You're pregnant! Now what?
Juliet Blank
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Once you see that BFP on your pregnancy test and that initial amazement starts to calm down (a bit!), you'll probably find yourself wondering what to do next. From doctor's appointments to dealing with morning sickness, let us help you figure out exactly what to do now that you're pregnant.
Once you've double or even triple checked that you really are pregnant, it can be hard to know what to do next, especially as you'll probably want to keep it a secret until you're a little bit further along.
Not to mention, in the midst of the coronavirus, its perfectly normal for parents-to-be to be even more confused or worried.
Luckily, our handy week-by-week guide will tell you exactly what to expect at each stage. And our pregnancy section will help you every step of the way.
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But what should you do right now?
Here at Netmums, along with midwife Leah Hazard, we’ve come up with our very own pregnancy to-do list for you to work your way through.
Here’s what it entails:
- Write a list of questions
- Book a GP appointment
- Await a call from the midwife
- Take your pregnancy vitamins
- Avoid certain foods
- Cut down on caffeine
- Get help with morning sickness
- Wait patiently for your first scan
- Know the warning signs
- Read all about your pregnancy
Write a list of questions
Finding out you're pregnant tends to send even the most level-headed woman into a flap:
Should you make an urgent appointment to see your doctor? How do you contact a midwife? When is the baby due? What about that half-bottle of wine you drank at the weekend?
It can feel like there are hundreds of important questions, and you want answers, like ... yesterday.
‘So, start making a list of everything you want to know or are worried about – it doesn't matter how silly your questions may sound, your GP and midwives will have heard them all before,’ says midwife, Leah.
If you don't write them down, you can bet you'll forget them as soon as you're in that appointment.
Book a doctor's appointment
Most of us kick off our antenatal care with a visit to the GP, or in the current circumstances, possibly with a phone appointment.
You can do this as soon as you find out you're expecting, but be prepared for it to be a bit underwhelming.
Home pregnancy tests are highly accurate, so it's likely your doctor won't even check your urine and will just take your word that you're pregnant.
It's still worth seeing the GP though, as they can make sure you're clued up about what to do next and go through local birthing centre and hospital options.
If you know where you want to have the baby, they'll even refer you then and there, so you're in the system and it's one less thing to have to do ahead of labour. It's also a good opportunity to ask any questions you might have, as well as to check whether any medication you're taking is safe during pregnancy.
If you don't want to see your GP, you can ask your surgery or local children's centre to put you in touch with the midwifery service and book your first appointment with a midwife instead.
‘Lots of hospital websites even have their own self-referral system that you can do over the phone or online,’ says Leah.
‘It may not be necessary to see your GP at all in some areas; check your local provision.’
Await a call from the midwife
Actually, you're more likely to get a letter confirming when your first official antenatal appointment will be.
This is what's known as your booking appointment and takes place when you're anywhere between 8 to 12 weeks, usually at the hospital maternity unit but can also be at your local children's centre, doctor's surgery or even at home.
Your midwife will ask lots of questions, including the date of your last period, details of any previous pregnancies, and information about any health problems (depression, high blood pressure, diabetes, etc.) that affect you or close family members. So it's worth doing your homework before you turn up.
During the booking appointment, your midwife will also run through future appointments and scans and what they entail.
‘And, of course, this is your chance to ask all those questions you've had stored up, so ask away!’ says Leah.
‘It's also worth taking a sample of urine – ideally from the first trip to the toilet in the morning. Your midwife will give you a clean pot or jar at the end of every appointment to keep for giving a sample at your next appointment,’ she adds.
Your blood pressure will be checked and your midwife will also take blood, which will be tested for inherited conditions that could affect your baby, as well as to test your iron levels and antibodies present.
All the details from your booking appointment will be recorded in your maternity notes – often a large yellow or white notebook. Guard these with your life as you'll be responsible for them and will need to take them to every antenatal appointment from here on.
It’s a good idea to keep your notes with you at all times, just in case you need to make an unexpected visit to your maternity unit. The paperwork will allow your midwives to get a quick, accurate idea of how your pregnancy has been going and any risk factors you may have.
Some local trusts now use electronic maternity notes, and you may even be able to access these on your phone or laptop using an app. Keep your login details safe and remember that, just like paper notes, these electronic notes contain private, confidential information.
Take your pregnancy vitamins
In an ideal world, you'll have been popping a daily folic acid pill since you started trying for a baby. If you haven't, don't worry, it's definitely not too late to start.
Here's the latest NHS advice on which vitamins to take during your pregnancy:
- Take 400mcg (micrograms) of folic acid each day – you should take this from before you are pregnant until you're 12 weeks pregnant to help protect your baby from neural tube defects like spina bifida.
- Take 10mcg (micrograms) of vitamin D each day throughout your pregnancy – you should also carry on taking this after your baby is born if you plan on breastfeeding.
It's also worth noting that you shouldn't take vitamin A supplements, or any supplements containing vitamin A (retinol), as too much could harm your baby.
You can get supplements from pharmacies and supermarkets, or your GP may be able to prescribe them for you. A pharmacist can help you find the right ones for you.
