Regular prenatal visits

Once you find out you’re pregnant, you may find you see your doctor more than you ever did before – even if you are perfectly healthy. This is important because prenatal care is vital for your health and your baby’s.

How often will these visits happen?

After your first visit, you will likely be asked to return every 4 weeks until you are about 28 weeks pregnant. After that, the schedule is usually every 2 weeks for the next 8 weeks, and then weekly until you deliver.

What is involved in these prenatal visits?

With the exception of the first visit where you would most likely have a full physical exam, usually the next few visits are just to:

• measure your weight
• check your blood pressure
• check a urine sample
• answer questions

As your pregnancy progresses, your abdomen size will likely be checked and your doctor will listen for the baby’s heartbeat.

Routinely, women who are at high risk for gestational diabetes are tested around 12 weeks. High risk would be women who:

• have a history of gestational diabetes
• have delivered a baby already that was over 9 pounds at birth
• are obese
• have a family history of diabetes
• are showing signs of diabetes

All other women are routinely checked for gestational diabetes around 24 weeks.

~~~~~

Don’t forget the Prevent drownings (plus a DVD give-away). The give-away ends June 15 at 11:59 PM.