Are you experiencing problems with your periods because of hormonal imbalance? This condition, known as PCOD and PCOS, or polycystic ovary syndrome, may make it difficult for you to get pregnant, and unwanted changes in your appearance are also indicated. In most cases, women with PCOD develop small cysts in their ovaries. These cysts may not be harmful or cancerous, but they cause hormone imbalance in your body.

Causes

The specific causes of PCOD are yet to be determined. In PCOS patients, the ovaries produce excess androgens or male sex hormones, which result in an imbalance in ovulation, acne breakout and development of excess body hair. Your body faces problems using insulin and develops insulin resistance. Genetics are considered to be a key factor that determines a woman s chance of getting PCOD.

Symptoms

The symptoms of PCOD are mild in the beginning. The most common symptoms are as follows:

Weight and difficulty in weight loss.

Acne breakout.

Development of excess hair on the face and body, which is not a feminine feature. Thicker and darker facial hair and unusually excessive hair on the belly, chest and back are also indicated in some women.

Thinning of hair on the scalp.

Irregularity with menstrual periods. Commonly, women with PCOD experience less than 9 periods during a year. Some women may have no periods at all, while others experience heavy, abnormal bleeding.

Fertility problems are likely in women with PCOD.

Depression.

Treatment

The treatment of PCOD aims at relieving the symptoms and preventing long-term health problems associated with the condition. PCOD can be treated and managed by using the following measures:

You should keep fit and undertake regular exercise and work out. Walking is an ideal exercise which you can opt for.

You should eat heart healthy food which includes vegetables, nuts, fruits, whole grains and beans. Avoid foods which contain saturated fats and these include fried food, meat and cheese.

Losing weight is beneficial for your health if you have PCOD. Losing even a small amount of weight will help in balancing your hormones and regulating your menstrual cycle.

Quit smoking as smoking increases the levels of androgen in your body.

Birth control pills are also prescribed for reducing your symptoms, and fertility medicines are prescribed in case of infertility issues because of PCOD.

It is recommended for you to consult a gynaecologist on experiencing any symptom of PCOD. This will enable early diagnosis so that you can start with the treatment measures before the condition worsens.

PCOD - Causes, Symptoms and Treatment

Top 5 signs you're ready to have a baby

Most couples dream of holding their first-born in their arms. But there are others who also dread the prospect of taking such a responsibility. Some are not sure and some cannot wait. It's important to know the fact that life certainly changes forever the moment a small bundle of joy enters your life. And there are many factors involved.

If you wish to know if you and your partner are ready to have a baby, check for these points:

1. You're excited

The first sign that you need to look out for, and which points out that you're ready to start a family of your own is you're eager and excited to welcome the newest addition. Reading baby books and blogs, thinking of ideas on how to decorate the room for your baby, or keeping yourself up-to-date on the latest parenting news may be certain signs that indicate your eagerness to have a baby of your own.

2. You're financially ready

Another indication that you may be ready to welcome a baby in your family is when you have every financial aspect sorted out, including investments and savings. The ideal financial plan should be such that you're able to add to your savings as well as build up a retirement corpus while still being able to sustain the lifestyle that you and your partner would like. Most importantly, sticking to the financial plan is as important as coming up with one.

3. You can empathise

A quality that every would-be parent needs to have is empathy. The ability to put yourself in another person's shoes is vital before you can bring another human being into the world. You and your partner may have different empathy levels, which you need to know beforehand as parenting also involves empathising with your child's pain fears, needs, and worries and so on. 

4. You're ready to make a professional sacrifice

Having a baby also calls for making a professional sacrifice as looking after a baby is not an easy task. You or your partner may have to take a long break from work. It's, therefore, vital to see where you and your partner stand in your careers.

5. You have support

Having experienced people around you or people you can trust can help ease the days that usually follow on the arrival of this newest visitor. Your support could be in the form of your parents or in-laws who can look after your child while you go for work or take rest. Other support systems that you can consider are day care. 

Above all, you need to be the best version of yourself before taking on this additional responsibility.

If you would like to consult with me privately, please click on 'consult'.

Related Tip: Title: 4 Worst Foods Ever To Feed Your Baby! #ParentingBlunders

Assessment for Young Couples: Top 5 Signs You're Ready to Have a Baby

Pregnancy brings with it a slew of changes in the physiological parameters of women. Women are susceptible to a number of complications, including respiratory complications during this stage. An abnormal chest X-ray or a complaint regarding some kind of respiratory trouble guides doctors to explore the possibility of pregnancy leading to respiratory complications.

Respiratory Complications During Pregnancy

Let us explore the likely respiratory complications during pregnancy. 

