pregnancy

Pregnancy, Labor & Birth

How birth affects breastfeeding

It takes 60 muscles for an infant to master the suck-swallow-breathe reflex, so it's no wonder that a baby's birth affects their...

Conceiving

4 Health changes to make before conceiving

You and your partner have finally made the decision to have a baby. Congratulations! But preparing your body for pregnancy isn’t...

Baby Names

How to combine baby names

Looking for the right baby name for your little girl or boy? Perhaps you can't decide between two names or even want to incorporate...

New Moms

Contractions: Braxton Hicks or are they for real?

Braxton Hicks, while great practice for the uterus, can be a real nuisance to an expecting mother in the final days. Here are some...

First time pregnancy

First pregnancy milestones

Every woman’s pregnancy is different. Her first can be drastically different than her second. Some women never experience so much as...

First time pregnancy

How to take a pregnancy test

It might be common knowledge that if you want to find out if you’re pregnant, you can’t rip open a home pregnancy test and pee on a...

New mom health and wellness

How to deal with your post-baby body

There are a few topics most moms gloss over with pregnant women. This includes how your body will be different after your little...

First time pregnancy

What birth is really like: The naked truth

You’ve made it through nine months of morning sickness, strange cravings, headaches, backaches, incessant potty breaks and other...

Pregnancy, Labor & Birth

Should cameras be allowed in delivery rooms?

A growing number of hospitals are restricting cameras and video recorders in the delivery room, citing legal issues and patient...

First time pregnancy

Top 10 essentials for your hospital bag

Your hospital bag is going to be your lifeline to normality for the two to three days that you will be staying there. Chances are...

First time pregnancy

How to create a birth plan

A birth plan can be as simple or as complex as you choose to make it. It should always be understood to be a written version of the...

First time pregnancy

Early signs of labor

The movies make it look so obvious-- a big gush of water and off to the hospital they go. Unfortunately, the membranes will rupture...

First time pregnancy

Common prenatal procedures

You are pregnant! With those two little pink lines comes a lot of excitement for the life-changing next 40 weeks of your life, but...

Pregnancy, Labor & Birth

Should you consider a doula?

Whether you are planning a pregnancy, just found out you're pregnant or are about to deliver, you've probably paid some thought to...

Pregnancy, Labor & Birth

Vacuum extraction during delivery

In the labor and delivery room, things don't always go as you plan. From lengthy labors to low levels of pain tolerance, each and...

Tough Love

Should I blog anonymously?

In this installment of Tough Love, Kit from Blogging Dangerously offers tips on starting a blog.

Tough Love

Should I start a pregnancy blog?

In this installment of Tough Love, Jill of Scary Mommy offers tips on starting a blog, self-censorship and how to deal with...

Pregnancy, Labor & Birth

IVs during labor

As routine as hearing "push!" in the delivery room, IVs are being administered to laboring women as a precautionary measure. If...

Pregnancy, Labor & Birth

How to handle an unexpected home birth

You're looking forward to delivering in the comforts of the hospital delivery room, only to find that your bun in the oven is making...

Pregnancy, Labor & Birth

Stages of labor

Like your pregnancy, your labor is broke into three stages: the first, the second, and the third stage. However, each stage of labor...

Pregnancy, Labor & Birth

How to speed up labor

Now that it's go time, it seems that your bun in the oven is taking her sweet time making her grand entrance. But after nine long...