Pre-Pregnancy Checklist Update

Previously I made a pre-pregnancy checklist. I'm now going to tear that up and tell you if it was really necessary, if I actually did it, and what I would add.

1. Schedule a pre-pregnancy doctors appointment.

Ok so I didn't really schedule a pre-pregnancy one. I scheduled an I-Know-I'm-Already-Pregnant one. Which is the common way to go. There's really no need to schedule one because you're going to start to try to conceive. I think that's just a bit too much and who really has that much time anyway?

2. Take folic acid.

I definitely did do this. As soon as I stopped taking my birth control pill, which was about two months before I got pregnant, I started to take prenatals (these have the daily recommended amount of folic acid). Mind you, they were the gummy prenatals so it wasn't that big of a deal. But I would highly recommend this so you have the right amount of daily nutrients needed.

3. Give up drinking, smoking, and drugs.

     I didn't smoke or do drugs beforehand so that was easy. I would drink every now and then, but that all stopped once I found out I was pregnant. This one is definitely at the top of the list though of things to do.

4. Start eating healthy now.

     Ya know, eating healthy is good in theory but actually doing it is harder than it sounds! Once I knew I was pregnant I started getting some healthy snacks and trying to eat a bit better, but all in all I pretty much ate the same as I did before I was pregnant. I did have a few cravings here and there and I couldn't stand the smell of fish while I was pregnant, so there was that. But if you can do this, I would.

5. Try to stop drinking coffee.

     Ok, so I didn't do this. My OBGYN said that a cup or two of coffee a day was perfectly fine, and actually may be better since you won't get headaches from the lack of caffeine. I personally also feel that you shouldn't forgo all caffeine because once you do introduce caffeine to your child (think when they first drink soda), that's when you think your kid has ADHD because their system goes nuts. 

6. Make sure you're at a healthy weight.

     So this only happened to me by chance. I was already at a healthy BMI before I conceived so this one wasn't really something I thought about. But I do think being at a healthy weight helps you throughout your pregnancy and afterwards. Check your BMI here.

7. Start to exercise!

     I'm not going to lie. I didn't really exercise too much at all. Towards the end I was even out of breath walking up the stairs haha. But I wouldn't strike this one off the list. Exercising is something that should be done for your overall health, whether or not you're trying to conceive.

8. Make an appointment to see your dentist.

     Nope. Didn't do this at all. Probably should have. Probably still need to. This one's definitely still on my to-do list.

9. Stop the pill.

     I stopped mine about two months before we started trying to conceive. I know, two whole months! What did I do in the meantime? Well, my husband was gone for two months for training so it wasn't really that hard. But this one obviously stays on the list.

10. Make sure you're ready.

     Ok, so this one I still feel pretty strong about. I knew that I wanted a baby and I knew my husband was ready for one too. I'm not sure if you're ever 100% ready, you'll always have those doubts. Just if you have time to plan, I would recommend it.

As for any additions, I think I would add these few:

1. Get your partying out now! You'll not only be down for the count for those 9 months, but you'll pretty much be down until you decide to stop breastfeeding.

2. Start your stretch mark prevention. I'd recommend Vitamin E oil or cocoa butter. So lather up!

I think that pretty much wraps it up. Of course it'll be different for everyone, but these are just some little tid bits from mine :) I'd love to hear what items were on your checklist!

Color Yourself Pregnant :)