Vinita Salvi - The Pregnancy Handbook for Indian Moms: A Doctors Answers to All Your Questions

Lets start at the very beginning! Before you conceive, you must plan for it. You must prepare your body, your mind and your finances, and visit a doctor. All couples planning to have a baby have some questions and doubts. Here are my answers to the most common of your questions.

How long will it take us to have a baby?

Modern couples are very savvy when it comes to planning a pregnancy. Sometimes a little too savvy! Some think their jobs are likely to be a little less stressful after June and plan the pregnancy for July; others decide to wait till the monsoons end in September, or till after the festival season ends in November. If only Mother Nature were so obliging. Remember: it takes anywhere from a few months to up to a year for a couple to conceive and sometimes even a little longer. If the couple have been using contraception, it takes some time for fertility to be restored. With most common methods of contraception such as condoms, oral contraceptive pills or a copper-T, fertility is restored soon after the method is discontinued. However, if a long-acting depot preparation such as a contraceptive injection has been used then it may take longer.

Do we need to see a doctor?

Most of you already know the importance of pre-conceptional counselling. Pre-conceptional counselling is usually the first visit to the health-care giver for both a good chat as well as a physical examination. The doctor discusses the couples medical history to confirm if both parents, especially the mother-to-be, are in good health. During the initial conversation, the doctor will inquire about the menstrual history of the woman. If the couple have already had a child/children or miscarriages, the doctor will review this history. After the interview, the woman will be given a general and gynaecological health check-up.

Here are some tests youll need to do:

• Blood tests to confirm that the mother-to-bes systems are up and running
• A routine urine test
• An ultrasonography
• Rubella IgG status. If the woman tests negative, she will need vaccination.
• Women with abnormal sugars (diabetes) are at greater risk of giving birth to a baby with a cardiac or a neural-tube defectspina bifidaand defects of the brain. Thus, it is important to check the mother-to-bes sugar status and correct any abnormality before attempting a pregnancy.

Breathlessness and the tendency to get easily fatigued are commonly seen in women with anaemia (less oxygen-carrying haemoglobin in the red blood cells). Palpitations will also alert the physician to check for low haemoglobin or a heart problem. Deficiency of the thyroid-stimulating hormone (TSH) is more common in women than men and can lead to tiredness, excessive weight gain and an inability to tolerate cold.

Keep in mind

The pelvic ultrasonogram can be a double-edged sword. While a normal ultrasonogram is reassuring, an abnormal finding, though often innocuous, can send couples into a tizzy. The commonest example is a fibroid. Fibroids are seen in many women and are not necessarily dangerous. They should be medically or surgically managed only if they are thought to pose a reasonable threat to conception and pregnancy.