Surrogacy Info

Each and every pregnancy is unique and different. Although most women experience "typical" pregnancies without complications, there are some issues that may arise.

What is gestational diabetes?
If your blood sugar level first becomes too high when you are pregnant, you have gestational diabetes. It usually goes away after the baby is born.

High blood sugar can cause problems for you and your baby. Your baby may grow too large, which can cause problems during delivery. Your baby may also be born with low blood sugar. But with treatment, most women with gestational diabetes are able to control their blood sugar and give birth to healthy babies.

Women who have had gestational diabetes are more likely than other women to develop type 2 diabetes later on. You may be able to prevent or reduce the severity of type 2 diabetes by staying at a healthy weight, eating healthy foods, and increasing your physical activity.

What causes gestational diabetes?
The pancreas makes a hormone called insulin. Insulin helps your body properly use and store the sugar from the food you eat. This keeps your blood sugar level in a safe range. When you are pregnant, the placenta makes hormones that can make it harder for insulin to work. This is called insulin resistance.

A pregnant woman can get diabetes when her pancreas cannot make enough insulin to keep her blood sugar levels within a safe range.

What are the symptoms?
Because gestational diabetes does not cause symptoms, you need to be tested for the condition. This is usually done between the 24th and 28th weeks of pregnancy.1 You may be surprised if your test shows a high blood sugar. It is important for you to be tested for gestational diabetes, because high blood sugar can cause problems for both you and your baby.

Sometimes, a pregnant woman who has symptoms has been living with another type of diabetes without knowing it. If you have symptoms from another type of diabetes, they may include:

Increased thirst.
Increased urination.
Increased hunger.
Blurred vision.
Pregnancy causes most women to urinate more often and to feel more hungry, so having these symptoms does not always mean that a woman has diabetes. Talk with your doctor if you have these symptoms, so that you can be tested for diabetes at any time during pregnancy.

How is gestational diabetes diagnosed?
Almost all women are tested for gestational diabetes between the 24th and 28th weeks of pregnancy. If your doctor thinks you are more likely to get gestational diabetes, you may be tested earlier.

Gestational diabetes is diagnosed with two blood tests. In the first test, your blood sugar level is tested 1 hour after you drink a small cup of a sweet liquid. If your blood sugar is too high, you will need to do a longer, 3-hour glucose test. If your blood sugar is still above a certain level, you have gestational diabetes.

How is it treated?
Many women with gestational diabetes can control their blood sugar level by changing the way they eat and by exercising regularly. These healthy choices can also help prevent gestational diabetes in future pregnancies and type 2 diabetes later in life. Learn more about healthy pregnancy and living fit.

Treatment for gestational diabetes also includes checking your blood sugar level at home and seeing your doctor regularly.

You may need to give yourself insulin shots to help control your blood sugar. This man-made insulin adds to the insulin that your body makes.

Click here to check out a great Guide To Overcoming Gestational Diabetes Naturally!  

What are high blood pressure and preeclampsia?
Blood pressure is a measure of how hard your blood pushes against the walls of your arteries. If the force is too hard, you have high blood pressure (also called hypertension). When high blood pressure starts after 20 weeks of pregnancy, it may be a sign of a very serious problem called preeclampsia.

Blood pressure is shown as two numbers. The top number (systolic) is the pressure when the heart pumps blood. The bottom number (diastolic) is the pressure when the heart relaxes and fills with blood. Blood pressure is high if the top number is more than 140 millimeters of mercury (mm Hg), or if the bottom number is more than 90 mm Hg. For example, blood pressure of 150/85 (say "150 over 85") or 140/95 is high. Or both numbers can be high, such as 150/95.

A woman may have high blood pressure before she gets pregnant. Or her blood pressure may start to go up during pregnancy.

If you have high blood pressure during pregnancy, you need to have checkups more often than women who do not have this problem. There is no way to know if you will get preeclampsia. This is one of the reasons that you are watched closely during your pregnancy.

High blood pressure and preeclampsia are related, but they have some differences.

High blood pressure
Normally, a woman’s blood pressure drops during her second trimester. Then it returns to normal by the end of the pregnancy. But in some women, blood pressure goes up very high in the second or third trimester. This is sometimes called gestational hypertension and can lead to preeclampsia. You will need to have your blood pressure checked often and you may need treatment. Usually, the problem goes away after the baby is born.

High blood pressure that started before pregnancy usually doesn't go away after the baby is born.

A small rise in blood pressure may not be a problem. But your doctor will watch your pressure to make sure it does not get too high. The doctor also will check you for preeclampsia.

Very high blood pressure keeps your baby from getting enough blood and oxygen. This could limit your baby’s growth or cause the placenta to pull away too soon from the uterus. High blood pressure also could lead to stillbirth.

Preeclampsia
Preeclampsia is a pregnancy-related problem. The symptoms of preeclampsia include new high blood pressure after 20 weeks of pregnancy along with other problems, such as protein in your urine. Preeclampsia usually goes away after you give birth. In rare cases, blood pressure can stay high for up to 6 weeks after the birth.

