Maternity Insurance|Maternity Care|Postpartum Care

I was only one and half months pregnant with my first child when I got to know about Belly Bands for Pregnancy from a good friend. Although my baby was planned and I was very happy and excited about the prospect of becoming a mother, but at the same time, I was worried that I would have to buy so many new clothes of bigger sizes for myself. Already we were tight regarding our budget and with the baby coming up, we were more eager to buy stuff for it than for us. My good friend told me about these bands during pregnancy and how they help in extending the time period for pregnant women to wear their normal clothes.

These bands are stretchable so women do not have to worry about their growing bellies. The exposure of skin from beneath the belly is also able to be easily hidden whilst wearing these bands. A very interesting advantage is that pregnant women tend to enjoy the kind of support belly bands provide to their growing stomach. It obviously becomes hard with the passage of time for a woman to carry around a heavy tummy with a child growing inside it. These bands come in handy at that time by giving a bit of support needed.

Women can wear their jeans as well while wearing these bands. All they have to do is just leave the buttons of their jeans open and the belly band will cover the exposed skin. They would feel exactly the same comfort.

As I mentioned before, a little bit of investment is required in getting a belly band for pregnancy and a woman is saved from all the expenses that come with buying a whole maternity wardrobe. This is how it's feasible. Belly bands are available in different styles also so one can choose their own. Even after pregnancy, these bands turn out to be extremely useful when a woman is in the phase of returning to her normal size. They begin to act as body shapers and smooth out the panty lines. Also, when a woman has to breast feed her baby, these bands again act beneficial in keeping her covered during that time.

Every pregnant woman goes through the dilemma of back aches during pregnancy. Belly bands for pregnancy also provide support to their backs, hence avoiding those aches, and ultimately make life a lot easier.

Aromatherapy means "therapy or treatment through aromas." It is invaluable in helping us overcome stresses. A harmonious complement to your current healthcare, Aromatherapy utilizes essential oils, which are extracted from flowers, plants, and trees, and the healing properties, such as antiviral, antibacterial, antibiotic, sedative, and digestive, within the oils are then used in a safe way to assist your health. Aromatherapy creates gentle, positive changes within the health of your body.

This ancient form of healthcare is safe for everyone, including pregnant and postpartum mothers on bedrest. It requires no challenging movement to inhale the aroma or to apply an aromatherapy blend. In fact, the marriage of soothing touch combined with the essential oils helps to promote a feel-good energy within the mother and baby as a type of self-love and self-nurturing.

The oils may be experienced through inhalation and/or topically (combined with a variety of base oils, such as canola, olive, or almond). The added base oil helps to transport the essential oil into the bloodstream, where it can "work its magic."

Essential oil preparations can also be utilized as a massage cream application, foot and body bath, perfume, compress, mouthwash and air diffusion.

As an aromatherapy spray, the pleasant, uplifting aroma will positively affect the atmosphere of the bedrest room; this provides further support as frustration and upset can be common responses to being in the same environment for extended periods of time.

Because there are countless therapeutic properties to each essential oil, aromatherapy is suitable to assist the variety of reasons why you are on bedrest. For instance, essential oil of sweet orange assists digestion and promotes positive attitude and mood; this oil would be helpful for a mother who may be experiencing morning sickness, nausea, loss of appetite or any other form of digestive upset, along with possible emotional upsets. An aromatherapy blend can be created for you that can be inhaled, apply on the stomach area of your body, or all over the body.

A positive shift in emotions supports a healthier pregnancy and mommy and baby bonding experience.

Now offered in hospitals throughout the world, aromatherapy is considered a complementary and alternative approach to healthcare. It may be used by itself or in partnership with other healthcare options. Aromatherapy can be used throughout pregnancy, childbirth, postpartum, postnatal, and beyond. I recommend consulting with a certified aromatherapist to have products specially created for your specific health concerns.

