Pregnancy

[Cathy]

I've recently found out that I'm pregnant for the first time. Now I'm relying on all you Answerbankers for some good advice. Things like remedies for morning sickness, what I really need to buy and what is a waste of money, any good websites I should see, etc. Thanks.

[parkhead]

Ginger is really good for the morning sickness as is making sure that you never actually let yourself get too hungry as that is when I found it really kicked it. Most of all CONGRATULATIONS.

[vittoria]

Congratulations; I found a book entitled "what to expect when you are expecting" very useful; also joining the NCT. Nowadays there is another book some people swear by (it was not around in my time) - The contented little baby book. Look into going to some Birth Preparation Classes via the NCT - book early as they are popular; and start enquiring about mums' groups (morning coffee group type thing). Also where the Mother & Toddler groups are in your area. If you are going back to work start visiting daycare nurseries now. If they let you, put baby's name down for a nursery place now. I have had nothing but grief from childminders and don't recommend that form of childcare, although cheaper than nurseries.

[KARL]

My advice is to buy nothing for the baby until you are at least seven months into your pregnancy. Then buy some clothing for a newborn (babygros and the like plus nappies - if you are a single mum, buy terry and aim to wash after using a soaking agent, far cheaper than disposables). You need not buy much else until just before the birth and doing that can serve as a welcome distraction in the last weeks and days - good bonding stuff too if father is available to go along. If economy matters then buy everything you can secondhand, most of it will be completely surplus within months as the baby develops. My wife (three pregnancies) never had morning sickness so cannot help there. Congratulations, and good luck.

[katiesara]

I had morning sickness until the day I gave birth! I found the best thing to do was to eat little and often, used to carry a bag of "snacks" at all times!

[woodpam]

Congratulations, you lucky girl! I used to grate a small piece of ginger into boiling water, add a squeeze of lemon juice and a teaspoon of honey and sip it to help with morning sickness. It's nice left to go cold and drunk iced too in hot weather. You don't need to buy anything yet, but you can have a lovely time window shopping and getting excited over all those tiny cute outfits and criminally expensive pushchairs etc. If you are working outside your home you should have a health and safety risk assessment to your workstation and working practices to make sure you stay in peak condition. (It's a legal requirement on employers once you have told them your good news.) Enjoy!

[darth vader]

Charity shops for clothes - as babies grow so quick then clothes don't last long, you can pick up next-to-new baby/toddler clothes very cheaply - don't buy brand new it's just a waste of money as baby will grow out of them too quick.
Walk around the house on your hands and knees and see what you can find at that height, and whether it is dangerous - cupboards with exciting things inside that open easily, ornaments at low height, fridges etc. and start putting in prevention measures straight away (door locks, moving items higher, fitting shelves for things) also stair gates, cookers etc. It's best If you can get it all out of the way now by planning ahead, so you can enjoy baby without worrying about safety.

[DavidUK]

Congratulations from me too! One of the biggest issues that faced us as new parents was what to do about vaccinations. Having failed to get any sensible, unbiased, factual information from the medical profession I came across some alternative sources of information. These are: "The Informed Parent" http://www.informedparent.co.uk/ , "What Doctors Don't Tell You" http://www.wddty.co.uk/ and "The Vaccination Awareness Network UK" http://www.van.org.uk/index1.htm. It is certainly not a clearcut issue as the medical profession would like us to believe and it involves some difficult choices as a parent. Anyway, good luck - giving birth is the most fantastic thing even for a male!

[darth vader]

...oh and please remember when you are choosing the baby's name, that it has to go through 11 years of schooling (and the associated nicknames/name calling) so choose wisely! (Unlike my university mate who went to school with a lad called Drew (Andrew to be precise), which wasn't bad except his surname was Peacock! Justin get's a lot of stick also -small penis or not!)

and finally.... enjoy it - it is a wonderful experience!

[Cathy]

Thanks everyone for all you advice and as I'm in a good mood, have three stars.