Pregnancy is one of the most important period in a woman s life. This is a time when she should indulge in the best of everything when it comes to diet, rest and exercise, depending on the recommendations of the doctor. As the pregnancy progresses, there are many myths and facts that take over. These usually reach a crescendo by the time the pregnancy reaches the third trimester. Let us find out ways and tips, which you can use to care for your baby and yourself during the third trimester of your pregnancy.

Travel: This an often debated aspect that one has to consider, especially during the third trimester of one s pregnancy. While many people say that it is not appropriate to travel during the third trimester, this really depends on the state of your health during this time. If you are suffering from problems like blood clot formation, then you may want to avoid travel as this can lead to blood clots due to long hours spent sitting in a flight or a train. Travel during the third trimester must also be avoided so as to avoid undue exposure to infections when you use public restrooms. This should be avoided, especially if you have fallen prey to infections in the beginning of the pregnancy. Also, long travel by cars should be avoided. If you have to travel, then you must stop often to stretch your legs on a regular basis.
Movement of the Baby: One of the most important signs that shows you that your baby is thriving and is doing well is the movement of the fetus. This must be monitored and not ignored at all. It is important to keep in touch with your doctor regarding the number of movements that you should ideally feel during 24 hours. If you are not feeling anything close to that number, then you must have the same checked up by the doctor so that any complications may be unraveled on a timely basis.
Sleeping: How you sleep also affects the health of the baby. You need to avoid sleeping on your back during the third trimester, as this can lead to oxygen supply problems. The uterus tends to become heavy during this part of the pregnancy and it can come to rest on the feotus in case you sleep on your back. This lead to a reduction or lack of the blood and oxygen supply to the baby. You should ideally sleep on your side, with a pillow to keep your legs at a proper level and support your aching back as well. You should also try and sleep on your left side as this promotes better blood flow to the baby inside.

In Your Third Trimester? How Should You Take Care of Your Baby?

Giving birth is a life-changing event for every mother and it leaves an everlasting impression in your life. Every delivery is unique and you can just gain from the experience of others, but don t expect it to be the same. 
You will experience many changes in your body and will learn to take care of yourself and your growing baby as soon as you find out that you are pregnant. Pain is a part of labour that every woman has to undergo. It is the fear of labour pain that make many pregnant women opt for c-section. However there is no denying the fact that c-section is a major surgery and requires several days to recover.

Keep in mind the following tips to go in for a normal delivery:

Try to get prenatal education, which guides you about labour, birth and natural labour pain management techniques, such as breathing, self-hypnosis, relaxation and other coping mechanisms. You should check with your hospital too as most of them offer an evening or weekend course.
Pick a gynaecologist who has a history in delivering babies naturally.
Keep yourself physically active by doing mild exercises throughout pregnancy.
You should keep a calm environment in your labour room.
Don t gain too much weight as women who aren't overweight do not have much difficulty in delivering babies vaginally.
Opt for fewer rather as more tests, treatments and interventions during your pregnancy tend to interfere with normal birth. Whenever tests or procedures are recommended, you should ask about the need of undergoing such tests.
Continue with your walks as it helps in relieving the pain.
Go in for a water therapy. A shower, bathtub, birthing pool and hot compresses are other tools for easing pain and helping you relax. Spend as much time as possible in water.
Use various positions such as sitting on the toilet, kneeling, and squatting to ease vaginal delivery.
Massage/back rubs equally help in easing the pain.
You can also go in for Effleurage which is a light massage of the abdomen to ease your vaginal delivery.
Apply warm or cold compresses.
Avoid hearing negative stories about labour.
Eat a healthy balanced diet as the health and development of your baby depends on your nutrition.
Stay away from stress and anxiety. Read good books about parenting and be in the company of good lively people.
Use relaxation/breathing techniques to keep yourself calm.
Guided meditation and prayers undoubtedly will reinforce your faith in yourself to deliver a baby vaginally.
Have adequate sleep. Avoid drinking tea or coffee two hours before going to bed in order to have uninterrupted sleep.
Following these tips religiously can definitely increase your chances of having a normal delivery.

Normal Delivery - 18 Things You Must Always Remember!

