Preparing for pregnancy

According to the World Health Organization, there are about 48 million couples in the world who cannot have children. Because of this huge problem, many couples startpre pregnancy planning. Preparing for this stage, it is important to know not only about the usual tips, but also about various innovative means by which pregnancy can occur.

Planning children and proper preparation for pregnancy can be known to couples who dream of having children. Keep in mind that the daily habits of both men and women are important for this. According to the specialist, pregnancy planning should be a stage of responsible preparation and it is important to think about it in advance.

5 important stages of pre-pregnancy preparation

  1. When planning children, it is important for both parents to get rid of bad habits in advance – smoking (not only active, but also passive), alcohol consumption, reduce caffeine consumption, and also pay more attention to proper nutrition, especially during pregnancy.
  2. Pregnant women are recommended to devote time to physical activity, but if you have not trained intensively before, it is better not to overdo. Before getting pregnant, women should pay attention to their body weight, it is often difficult for too thin women to get pregnant, because ovulation may not occur during the cycle. The recommended body mass index is 20-25.
  3. Women are recommended to start taking folic acid vitamins before conception. It is important to consume 400-800 mg of folic acid daily, it is recommended to start taking it 3 months before pregnancy and do it before 12-13 weeks of pregnancy.
  4. Before attempting to conceive a child, it is recommended to consult a doctor about stopping contraception. Different methods of contraception require different transitional periods when it is possible to conceive a child again.
  5. It is also very important for couples planning a pregnancy to take care of themselves. It is recommended to avoid trying to get pregnant with acute diseases, with chronic diseases, it is best to try to get pregnant during remission. Before pregnancy, women are advised to visit doctors, it is useful to consult a gynecologist, visit a dentist, check up the health state.

Home measures that help to understand the fertility of a couple

Often couples who are unable to have children face a low level of sperm fertility. Rapid diagnostic tests can also help identify this problem. It is often inconvenient for men to consult a doctor due to problems of an intimate nature, but a man can do a sperm test at home. This quick test shows if your fertility is normal. Normal sperm activity is associated with a higher chance of getting pregnant.

To get pregnant, it is important to know when ovulation occurs. To do this, you can use tests to determine ovulation. A diagnostic test to determine ovulation detects an increase in the level of luteinizing hormone LH in the urine. This hormone is always present in a woman’s body, but 24-36 hours before ovulation, its sharp increase takes place, indicating optimal fertility days. At a time when the test is positive, it can be assumed that hormone levels have peaked and this is the most favorable time for pregnancy.

A good menstrual cycle calendar can also help you calculate fertile days using the various mobile apps available today. It’s a good idea to try a few options and find the one that suits you.

If you have not been able to get pregnant for a year, but you regularly have sex and do not use contraceptives, it is recommended to consult a specialist.

Can diseases become a contraindication for pregnancy

Various diseases and conditions can affect pregnancy. For example, some medications are strictly prohibited for pregnant women, so when planning a baby, a woman must tell about all the medications she takes or has taken recently. There are many contraindications in the early stages, when the fetus is especially vulnerable. The easiest way to reduce the risk is to carefully read the annotations and not take medications marked “As prescribed by a doctor”, even if these are seemingly safe herbal preparations.

Medications prescribed to women with depression or other psychological disorders may not be combined with pregnancy. Their intake should be discussed in advance with the attending physician and, if necessary, change the medicine, the obstetrician-gynecologist should also know about them. In case of an unexpected pregnancy, you can not cancel the drugs yourself and you need to see a doctor right away.

HIV-positive women can conceive and give birth to a completely healthy child. There are a lot of discordant couples when one of the parents is infected and the other not. Such patients receive preventive treatment and successfully give birth under the supervision of doctors. They come to childbirth with special medications. If a woman has cervical cancer, then she gives birth by caesarean section. HIV-infected women are also legally required to operate: it is believed that cesarean section reduces the risk of infection of the child. At the same time, she can write a refusal and give birth naturally — the same applies to breastfeeding.