I’m Pregnant; What’s Next?

You just got the positive test and a wave of emotions rushes over you. Maybe it’s excitement and joy, maybe it’s fear and anxiety, maybe it’s some of everything. If this is your first time doing this, you probably have lots of questions running through your mind along with those emotions.

What do I do now? When do I go to the doctor? What foods can I eat and what do I stay away from? What’s the best prenatal vitamins to be taking? Etc.

Don’t worry. It’s not as complicated as it all seems and once you’re going to a doctor all your questions can be answered. But, to make it even easier, I want to lay out the first steps to take after finding out you’re expecting.

First, call your doctor.

If you haven’t decided between hospital, birthing center, or home birth, call your OBGYN (or pick one if you haven’t already) and schedule an initial appointment with an ultrasound. You can always change your provider later if you want a birthing center. Fair warning, these usually don’t take place until around 8-10 weeks, depending on the doctor. You might be able to get an earlier appointment, but don’t expect them to tell you to come in right away.

If this pregnancy was a surprise and you don’t know how far along you are, use a due date calculator then put that due date into a pregnancy tracker. I personally LOVED using the BabyCenter app! The date given by the calculator may or may not end up being the official date. Usually if your baby is measuring within one week of the due date based on your last period, it won’t be changed.

The process will be pretty much the same for a birthing center or home birth. The only difference is you’ll need to pick which birthing center or midwife you want and then call to schedule that initial appointment. Something important to note about birthing centers and home births is that typically you’re required to have a doula if you’re a first time mom or are having a VBAC (vaginal birth after cesarean). When looking for a center or midwife, ask about any policies surrounding doulas so you can be best prepared and start looking early! Doulas book up pretty early so if you want the most options, call as soon as you know what you’re looking for.

Find prenatal vitamins.

There are TONS of options for over the counter prenatal vitamins, which can feel overwhelming. So, to help you decide what you want to take, let’s talk about which vitamins are most important and why!

1. Folic Acid – This one is pretty common knowledge. It’s a B vitamin that helps prevent neural tube defects in your baby so you definitely want to make sure you’re getting a good dose of it! The CDC recommends that you should take 400mcg of folic acid daily during pregnancy.
2. Iron – Iron supports the development of your placenta and baby by helping blood production which helps feed oxygen to your baby. Look for a vitamin with 30-40mg of iron int it to keep your iron levels where they should be.
3. Iodine – Iodine supports your thyroid gland, helping your baby’s growth and brain developments. If you don’t have enough iodine it can (obviously not guaranteed) put your baby at risk for developmental delays and learning issues. Generally, prenatal vitamins will have around 150micrograms (the weird looking u thing next to a g) which is recommended by the American Thyroid Association and the American Academy of Pediatrics.
4. Calcium – We all know this one; calcium promotes the healthy development of baby’s teeth and bones! So while it’s not necessary to take a calcium supplement, it’s certainly beneficial.
5. Vitamin D – Vitamin D comes from the sun (I’m pretty sure most of you already knew that), so if you’re outside in the sun a lot you probably don’t need to worry too much about this one. However, it supports your baby’s immune system, bones, teeth, and most importantly their heart. It’ll also give you an energy boost!
6. Zinc – Zinc helps your baby’s growth by supporting cell division and protein synthesis while in utero. It also supports the development of their organs, skeleton, nervous system and circulatory system.

There are tons more vitamins that are helpful during pregnancy, however most (including some on this list) can be found in the foods that you eat on a daily basis. If you ask your doctor for recommendations they will more than likely be happy to provide you with the best option! My doctor even prescribed some for me.

Download a pregnancy tracker.

Obviously this is optional, but it’s so much fun watching your baby grow, knowing approximately how big they are, and getting little insights that teach you something new everyday! My personal favorite is the BabyCenter app. It has helpful tools can use while trying to get pregnant, when you’re pregnant, and after your baby is born! It’s loaded with information as well, and has a registry builder that makes everything so much easier.

Brainstorm announcement ideas!

This is easily the most exciting step when you first find out you’re pregnant. There are sooooo many creative ways to announce you have a little one on the way and Pinterest is a great resource. After a miscarriage, my husband and I decided to wait until I started my second trimester to make the info public and I was entering trimester two 6 days after Valentine’s Day. We decided to take advantage of the timing and made a Facebook post on Valentine’s Day with a picture of our first ultrasound and the caption “The sweetest valentine, due August 27th 2024”.

My parents were becoming grandparents for the first time and I wanted to tell them in a really special way. Reading was huge in our house, we were at the library multiple times a week and would check out big stacks of books to read every time. So, we bought two kids books about being grandparents (“Grandma Wishes” and “My Grandpa Is Grand”) and gave them to my parents as early Christmas gifts (we found out about our pregnancy on December 18th and told them that evening) with our baby’s due date written on the inside.

I could go on because I found creative ways to tell some of my friends too, but dreaming up the perfect plan to announce it to the people that were important in our lives and to the public was so much fun for me. Do whatever you want, but I’d recommend being creative. You only go from being childless to being a mom once in your life, have fun with it!

Just enjoy the ride.

There are lots of things to think about before your baby arrives, but don’t stress too much about it. The most important things in the beginning are finding a doctor or midwife and a good prenatal vitamin, so try to focus on those things for now before taking on the rest. Enjoy the fact that you have a baby growing inside of you and soon you’ll enter one of the most exciting chapters of your life. It’ll be over before you know it, don’t forget to enjoy it.