Obstetrics & Gynaecology Articles
Articles and information displayed on this information are of a general nature and may not be specific to your individual circumstances. You should seek medical advice and support from a trained doctor when making a health related decision.
FAQ
Q: I'm so happy to be pregnant but I feel like I'm dying! Tired and sick, what is that all about?
Theories about this range from the melodramatic and Freudian 'wanting to vomit up the vileness of the father' (honestly!) through to the more logical observation that early pregnancy is a time of great vulnerability for the developing baby and the woman or family that supports it, and the fewer exposures the better. Sleep requirements actually increase and if you rest, take time off work (or other children) if you need (and can!), you will ultimately need less time off work during your pregnancy (in total). A stitch in time saves nine and the first few months of pregnancy are sending clear messages to do as little as possible in all respects.
Good treatments are available for nausea and vomiting of pregnancy. You should remember that even if you are feeling well, you should expose yourself to as little as possible and enjoy the rest while you undertake the magic of life. We are returning to the stalwarts of the 70's with doxylamine following after vitamin B6 (= pyridoxine) as the first line of treatment. There has been a lot of nervousness about prescribing medications in this early phase of pregnancy but huge numbers of women have taken these and the safety is very well established. You should speak with your maternity carer about this and don't need to suffer the misery that can cloud this time.
Q: I had a miscarriage in my last pregnancy and just can't get over it.
Miscarriage is the most common pregnancy complication and most common form of reproductive loss. About 55,000 Australian women have a miscarriage each year, one in four women over their lifetime. Miscarriage is an invisible loss without rituals and community support. It challenges the expectations of a healthy pregnancy and sense of self as a woman and mother, there is loss of part of the self before the separate identity of a foetus is fully acknowledged, and it is associated with high levels of personal responsibility and guilt. Many women develop causal beliefs to explain a miscarriage and apportion blame, primarily to themselves. Depression, anxiety, grief, feelings of emptiness, helplessness, self-blame, low self esteem and anger are typical responses.
IT FEELS HARD AND IT IS HARD. Be gentle with yourself.
Q: How much weight should I put on in pregnancy?
Without wanting to create a new sibling of the eating disorder fraternity, data is now available (from Sweden) indicating that optimal weight gain is never greater than 10kg. It is dependant on pre-pregnancy weight and ranges from less than 6 kilos for those who are overweight, to 4-10kg in those who are underweight. Women who are obese don't need to gain weight. It is very important to take a folate supplement and maintain a balanced diet. Excessive weight gain in pregnancy is associated with high blood pressure (pre-eclampsia) and babies that don't fit out the bottom end (needing Caesarean delivery). It is also important for your general health to return to normal weight between pregnancies. We can give specific advice about this if you'd like.
Q: Is smoking really all that bad? Doesn't it mean a smaller baby and easier delivery?
It is really all that bad and one of the greatest omissions in pregnancy care is not bringing this up! We now know that early life (in the womb) influences adult health. Conditions like heart disease are increased in babies born small-for-dates, which smoking doubles the chance of. Smoking increases miscarriage, premature birth, stillbirth, SIDS, cleft lip and childhood cancers.
Buy yourself a copy of Allen Carr's book (The Easy Way to Quit Smoking), relax and give yourself the time to understand the most significant behaviour of your life. DO NOT USE NICOTINE REPLACEMENT THERAPIES. They are more addictive than cigarettes (more socially acceptable and invisible) and not safe in pregnancy and you don't need them, they don't help.
Q: If I listen to classical music while I'm pregnant will my baby be smarter?
A recent report now says that the popular "Mozart Effect" is another charming urban legend. The bad news for the hip urban professionals: playing Mozart for your designer baby will not improve his IQ or help him get into that exclusive pre-school.
Of course, we're all better off for listening to Mozart purely for the pleasure of it. However, one wonders whether, if playing Mozart sonatas for little Tiffany or Jason could boost their intelligence, what would happen if other composers were played during the kiddies' developmental time?
- LISZT EFFECT: Child speaks rapidly and extravagantly, but never really says anything important.
- BRUCKNER EFFECT: Child speaks very slowly and repeats himself frequently. Gains reputation for profundity.
- WAGNER EFFECT: Child becomes a megalomaniac. May eventually marry his sister.
- MAHLER EFFECT: Child continually screams - at great length and volume that he's dying.
- SCHOENBERG EFFECT: Child never repeats a word until he's used all the other words in his vocabulary. Sometimes talks backwards. Eventually, people stop listening to him. Child blames them for their inability to understand him.
- IVES EFFECT: The child develops a remarkable ability to carry on several separate conversations at once.
- GLASS EFFECT: The child tends to repeat himself over and over and over and over and over and over and over and over and over and over and over and over and over again
- STRAVINSKY EFFECT: The child is prone to savage, guttural and profane outbursts that often lead to fighting and pandemonium in the preschool.
- BRAHMS EFFECT: The child is able to speak beautifully as long as his sentences contain a multiple of three words (3, 6, 9, 12, etc). However, his sentences containing 4 or 8 words are strangely uninspired.
- CAGE EFFECT: Child says nothing for 4 minutes, 33 seconds. (Preferred by 9 out of 10 classroom teachers.)
- VAUGHAN WILLIAMS EFFECT: Child becomes an astronomer at 4.
- BEETHOVEN EFFECT: "Eh?"
- BACH EFFECT: Child speaks in sonata form.
Q: Where can I find more sources of information on the internet?
There are many sources of health information on the internet; some are good, some are bad and some are just wrong! Beware of making your own diagnosis or conclusions based on what you read online as the information is by its nature general or anecdotal and won't be specific to your circumstances. If you need advice you should seek professional advice. With these comments in mind below are some sites that others have found useful:
Q: What technology does the practice use?
We use a variety of technology in the practice to improve patient care, keep in contact and ensure we can find
information about you and health studies to provide informed advice. For example, we try to operate a paperless practice by storing
all patient records in our practice management software, Genie, and receiving
correspondence and test results from other practitioners and labs where possible electronically using
Argus, Promedicus or eClinic. Our phone systems,
broadband and phones are supplied by Telstra. We use various software to keep our records up to
date including MYOB for managing our financials and Google
Applications to run our mail system and intranet. We also use a variety of information references to keep ourselves up to
date including the MJA, RANZCOG
journal and UpToDate.
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