Infectious Pneumonia
Though studies do not indicate any increase in risk of pneumococcal infection during pregnancy, it has been observed that complications arising out of pneumonia are increased during this time. Anemic or asthmatic women are more susceptible to this infection, and the risk of complications is also more common in such women. It entails risk for both the mother and the child. While the child can be born preterm or low in weight, the mother can even suffer respiratory failure.

Coccidioidomycosis
It is a kind of fungal infection that affects the respiratory system, especially in the last trimester of pregnancy. It is a respiratory tract infection that is self- limiting in nature. However, owing to reduced immunity during pregnancy, this fungal infection may turn out to be severe. It may cause a variety of complications, including pneumonia, fever, chest pain, difficulty in breathing, etc.

However, timely diagnosis and administration of antifungal therapy has reduced maternal mortality to a large extent.

Pulmonary Embolism
There is a risk of formation of blood clots during pregnancy due to hypercoagulability of blood during this stage. This leads to an enhanced risk of embolic pneumonia, where blood clots may block an artery in the lungs. It is an emergency condition where patients usually have difficulty breathing, chest pain, cough, etc.

Asthma
Pregnancy is not a risk factor for asthma, but asthma during pregnancy may exacerbate the risk of complications such as premature birth, restricted growth, preeclampsia, etc.

Tips to Avoid

These and other respiratory complications during pregnancy, if any, increase the risk of complications for the mother as well as the fetus. However, there are ways that pregnant women can adopt to get over these problems and give birth to a healthy baby.

Avoid Crowded Place in Pregnancy: Pregnancy enhances the risk of Pneumonia, and Pneumonia is mostly a community acquired. Pregnant women can try to avoid Pneumonia by avoiding going to crowded places.
Eat Immune Boosting Food: Coccidioidomycosis is a fungal infection that is mostly diagnosed during the third trimester. However, it is usually a self-limiting infection. Along with avoiding going to crowded places, she also needs to take immune-boosting food such as citrus fruits, green vegetables, etc.
Walk Regularly: Pulmonary Embolism is the result of being immobile for a long time. This happens during pregnancy and this is what makes pregnant women susceptible to the problem. One can tide over the problem by taking regular strolls at home or outside and doing regular chores.
Consult with Gynecologist in Case of Asthma: If she is suffering from asthma, she must discuss it with the gynecologist. Most asthma medications are safe to be taken during pregnancy.
Take Care of Infant Breath: Pregnant women should regularly visit gynecologists for checkups. They should also take a balanced diet and stay happy for the healthy life of the child.

Respiratory Complications During Pregnancy - Tips To Avoid Them!

One's child birth is a joyous and emotional time. After nine long months of pregnancy, one greets the arrival of baby with great anticipation. It is absolutely normal that the time post delivery marks a drastic change in sexual desire. While both women and menexpect changes in their sex life immediately after the birth of a child, but as time passes by, it is normal for both partners to wonder when things will ever return to normal. It is a fairly common condition to have a decreased sex drive after giving birth and this feeling can last for months which can be attributed to many factors. Refer to the following tips to get your drive back.

 Consult your gynaecologist: one should take gynaecologist into confidence to discuss how one's libido has changed after child birth, who will in turn help to rule out any physical issues if any. 
 Emotional &amp; physical fatigue: nursing a new born is no joke and it drains you physically. In a post delivery scenario, ones libido has to fight with overwhelming emotional as well as physical fatigue that results from nursing of a new born. One can share the night-time feeding with one's partner and try to catch up on the sleep with day time nap. One simply cannot look forward to sex if one is deprived of sleep.
 Release the pressure and guilt: the body is still recovering and one may get a feel that one is not attractive as before, which makes a dramatic impact on body image. Communicate honestly with your partner about the lack of drive. It is likely that he will also be experiencing similar issues and conflicting emotions. Giving reassurance that one is working on increasing the libido can help ease the pressure on both the individuals.
 Prepare for sex: do anything to relax and get into the mood before hitting the bed. It can be as simple as a hot shower or a refreshing drink, but it is important to help your body transition from mother to lover.
 Use a lubricant: it is hard to look forward to something that is painful. Breastfeeding plays a significant role in the decrease in libido. Oestrogen is an important hormone that decreases with breastfeeding which affects vaginal tissues. The most common vaginal side effects of decreased oestrogen are dryness hence it's important to use lubricants to minimize the discomfort of vaginal dryness and make sex more enjoyable.

Libido is a complicated and there will be times one has to do even if one is not in the mood. Sometimes it takes a little nudge to get the libido back into gear. Once one gets over the hurdle of not being in the mood, one may just realise that one is enjoying the act. The good news is that this decrease in libido is temporary. With time and patience, one can rebuild a satisfying sexual relationship with their partner.

