Childbirth is an exceptional phenomenon that brings much joy to this world. According to US estimates, around 385,000 children are born everyday worldwide. But besides being an exciting and happy thing, pregnancy can also bring a lot of trouble for the to-be moms.
You’ll have to care for your body and prepare for your baby’s birth. The more you know about these challenges and how to deal with them, the better prepared you will be for what to expect during pregnancy.
Read on for tips on knowing what to expect during pregnancy will help prepare you for this next exciting chapter in your life.
How Pregnancy Changes Your Body and Mind
Pregnancy is a time of significant change, both physically and emotionally. You may experience fatigue, nausea, vomiting, frequent urination, and sore breasts.
Your body will also be adjusting to the hormonal changes of pregnancy, leading to mood swings or even depression. These mood swings result from an increasing influx of estrogen and progesterone hormones.
You should be prepared for some emotional challenges during this time as well. It’s normal for pregnant moms to feel:
- Anxious about becoming a mommy
- Scared about how their life will change once their baby arrives
- Happy about finally being able to meet their little one face-to-face after nine months of waiting
- Excited about all the fun things they’ll do together
Besides hormonal changes, the body experiences many physical changes, leading to discomfort and pain, especially in the lower back area. According to a study published on the NCBI website, the prevalence of lower back pain in expectant moms is between 70% and 80% during the third trimester.
How Knowing Pregnancy Challenges Can Help You Prepare
Knowing what to expect during pregnancy can help you prepare for the challenges of pregnancy. You may have heard pregnant women get sick more often than others. This is true, but it’s not because they’re weak or unhealthy. It’s just one of those things that happens when your body changes so much in such a short time.
To reduce fatigue and sickness, you can prepare for such challenges by ensuring a healthy diet, timely exercise, and sound sleep. Additionally, sore breasts and tenderness are something that most women experience during pregnancy.
You can prepare for that by stocking a supportive bra and loose clothes. You can also create a no-touch zone and get warm showers to cope with breast pain and soreness during pregnancy.
In addition to dealing with physical changes, moms-to-be experience emotional changes like anxiety about whether their baby will be healthy. For that, you can communicate with healthcare professionals or therapists. This will help you answer all the questions impacting your mental health and allow you to rest assured and positive about yourself and your prenatal child.
How Can You Know What to Expect During Pregnancy
Now you know that having the correct information about pregnancy can help you cope with the many challenges it throws at you. But how will you get this information? Well, there are many ways, and here are a few of them.
Read Information on the Internet
You can learn much about pregnancy by reading online articles and asking forum questions. You should also ask your healthcare professional any questions, as they are the best source of accurate information.
You can easily find reliable blog posts to help with pregnancy preparation. Moreover, these blog posts can also give you scheduled guidance based on how many weeks you are pregnant. Do your research to find the right pregnancy blog for week-by-week guidance. This will inform you how you feel about a particular week and what you can do about it.
While looking for online content for help, ensure getting it from reputed sources. The internet has all kinds of content. It can be right or wrong. Hence, looking for a reliable source is vital for getting the correct information.
Ask Questions to Healthcare Professionals
If you’re pregnant, it’s essential to ask questions. Many things can happen during pregnancy and postpartum that are entirely normal and healthy, but it can be confusing and even scary if you don’t know what they are or how to deal with them.
For example, cramping during pregnancy is expected, and so is bleeding after sex in the first trimester. But if your cramps feel like they’re getting worse over time instead of better, or if the bleeding continues past three weeks from conception, definitely talk to your doctor.
You shouldn’t have any problem finding someone willing and able to answer all of your questions about what being pregnant means for you, healthcare professionals like doctors and midwives, other moms who’ve been through similar situations before, partners who want nothing more than for their significant others’ pregnancies go smoothly without any unexpected events along the way, the list goes on.
Many to-be mothers seek help from midwives for their queries. According to data from a study published in the BMC journal, midwives are the most common source of information for pregnant women. Around 91.5% of the 1922 surveyed women got help from midwives, while 79.3% got help from family and friends.
Communicate With Experienced Moms
The best way to prepare for pregnancy is by talking to other moms. If you don’t have any friends or family members who have been through it before, try searching online for forums and support groups where you can connect with other women who are expecting.
Plenty of prenatal classes in your area offer information on everything from nutrition and exercise during pregnancy to what’s happening inside the womb at each stage of development.
If you’re nervous about becoming a parent or worried about how much time off work will cost you, talk things over with an experienced mommy friend. She can offer advice based on her own experiences raising kids.
Conclusion
The most important thing to remember is that your body is going through many changes. It’s important not to panic or stress out about what happens during pregnancy, but instead, take it one day at a time and try to stay calm. If you feel overwhelmed by how much is changing in your life and how quickly these changes are happening, talk about them with someone who understands what it feels like.