Preeclampsia can be deadly for the mother and baby. It can keep the baby from getting enough blood and oxygen. It also can harm the mother’s liver, kidneys, and brain. Women with very bad preeclampsia can have dangerous seizures. This is called eclampsia.

What causes preeclampsia and high blood pressure during pregnancy?
Experts don't know the exact cause of preeclampsia and high blood pressure during pregnancy. But they have some ideas about preeclampsia:

Preeclampsia seems to start because the placenta doesn't grow the usual network of blood vessels deep in the wall of the uterus. This leads to poor blood flow in the placenta.
Preeclampsia may run in families. If your mother had preeclampsia while she was pregnant with you, you have a higher chance of getting it during pregnancy. You also have a higher chance of getting it if the mother of your baby’s father had preeclampsia.
The mother’s immune system may react to the father's sperm, the placenta, or the baby.
Already having high blood pressure when you get pregnant raises your chance of getting preeclampsia.
Problems that can lead to high blood pressure, such as obesity, polycystic ovary syndrome, and diabetes, could raise your risk of preeclampsia.

What are the symptoms?
High blood pressure usually doesn't cause symptoms. But very high blood pressure sometimes causes headaches and shortness of breath or changes in vision.

Mild preeclampsia usually doesn't cause symptoms, either. But preeclampsia can cause rapid weight gain and sudden swelling of the hands and face. Severe preeclampsia causes symptoms of organ trouble, such as a very bad headache and trouble seeing and breathing. It also can cause belly pain and decreased urination.

How are high blood pressure and preeclampsia diagnosed?
High blood pressure and preeclampsia are usually found during a prenatal visit. This is one reason why it’s so important to go to all of your prenatal visits. You need to have your blood pressure checked often. During these visits, your blood pressure is measured with a blood pressure cuff. A sudden increase in blood pressure often is the first sign of a problem.

You also will have a urine test to look for protein, another sign of preeclampsia.

If you have high blood pressure, tell your doctor right away if you have a headache or belly pain. These signs of preeclampsia can occur before protein shows up in your urine.

 

How are they treated?
Your doctor may have you take medicine if he or she thinks your blood pressure is too high.

The only cure for preeclampsia is having the baby. You may get medicines to lower your blood pressure and to prevent seizures. You also may get medicine to help your baby’s lungs get ready for birth. Your doctor will try to deliver your baby when the baby has grown enough to be ready for birth. But sometimes a baby has to be delivered early to protect the health of the mother or the baby. If this happens, your baby will get special care for premature babies.

Do preeclampsia and high blood pressure lead to long-term high blood pressure?

If you have high blood pressure during pregnancy but had normal blood pressure before pregnancy, your pressure is likely to go back to normal after you have the baby. But if you had high blood pressure before pregnancy, you probably will still have it after you give birth.

Experts don't think preeclampsia causes high blood pressure later in life. But women who get preeclampsia may have a higher-than-normal chance of getting high blood pressure after pregnancy or later in life.

 

What is an ectopic pregnancy?
In a normal pregnancy, a fertilized egg travels through a fallopian tube to the uterus. The egg attaches in the uterus and starts to grow. But in an ectopic pregnancy, the fertilized egg attaches (or implants) someplace other than the uterus, most often in the fallopian tube. (This is why it is sometimes called a tubal pregnancy.) In rare cases, the egg implants in an ovary, the cervix, or the belly.

There is no way to save an ectopic pregnancy. It cannot turn into a normal pregnancy. If the egg keeps growing in the fallopian tube, it can damage or burst the tube and cause heavy bleeding that could be deadly. If you have an ectopic pregnancy, you will need quick treatment to end it before it causes dangerous problems.

What causes an ectopic pregnancy?
An ectopic pregnancy is often caused by damage to the fallopian tubes. A fertilized egg may have trouble passing through a damaged tube, causing the egg to implant and grow in the tube.

Things that make you more likely to have fallopian tube damage and an ectopic pregnancy include:

Smoking. The more you smoke, the higher your risk of an ectopic pregnancy.
Pelvic inflammatory disease (PID). This is often the result of an infection such as chlamydia or gonorrhea.
Endometriosis, which can cause scar tissue in or around the fallopian tubes.
Being exposed to the chemical DES before you were born.
Some medical treatments can increase your risk of ectopic pregnancy. These include:

Surgery on the fallopian tubes or in the pelvic area.
Fertility treatments such as in vitro fertilization.

What are the symptoms?
In the first few weeks, an ectopic pregnancy usually causes the same symptoms as a normal pregnancy, such as a missed menstrual period, fatigue, nausea, and sore breasts.

The key signs of an ectopic pregnancy are:

Pelvic or belly pain. It may be sharp on one side at first and then spread through your belly. It may be worse when you move or strain.
Vaginal bleeding.
If you think you are pregnant and you have these symptoms, see your doctor right away.

