Being pregnant for the first time and having a father as an Obstetrician is a very special situation to find yourself in. Having someone to answer your ever-growing list of questions and allay your fears on a daily basis is invaluable. When things don’t feel quite right, it is a real bonus to have someone readily available to reassure you or explain why certain bits of your anatomy might be behaving differently from “what it says in the book”
Instead of sitting in a “call waiting” queue at your local GP’s surgery or calling your midwife for the nth time, or even worse, Googling your symptoms or worries, which leave you feeling worse than you did before, it is amazing to be able to access a wealth of accurate and trustworthy information in a flash.
The purpose of this site is to try and offer you just this. A unique and more relevant perspective on an exciting yet nerve-wracking time in your life with medically based, accurate and up-to-date information that you can trust. We will save you from having to wade through a small library of antenatal books picking out the most relevant information for you. We aim to guide you through not only the physical aspects of pregnancy but also the practical and psychological side of things.
Whether you have been trying to conceive for years, for days, or whether you have not even been trying at all, the moments that pass from the second you discover you are pregnant are, for most women, the most surreal, stressful and exciting you will ever experience.
There are hundreds of websites and forums you can visit to gather information about your pregnancy and the eventual birth of your baby. A lot of this information is both accurate and invaluable, but an equal amount is out of date, with no scientific basis and on some occasions may be outright dangerous. Many forums or sites seem to offer similar formats – where members attempt to answer each other’s queries. Much of this advice is unsolicited and again can be less than accurate and often based upon the advice-giver’s own limited experience.
There is an equally vast array of books on the subject written by Mothers, Doctors, Midwives, on the one hand, and on the other hand, by people who have neither had a child nor received any medical training. Whilst many of these books have almost become part of the pregnancy/ante-natal establishment – a common complaint amongst pregnant women is that many of these books are out-dated and less relevant to the twenty-first century woman who perhaps wants (or has) to work up until 39 weeks, have a glass of wine in the evening (or at lunch), eat sushi, sleep on her stomach, continue to jog or ride a bicycle!
Your experience of pregnancy and ultimately your birth will be down to a number of factors. Whilst genetics and luck will play a big part in determining what kind of experience you have, the choices you make in how you lead your pregnant and pre-pregnant life may also have an impact on the kind of pregnancy and birth you will have. By starting off with and trying to maintain a realistic and broad-minded attitude towards your pregnancy and ultimately the birth, you may find that you enjoy your experience more than you thought possible. Some people will have a happy and uneventful pregnancy, whilst others may encounter complications. Some may feel wretched for 12 weeks or even the full 40 weeks, whilst others will blossom and glow. This site is intended to help and guide you through what you may see as a negative or positive experience – but hopefully with a positive outcome!
One thing, however, that you MUST be clear about when using this site, is that there is no substitute for seeking medical advice where necessary and this site is not intended to replace that but to use alongside advice from your Doctor or Midwife. If you feel unwell or are worried about your pregnancy, do not try and self-diagnose, call your care-giver for advice.
