Category: Pregnancy & Birth Control

Alone and pregnant in Toronto that would probably make a good movie title, but it is the actual situation I am facing right now. My boyfriend and I decided to part ways, and, a few weeks later, I found I was pregnant. It was a surprising find and it opened a long list of questions for me: am I ready for this, will I make the right choices for my baby, and can I manage as a single working mom?

Thankfully, I am not entirely alone in this: my parents decided to sell their house in Vancouver and move to Toronto to be closer to me and their grandchild. My mom started sharing a lot of traditional child bringing advice with me and it helped me a lot. Still there are lots of questions I have to debate on. If you happen to be in the same situation as me, here is the list of questions I am asking myself right now and the partial answers I found:

1. Shall I preserve the babys cord blood?

I heard that more and more parents make this choice, in the situation that their child may get seriously ill in the future and need stem cell therapy. So I decided to contact several stem cell banks and specialized courier Toronto services which deliver cord blood from hospitals to stem cell banks. After analysing various brochures, I decided to sign up for a stem cells preservation programme.

2. Shall I have a natural birth or C-section?

I must admit that I have a very low tolerance to pain. Ive always been that kid who screams and cries for minutes after a simple scratch. I try to avoid pain at all costs, so the perspective of spending long hours in excruciating pain giving birth is quite frightening to me. However, my doctor assured me that I can receive an epidural anaesthesia if I feel that the pain is unbearable. Moreover, she said that it is easier to extract cord blood and send it by courier to the stem cells bank after a natural birth.

Also, she made me understand how important it is to be able to hold my baby right after birth and create the mother-child bond. I guess I will face my deepest fears and become a stronger woman, ready to take care of my child.

3. How will I settle matters with my babys father?

My ex boyfriend knows that I am expecting his child and said that he will take responsibility, even though he left Toronto and now lives in Ottawa. I am still trying to adjust to the fact that our relationship did not work and that we will only be an estranged couple sharing parenting responsibilities. It is difficult, but we have to find a civil way of interacting, for the sake of our child.

These are the main questions going through my mind. I do not regret staying behind in Toronto, while my ex boyfriend pursued his career in Ottawa. I love this city it is a wonderful place to raise a child in. I am looking forward to the day Im giving birth to my child. My mother assured me that she will contact both the stem cells bank and the courier, and my dad will nervously pace the hospital waiting room until his grandchild is born and that is all the assurance I need to forget about my worries.

First time pregnancy is one of the scariest things a woman can encounter. It is scary because it is something new for you, meaning you have limited knowledge about it. Also as a mother, you want to give the highest possible love and care for the child in your womb, so that he can come out a healthy baby.

Though it feels frightening, you do not have to worry because there are a lot of ways to always keep your babys health in check. One of them is through ultrasounds. Ultrasounds are a necessity during pregnancy. Through this, the duration and any problems regarding the pregnancy can be identified.

There are different kinds of ultrasounds and the images that will emerge depend on what kind is used. 2D, 3D, 4D ultrasound baby images have distinctive differences. 2d scans are the usual blurry, black and grey images that we are used to seeing. If you want a clearer and more detailed image, the 3d and 4d scans will give you that. The 3d ultrasound gives a 3-dimensional image of the unborn baby, while the 4d ultrasound is responsible for the babys motion. So basically, the 3d and 4d ultrasound works together to capture images of babies in a womb.

As first time moms, you might want to get an idea on how pregnancy ultrasounds are done. There are actually two ways to do it. The first is by just simply lying down, while the sonographer places a water based gel on your belly, as well as your pelvis area. A probe will then be used to move around the area. Another way to do an ultrasound is by placing the probe through the vagina. This kind of ultrasound is also known as a transvaginal ultrasound.

Ultrasounds are done about two times. The first ultrasound is done immediately after you think or found out through a pregnancy test that you are pregnant. It is usually done during the 6-8 weeks of pregnancy. The second ultrasound happens during the middle of your pregnancy. You are about 18-20 weeks pregnant at that time. This time, you can see your baby longer and in more detail. Sometimes, a third trimester ultrasound is needed for other mothers, however it is not required. It is only done if there are other things that need to be monitored even after 20 weeks into pregnancy.

Finally, it may have occurred to you whether ultrasounds have any side effects. The answer is none, as long as it is done by a professional, and is only done for medical purposes. Growing a baby inside your womb is not an easy task, and no matter how much you prepare, your worry about your child will never be removed. Keep in mind that what you are feeling is normal. Your worry and fear is the product of the love and care a mother has for her child.