Everyone has a different idea of what a mother and baby needs in the first few days after childbirth, but some essentials cannot be skipped out on. With that in mind, here are 10 childcare essential you may need right after the delivery. 

Nursing pillows: A baby may be small and seem light, but carrying them can put a strain on your arms. Since babies need to be fed very often in their first few weeks, a nursing pillow is a handy thing to have around. This allows you to comfortably support your baby while feeding them.
Breast pump: Though only a mother can produce breast milk, other people can feed this milk to the baby. A breast pump will allow you to express milk at a time convenient to you and store it in bottles to be fed to the baby as needed.
Bottles and nipples: A set of bottles and nipples are must haves for every baby. In their first few weeks, these bottles may be used to store mother s milk, but as the baby grows, these bottles can also be used to give the baby water.
Pacifiers: A baby who wants to constantly suck on the mother s nipples may be soothed with a pacifier. This can give the mother some time to rest.
Diapers: For over a year, diapers are a must for every baby. Most mothers choose disposable diapers for their convenience though others may choose cotton wash clothes as well. For the first few weeks, a baby tends to go through 10-12 diapers a day so stock up well.
Bedding: Whether you choose to share your bed with the infant or have him or her sleep in a crib, you will need at least two sets of crib sheets.
Baby bath tub: In their first few days, a baby needs to only be sponged down, but as they grow, regular baths become a necessity. A baby sized bathtub will make it easier to hold the baby while keeping them safe.
Sling: Carrying a baby in your arms all the time is not possible and hence it is a good idea to invest in a sling or front pack. This also keeps the baby close to your body and allows him or her to be soothed by your warmth and heartbeat.
Stroller: Once a child is three months old, he or she can be made to sit upright in a stroller. This gives the mother a little free time and puts less pressure on her back.
Car seat: A car seat if a must have for every baby. You could choose between rear facing car seats of convertible car seats.

10 Essentials You Need Right After Delivery

Delivering a baby is a painful, but also a pleasurable moment for the mother. But if the delivery is done through a C-section surgery or what is more commonly termed as Caesarean delivery, the pain is not felt during the actual delivery since the woman in under anaesthesia. However, the real challenge is to recover from the operation. The first week is particularly critical. Here are some things you can do to manage it with less discomfort:

The first few hours, naturally, you will be under close observation till you fully regain conscience if it was a general anaesthesia. If only the lower portion was numbed for the surgery, then also the feelings in the legs etc. will return within a few hours.
You will start breastfeeding the baby; wear comfortable clothes so that you can feed the baby without any discomfort. If this is the first experience, learn things that you need to know through books or from friends and relatives who would have had a C-section earlier.
You may feel more comfortable in a recliner than a flat bed. Most hospitals should be able to provide you one.
You might be better off with a heater pad of your own, since your back may be aching considerably and bringing down the pain is essential.
Wearing a binder around your tummy is another suggestion given by many women who have had a C-section delivery; besides helping with easing the pain, it also prevents the tummy from bulging, which you would want to avoid.
Follow the obstetrician s advice on having a shower and also on resuming some of your physical activities without hurting the stitches or the sutures.
By Day 3, you should be able to resume eating your normal diet; in many cases, it could be earlier than that.
Do take care to avoid lifting anything heavy. The heaviest object you can lift is your baby. Make your husband or any other person to help you through this period to avoid any complications later.
How about medicines? If you are already on any kind of medication and if you had stopped any of them due to the surgical procedure, check with the doctor and resume taking the medicines.
Keep a close watch on the food you eat, particularly since you will also be nursing your baby. Don t hesitate to consult the doctor on things you may be fond of, but have to avoid in order to protect the kid from being affected in any way.
Pregnancy and delivery are some of the happiest moments in any mother s life; so remain cheerful throughout and enjoy the moments. If the delivery has been done through C-section, some of these extra precautions are to be observed to make it easy for yourself to recover fast.