Midwifery brings to mind old-fashioned home-attended births, but today certified nurse midwife training opens a door to a mixed bag of birthing options for women and comprises a variety of occupational choices for nurse midwives. Some of the employment options include:

• Independent childbirth and well-woman care.


• Healthcare team practice.


• Hospital associated practice.


• Birthing centers.


• Health departments.

First, let's look at the training for how to become a nurse midwife. This role of nurse midwife is a master role in nursing, so it requires study and practice for certification beyond an RN or a BSN. It's important to find the right fit and location for this very demanding nurse-midwife program.

When training to be a midwife, there are many of the same requirements as becoming a master's-level nurse of any kind. However, beyond general nursing practices, the focus of certified nurse midwife training will be on women's care through labor and birth, as well as prenatal and postnatal care. In addition, there will be classes in pharmacology, and women's health across the lifespan.

On any given day, a nurse midwife might conduct a gynecologic exam, prescribe drugs, measure a uterus, check a newborn, deliver a baby, and perform an episiotomy.

Some training programs are online, and may allow a student to enter the nurse midwife program with a bachelor's degree in another area of study. In these programs, there will still be some demanding science prerequisites needed before applying.

Many schools require up to a year of experience in a labor and delivery setting. Some prospective students take this first step by becoming doulas. A doula is a trained companion hired by the client to coach her through a birth without pain medication. The doula attends labors and deliveries but does not perform any functions except encouragement. A nurse considering certified nurse midwife training might follow this track for a year to be sure.

Babies come at all hours of day and night, so it helps to know ahead if your energy level is up for this demanding vocation. The student will also have an extensive practicum before completing a graduate degree in this field. Practicum is based experientially on attending at least forty births along with all the other visits leading up to and following those births.

Additional gynecologic visits, and peri/post-menopausal care is also required as part of the practicum. Practicing these skills under supervision can take as long as two years.

The American Midwifery Certification Board provides guidelines for certification and requires re certification every five years, requiring proof of continuing education credit. Certification exams are administered regularly in a computer-based format at testing centers around the country. Exam cost is about $500, so it's important to be prepared both academically and financially for the certification exam.

Of all the nursing professions, pursuing certified nurse midwife training accesses the widest array of nursing care skills from birth to death to include regular exercise of basic surgical procedures. Choosing midwifery as a nursing vocation carries with it both monetary and spiritual rewards far beyond other nursing choices.

Sometimes it is really difficult to find out that what is wrong with you. You are sure that you have a problem but you don't know what it is. The only thought that comes into your mind again and again is that you can't do anything. You just try to find something to do and nothing attracts you anymore. Then the question comes into your mind - either it is depression or boredom?

Boredom means when you are totally free and looking here and there for something to do. People try to pass this time by watching T.V or overeating. It is an emotional stage during which people have lack of activities or don't enjoy the activities available around them. They fail to concentrate on the current activity and always try to find something new and interesting.

Whereas depression means lack of interest, energy and spark in your life. People suffering from depression make a hard shell around them and allows them to get out of neither it nor anybody get in. boredom can be controlled by so many ways but depression can not.

If you really want to come out of this confusion, you have to make a self-analysis. If you are having all the symptoms of depression like less sleep, less appetite, irritability, memory loss, loss of interest, thoughts of death and suicide etc., and then you must go for help.

Mild depression can be treated very easily but if it is severe and constant then you must seek medical help.

Many women in America are in this situation today of not having maternity insurance. The reasons for not having maternity coverage are all too common: "I cannot afford it", "I thought my coverage included maternity", or "I just didn't choose to have it in my plan because, we weren't planning on having a baby yet". Even though the reasons are different the end result is the same. It is such a shame that during one of the happiest times in a woman's life has to be mingled in with worry and fear. It is my hope that the information in this article will provide clear answers and will help remove some of the anxiety you may be feeling. I remember when my wife was pregnant; we had enough to worry about let alone the financial aspects of having a baby.

