the abdomen, listen to the baby’s heartbeat, check the position of the baby and perform any other tests that may be needed. During the prenatal visits, the practitioner will also provide you with advice on the kinds of foods and nutrition as well as amount of exercise and rest that you should allow yourself during this very physically and emotionally demanding time. One cannot stress enough the importance to avoid substances like tobacco, alcohol or certain drugs as they are known to have considerable impact on the baby.
 

Submitted by P T on June 1, 2010 at 03:01

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