C-Section - Tips to Help You Recover From It

C-section or Caesarean section is a surgery performed to deliver a baby. The baby is taken out from the abdomen through an incision in the abdominal wall. This surgery is performed when there is some sort of physical difficulty in natural childbirth through the vagina. Other reasons for performing a C-section are when the mother is carrying more than one baby, or the health of the baby is in danger. It could also be because of an undesirable fetal position, or when the mother is physically unable to push the baby out of the uterus. 


Procedure followed in C- Section
The procedure is most often done when the mother is in her senses and awake. However, epidural or spinal anaesthesia is provided to numb the body from chest to the feet, before the surgery is performed.


An incision is made on the lower abdomen, above the pubic area. A cut is made through the uterus and amniotic sac. The baby is pulled out from this opening. The umbilical cord is cut and cleaned. The fluids are cleaned from the baby s mouth and nose. The infant s breathing rate, heart rate and other vitals are kept under observation. 


Recovery from a C-section can take several weeks. The stitch wounds need to heal, including the recovery of pelvic muscles. It is important to walk around and do some very light exercises to boost the healing procedure. Doctors may prescribe painkillers in some cases and advice on effective post-operative care. Though the surgical procedure is quite safe now, with the use of highly advanced technology, there are risks that cannot be entirely ignored. 


Risks associated with C-section
Infections: Any surgery has some risk of infection associated to it. In the case of a C-section, an infection can occur around the site of incision that may rapidly spread in the uterine wall and other internal pelvic organs.
Haemorrhage: Blood refuses to clot and dangerously high quantity of blood is lost in the process. In such a case, it requires immediate transfusion and intensive care.
Injuries: The mother or the baby, both have a risk of getting injured during the surgery. Although these are rare, but the infant may suffer nicks and cuts while being manually pulled out from the womb. Other organs of the mother located near the pelvis may suffer minor or major wounds.


After the C-section, the mother and child will be retained in the hospital for 2 to 3 days, under intense care and constant monitoring. It is important to exercise and take the medications as advised by the physician to prevent any complication. 

C- Section - Understanding the Procedure and Risks

The birth of your child is surely one of the most important and biggest days of your life. Most pregnant women want to avoid drugs and any kind of medical intervention during childbirth. Natural childbirth is a method of labor without the use of any kind of medical intervention. The birth process is purely natural.
The best way for carrying out a natural childbirth is by choosing child care hospitals. No medicines or drugs are involved, and you would have a natural birth of your baby.

What facilities are to be expected?
At the best child care hospitals, there are a lot of facilities provided during natural childbirth. These facilities are not available if the birth takes at any other location such as at home.

Here is what you should expect:

1. You can have childbirth without the use of any drugs or medicines, due to modern technology.

2. The presence of a midwife, obstetrician or gynaecologist who is there to deal with the pregnant patients, makes the process much easier and efficient.

3. Alternative medication free strategies can be carried out. These are: hydrotherapy, hypnosis, massage, relaxation techniques, meditation, breathing exercises, and pressure point massages. This kind of assistance is only available at the best child care hospitals.

4. The doctors keep away from the techniques such as routine iv, work incitement, episiotomy, ceaseless fetal observing, extraction of vacuum or cesarean segment, unless they are required at any stage.
What are the benefits of natural childbirth from child care hospitals?

Having a natural childbirth from the best childcare hospitals has got certain advantages and benefits, which are not available elsewhere.

They are:

1. Support of staff and doctors
You will get the steady support of doctors, groups, family individuals, or dear companions, who may give you support during delivery.

2. Pushing is effective
Epidurals offer satisfactory pain relief by and large as they increase the labor period in case of first time mothers and 16 minutes among mothers who have given birth previously. As you won't get a pain-relief drug, you won't lose any sensation.

3. Proper breastfeeding
You will have the capacity to breastfeed your newborn baby effectively without any inconvenience. The quick skin-to-skin contact enhances the early mother-baby bond. This will make breastfeeding less troublesome and also enhance your youngster's sleep, weight gain and mental health

4. Ability to move
Most mothers find it hard to move about during labor for coping with the pain. With the assistance available at the best child care hospitals, movement becomes possible.

These are solid reasons why you should choose the best childcare hospitals for natural childbirth.

Natural Childbirth: What to Expect From Best Child Care Hospitals?

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