Motherhood and prenatal care
By Naila Parveen
Allah knows what every female carries [in her womb], and what the wombs reduce and what they increase, and everything is by [precise] measure with Him. QURAN
Carrying a baby in womb is the most amazing experience in any women’s life. Women is the blessed creature chosen to bring another creature in the world. Pregnancy has three trimester, I am not a gynecologist but going through the experience makes a women doctor of her own. Everyone knows the reality but I came across very few who understand the pain of pregnant women. A pregnant women goes through various changes not only physically but emotionally. The variation in the hormonal changes affects her life deeply. I find it a blessing and the most beautiful moments of my life but I found many who just want to get out of it as soon as possible. The question is why she doesn’t enjoy this journey what are the causes that doesn’t let her fully enjoy it.
I consider myself among the luckiest one who has fully enjoyed and also received the maximum support and protocols from the surroundings particularly the partner which basically makes the journey comforting and easy. If a woman has a caring partner she can smoothly go through the painful moments of her pregnancy. Along with the care and love a pregnant woman needs the right nutrition which plays a vital role in the growth of the baby inside and her own health. The right food at the right time helps reduce the hormonal misbalances that is always on the peak during pregnancy. I know the food cravings are also high but the intake of unhealthy food sometimes put both lives at risk.
A healthy diet in pregnancy has been demonstrated to be one of the most important factors that promotes optimal maternal and neonatal health outcomes (Ramakrishnan, Grant, Goldenberg, Zongrone, & Martorell, 2012).
The most important thing for a pregnant is regular consultation of a gynecologist. The timely visit to the doctor can reduce the pregnancy risks. Lack of awareness and basic health facilities could result in loss of baby or the mother’s own life. Family has an important role to play, a better family environment results in a healthy newborn and mothers health. Never forget that stress not only effects the mother, it also effects the baby inside, it has long-term effect on the baby after its birth. The role of father is very important during this phase, now the responsibility is doubled for the husband.
Pregnancy is the foundation of making a family, now it is up to the partners to make a healthy and beautiful family. A healthy pregnancy means a healthy baby. The child personality depends on the normal and happy pregnancy. If the women pass the whole 9 months in stress that is surely going to effect the baby for long term.
“Children make you want to start life over.” —Muhammad Ali
Now a days planning a baby itself is a long process. Every couple new or old needs to look into the financial stability to plan a baby. This is 21st century consequently things have changed drastically so is the decision making, because it is not just to bring a soul but a great future responsibility along which demands a good education, health and other life necessities. Partner’s awareness about pre and post conception requirements and challenges as well as education needs from the very early age are critically important. Institutions like Rupani Foundation, a nonprofit organization working in Pakistan, are working on Informed Parents which is a comprehensive program to promote holistic early childhood education that begins from conception to 3 years. I will suggest the pregnant women or the couples who are planning for a family to participate in their prenatal education session that is held on regular basis particularly in Gilgit-Baltistan.
Only taking the right food, precautionary measure and due care from family is not enough for the development of a baby. Another most important thing during pregnancy is the routine and daily activities of the pregnant woman. There are various physical and mental activities need to be performed which has a direct impact on the fetus. Avoiding house chores and other physical activities has adverse impact that invites many other diseases like depression, gestational weight gain diabetes, blood pressure, cholesterol and other heart disease, unless advised by the doctor.
“Physical activity is safe for both mother and fetus and is associated with the prevention of excess weight gain and its related conditions (Davenport et al., 2018; Ruchat et al., 2018).
There are various activities which can help in the brain development of the child such as puzzle games, numerical games, book reading, and chess and so on.
Studies have also reported enhanced cognitive functioning in the offspring of mothers who exercised throughout pregnancy. Continuing regular exercise throughout pregnancy was shown to improve early motor skills in 1 year olds (Clapp, 1998) and improve performance on general intelligence and oral language skills at 5 years of age (Clapp, 1996)
I could not cover this very complex yet important topic in few lines but it aimed to share my experience for awareness to the pregnant women, their families and the spouse in order to have a healthy 9 months and a healthy child. This is a vast topic and also need expert opinions. All the information provided here is based on personal experience and some basic literature. I have tried to provide the honest advice and information.
Good luck to the couples who are successful in conceiving. Praying for the couples struggling in conceiving, never lose hope trust Allah and medical has made it possible to deal with any type of medical issue related to infertility.
“O Allah (SwT)! Bless me with a child, and make him pious. Let there not be in his creation any excess or any defect, and give him a good destiny.” Al Quran
