I’m Pregnant! Now What?

The Next Steps After Achieving Pregnancy Success After Infertility

By Rachel Gurevich, About.com Guide

Updated October 29, 2010

After months or even years of trying to conceiving, finally you can say, "I'm pregnant!" But now what? Those who have been deep in the world of fertility are often eager for information on having a healthy pregnancy. These articles from the Guide to Pregnancy will help you dig into this experience and be an empowered pregnant couple.

Calculate Your Due Date

Are you wondering when you'll get to meet your baby? Calculate your due date using this calculator. (Though if you're anything like myself, you might have already figured this out before you knew you were pregnant!) You can also learn more about due dates, including what happens if the due date is wrong or how due dates are calculated.

· Due Date Calculator

· How Due Dates Are Calculated

More Info

Decide When to Tell, Who to Tell and How to Tell

This is a big one for couples going through infertility, especially if a miscarriage (or more) has occurred in the past. How do you decide when to tell? When you do decide, how can you do it? And what if someone reacts negatively to your good news? Get the details in these articles.

· How to Announce Your Pregnancy

· 7 Tips for Telling the Boss

· When People Aren't Happy That You're Pregnant

· Reader Stories: How I Announced I'm Pregnant!

More Info

Follow Your Baby's Growth

How does your baby grow throughout the pregnancy? Following the growth of your little one is a common way to bond with your unborn child. Learn everything you need to know about fetal development here.

· Pregnancy Calendar Week by Week

· Fetal Growth Pictures Week by Week

· Pregnancy Body Changes Month by Month

· About the Three Trimesters

· Weekly Ultrasounds

More Info

Learn About a Healthy Pregnancy

All these months (and years!) of trying to conceive, you've begged to experience morning sickness. Now it's here, and you can't be happier - but some coping tips would help! Learn how to have a healthy, more comfortable pregnancy, and also connect with others who are at the same pregnancy stages as you are.

· Due Date Forums

· All About the First Trimester

· First Trimester Newsletter

More Info

Twins, Triplets, and More

Women who have gone through fertility treatments are more likely to get pregnant with twins, triplets, or more, when compared to those who got pregnant without medical help. Maybe you're wondering if your strong morning sickness or fatigue could hint to a multiple pregnancy. Take this quiz to see if you might be carrying twins or more. Also, be sure to check out the other articles on a multiple pregnancy.

· Frequently Asked Questions on Twins, Triplets and Other Multiple Pregnancies

· Signs and Symptoms of a Multiple Pregnancy

· Labor and Birth with Twins

· Multiple Pregnancy Gallery of Belly Photos

More Info

Finding a Practitioner

No matter how wonderful your reproductive endocrinologist may be, he's most likely not going to continue to be your doctor or offer prenatal care. It's time to find an OB, or obstetrician. You may be able to stay with your current gynecologist, but keep in mind he or she may not be the OB of your dreams. Or perhaps you'd prefer midwife care. Whatever your situation, it's time to do some research and find the right caregiver for you.

· Mistakes When Interviewing OBs and Midwives

· What Do You Look for in OB Care?

· 5 Reasons to Choose a Midwife

· Switching Doctors

· Readers Respond: Why Did You Choose a Midwife?

· Do You Care if Your Doc is a Woman or a Man?

More Info

Choose a Place of Birth

Something you may not have thought about is where you'd like to give birth. Would you want a hospital birth? Or a birth center? Or even a homebirth? And how do you choose the right hospital or birth center? Don't wait until you're almost ready to pop to start looking into birth places, or you may not have time to fully explore all your options.

· Choosing a Birth Center

· Can I Have a Homebirth in an Apartment?

· Questions about Homebirth

· A Story of the Homebirth of Twins

· Hospital Tours

· Hospital Interviews

Safe Pregnancy Tips: 10 Things Women Must Avoid During Pregnancy

Everyone wants their baby to be born healthy and without any birth defects or immunological deficiencies. While some things harm the fetus immediately others may affect the proper development of the immune system and

make the child prone to several illnesses in later life. Following are the 10 things all pregnant women must avoid.

1. Pregnant women must avoid smoking cigarettes and also avoid being around people who smoke. Both direct as well as second hand smoke are harmful to the health of the mother and baby. Studies have shown that frequent inhalation of cigarette smoke can lead to pre-term births, spontaneous abortion, full term babies with low birth weight and death of the fetus and infant. It also causes a number of developmental problems as it causes the blood vessels of the fetus to constrict reducing oxygen supply to its brain. It is unfortunate that many pregnant women still smoke even though this has been public knowledge for a long time now.

2. All pregnant women must avoid alcohol. For the fetus there is no safe level of alcohol. The extent of harm caused to the fetus depends on the level and duration of alcohol exposure. The more the exposure the more are the problems, the worst of which is Fetal Alcohol Syndrome (FAS). It leads to severe cases of birth defects and abnormalities in babies. Fetal Alcohol Syndrome is the leading known cause of mental retardation in babies. Fetal Alcohol Syndrome also causes a number of congenital defects in babies including CNS dysfunction, malformed skeletal systems, prenatal and post natal growth deficiencies, facial malformations and organ malfunctions. Again unfortunately, even though this has been public knowledge for a long time many pregnant women still drink alcohol.