So what are your options if you do not have maternity coverage? Unfortunately, as you probably have already experienced the insurance avenue is out! Once you are pregnant, insurance companies will not accept you. It is kind of like trying to get auto insurance after a car wreck. Fortunately, there are a few choices you can make:

**Discount Medical Plans--- Discount medical plans like Ameriplan are similar to traditional major medical plans yet are different. Major medical insurance plans are designed to help cover the costs of medical claims. Discount plans, however, just provide a better rate for health services. The nice thing about discount plans are they are significantly less expensive than traditional health plans and you can begin using the benefits from day one.

**Advocacy Groups--- Similar to discount medical plans are maternity advocacy groups like Maternity Advantage. They help to negotiate the best pricing for lab work, help find the best doctor fees in your area, and help find errors in billing to help cut costs. Click the link above to have a maternity specialist help you better understand the different programs they have available for you.

**Cash Pay Option--- Most OBGYN's have two billing methods 1) Global billing-which is used for insurance and 2) Cash payment. With a cash payment option they give you a cash pay discount for their medical services. Typically, the doctor's office will charge you around $2000-$3000 dollars from conception to delivery. Next, you will need to contact the billing department for your hospital. Every hospital has a prepayment package for delivery services. Usually these packages range from $3000-$5000 dollars. As you can see this is a much more expensive option to experience on the front end, but you do save at the end. On average a normal pregnancy if you do not have insurance, use an advocacy group, or discount plan will cost you from $7500-$10,000 dollars-just for delivery!!!

As you can see there are options available for pregnant women. I wish they were as comprehensive as traditional health insurance with maternity care, but these programs do help save women a lot of money in their maternity expenses. I hope after reading this article you have a better understanding of what your choices are and are able to develop a road map of what to do next. But most of all, I hope that now you can rest a little easier at night because in a few short months you will have a lot of late nights with your new baby.

For most pregnant women, nausea and vomiting are most likely to develop in the first month or two of pregnancy and start tapering off by the end of the first trimester-by week 18 at the outside. But as many as 20 percent of women may find that their symptoms of pregnancy nausea lasting into the third trimester, and 5 percent experience nausea and vomiting right up to delivery.

For some women, morning sickness stops after a few weeks at the start of their pregnancy, only to return again around week 27 or after. Still other women have no nausea at all in early stages, and are quite surprised to find it developing in the last three months.

Of course, at any time, a sudden onset of nausea and vomiting can be due to a virus or other illness. Especially if it is accompanied by diarrhea, it could be the flu or food poisoning. If such symptoms are severe at any time during pregnancy, it's important to be wary of dehydration and make sure to replenish the fluids being lost.

Starting around week 27, hormone activity tends to pick up again, after having leveled off somewhat for most women during the mid-stages of pregnancy. Women who maintain high levels of the hCG hormone are particularly likely to find that their NVP also continues throughout pregnancy.

Another instigator of nausea and vomiting the later stages of pregnancy is simply the size of the growing fetus. At this time it's most common for nausea to strike immediately after a meal, often accompanied by heartburn. As the baby gets bigger, the uterus exerts more pressure on the stomach causing heartburn and nausea when the stomach is filled. At this point, stomach capacity is even smaller, and it's even more important to stick to smaller meals to reduce this stress.

So nausea in the third trimester isn't necessarily unusual or worrisome. However, there are a couple of serious late-pregnancy liver diseases that can also lead to nausea and vomiting, including acute fatty liver of pregnancy and HELLP syndrome. Though both of these ailments are truly rare, they are also life-threatening if untreated. For this reason, doctors now recommend that any woman experiencing nausea and vomiting accompanied by upper abdominal pain and "malaise" in the third trimester of pregnancy have her liver enzymes and renal function evaluated, along with a complete blood count.

Also, any woman who is experiencing nausea and vomiting in combination with severe headaches, facial swelling, sudden swelling, abdominal pain, and visual disturbances (e.g., seeing spots) should call her physician immediately. These are signs of preeclampsia, an illness that can develop quite rapidly anytime after the 20th week of pregnancy and that affects as many as 8 percent of pregnancies. Preeclampsia can cause strokes and kidney damage, liver failure, blot clots, fluid in the lungs, seizures, and even death of both the child and the mother.

