Pregnancy: a guide with helpful tips
Our guide accompanies you from the moment you decide to try for a baby right through to the actual birth and the initial period afterwards. To make sure you’re well prepared, we provide helpful tips and information on all aspects of pregnancy.
Tips for your pregnancy
You're hoping to get pregnant
It's important to lead a healthy lifestyle and take folic acid. This vitamin is crucial to the baby's development in the early weeks of pregnancy and can help prevent neural tube defects. Ask your gynaecologist for advice if you have a pre-existing medical condition or difficulty in getting pregnant.
Pregnancy – 9 months of joyous anticipation
During pregnancy, you're the one who provides your baby with everything it needs to develop. Your placenta acts like a 'sponge' that absorbs everything you eat and passes it on to the baby. And studies have shown that what you eat during pregnancy affects your child's health, even into adulthood. Doing sport in pregnancy can also help boost your physical and mental health during this special period in your life.
Don't forget: Find a midwife as soon as possible. They will provide you with expert care before, during and after the birth.
Home remedies during pregnancy
The information leaflet in the pack often reads "this medicine should not be taken during pregnancy". But what if you're coming down with a cold or you can't get rid of a cough? Catching a cold during pregnancy can be unpleasant, but with the right tips on taking precautions you can protect both you and your baby. There are safe home remedies that will help to ease the symptoms.
Antenatal courses
Becoming a mum or dad brings lots of changes in your life. It's an exciting and challenging period. When a woman is pregnant, an incredible number of questions arise. Midwives answer these at antenatal courses, providing you with all kinds of information about pregnancy and caring for your baby, and teaching you relaxation techniques that may help during birth.
Where would you like to give birth?
Many women plan to have their baby in hospital. However, healthy women with a straightforward pregnancy whose baby is lying in the right position can also give birth at home or in a birth centre. CSS covers the cost of giving birth in a birth centre that is on the cantonal list of hospitals.
Birth – the 4 stages explained
Giving birth is a process that lasts for many hours. Just as each individual pregnancy is different, so too is the length of time that labour and delivery lasts. There are four stages.
- Dilation: This is the stage in which you start having contractions at regular intervals of 20 to 30 minutes. These make your cervix gradually open (dilate). This is the longest stage of labour and can last for 8 to 14 hours if this is your first time giving birth. Your waters will often break during this first stage. It's time to go to hospital or a birth centre.
- Transitional stage: This stage is short and particularly intense. The contractions feel very strong and painful. By the end, the cervix is fully dilated to around 8 to 10cm.
- Expulsion: The baby is born at the end of this stage. The mother pushes during very strong contractions that now come close together until the baby's head gradually emerges from the birth canal followed by the rest of the body.
- Post-delivery: You've done it! Your baby is here. The womb will continue to contract a few more times until the placenta comes away. These contractions are more like menstrual pains. It's important for the placenta to be fully pushed out, otherwise the new mum is at risk of bleeding or infections.
Help in the postpartum period
The first 6-8 weeks after the birth are referred to as the 'puerperium', postpartum or postnatal period. That's how long it takes for the womb to recover. This is the period during which any birth injuries heal and you recover from the pregnancy and birth. Arrange for a midwife to visit you at home. They will also be able to give you valuable tips on caring for your baby and breastfeeding advice.
The first few days at home can be very tiring. Don't be shy about accepting help. How about letting someone else prepare lunch for you, or asking for a cleaning voucher instead of a present for the baby?
Postpartum depression
From the miracle of life to sadness and indifference – after childbirth, around 15% of mothers suffer from what is known as postpartum depression. A patient and a therapist speak about their experiences, symptoms and treatment options in our podcast.
Breastfeeding – for a healthy start in life
Children who are breastfed as babies are less prone to allergies and obesity. In other words, breastfeeding makes an important contribution to the child’s future health.
Breastfeeding is not always easy. Get help and support from a midwife or specially trained adviser. Basic insurance covers 3 sessions.
