How To Have A Healthy And Comfortable Pregnancy ⋆ Beverly Hills Magazine

Pregnancy is said to be the most wonderful time in a woman’s life. You are carrying around a tiny being in your body, waiting for it to develop, grow, and enter into the world. While there will always be those women who just seem to be a natural when it comes to pregnancy, for many others, pregnancy is not a time of ease and carefree moments. You may be going through some rather strong physical symptoms of pregnancy that interfere with your everyday life, and there are the stress and worry that can start to build as the baby’s due date draws closer.

Here we’ll take a look at a number of tips that can make a huge difference where the health of you and your baby are concerned, as well as how comfortable you are during the pregnancy. While much of pregnancy is out of your control, there are things that you can do that can help you feel a whole lot better.

Take Your Vitamins

When it comes to giving your baby all the vitamins, minerals, and nutrients it needs to develop and grow strong, it can be hard to get them all in if you are relying just on food. This is especially true if you are suffering from nausea and are having a hard time keeping much of anything down, or you might be a vegan or vegetarian, have food intolerances, etc., that prevent you from eating a wide range of foods. Supplementing your diet with high-quality vitamins meant for pregnancy will fill up the holes that food alone can’t fill.

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Take, for example, the Wellness Essentials Pregnancy vitamin by Metagenics, which is a dietary supplement created for women to use from preconception to the nursing stage. You can purchase them here through Blue Sky Vitamin. The supplement features folate, omega-3 fatty acids, selenium, zinc, magnesium, calcium, copper, and more. These all work together to help support a healthy pregnancy, fetal heart health, fetal brain health, and it helps the mom-to-be where muscle relaxation and leg cramping are concerned.

While many women wait until they are pregnant to start taking specifically formulated vitamins, prenatal vitamins are actually incredibly important to take before you even conceive. Once you start having the conversation of wanting to try for a baby, this is a good time to start with the vitamins.

Cut Out Cigarettes and Alcohol

While this one probably goes without saying, cigarettes and alcohol are both incredibly dangerous to consume/use during pregnancy. Every single thing you take into your body your baby will receive too. Both cigarettes and alcohol can affect the development of the baby when it comes to their organs and brain. It’s also important to note that second-hand smoke can be just as damaging, so not only should you cut out the cigarettes but you don’t want to expose yourself, and your baby, to second-hand smoke either.

Delegate Chores to Others in the Household

As your pregnancy progresses and the baby gets bigger and heavier, your movement can start to become a lot more difficult and uncomfortable. That means that certain chores around the house will be difficult at best, and dangerous at worst.

You want to leave all the heavy lifting to other members of the household, steer clear of climbing ladders and step stools, avoid any harsh chemicals in cleaning products, don’t scoop cat litter if you happen to own a cat, and make sure you are wearing gloves when using organic and “safe” cleaning products.

Stay Active with Pregnancy Safe Exercises

For many women pregnancy can affect their ability to sleep well, it can alter their mood, make them feel stressed out, and have their weight feel like it is totally out of control. This is where pregnancy-safe exercise can really help. The goal of exercise during pregnancy should be to get your blood flowing, and your endorphins going. With that said, you don’t want to over-do it so you always need to listen to what your body is telling you.

As for what kind of exercises is best, typically things such as walking, swimming, walking, and Pilates are all safe to do while pregnant. If you have any questions at all about the exercises that you can be doing and how much you should do, just ask your doctor. Ideally, you want to fit in 30 minutes of exercise on a daily basis in order to feel your best.

Be Extra Wary of the Sun

While it’s important to wear sunscreen anytime you are outdoors, when you are pregnant your skin is actually more sensitive to the sun. What this means is that you want to be sure you are applying at least SPF30 each and every time you plan on being in the sun. A sun hat and sunglasses can also help.

Attend a Childbirth Class

For many women, a big source of stress and anxiety is the birth of their child – meaning the process of labor and delivery. If it’s your first child, you don’t know what to expect, and this can add to your level of anxiety and worry. To help calm these worries it can be very helpful to enroll in a childbirth class. You’ll learn about what happens during labor and delivery, you can ask questions, and you will start to feel more mentally prepared for the experience.

After you attend the class you’ll also be able to write out a birth plan of how you would like to see things go. Now keep in mind that a birth plan needs to be flexible as sometimes labor doesn’t go as you expected or planned.

Typically, a birth plan looks at things such as who you want in the room during delivery, if you want a doula, whether you want any medication for the pain, procedures you want to try to avoid, and how you will deal with complications if they happen.

Be Kind to Your Feet

One thing that many women complain of during pregnancy is that their feet start to swell and become very sore. This will be more pronounced if you stand for long periods of time. So rather than forcing your feet into your regular shoes, invest in a new pair that gives you more room, provides support, and are easy to slip on and off. Your feet will be incredibly grateful for this small change.

Make Some Changes in Bed Set-Up

Sleep is essential during pregnancy but it isn’t always easy to achieve. As the pregnancy progresses and you grow in size, suddenly it can be very difficult to find that comfortable position to sleep in. This is when some adjustments can be handy. Things such as a body support pillow, cool lightweight sheets that allow your body to breathe, a fan to help circulate the air, and comfortable loose pajamas can all help.