There is one final factor that can lead to nausea in late pregnancy-though in this instance it is a bit easier to diagnose. If nausea, vomiting and diarrhea coincide with cramps, backache, pelvic pressure, and contractions occurring less than 10 minutes apart, labor has begun.

While not uncommon, then, nausea late in any pregnancy merits a consultation with your care provider. In most cases there are ordinary and harmless reasons for it, but there is an outside chance that is a symptom of one of these several serious illnesses that occasionally arise during the late weeks of pregnancy.

If you spend enough time watching daytime talk shows, you are guaranteed to come across one devoted to pregnant teenagers who have decided to keep and raise their babies. If you listen to enough of theses young women, you will get a fairly good idea of how skewed their understanding of parenthood can be.

One of the most disturbing realities of teen pregnancy and parenting, however, is that the younger the expectant mother is, the less ability she has to recognize her own lack of preparedness for what lies ahead.

Surveys have shown that most expectant teens, not matter how old, believe that by having a child they will at last have found a bond with another person, and even think the child will bond them to its father. But younger teens not only seem to be relying on their coming child to provide them with emotional connectedness; they seem to have no true grasp of the how the realities of teen pregnancy and parenting will change their lives.

There are approximately half a million births to US women below the age of twenty every year. One of the sadder realities of teen pregnancy and parenting is that many teenaged girls who become pregnant are so ignorant about reproductive matters that they do not realize their condition until well into the pregnancy.

This is especially alarming because so many birth defects can result from the behaviors an expectant mother engages in during her first trimester. Even worse, many teenagers are afraid to acknowledge their pregnancies until it is impossible to hide them, or will even cut down on their food intake in and attempt to keep the pregnancy from showing.

Such behavior means that two of the other realities of teen pregnancy and parenting are a higher incidence of low birth weight babies and undernourished mothers who may have a longer postpartum recovery period and be even less able to properly care for their newborns.

A 2006 study of 247 expectant teenagers, headed by Dr. Cynthia Rosengard, of Rhode Island Hospital and Brown University Medical School questioned the young women, aged from 12 to 19, about their motivations for becoming pregnant. Almost one-quarter of them admitted to consciously deciding to have a child.

And it appears that one of the more common realities surrounding teen pregnancy and parenting is that younger girls believed that they could become friends with their children because of their closeness in age.

Alarmingly, another of the young ladies thought that one or the realities of teen pregnancy and parenting was that by having her baby at fifteen, she could pursue a career as an adult because the child would be old enough to fend for itself. Another one thought that having a baby would teach her some responsibility and keep her away from drugs.

But about 50% of the girls over eighteen admitted that they were not prepared for the realities of teen pregnancy and parenting. There appeared to be an improved understanding of those realities as the ages of the women increased.

The idea of children having children, it seems, is not a good one to anybody but the children themselves.

You feel queasy. You're experiencing a headache. You just don't feel too good. Blame it on yesterday's seafood? Or are you catching a cold? Or could it be that you're pregnant? How can you tell the difference?

This article will hope fully lead on the right path. We will discuss early pregnancy symptoms and signs that you should keep an eye out for.

One of the most telling sign of being pregnant is a delay in your menstruation. If you miss your period and have been sexually active, then you should take a pregnancy test kit. Keep in mind that many women still get bleeding, but it will be lighter and for shorter days.

Besides missing your period, you could also experience some spotting or light bleeding. This normally takes place very early in the pregnancy stages, somewhere between 6 to 12 days after the conception. This happens when the tiny embryo clings itself onto the wall of your uterus.

Once you are pregnant, there will be changes to your body. One significant change is the swelling of breasts. Women tend to get swollen breasts as early as 1 - 2 weeks into the pregnancy. The breasts are sore and tender and can be a discomforting experience for women. Besides breasts tenderness, women could also experience the darkening of the areolas. The nipples tend to grow darker when you are pregnant.

