Thinking of Becoming Pregnant? Learn the Importance of Having a Preconception Appointment

Many peop­le fail to rea­li­ze that the health habits you prac­ti­ce befo­re pregnan­cy has a signi­fi­cant effect on you and your child?s health after you beco­me pregnant. If you are thin­king about get­ting pregnant or have alrea­dy begun try­ing to con­cei­ve, then it is a good idea for you to start see­ing your doc­tor for pre­con­cep­ti­on healthcare. 

The idea behind this con­cept is to make sure you and your doc­tor are awa­re of any under­ly­ing con­di­ti­ons or risks that would make it dif­fi­cult for you to con­cei­ve or car­ry a full-term pregnan­cy. Once the­se issu­es have been unco­ve­r­ed, your phy­si­ci­an can help you to resol­ve them.

What is Invol­ved in a Pre­con­cep­ti­on Care Appointment?

During your appoint­ment, you will have a gre­at oppor­tu­ni­ty to ask your phy­si­ci­an about any con­cerns you may have about your health, con­cep­ti­on and pregnan­cy. The­se con­cerns can be rela­ted to your diet, the pas­sing on of gene­tic con­di­ti­ons, vit­amin sup­ple­ments, con­cep­ti­on aids and much more. 

Here is a brief run-down of the typi­cal things that hap­pen during your first pre­con­cep­ti­on appointment:

Repro­duc­ti­ve Exam and Dis­cus­sion: Your doc­tor will per­form a gyne­co­lo­gi­cal exam and Pap sme­ar to make sure you do not have any undia­gno­sed repro­duc­ti­ve con­di­ti­ons, infec­tions or STDs. They will also ask you about your mens­tru­al cycle, past pregnan­ci­es, pre­vious birth con­trol use and any past repro­duc­ti­ve con­di­ti­ons or STDs you?ve had previously.

Medi­cal Exam: Your doc­tor will take blood and uri­ne sam­ples to make sure you do not have any health pro­blems that would com­pli­ca­te or pre­vent pregnan­cy. The­se could inclu­de heart dise­a­se, dia­be­tes, poly­cystic ova­ri­an syn­dro­me, high blood pres­su­re and much more. Your doc­tor will recom­mend the pro­per tre­at­ment for resol­ving or get­ting the­se con­di­ti­ons under control.

Pre­scrip­ti­on Medi­ca­ti­on Dis­cus­sion: If you are taking any pre­scrip­ti­on medi­ca­ti­ons or sup­ple­ments, you doc­tor will need to know about all of them. If they deter­mi­ne that one or more of the medi­ca­ti­ons you take are not safe for pregnant women, then your medi­ca­ti­on may be chan­ged to some­thing more sui­ta­ble. In some cases, your doc­tor may deci­de to take you off all of your medi­ca­ti­ons completely.

Gene­tic Con­di­ti­ons: You and your part­ner can choo­se to be tes­ted for a varie­ty of poten­ti­al gene­tic con­di­ti­ons if you are con­cer­ned about pas­sing them on to your child. If eit­her of you are car­ri­ers for a gene­tic ill­ness, your doc­tor can tell you how to proceed.

Envi­ron­ment Con­cerns: Tell your doc­tor if you live or work in an envi­ron­ment that may be dan­ge­rous for a woman who is pregnant or try­ing to con­cei­ve. They will be able to advi­se you on ways to redu­ce or eli­mi­na­te the­se hazards from your environment.

Weight and Fit­ness: If you are under or over­weight, then your doc­tor will be able to sug­gest a solu­ti­on that will enab­le you to reach a healt­hy weight befo­re you con­cei­ve. It is important to reach a nor­mal weight befo­re get­ting pregnant becau­se you will be less likely to encoun­ter pro­blems such as gesta­tio­nal dia­be­tes or high blood pres­su­re during your pregnan­cy. You doc­tor will also advi­se you on sui­ta­ble fit­ness opti­ons for you during this time.

Die­ta­ry Con­cerns: Talk with your doc­tor about your cur­rent eating habits. They will be able to sug­gest cer­tain addi­ti­ons or restric­tions that you should make. You may also be advi­sed to take a vit­amin supplement.

Depen­ding on your par­ti­cu­lar situa­ti­on and sta­te of health, the­re may be other things that your doc­tor may inclu­de in your pre­con­cep­ti­on tre­at­ment. It is important to make sure you are as healt­hy as pos­si­ble befo­re you get pregnant, so that your baby is born healt­hy and without complications.