Barb's Daily Dose

Pregnant and Worried About Swine Flu

I am getting a lot of calls and emails from pregnant women who are worried about the swine flu.  As most of us know, during pregnancy a woman’s immune system changes to allow her body to carry the baby who her body would normally not be so accepting of.

That’s why pregnant women are much more susceptible to colds, and the seasonal flu as well as H1N1 or swine flu.  It’s the same reason, we advise pregnant women not to eat raw fish and avoid soft cheeses, pregnant women are more susceptible to serious complications from viral and bacterial infections.

Back Pain in Pregnancy! Ouch, What to Do?

Lower Back Pain is All Too Common in Pregnancy.
Here Are a Few Tips That Might Help:

1. While sitting in a chair or in a car, try using a small pillow in the natural curve of your lower back. This can take some of the strain off the small muscles that line the spine.

2. Consider going to a prenatal exercise class. The more you strengthen the abdominal muscles in your core area, the less work your back muscles will do.

3. When you need to bend, try bending at your knees, not your waist. This way the large muscles of the upper thigh are doing the work.

Out of Breath

I’m in my third trimester and finding that I’m out of breath more easily – even if I’m not doing anything to expend energy! Is this just because the baby is getting larger…or should I be concerned?

This is a great question. It’s perfectly normal to feel out of breath in pregnancy. It can even begin as early as 20 weeks or the 5th month. This is because your blood volume increases to provide for the baby and placenta, which also means that your heart has to work much harder now.

Many women also find that normal activities like walking up stairs becomes harder especially in the 3rd trimester, as the baby and uterus crowd the lungs a little. The best way to increase stamina is to try and exercise a little, by walking or swimming. This will help your body also prepare for your baby’s delivery. Good luck.

Vitamin E & Pregnancy

A recent article in the British Journal of Obstetrics and Gynecology found that high intake of Vitamin E before conception and during pregnancy was associated with a higher likelihood of heart defects in babies. 

This association was found with both food and supplements containing Vitamin E.

The following foods contain Vitamin E:

• Wheat germ oil
• Some cereals, such as Total, Cheerios, Product 19
• Sunflower oil
• Sunflower seeds
• Safflower oil  
• Vitamin E supplements that contain more than the recommended daily dose 

When Heart Defects Occur

Since heart defects usually occur in the first 8 weeks of pregnancy, it's important for women to avoid high doses of Vitamin E from supplements both prior to conception and in the first 8 weeks.

Pregancy After 40

Is it Safe for a Woman to Conceive After 40?

This question comes up all the time.  Depending on the woman's circumstances, if she is healthy, and without other medical problems, then the answer is Absolutely YES, a woman can safely conceive after 40.

The Risks

We've all heard that the risks of delivering a baby with a genetic disorder are increased after 40, but it's important to keep these "risks" in perspective and understand what it might mean for an individual woman.  Even at 40, the risk of delivering a baby with a genetic disorder are still quite small.

A Nurse's Favorite Birth Plan

A Birth Plan That Works For Everyone   

Even if you've read every book on childbirth preparation, spent hours reading and scanning pregnancy websites and watched every episode of Deliver Me, the idea of actually giving birth to your own child, may be, well a little overwhelming....and scary.

Is your mom, sister or best friend a Labor & Delivery Nurse?  Or maybe you have a Doula Lined up?  Perhaps, you have the best Midwife or Doctor ready to answer every question and explain in detail how they make decisions when the unexpected happens...Yet still there may be a little feeling of apprehension as your due date approaches.  What to do?

Even though women have been giving birth since the beginning of time, absolutely anything can happen. Let me repeat that, anything can happen.  If you've been listening to your friends, family or perfect strangers tell their stories, you've probably heard quite a few variations on the same theme.  Each woman is unique as is her baby's birth. 

Everyone has the same goal, a healthy mom and a healthy baby. And though it’s a natural process, every woman’s experience is different. So what do you do to try to prepare?  Two words:  Birth Plan.

Why This Location Really Matters to Your Baby

Many times, my pregnant patients tell me that they never knew that there was so much to worry about until they became pregnant and started reading.

It's so true!  Before pregnancy, who knew that there were so many tests to decide on, or that during an ultrasound, the doctor would need to look at the position of the placenta. This is one aspect of pregnancy that people rarely mention, unless there's a problem.

Location, Location, Location

"I just had an ultrasound, and my doctor told me that I have a low-lying placenta. He didn't say much else, what does this mean?  I'm 18 weeks pregnant."

Whooping Cough Vaccine

 

Amazingly enough, Whooping cough is making a comeback. What's up with that?

Well, according to the CDC, with the recent surge of children who are not getting vaccinated, because of fears of side effects, pertussis, or whooping cough is becoming more of an issue.  

8 Premature Octuplets

I've been kind of staggered by the news of the Octuplets. You see, I used to work in a Pediatric Intensive Care Unit. Sometimes I had to "float" over to the NICU and care for the teeny, tiny preemies on ventilators, attached to so many tubes, it was hard to find them underneath. If those little survived their prematurity, gained enough weight, were able to eat on their own, breathe on their own, they could go home.

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Photo courtesy of Dr. Jim Byrne, Valley Medical Center

This is a growing preemie who's skin is a little thicker and who can breathe on their own.  The one at the end of this post, may be more difficult to view, because that baby has very thin skin, can't maintain their temperature, and can't breathe on their own.  I'm letting you know this, in case, you don't want to see it.

Epidurals & Back Pain

I recently received a questions about whether women with back pain can have epidurals.

Just like Gold-i-locks and the 3 bears, the key with epidurals are these: 

• It shouldn't be given too early because it might slow things down
• Not used too late because the baby will be born shortly.   

Epidurals are Just Right, when used with a mom in active labor.  This means that she has regular, strong contractions and her cervix is dilated to at least 2-3 centimeters.

They are safe

Thankfully epidurals are safe and don't cause back trouble or other complications. Whew! When you find out how anesthesiologists and nurse anesthetists provide pain relief to moms in labor using epidurals, it can seem scary, yet these are considered a very safe way for moms to manage the pain of contractions. 

Most moms feel a little pain at the time of insertion, and may notice it a for few days after delivery.  

Back Pain

For women with a history of back pain, scoliosis or injury, it's a good idea to talk to the anesthesiologist or nurse anesthetist before your due date.  Call the number for labor and delivery and ask to speak to the person on call and share your concerns. Then when you arrive at the hospital, ask to talk to the person who will be providing your care to discuss your circumstances.