One thing that sends shivers down the spine of soon-to-be mothers is the morning sickness or nausea. Nausea is experienced by many pregnant women anytime between weeks 2 - 8 after conception. And even though it's called morning sickness, you can get it at anytime of the day. You might not have to throw up, but the queasy feeling is still there. The good news, it will not last forever. Some women are very fortunate in the sense that they never have to go through morning sickness. However there are some unlucky women who go through morning sickness right through their pregnancy.

When you're pregnant, you could experience extreme tiredness or fatigue. This can keep you in bed, as you're often sleepy or just don't want to get out of bed. This is normal for an expecting woman.

And if that's not hard enough, another symptom of pregnancy is the frequent urination. You may feel like you just want to sit near the bathroom all day, or that your bladder just can't hold it in any longer. Pregnant women have to put up with this and make extra trips to the bathroom every day.

Expecting women also experience aches - backaches and headaches. Early in the pregnancy, you may experience lower backaches. Backaches are also common throughout the entire time you are pregnant. Your body has to cope with a growing belly and this can strain your back, thus you may experience a dull backache all this time. As your body changes, so do your hormones. As a result of this, you may find yourself experiencing headaches early in your pregnancy.

And of course, who can forget the food cravings of the pregnant woman. Of course it might not be a longing to eat odd combinations of food like sardines and chips, but many pregnant women feel a craving for some types of food. This craving could also last for the entire pregnancy.

The above are the most common symptoms that a woman may go through in the early stages (and some till the end) of pregnancy. Should you experience these symptoms, get a pregnancy test kit or meet with your doctor. Do remember that the symptoms might vary, as everyone is unique and that each woman is different.

Recent studies have revealed some interesting facts about changes in America's workforce - and the need for insurance agents to address these trends:

• Women make up almost 50 percent of the U.S. workforce - and 40 percent of them have no life insurance.


• Typically, women's coverage is only about 70 percent of what men carry.


• Most U.S. households are dual-income households - yet they are more likely to buy coverage for husbands than wives.


• 30 percent of wives earn more money than their husbands, but may not carry enough insurance to reflect this difference - if they have life insurance at all.

What's the takeaway from all this?

Women in America need to carry more life insurance to ensure the financial well-being of their loved ones. While the gap between women's coverage and men's coverage is narrowing, many women simply don't carry enough insurance to cover the financial value they provide.

What Agents Need to Keep in Mind

Insurance agents can provide an important service by presenting options that cover both breadwinners in a family - and by helping those customers understand the financial hardship they could face without the female wage earner's income.

Research shows that, despite the gender gap in coverage, women actually place more value on life insurance than men. They also have a different approach to shopping for life insurance:

• Women place more value on building a relationship with their insurance agents.


• They tend to be more deliberate in their approach, i.e., asking more questions and wanting more educational materials and resources to study before making a decision.


• Women are more likely to follow up on agent referrals from people they trust - as well as provide referrals to friends and family if they're happy with an agent's service.


• They're also more likely to request regular policy reviews.

Remember: All Women Need Proper Coverage

It's not just women in two-income families who need insurance. Take a look at your customers and consider how you can provide coverage to:

繚 Single mothers - For sole (or primary) breadwinners, life insurance is even more crucial than in households where another source of income exists if one parent dies.

繚 Full-time homemakers: Most people now recognize that full-time mothers and homemakers provide free services in the home - from cleaning to childcare and more - that would otherwise cost tens of thousands of dollars annually. It's crucial that, in the event of tragedy, families have protection to cover these expenses.

繚 Single women: Loans. Mortgages. End-of-life expenses. Most people don't want these burdens to fall on their parents or other loved ones. Additionally, life insurance can provide future financial stability through accumulating cash value or, if marriage and family is in the future, helping to protect husbands and children.

Women have made tremendous strides in the workplace and other areas, but a serious life insurance gender gap still exists. As insurance professionals, it's a gap we can help close to ensure that all of our customers have the protection they need.

