Pregnancy is an important stage of motherhood and it is also an exciting time for the mother as well. It is quite important that mothers take special care in early pregnancy because whatever the mother does in pregnancy will impact the baby's health in the long term.
Physical and Emotional Changes: Firstly, the lifestyle modifications important. Try not to be in a very stressful environment or state because that can affect the growth of the baby. And, whatever you eat for consume is important as well. There are certain foods that you should avoid when you are pregnant. For instance, try not to eat any raw food because that can have some bacteria contamination. And with some bacterial infection, that can lead to malformation of the baby or sometimes, even miscarriage in early stage of pregnancy.
Aches and Pains: During pregnancy, the body undergoes a lot of changes. A lot the mothers may experience backaches joint aches and pains. The first incident of back pain can occur anytime of the pregnancy. But commonly, it starts around the fourth to seventh month of their pregnancy. The aches and pains can be corrected with correct posture. Postures such as sitting, standing, how to get out of bed, correct lifting and carrying of heavy items are important. For swelling of the legs, we encourage pregnant mothers to move their legs and exercise it. Try not to stand for too long in that position. During pregnancy, one should not stop exercising. It helps you to maintain your weight prevent high blood pressure also, diabetes in pregnancy.
Antenatal Counselling: It is important that mothers start folic acid supplementation even before conceive. It has been shown that folic acid does reduce the change of all spinal defects as well as brain defects of the baby. In a mother who is older, especially above the age of 35, there is a risk of Down syndrome which is one 300. This is about three times increased risk compared to that of a general population. We also screen for other diseases like Rubella as well as Chicken Pox to see whether the mother has any immunity against these diseases.
Pain Relief During Labour: There are three kinds of pain relief that mothers can choose in a hospital setting. For instance, they can use the laughing gas, or they can go for the injection one injection called Pethidine injection which is on the thigh. Some of them choose to have epidural which is the most effective. This imvolves putting a needle at the spinal region of the mother. This would then cause a pain relief from waist downwards and relieve the contraction pain.
Breastfeeding My Newborn: Breast milk provides the best nutrients for the baby. Because of the antibodies found in the breast milk, the baby is well protected and they do not fall sick so easily. Some of the common breastfeeding problems a mother can encounter which includes latching difficulties, sore nipples; breast engorgement or insufficient milk supply. There are different latching techniques that a mother can use when she is breastfeeding. Modified cradle position and football hold position are ideal for newborns. These positions help the mother to have a better control during latching at the breast. There will be some mothers who are unable to latch the baby to breastfeed. she should start expressing her milk regularly every three hours.
Bonding with My Baby: After delivery, mothers encouraged to room-in with their babies. Rooming-in helps the mother to pick up feeding cues at the same time, allows the mother to breastfeed on demand.
Enjoying Mothermood: Pregnancy is an important milestone of parenthood. However, it can be a stressful period as well, and we would like mothers to be ready beaten both physically as well as emotionally. Having said that, we would like them to enjoy as much as possible with their partners for this very special moment of their lives.
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