How is an ectopic pregnancy diagnosed?
A urine test can show if you are pregnant. To find out if you have an ectopic pregnancy, your doctor will likely do:

A pelvic exam to check the size of your uterus and feel for growths or tenderness in your belly.
A blood test that checks the level of the pregnancy hormone (hCG). This test is repeated 2 days later. During early pregnancy, the level of this hormone doubles every 2 days. Low levels suggest a problem, such as ectopic pregnancy.
An ultrasound. This test can show pictures of what is inside your belly. With ultrasound, a doctor can usually see a pregnancy in the uterus 6 weeks after your last menstrual period.

The most common treatments are medicine and surgery. In most cases, a doctor will treat an ectopic pregnancy right away to prevent harm to the woman.

Medicine can be used if the pregnancy is found early, before the tube is damaged. In most cases, one or more shots of a medicine called methotrexate will end the pregnancy. Taking the shot lets you avoid surgery, but it can cause side effects. You will need to see your doctor for follow-up blood tests to make sure the shot worked.

For a pregnancy that has gone beyond the first few weeks, surgery is safer and more likely to work than medicine. If possible, the surgery will be laparoscopy (say "lap-uh-ROSS-kuh-pee"). This type of surgery is done through one or more small cuts (incisions) in your belly. If you need emergency surgery, you may have a larger incision.

What can you expect after an ectopic pregnancy?
Losing a pregnancy is always hard, no matter how early it happened. Take time to grieve your loss, and get the support you need to make it through this time.

You could be at risk for postpartum depression after an ectopic pregnancy. If you have symptoms of depression that last for more than 2 weeks, be sure to tell your doctor so you can get the help you need.

It is common to worry about your fertility after an ectopic pregnancy. Having an ectopic pregnancy does not mean that you can't have a normal pregnancy in the future. But it does mean that:

You may have trouble getting pregnant.
You are more likely to have another ectopic pregnancy.
If you get pregnant again, be sure your doctor knows that you had an ectopic pregnancy before. Regular testing in the first weeks of pregnancy can find a problem early or let you know that the pregnancy is normal.

What is a miscarriage? A miscarriage is the loss of a pregnancy during the first 20 weeks. It is usually your body's way of ending a pregnancy that has had a bad start. The loss of a pregnancy can be very hard to accept. You may wonder why it happened or blame yourself. But a miscarriage is no one’s fault, and you can't prevent it. Miscarriages are very common. About 1 in 4 pregnancies end in a miscarriage.1 It is also common for a woman to have a miscarriage before she even knows that she is pregnant.

What causes a miscarriage? Most miscarriages happen because the fertilized egg in the uterus does not develop normally. A miscarriage is not caused by stress, exercise, or sex. In many cases, doctors don't know what caused the miscarriage. The risk of miscarriage is lower after the first 12 weeks of the pregnancy.

What are the common symptoms? Common signs of a miscarriage include:
Bleeding from the vagina. The bleeding may be light or heavy, constant or off and on. It can sometimes be hard to know whether light bleeding is a sign of miscarriage. But if you have bleeding with pain, the chance of a miscarriage is higher. Pain in the belly, lower back, or pelvis.
Tissue that passes from the vagina.

How is a miscarriage diagnosed? Call your doctor if you think you are having a miscarriage. If your symptoms and a pelvic exam do not show whether you are having a miscarriage, your doctor can do tests to see if you are still pregnant.

How is it treated?

No treatment can stop a miscarriage. As long as you do not have heavy blood loss, a fever, weakness, or other signs of infection, you can let a miscarriage follow its own course. This can take several days. If you have Rh-negative blood, you will need a shot of Rhogam. This prevents problems in future pregnancies. If you have not had your blood type checked, you will need a blood test to find out if you are Rh-negative. Many miscarriages complete on their own, but sometimes treatment is needed. If you are having a miscarriage, work with your doctor to watch for and prevent problems. If the uterus does not clear quickly enough, you could lose too much blood or develop an infection. In this case, medicine or a procedure called a dilation and curettage (D&C) can more quickly clear tissue from the uterus. A miscarriage doesn't happen all at once. It usually takes place over several days, and symptoms vary.

Here are some tips for dealing with a miscarriage: Use pads instead of tampons. You will probably have vaginal bleeding for a week or so. It may be like or slightly heavier than a normal period. You may use tampons during your next period, which should start in 3 to 6 weeks. Take acetaminophen (Tylenol) for cramps. Read and follow all instructions on the label. You may have cramps for several days after the miscarriage. Eat a balanced diet that is high in iron and vitamin C. You may be low in iron because of blood loss. Foods rich in iron include red meat, shellfish, eggs, beans, and leafy green vegetables. Foods high in vitamin C include citrus fruits, tomatoes, and broccoli. Talk to your doctor about whether you need to take iron pills or a multivitamin. Talk with family, friends, or a counselor if you are having trouble dealing with the loss of your pregnancy. If you feel very sad or depressed for longer than 2 weeks, talk to a counselor or your doctor. Talk with your doctor about any future pregnancy plans. Most doctors suggest that you wait until you have had at least one normal period before you try to get pregnant again.