Not sure if this has been a topic before apologize if it has but…
What are the common dos and donts during pregnancy - especially the first and second trimesters?
For Example…
-When I was in my first trimester, I was told I shouldnt have anything with ginger in it
-No excercise or bending
-No intercourse the first month (?!)
-Now that I am in my second trimester, my doctor is very disappointed in my weight gain and has told me I’m probably going to get diabetes and she’ll give me information regarding it in week 25 of my pregnancy.
I feel like if I hadnt listened to my mom and continued with my normal excercise regimen since I am not at all super thin to begin with I wouldnt be in this position now…
Thoughts? Please clarify the myths vs facts of what to do and what not to do!
I am 37 weeks pregnant. I have and still mopping my huge double story house. Infact doing everything from laundry to cleaning bathrooms; giving shower to my 4 years old.
I dnt see any thing you cant do. Infact I m told by drs that those lady who used to scrubb floors while sitting used to have very less chance of getting c section.
I heard in pak you should use stairs in pregnancy.
Unless dr advices you against something or you r not comfortable abt something, you can do everything.
About diabetes, I was at high risk and did two tests at week 16 and 24 bt dnt have it. You can not control.
My aunty did bt it went away straight after delivery. It is big issue if you get it especially controlling food intake and exercise.
Just out of curiosity, where do you live?
I mean all your examples sound pretty ridiculous.
No exercise? You should actually be doing pregnancy safe exercises throughout your pregnancy unless your doctor has told you not to for whatever reasons.
I’ve never heard that you can’t have intercourse during the first month The ginger bit makes me laugh .. don’t know how that even makes sense.
Just cause you gained a lot of weight does.not mean you will “probably” get diabetes … I’m shocked your doctor would even tell you that! Did you have the test to confirm it?
My advice to first time moms to be is:
-Do light exercises throughout your pregnancy, it’s gonna help you SO much in that last month of pregnancy.
-Don’t try to get everything done before baby arrives, enjoy this time with your husband instead. You can get baby things after baby is born too.
-Educate yourself!!! Don’t believe everything your hear from aunties or even moms and grandmoms. Do your research!! Google is your best friend in this case. Babycenter.com is an awesome website. Know what’s going on with your body, how your baby is developing, what to expect once baby is here!!!
Read read read!
even if u cannot do exercise, u need to walk as much as possible to keep your weight gain healthy. if you run your own household there should be enough for u to do without exerting yourself or reaching out towards a gym.
for god’s sake don’t have sugary stuff. being pregnant is NOT a license to eat whatever you please. u require only 300 extra calories a day and that is like a small bowl of fruit yogurt extra. NOTHING more.
if you were already healthy to begin with, you NEED to be extra careful. you aren’t even in second trimester yet, and you will pack on pounds like MAD in the last trimester and especially in the LAST MONTH. so DON’T eat silly stuff right now. just DON’T.
Have your iron and folic acid. drink LOTS of water and make sure to drink lots of milk. have skim milk as a snack.
My examples were real life examples of what I was told by my doctor/aunts/mother - if they sound ridiculous - that is the reason why i’m posting on here to get suggestions
A little history on my weight gain/being out of shape before pregnancy is that in my first month of being pregnant, I broke my toe and was forced to be on bed rest for 3 months. I also have PCOS and my mom was over protective and told me not to move a muscle…now i’m totally out of shape and I want to know if things like a treadmill and regular walking are normal now that I am in month five and can barely walk without catching my breath.
another couple of specific questions:
is it normal for an OBGYN to perform a vaginal exam after you are pregnant?
being told I will eventually be diabetic was extremely disheartening. if I start working out now, do I have a chance of regaining health and having a better pregnancy …my feet swell, my back hurts and I am always losing breath…is it too late?
How can someone tell you you’ll be diabetic without doing the tests? Everything else sounds like not genuine advice. You should exercise in pregnancy, just don’t do anything too drastic. Eat healthy but don’t eat for two
That’s really weird bc ginger is usually encouraged to help with nausea.
May be typical advice amongst desi elders. I’m not sure. I do think you can continue mostly normal, but just take more care and be very aware of any signs that you are pushing your limits. With your first you may be able to avoid bending and lifting, but once you have more kids, all you can do is try to limit it.
The others are to avoid soft cheeses that may contain listeria, smoked sandwich meats and bologna type deli meats, etc.
mizzm, early in the pregnancy you may have a vaginal u/s. and if you haven’t had a recent pap smear and obgyn check up, it is very possible you will have one when you see the ob early in your pregnancy.
exercise may be ok, but don’t do anything drastic out of concern for weight gain. just start with daily walks and things like that. pay close attention to how your body responds. be very gradual.
if you do develop gestational diabetes, there are ways to control it with a strict diet. don’t worry. the testing and such is all standard part of the process. you can ask the doc if you need to take metformin, but it is unlikely that they’ll start a new medicine now.
Just echoing everyone here—def remain active. Obviously this isn’t the time to start a high impact exercise program if you weren’t doing it before, but continue to do what you were doing or just walk as much as possible.
Ginger is actually encouraged since some think it helps with morning sickness.
Alot of weight gain is often associated with gestational diabetes, but there’s no way of knowing without the oral glucose tolerance test. I’m sure your doc already did a blood glucose on you early in your pregnancy along with other labs. You can cross that bridge when (hopefully not!) you come to it–usually diet/ exercise and/or insulin are utilized, although I’ve heard of some OB’s prescribing oral medications also.
At the end of the day, don’t focus on the exact number on the weight scale too much, especially if it’s causing undue stress. Eat healthy and stay active.
Intercourse is perfectly safe throughout pregnancy unless you’ve been specifically warned not to–e.g. placenta previa, cervical incompetence, etc–and sounds like you don’t have any of those problems, thankfully
I can only say, pregnancy is NOT a disease. Most people in Pakistan are on two extremes, from what I’ve seen. Either there are those who think they are not to move s limb or else something scary will happen…or there are those who stress themselves beyond imagination. The later usually belong to lower socio economic group who have no choice but to keep working without a proper intake of healthy food … Forget the healthy bit, they go on without proper food.
However there are some genuine cases, where people need to be extra careful. I for one, never had any problem, alhamdulillah and kept ding everything as I normally do… But I personally know a few ladies who were at serious risks and could not afford to do anything normal.
If you don’t have any serious risks, there’s no harm in carrying out your routine as normal, in my humble opinion.
Ps… Ginger tea has been my best friend to combat nausea … It does help to some degree.
Thanks everyone for the helpful comments and suggestions.
One of my main concerns was excercise but now that you guys have cleared it up, I’m getting back on the treadmill
The other thing that irks me is a doctor that just says okay well you’ll have diabetes by week 25 …without any solid evidence to back it up. I’ll be on the hunt for a new obg starting today.
mizzm, it’s true, he shouldn’t have stated it with such certainty. however, people with pcos, especially those that gain weight quickly during pregnancy, have a high risk of GD.
The ginger bit makes me laugh .. don’t know how that even makes sense.