Getting ready to be a mum

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The best things you can do to prepare yourself for the birth of your new baby are to:

• Get plenty of rest, eat well and do regular, moderate exercise.
• Learn about what you might experience during pregnancy and childbirth.
• Make practical arrangements for when your baby comes home.
• Talk to your partner, friends and relatives. They can help you through the emotional ups and downs that naturally occur during pregnancy.
• Take care of your relationship.
• Make decisions about your financial and work arrangements after the birth.

Getting enough rest will make it easier to deal with the emotional ups and downs that some pregnant women go through.

All women gain weight when they’re pregnant – it’s part and parcel of a healthy pregnancy. And although many women realise this, it can be difficult to feel comfortable about your new shape. If you eat according to a healthy eating plan it will help you feel more comfortable throughout the pregnancy. It might also mean you have less weight to lose after the birth.

Regular, moderate exercise has many positive benefits. It helps you keep strong for the birth. It raises your mood, which could be unsteady during pregnancy. It helps maintain your healthy weight.

Taking care of some practical arrangements will also let you relax more when the baby comes home. These can include:

• getting your home ready  
• getting extra help if you need it
• deciding how you will deal with work and finances.

If your pregnancy was planned, you have probably already discussed all of this, though you might want to adapt your plans as the birth gets closer. If you weren’t expecting to get pregnant, now is a good time to think about these issues.

Pregnancy is such a time of change that it can help if you and your partner make an extra effort to look after each other. Talking openly about your feelings, doing things together and making decisions together can all help you prepare for this life-changing event.

Pregnancy and childbirth can be extremely exciting and also a little frightening. Prenatal classes can give you and your partner information that will help you understand not just your baby’s growth, but also the emotional and physical experiences of pregnancy and childbirth. Keep in mind that these classes tell you absolutely everything you might ever possibly need to know, so you’ll find some of it won’t apply to you.

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