Seven Seas Pregnancy Multivitamins contains both folic acid and vitamin D. See more details here at Amazon.
Boots also has a wide range of pregnancy supplements. See more details here.
If you're on a low income, you may be able to get free vitamins through the Healthy Start scheme.
Avoid certain foods
We've all done it: found out we're pregnant and promptly started panicking about that lump of blue cheese or the glass of wine we had last week.
It's highly unlikely that anything you ate before you knew you were expecting will have harmed your baby, but once you're officially pregnant, there are certain foods you should avoid.
These include:
- uncooked soft blue cheeses (such as gorgonzola and roquefort)
- uncooked soft cheeses with white rinds (like brie and camembert)
- foods made from unpasteurised milk
- pate (meat, fish or veg)
- liver
- raw or undercooked meat and shellfish
- shark, swordfish and marlin
- alcohol
Find out exactly what you can and can't eat and drink during your pregnancy.
Cut down on caffeine
As far as drinks are concerned, it's best to cut your caffeine intake to 200mg per day – that's about two mugs of instant coffee, or just under three mugs of tea.
‘Barista’ coffees made from high-street chains or independent coffee shops can often contain much higher levels of caffeine; check how many shots of espresso are in your flat white and moderate your intake accordingly.
And don't forget that chocolate and green tea contain caffeine, too.
Get help with morning sickness
Some women get away with virtually no pregnancy symptoms, while others experience a whole host of early pregnancy symptoms, including sore boobs, bone-crushing fatigue, morning sickness, food cravings and an overactive bladder.
Symptoms can kick in just a few weeks after conception, and last up to or into your second trimester. Although you can feel dreadful, they are usually just a sign of a growing baby and hormonal changes, which should settle down.
‘If you're being sick all the time and can't keep anything down, see your doctor or midwife as you might have a condition called hyperemesis gravidarum – an extreme form of pregnancy sickness that sometimes needs medical treatment,' says Leah.
Check out our top tips for coping with morning sickness.
Wait patiently for your first scan
‘All pregnant women are offered a scan between 8 weeks and 14 weeks of pregnancy. This is often called the dating scan, as its main purpose is to work out your due date, but it's also the first opportunity to see your baby and its heart beating – an amazing moment,’ says Leah.
You'll need to have a full or half-full bladder to help the sonographer find the baby (it's still only a few centimetres in size) and you may have an anxious few minutes while they get their readings and do their checks... before telling you everything is OK.
You'll probably also be offered a photograph of the scan – most hospitals charge these days so make sure you take your wallet so you don't miss out.
If you want to take your own pictures of the scan, always ask the midwife or doctor if this is OK.
Know the warning signs
Tommy's – the UK's largest charity funding research into the causes of miscarriage, stillbirth and premature birth – estimates that, sadly, around one in four confirmed pregnancies end in miscarriage.
85% of miscarriages happen during the first trimester, so the early weeks can be a nerve-racking time. Happily, the figure drops significantly once you reach your second trimester.
'The early stages of pregnancy can be a time of anxiety and uncertainty for some women,' says Leah.
'Usually, all will go well, but sadly, some pregnancies do end in miscarriage.'
The most common indicator that something might be wrong is bleeding during your pregnancy. (Although a little bleeding is common at around the time your period is due - this is known as implantation bleeding.)
Other warning signs include:
- pain or cramping
- feeling faint or actually passing out
- severe vomiting and diarrhoea
- a sudden end to your pregnancy symptoms.
If you're worried about any of these, or anything at all, you should contact your GP, midwife or the early pregnancy unit (EPU) at your local hospital as soon as possible.
You can find your nearest EPU on the NHS website here.
Leah says:
'You may be invited in for assessment which, in early pregnancy, often includes a transvaginal scan (TVS).
'Because it can be too soon to scan a tiny baby abdominally (with the probe on your belly, as you might expect during a routine pregnancy scan), a probe may be inserted into your vagina to get a closer look at what’s happening inside your womb.
'This should be painless and the sonographer will explain what’s happening, and why.
'If a miscarriage has been diagnosed, or if there’s a suspicion that your pregnancy may not continue, the midwife may suggest a series of blood tests.
'These will monitor your levels of HCG (human chorionic gonadotropin, a hormone that rises in early pregnancy) over a period of several days, and may give a clearer prognosis.'
Remember that, although miscarriage is fairly common, it's much more common for pregnancies to continue.
If you're feeling anxiety about miscarriage, there are trained parent supporters waiting to take your questions every weekday evening in our maternal mental health drop-in clinic. Your midwife may also be able to reassure you.
Read all about your pregnancy
In this day and age, as mums-to-be, we're lucky to have SO much information and different services at our fingertips.
From watching births happen on One Born Every Minute to chatting to other expectant mums online in our Coffeehouse forum, hopefully, you'll have all the support you need for what's coming up over the next nine months.
So keep dipping in and out of our pregnancy section - there's tons to read up on - and keep visiting our week-by-week guide below.
Just click on the number of weeks you are to find out what to expect, do and know about your bump ...
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