Health & Fitness
How To Take The Best Care Of Yourself During Pregnancy
Get care and support from Banner Health's experienced maternity services team through every stage of pregnancy, labor and delivery.
They say it takes a village to raise a child, but you need a great support team before the baby even arrives.
Banner Health offers just that in the form of complete maternity services and help for moms-to-be during every stage of pregnancy. They take care you and your growing family's needs from the first doctor's appointment confirming you're expecting until you leave the hospital with a baby in your arms.
The experienced maternity care teams at Banner Health deliver more than 30,000 babies each year. They use the same best practices for maternity care, labor and delivery at all of their locations, and they're committed to helping you feel comfortable, informed and safe through your entire pregnancy and delivery.
Learn More About Banner Health Maternity Care Services
Pregnancy Care
Getting regular checkups with your obstetric (OB/GYN) provider is important to ensure the health of you and your baby. Your OB/GYN will set up appointments based on your age, health condition and pregnancy.
At your first obstetrical appointment, your provider will:
- Take your complete medical history
- Ask about family medical history for you and the baby's father
- Talk to you about getting proper nutrition and exercise during pregnancy and what to avoid (alcohol, tobacco and drugs)
- Perform a pelvic exam
- Conduct a Pap test to check for abnormal cells
- Collect urine and blood for testing
In you have any non-emergency medical questions outside of your scheduled appointments, you can always call your Banner Health OB/GYN and a nurse will call you back. If you have a medical emergency, please call 911.
Banner Health also hosts classes for pregnancy and parenting that include prenatal, parenting and infant CPR and breastfeeding.
Healthy Habits for Pregnant Women
Your OB/GYN will discuss your medical history with you as well as any pre-existing conditions you may have. If you have a family history of a genetic condition, your doctor might suggest you see a genetic counselor to help make informed decisions about testing and treatment.
Other topics your provider will discuss include:
Diet - Eating a nutrient-rich diet before and during your pregnancy is beneficial to your health and your baby's development. Foods that are undercooked or raw should be avoided if you are trying to conceive, pregnant or breastfeeding. FoodSafety.gov has a comprehensive list of foods and ingredients that should be avoided or eaten with caution.
Folic Acid - Folic acid is a B vitamin that can help prevent major birth defects. The Centers for Disease Control recommends taking a daily vitamin with folic acid before and during pregnancy.
Vaccinations - Talk to your OB/GYN about including vaccines as a part of your healthy pregnancy. The CDC recommends getting a whooping cough and flu vaccine during pregnancy to help protect you and your baby.
Smoking - Smoking during pregnancy is the most preventable cause of illness and death for mothers and babies. You should also avoid secondhand smoke and other environmental hazards.
Alcohol - Per the CDC, no amount of alcohol is safe to drink during pregnancy.
Medication - Talk to your OB/GYN about any prescription or over-the-counter medicines you're taking. Certain medications taken during pregnancy can cause birth defects.
Travel Concerns - Talk to your doctor if you're planning a trip within the country or internationally. Traveling could cause problems during your pregnancy, and areas where the risk of the Zika virus is present should be avoided.
Find an OB/GYN Provider Near You
High-Risk Pregnancy Care
If you or your baby has a condition that requires closer monitoring, you may need to see a specialist in high-risk obstetrics. Banner Health has specialists who treat conditions that may arise from simple to the most complex.
High-risk conditions that require closer monitoring during pregnancy include:
- Placenta accreta - A serious condition that occurs when the placenta grows too deeply into your uterine wall. This makes it difficult to remove the placenta after your baby's birth, so you may need more frequent doctor visits, bed rest or medication to prevent an early labor.
- Placenta previa - A condition in which the placenta implants fully or partially in the lower portion of the uterus. In this position, the placenta blocks the opening of the cervix to the birth canal. You may need more frequent doctor visits, bed rest, medication to prevent premature labor, medication to help mature your baby's lungs, blood transfusions to replace blood loss or a Cesarean delivery.
- Preeclampsia - High blood pressure beginning after the 20th week of pregnancy. You may need more frequent doctor visits, bed rest, intravenous (IV) therapy, induced labor or cesarean delivery.
- Preterm labor - Any labor that starts before the 37th week of pregnancy. You may need more frequent doctor visits, bed rest, medication to prevent contractions, medication to help your baby's lungs develop, a procedure to temporarily close the opening to your cervix or a Cesarean delivery.
- Autoimmune disorders including lupus and myasthenia gravis
- Diabetes
- Infectious diseases, including viral hepatitis, HIV/AIDS and sexually transmitted infections
- Maternal or fetal genetic disorders, including hemophilia, cystic fibrosis and Down syndrome
- Pregnancy over age 35
If a pregnancy complication requires you to see a specialist, your OB/GYN will work together with him or her and you to ensure the best plan of treatment. This may include additional doctor visits, medication, rest or other procedures.
All Banner Health providers have connected records, so any Banner Health specialist you visit will have the most up-to-date information from your OB/GYN on you and your baby's medical history.
Learn More About Banner Health Pregnancy Care
Labor and Delivery Care
Banner Health's delivery care teams are experienced in all types of deliveries, even the most complex. Their number one goal is a safe delivery, and the caring staff of Banner Health work to ensure this happens in a peaceful, comfortable setting.
The maternity care teams at Banner Health respect your choices about your labor, including pain control and who you want to be with you. Trained staff will check in on you throughout your labor; if you're having a cesarean delivery, they will move you to an operating room when you and your obstetric provider are ready.
Mother and Newborn Care
The Banner Health team provides support for you and your baby even after delivery. This includes help with breastfeeding your baby for the first time and offering one-on-one support from certified lactation consultants during your hospital stay. They'll also provide you with a number to call for breastfeeding advice after you go home. A Banner Health nurse will help you to give your baby his or her first bath in the hospital. Banner Health has adopted swaddle bathing, a new way to bathe newborns that's more relaxing and helps build your family's bond.
Additional Care: If your newborn is premature or sick, he or she may spend some time in the Neonatal Intensive Care Unit (NICU). Banner Health NICU specialists include neonatologists, maternal-fetal medicine doctors, and anesthesiologists. They also have access to doctors who specialize in cardiology, gastroenterology, and urology for babies.
When your baby is in the NICU, you can visit 24 hours a day and stay as long as you like. When you're not there, a Banner Health team member will call you with any updates or you can call your newborn's NICU nurse.
Find Your Pregnancy Care Team at Banner Health
More from Banner Health:
- Five Habit Swaps For A Healthy Pregnancy
- Take These Steps To Ensure A Healthy Pregnancy And Birth
- What Do You Know About Having A Healthy Pregnancy?
First Photo Credit: Shutterstock