You are pregnant and that is of course wonderful. But as a pregnant woman you have a lot to endure. Not only is your body changing but you can also suffer from things like morning sickness, hard stomachs, constipation, heartburn, retaining fluid etcetera. Besides this all manner of things have to be arranged for the coming baby. Like applying for maternity care in a timely fashion and readying the nursery. Below you will find some tips for during your pregnancy.
Applying for maternity care
It is advisable to apply for maternity care between the twelfth and sixteenth week of your pregnancy. The maternity nurse will come to your home for eight days. She assists the midwife with a homebirth. Furthermore she checks your health and that of the baby. She supports the family and provides instruction and advice on the food for the baby. Have you not registered for maternity care yet? You can do this immediately via the enrolment form or by telephone via 088-01 57 300.
Applying for a midwife
It is wise to contact a midwife in your neighbourhood as soon as you know you are pregnant. The first appointment will mostly be planned between the eighth and twelfth week of your pregnancy. With every consult the midwife will do a number of checks like measuring your blood pressure, uterine position en listening to heart sounds. Besides this there will be a blood test and a urine test.
Tips morning sickness
Most pregnant women, about 70%, suffer from nausea the first few months. Mostly you are only nauseas during the first three months. But it occurs that women suffer from it during the entire pregnancy. Tips against nausea during pregnancy are among other things starting everyday with breakfast and eating small portions during the entire day. Make sure you always have dry biscuits with you and it is better to drink between meals than during meals. Try to unburden your stomach by not eating fatty and salty food.
Grandma’s home remedies for morning sickness:
• Ginger: drink ginger tea, chew on fresh or dried ginger and eat gingerbread.
• Lemon: Eat a piece of lemon, drink some lemon lemonade or if you don’t like the taste of lemon then you can just sniff it.
• Peppermint: drink (fresh) mint tea or suck on a peppermint.
Tips pregnancy: Hard stomachs
It is very normal to have hard stomachs during the pregnancy. It is caused by the contraction of the uterine muscles. But it does not say anything about when your baby will be born. Should it be the case that before the twenty-seventh week of pregnancy you regularly have to deal with painful hard stomachs it would be wise to contact your midwife. A few pregnancy tips in regards to hard stomachs: Do not lift to heavy and get enough rest, check your breathing.