3. Pregnant women should avoid cleaning cat litter boxes. Cat feces carry a parasite that causes toxoplasmosis. This can lead to still births, birth defects and ectopic pregnancy. In many cases where women have had a cat for a long time they may have developed immunity to toxoplasmosis. However, to be on the safe side it is better to get your cat checked up by a veterinarian.

4. Pregnant women should avoid eating raw or undercooked meat and also seafood. Raw or undercooked meat may also be the source of the parasite causing toxoplamosis. Therefore pregnant women should eat only fully cooked

meat. Raw or undercooked meat and seafood carry the risk of exposure to salmonella and coliform bacteria. These can cause still birth, miscarriage or brain damage in the fetus.

5. Pregnant women should avoid eating fish. This is not because eating fish is in anyway harmful. The problem is that many industrial effluents contain mercury which can poison the developing fetus as such. Many fish like shark, swordfish and tuna have the tendency to concentrate methylmercury which is harmful to the developing brain of the fetus.

6. Pesticides, insecticides, herbicides, fungicides and other toxic chemicals can harm the unborn baby to various extents depending on the toxicity and duration of exposure. These can cause delays in development especially if the fetus is exposed to them in the first trimester. Unfortunately in the US pesticides are used widely. In your home pesticides are contained in household pest control products, roach and ant baits, dog and cat flea collars, etc. In the yard weed killers, lawn treatments and garden pesticide sprays are extremely harmful. Wash all fruits and vegetables thoroughly before you consume them. Adopt organic products and methods in the home and garden as much as possible.

7. Pregnant women must avoid raising their body temperature suddenly. The developing fetus may be harmed if the body temperature rises above 102 degrees. It is possible to cool your body temperature externally using various means but the fetus does not have any way to do so. It takes the internal body including the fetus a long time to cool. The fetus has not yet developed adequate cooling mechanisms and may be harmed. Body temperature can rise due to fever, strenuous exercise, working outdoors on hot summer days, etc.

8. It follows from the above that pregnant women should avoid the hot tub, long hot baths and the sauna. These have a tendency to raise body temperature above 102 degrees and therefore they must be avoided by pregnant women for the safety of the fetus. For the same reason electric blankets should be avoided.

9. While light exercise is beneficial for pregnant women any sports or physical activity that carries the danger of injury must be avoided. These include basketball, hockey, skiing, athletics, etc. Sports injury and

impact can cause internal bleeding, miscarriage and bone injury of the fetus. Therefore any strenuous exercise must wait until after childbirth. If you sustain any fall or blunt impact on the abdomen during pregnancy you must seek medical advice immediately.

10. It is advisable for pregnant women to avoid exposure to x-rays and other types of radiation. Although the risk is not much x-rays can be more harmful during early pregnancy. Therefore inform your doctor or dentist about your pregnancy so that x-ray can be postponed if possible. Studies have shown that even low levels of exposure to strong electro magnetic fields can cause some cell damage. Therefore pregnant women must avoid electric blankets as well as standing too close to the TV or in front of the microwave for long durations.

Good Probiotics for Pregnancy

Probiotics have been touted recently as a great way to ensure the health of your digestive tract. But what are probiotics? And are they safe to consume during your pregnancy? Will they harm your developing fetus? Here is how to safely integrate probiotics into your pregnancy diet.

1.

What Are Probiotics?

o Probiotics, or live microorganisms, are a good bacteria that live in your digestive system. These lactic acid producing bacteria help to strengthen your immune system by eating the harmful bacteria your body comes into contact with every day. In addition, they help to restore balance, or homeostasis, to your gut after illness.

Benefits of Probiotics

o In addition to building your immunity against illness, probiotics have a host of other benefits including treating irritable bowel syndrome and Crohn's disease, treating urinary tract infections, preventing and managing the symptoms of eczema in children and preventing food allergies. Additionally, during times of stress, probiotics can help alleviate symptoms such as constipation and diarrhea.

Yeast Infection Prevention

o Yeast infections are a common discomfort during pregnancy. The body's intestinal flora are threatened by overgrowth of yeast and can be destroyed by them. By eating probiotic foods, such as yogurt or kefir, the intestines can grow stronger flora and the probiotics can keep new yeast from developing.

Fatty Acid Growth

o Probiotics added to the diet of anyone, pregnant or not, can aid in converting fiber into healthy fatty acids that nourish the cells that line your intestines. These fatty acids are healthy for your heart and blood and also strengthen your digestive tract.

Prevention of Preterm Labor

o Probiotics can help prevent pre-term labor caused by vaginal infection. Probiotics eat away at bad bacteria and weaken it before it can enter the uterine cavity. They prevent vaginosis and the pre-term rupture of amniotic membranes. Probiotics can be taken for this orally or vaginally.

Post-Pregnancy Benefits

o Continuing to take probiotics after the birth of your baby has positive effects as well. Along with the ability to keep postpartum infections away, eating probiotics while breastfeeding can help strengthen baby's immune system. This can prevent childhood allergies and eczema as well as lowering incidence of asthma.