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Constipation
Begin a stool softener like
Colace, Metamucil, Konsyl, Fibercon, Surfact, Fiber-all. If you are eating a
lot of cheese, drinking a lot of milk or ingesting extra calcium, aluminum or
iron through antacids or prenatal vitamins you may be contributing to the
problem. Milk of Magnesia is a safe laxative to try. Try to be active
especially after meals and drink lots of water.
Common Cold
REST, REST and more REST.
We all get colds so here are some safe things to try and get over it faster:
Lots of fluids and rest will help. Safe medicines would be Tylenol for aches
and fevers. Nasal breathe- rite strips for congestion. Sudafed
for congestion. Plain Robitussin for cough. If the cold becomes
prolonged (greater than 1 week) or if it becomes centered in the lungs - please
call us so we can help.
Headache
Sometimes a prolonged headache or severe headache may be a sign of
serious disease, so if your headache is a new thing or is unusually severe or
long lasting call us. Otherwise plain Tylenol should help.
Diarrhea
Most is self-limiting and will stop
after 15-18 hours. Try and stay hydrated with water, Gatorade, or
10-k. Try some Kaopectate. If it continues please give us a call.
Heartburn
Drink lots of cold
water, avoiding milk or anything with citric acid ( tomato, orange, and
grapefruit). Foods with lots of fat like cheese and fried spicy dishes make it
a lot worse. Coffee and smoking makes it a lot worse. You can safely use almost
any antacid, but those that contain aluminum or calcium may make constipation
worse. Magnesium- based antacids will help both heartburn and constipation.
Zantac 75 once or twice a day or over the counter Prevacid are
usually helpful. If the problem, continues give us a call.
Hemorrhoids
We are very sorry you are
suffering from hemorrhoids however they are extremely common. Try and avoid
straining with bowel movements, lifting heavy items or standing for extended
periods.
Begin a stool softener such as any listed in the constipation
section above. You may use any of the medicated pads, creams or suppositories.
If your hemorrhoids become purple or start bleeding please let us evaluate
them.
Yeast Infection
These are common during pregnancy, especially after antibiotic use or
if you are a gestational diabetic. If it does not act like a usual yeast
infection for you, please come in and let us evaluate it. You may use
Monistat, Mycelex, Gyn-Lotrimin or Femstat.
Traveling During Pregnancy
First of all we cannot
tell the future. So please remember although your chance of having a problem
while traveling may be slight, it could still happen. Second, you have a life
to live. If your best friend from college is getting married, don't miss it
because of the pregnancy.
If you are planning a big trip before 34
weeks, ask what we think about it for your circumstances. Often we can give you
helpful suggestions. If it's a big trip- let us copy your prenatal record for
you just in case you do have a problem.
After about 32-34 weeks, you
will probably be very uncomfortable flying in a commercial aircraft and after
34 weeks we suggest you do not fly.
Try to plan a relaxing trip so you
and your baby will not be stressed. Going to Disneyworld in June-August may be
too much for you. Stay hydrated, dress appropriately, use plenty of paba-free
sunblock and every two hours, move about. Try to keep to a routine: your body
is growing a baby, so sudden changes of routine may be uncomfortable in a
multitude of ways.
If you are planning a trip to an unusual
destination, please let us know as we may have some safety advice for you.
Guidelines for Exercise in Pregnancy
The general rule is you can continue doing exercise at the level you
already exercised when you became pregnant, that as long as you do not
encounter any problems. If you have any problems with your pregnancy, you may
wish to discuss how it may be affected by physical activity.
Pregnant
women may be more susceptible to sports injury, so careful warm-up and
cool-downs are even more important to avoid musculoskeletal injury. More gentle
sports may be safer; we suggest them over high impact, fast paced sports or
exercise activity. Many exercise facilities offer classes specific to pregnant
women.
Most exercise physiologists suggest not to exceed a maximum
heart rate of 140. For most healthy in-shape women 65 -120 green light 97go,
120-140 yellow light 97 caution, greater than 140 red light97stop that! Go back
to 120.
Keep your body temperature less than 100.4 degrees F. Try to
avoid sustained temperature elevation.
Stay hydrated. You should drink
enough water so that your urine should only be very pale yellow. Your body is
mostly made of water and exercise will deplete your stores of water faster.
At about twenty weeks (sooner with fibroids) the uterus can compress
the inferior vena cava. This can create both real and theoretical problems.
Avoid lying flat on your back or doing crunches.
Water sports or water
play is ideal for pregnancy. We strongly recommend it.
Scuba diving,
parachuting, parasailing, bungi-diving and contact sports are best avoided.
Riding in a boat is all right except in choppy water if at a high rate of
speed. There are some sports that are safe if you are skilled at them snow
skiing, skating, snow boarding, water-skiing, surfing, biking. Those less
skilled should avoid these as well.
Backache and
muscle cramps
Again these are very common and frustrating
problem. Using proper posture and body mechanics will reduce strain. Try to
bend at the knees and lift with the legs.
For mild backache try
Tylenol, rest, warm moist heat with towels, heating pad on just on the
back only massage, accupressure, acupuncture, and physical therapy. Being
physically active will help prevent problems as will daily stretching.
Wear low healed shoes with good arch support. Avoid fatigue or
repetitive motion chores. If your backache is severe, if it involves radiation
down the leg, or if you have fever chills rash or urinary tract symptoms
associated with a headache, please let us know. Sometimes, we prescribe
narcotics to help with severe back pain. Leg cramps usually will respond to
stretching, moist heat, massage, calcium and / or potassium supplementation
with a banana. |