1. Be especially kind to yourself in the first weeks after your baby is born. Your body has gone through huge changes and it's unrealistic to expect that you can snap back into your old shape straight away. Unrealistic expectations sets you up for failure and disappointment, but you CAN get your figure back if you are patient and take it one step at a time.
   
   
   


2. Forget drastic dieting and treat your body to healthy nourishing food and gentle exercise to get back in shape. You will naturally lose some weight during the first few weeks as your uterus shrinks. Breast feeding alone will allow you to lose weight at 1lb a week if you eat normally and healthily as it uses up 500 calories a day, but you do need to eat enough so that your milk does not dry up. Plan on losing the remainder at a gentle pace.
   
   
   


3. Your tummy will look very sad after the birth, flabby and saggy. Don't worry you can soon get things looking good again. Do all the post-natal exercises and gentle exercise recommended by your health-care professionals during the first 6 weeks to get your tummy back in shape. After that check with them that it is OK if you want to embark on a more strenuous exercise routine. Once your doctor says its OK to exercise, one of the best ways to retighten your muscles is a simple yoga move. Stand with your feet apart, hands on thighs. Breathe out fully and then pull your tummy muscles in and up as hard as you can, holding for a count of 10. If you do this a few times a day before breakfast you'll soon see results. Don't do this during pregnancy.
   
   
   


4. The first few weeks with your baby are precious and not the time to start injuring yourself by doing too much too soon. Whatever you decide to do, don't go mad in the first week you're allowed to exercise normally. Build up gradually as if you'd not exercised before.
   
   
   


5. If you are not able to get back to the gym or to do whatever activity you used to do now that you have a baby to care for, investigate home-exercise programs and videos you can do while your baby sleeps or organise your partner or friend to watch your baby for a short time while you exercise. You will need to be a bit more resourceful and determined to fit in your exercise but you can find a way if you really want to.
   
   
   


6. Walking with your baby is always great - you both get fresh air and out of the house and you get fitter while your baby is soothed by the movement of the pram. You could also use a baby carrier to keep your baby close to you while you walk. This is especially soothing for a restless baby. Aim to walk for 30 minutes to an hour each day.
   
   
   


7. You may find yourself tempted to snack more if you are alone at home with your baby especially if you are used to being out and about at work every day. Make sure you have lots of healthy snacks around such as fruit and avoid buying unhealthy snacks so you are not tempted. You may be better to plan 5 or 6 mini-meals rather than snacking all day AND having your usual lunch and dinner.
   
   
   


8. Take the time to plan simple meals for the next few days before you go shopping. This will help you avoid the "What's for dinner"/"Oh no, I haven't defrosted it?" / "Better send out for pizza again" Syndrome. This is not the time to plan elaborate recipes but try and avoid too much processed junk food because you do have time for a simple omelette, pasta sauce, baked potato or salad
   
   
   


9. If you start a plan to get in shape and it all feels like too much, simply restart it when you feel up to it - there's no need to beat yourself up over anything. Most women feel a bit tired and stressed with a new baby so don't put more pressure on yourself. All in good time. If you feel really down remember and seek help - post-natal depression is very real and quite common.
   
   
   


10. Reward yourself. You've been through a lot - your body has changed, your hormones are in disarray. Whatever you do that helps towards getting back in shape (a walk, a healthy snack, your tummy exercises or whatever) give yourself a pat on the back. A few moments to yourself can be a great reward if you have someone who will care for your little one for a while.
    
    
    


11. Bonus tip: Above all relax into your new life with your baby. You'll achieve nothing by worrying about your shape. Take time to rest and pamper yourself as much as possible. Sometimes you can feel quite neglected because your baby makes so many demands and this in itself can lead you to eat for comfort. Take care of your own needs. Ask for support from your partner. If you look after yourself by eating healthily and keeping up some gentle exercise you'll be fine and your weight will naturally rebalance itself over time.