I Peed On A Stick. Now What?
This is for all the people who just rushed to Google right after peeing on a pregnancy test.
Hi.
Breathe.
Are you excited, or terrified? Perhaps both.
You have been pregnant for a hot second, and no doubt your brain has tripped into overdrive going over all the possibilities for your future. But what is the next step?
What do I do after finding out I'm pregnant?
When does my doctor need to know?
What appointments do I need to make?
Or, should I even be going to this doctor?!
Help!!!
If this sounds right, there is some good news. You are not the first person to learn they’re pregnant, and you are certainly not the only pregnant person who has these questions.
It is very common to feel anxious after learning you are expecting a baby. It is also reasonable that you would turn to the internet for some clue about what to do next.
So what do you do after finding out you are pregnant?
Prenatal care is incredibly important for monitoring and early detection of any need for additional medical attention, such as gestational diabetes or high blood pressure. It is also essential to develop a relationship with the people you are trusting to help you have an experience you will remember for the rest of your life.
So yes, while there are logical first questions - like, is one positive pregnancy test enough, and can you trust the results - there are also things to learn about yourself, what birth options you want access to, and how you hope to feel while going through the experience.
You may be able to have everything you want while staying with the practice or provider you have seen for your yearly exams. Or you may not.
While having a yearly exam does place you in a vulnerable situation and having trust is necessary, we doubt most women can remember details about each exams or think of how they have differed.
Birth, on the other hand, can leave a person feeling incredibly vulnerable, requires many more decisions to be made, many more hours of attention and monitoring. It is also an event you will have a vivid memory of for the rest of your life.
It is worth putting in a little bit of effort to make sure you have the things that are important to you!
So.
How do you find out what is important to you in labor and birth?
We get asked all the time for help and guidance, and as experienced doulas in our area, we have some things to say!