You can still remember that day when you took your first pregnancy test. That excitement and fear for planning a new member that will be joining your family soon. It’s also important to make sure you set yourself up for the healthiest pregnancy possible.

When to take pregnancy test ? For most accurate result you should wait to take a pregnancy test until the week after your missed period. If you don’t want to wait until you have missed your period, you should wait at least one to two weeks after you had sex. Some signs that you should take a pregnancy test-

• One of the first and most reliable signs of pregnancy is a missed period. Keep in mind that your period can sometimes be delayed or skipped due to stress, diet, exercsie or other medical conditions. You can consider taking a test if it’s been more than a month since your last period. Mentrual cycle is of 28 days.
• In early pregnancy, you may feel menstural cramps and think your period is just around, but then it never comes. Implantation can also produce a feeling similar to menstural cramps.
• During pregnancy there is more production of estrogen and progesterone, these hormones start to make changes in your body to support the baby’s growth. Because of this your breasts may feel tenser and appear bigger due to increased blood flow. Your nipples might hurt and the veins might look darker under the skin.
• Early pregnancy also causes nausea, food aversions, exhaustion and frequent urination.
• Despite your contraception, consider taking a test if you experience any of the signs because birth control pills, condoms and other devices don’t provide 100% protection from pregnancy.

Guide for Positive Pregnancy Test

According to a study nearly 18 in every 100 women relying on condoms for contraception get pregnant each year.

Think you might be pregnant ? When in doubt, test it out.

Home pregnancy tests are a common tool used for testing which are based on urine stream. It detects a hormone produced during early pregnancy called as human chronic gonadotropin (hcg). Around 8 to 10 days after conception, the fertilized egg implants into the uterus wall, signalling you body to release hcg and levels of the hormone then climb steadily for the  next few months. A woman’s hcg level typically doubles every 72 hours through 8-11 weeks of pregnancy. Then it remains constant and decreases after delivery.

it’s important to know what a positive or negative result means.

Congratulations ! If you have been hoping for a baby. It means you are pregnant having positive result. Indicating negative test means you are not pregnant.

In very rare cases, you can have a false positive result. This menas you are not pregnant but the test says you are. The causes for this can be-

• Chemical pregnancy
• Ectopic pregnancy
• Miscarriage or abortion
• Evaporation lines
• Medications

pregnancy is the state of carrying a developing embryo or fetus within the female body. It lasts for about nine months, measured from the date of the woman’s last menstrual period (lmp). It is conventionally divided into three trimesters, each roughly three months long. Pregnancy is one of the most vital and delicate times in a woman’s life. During this period you have a great reason to love your stomach and take care to it.

What to do next once you get pregnant?

Finding out you are pregnant is the first sign your life is about tochange in a million ways.

Visit your doctor

As soon as the pregnancy is confirmed call your doctor for an appointment. Get rid of any doubts about the result of your pregnancy and feel free to talk with your doctor about your pregnancy. Your doctor can schedule successive pregnancy blood tests to make sure your hormone levels are increasing as they should and that your pregnancy is healthy. Ultrasounds and physical exams also confirm that your pregnancy is going as it should be.

Learn about pregnancy

For proper knowledge start making the appropriate decisions for you and baby you can go for an early pregnancy class at a hospital or birth center. Books are also a great source of knowledge about pregnancy, birth and postpartum.

Take care of yourself

For a healthy pregnancy, easier labor and healthy baby get a good sleep, eat well, tak a prenatal vitamin and exercise. After all it only nine months. Planning ahead and preparing a bit every month will help you prevent a panicked feeling towards the end of pregnancy.

Celebrate and share

Surprise your family with this news and celebrate it. Share with your family and friends about your new family addition is fun and exciting. Ask your elders to help you out. They will tell you about the experience and suggest ups and downs of pregnancy.

Type of care provider

With your first prenatal appointment you can decide to seek prenatal care from either an obs-gynae or midwife. The decision betweeen the two really depends on waht you are hoping for during pregnancy and delivery. If there is any risk in pregnancy, then an obs-gynae is best choice as it will offer medication. On the other hand if hoping for a low intervention vaginal delivery maybe at home, then you can look for a midwife. But now a days nurse midwives can request the same labs and ultrasounds as an obs-gynae so you need not to pick any. A lot of hospital practices work with midwives who provide prenatal care and labor with an obs-gynae backing them up.

Folic acid

A healthy pregnancy diet plan should include the adequate amounts of protein, whole grains, fruits and vegetables which are essential for the health of you and your baby. Food rich in folic prevent neural tube defects in early pregnancy.

Stop smoking and drinking

These activities should be stopped during pregnancy. As it is harmful for you as well as your baby. It is linked to low birth weight, premature birth and other complications causing birth defects and increase the risk for stillbirth.

Avoid certain food

Avoid raw fish (sushi) and high mercury fish since the heavy metal is toxic for baby’s nervous system. Limit caffeine intake to no more than 200 mg a day. Also raw eggs, unpasteurized milk and unwashed fruits and vegetables should be avoided.

Drink liquids

Staying hydrated allows your body to produce more blood volume, build new tissue, carry nutrients through your body and flush out your body’s waste by drinking plenty of liquids.

Exercise

For healthy pregnancy it prepares your body for the strain of carrying and delivering a baby and builds the stamina you will need after childbirth. Avoid contact sports and activities where you are more likely to fall.

Conclusion

A positive home pregnancy test result should always be followed up with a doctor’s appointment. Your doctor may give you a urine or blood test to confirm the results and monitor your hcg levels. Testing early helps to ensure that you get proper care for yourself and prenatal care for your baby. Maintaining your health and well being is essential at all times but especially during pregnancy.