Prospective parents are truly curious about everything related to pregnancy, from when the baby’s heart is formed to whether eating sushi or dyeing your hair is okay. If this describes you, you’ve come to the right place. In one helpful reference guide, Pregnancy All-in-One For Dummies offers the answers to many of your pregnancy-related questions, from fetal development to workouts for moms-to-be to healthy weight gain and more.
Pregnancy should be a joy, not a worry. Yet pregnant women are, by nature, already anxious about whether anything they do or eat may hurt the baby. The source of all this anxiety? Often it’s information on pregnancy — in print, online, or from the mouths of well-meaning but clueless friends and family — that is outdated, lacks scientific basis, or is exaggerated for shock effect. The result is that many pregnant women and their partners end up incredibly worried about something they’ve read or heard.
This comprehensive, scientifically correct guide presents the facts of pregnancy based on real scientific data, and it answers many commonly asked questions — all while encouraging the humor and light-heartedness that are part of the miraculous process of having a baby. A big part of the philosophy behind this book is to reassure pregnant women instead of adding to the unnecessary worries they already have.
Prospective parents also want to know about the medical aspects of pregnancy. When are fingers developed? Which blood tests should be done, and why? What options are available for detecting various problems? This book addresses these topics, too, creating what is essentially a medical text on obstetrics for the layperson.
This book provides a lot of factual information, but it isn’t gospel. Many of the topics discussed apply to pregnancy in general, but your particular situation may have unique aspects that warrant different or extra consideration, so use this book as a companion to regular medical care.
Sidebars (boxes of text) in this book give you a more in-depth look at a certain topic. Although they further illuminate a particular point, these sidebars aren’t crucial to understanding the rest of the book. Feel free to read them or skip them. You can pass over the text that accompanies the Technical Stuff icon as well. The text associated with this icon gives some interesting details about pregnancy, but if you don’t read it, you can still come away with the information you need.
Within this book, you may note that some web addresses break across two lines of text. If you’re reading this book in print and want to visit one of these web pages, simply key in the web address exactly as it’s noted in the text, pretending the line break doesn’t exist. If you’re reading this as an e-book, you’ve got it easy — just click the web address to be taken directly to the web page.
We made some assumptions about you and what you want out of a pregnancy book:
If you fit any of these criteria, then Pregnancy All-in-One For Dummies gives you the information you’re looking for.
Like other For Dummies books, this one uses icons to guide you through the information.
This icon signals information that delves a little deeper than usual into a medical explanation.
This icon flags information that’s particularly worth keeping in mind.
This icon marks bits of advice about handling minor discomforts and other challenges you encounter during pregnancy.
This icon points out situations and actions that a pregnant woman clearly should avoid.
In addition to the material in the print or e-book you’re reading right now, this product comes with some access-anywhere goodies on the web. Check out the free Cheat Sheet for info on what to expect when you’re admitted to the hospital, how you can avoid some of the maladies that plague pregnant women (like heartburn), and strategies that can help you find time for fitness and motherhood. To get this Cheat Sheet, simply go to www.dummies.com and search for “Pregnancy All-in-One For Dummies Cheat Sheet” in the Search box.
If you’re the particularly thorough type, go ahead and read this book from cover to cover. If you just want to find specific information and then close the book, take a look at the table of contents or at the index. Dog-ear or bookmark the pages that are especially interesting or relevant to you. Add comments or write little notes in the margins. Have fun, and most of all, enjoy your pregnancy!