Tips on How to Get Back The Female Sex Drive After Giving Birth

Miscarriage basically refers to the phenomenon, when a developing embryo or the foetus in a pregnant woman dies a natural death, before it can manage to survive on its own. The common signs of miscarriage are vaginal bleeding accompanied with pain. It leads to depression, anger and guilt. The reasons for miscarriage are manyincluding use of tobacco, smoking, diabetes, extreme obesity, drug or alcoholic addiction. Here are some important signs that indicate you might be miscarrying:

 Bleeding: recurrence of bleeding, which keeps on starting and stopping indicates the downfall of your hormonal balance. You must get your pregnancy hormone levels checked. Very intense bleeding, which accounts for soaking your pad within an hour is an indication of the beginning of a miscarriage. However, bleeding is a common factor in normal pregnancy as well.
 Cramps: severe cramps in the vaginal region, accompanied by very heavy breathing and suffocation are other signs that you might be headed for a miscarriage. Sometimes, bleeding occurs along with the cramping.
 Disappearance of pregnancy symptoms: if you are pregnant, but the signs and symptoms of pregnancy start disappearing, a miscarriage may be indicated. However, it might not be the first major signal. For normal pregnant women, the signs of pregnancy do not appear for many days. You may not feel nauseated or your breasts do not get sore. For ten to fourteen weeks, this phenomenon is a normal one. However, in case it continues for a more prolonged duration, it might be an early sign of miscarriage.
 Pregnancy test results vary between positive and negative: results of a pregnancy test done very early may vary between positive and negative. This is completely normal. In case of obtaining the same results when you are already over two weeks pregnant, it may indicate a miscarriage. You might be having an ectopic pregnancy. Spotting is also noticed in the vaginal region. If you had a pregnancy test showing positive results, but the results come negative after re-taking the test a few weeks later, it is high time for you to consult a gynaecologist. You have to deal with ectopic pregnancy before choosing a surgical path. Varying results signify that something is wrong. The urine produced by the body is less concentrated.

A case of miscarriage is very painful for the pregnant woman as well as her family. You should keep healthy, and avoid all bad habits to keep away from miscarriage.

5 Signs That You Might Be Miscarrying

After those nine months, the long waiting period gets over and the most exciting transition from a mommy-to-be, to a mommy finally begins. But then, things are not always as smooth as we expect, especially if you undergo a C-section to deliver your baby. It is indeed an overwhelming experience to hold your little one in your arms but you need to understand that a C-section surgery is a major abdominal surgery and you need to take precautions to recover from the surgery. The recovery period for the C-section delivery is much higher than the recovery period for the normal delivery.

Let us look at some ways for speedy recovery from C-section delivery:

Relax: Taking proper rest will give your body the energy to recover from the surgery that you had undergone. Healing of the scar takes time and your post-partum body requires rest. But, taking proper rest is not as easy as it sounds when you have a new born baby to take care of, who needs a lot of attention and care. From feeding your baby at regular intervals to changing their nappies/diapers and making them sleep, all of it requires you to be on your toes. Make sure you always take some time out to rest and do not hesitate to take help from your spouse and family.
Don t put strain your body: Your body has just given birth to a baby and has undergone a major surgery; therefore, it is important that you give it time to heal. You should try not to get up too often, do not lift anything heavier than your baby, avoid sex until six weeks from the birth of your baby, hold your abdomen when you have to sneeze or cough to protect the incision site. Don t start working out without your doctors  green signal and don t drive and take stairs, which might put a strain on your body.
Take a good diet: Take plenty of healthy and nutritious food as your body still requires such a diet. Breastfeeding mothers need to understand that the sole source of nutrition for your baby is you. Include different vegetables and variety of healthy food to pass on nutrition to your little one. Take plenty of fluids, especially water as the fluid intake is necessary to increase breast milk supply. Including fibre rich diet will keep you away from issues, such as constipation, which is one of the most common issues that women face after having a baby.
Medicines: Your doctor may prescribe you the medicines that you can take to reduce the pain and recover faster. The medicines prescribed would vary if you are breastfeeding and if you are not breastfeeding your baby, so taking up such issues become even more important for you and your baby.
Take care of the Incision: Take proper care of the incision by keeping the wound clean and undisturbed for a faster recovery.
Don t compare your recovery to someone else s because the speed of recovery depends from person to person. Motherhood is an exciting phase of your life, so take care of yourself to have a speedy recovery and enjoy every moment of it.  Make memories and stay happy!

Had a C-Section - 5 Tips to Help You Recover from it

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