You both have talked about it, trying to figure out when is the right time to get pregnant. When are you truly ready for the responsibility of caring for a child full time? Have you considered EVERYTHING that needs to be taken into consideration? Are you emotionally, financially, physically, and mentally ready?
Emotional/Mental
Are you emotionally ready for a child? Are you going to bring the child into a stable, healthy, and positive environment? Is your partner/spouse at all abusive, either verbally or physically? Would marriage counseling improve your relationship? Pregnancy and motherhood can be incredibly stressful. Knowing how you and your partner can correctly cope with the different changes and emotions your body will experience can be extremely helpful. Counseling doesn't mean that there is something wrong with you.
Financial
Unfortunately, finances are a critical aspect of pregnancy and raising a child. Face it, the cost to raise a child over the span of 18 years is roughly $208,692 and that is WITHOUT ANY COLLEGE!!! Don't panic! If you wait until you have that much money, you probably would never have a child. You don’t need to be rich, but you do need to take everything into consideration.
- Make a list with your spouse/partner and do an income/debt sheet. List all of your income and all of your bills and see exactly how much money you have left over every month. Now that you know how much extra money you have each month. Will it be enough to cover the following?
- Doctor Appointments: These visits will increase as the size of your stomach does as well ;-). Are you one of the few fortunate ones who have health insurance or medicaid? Do you have to meet a deductible or make a co payment?
- Medical Expenses: Does your insurance cover labor, delivery fees, hospital and doctor fees, nursery fees, medication fees, or circumcision fees (for boys), or other fees such as surgical or anesthesia?
- Clothing: Over the following nine months as you get bigger you are going to need maternity clothes. You will likely need even more clothes after you give birth and your body returns to its normal state. ?
- Time Off: Will your company give you paid leave? How long will they give you paid leave for? Under the Family and Medical Leave Act, you are entitled to up to 12 weeks of unpaid time off, if you qualify. Do you have any sick or vacation time that you can use, OR did you use it all WHILE you were pregnant? However, if you managed to save any, you may want to save that time for when your baby is sick!
- Childcare: This is probably the costliest part of having a child, next to diapers and formula! Are you returning to work after your child is born? Many people find that childcare can be as much or MORE that what one parent brings home. This has caused a lot of mothers (and a few fathers) to stay home with their child until they are enrolled full time in school.
- COUPONS: Coupons. Coupons. What a great way to help minimize the impact of a newborn baby on your budget and purse. There are plenty of places online to find them. Many places will put you on their mailing list. We even encourage you to get your friends and family members to help find some for you or sign up places as well. You can save HUNDREDS of dollars just by being a SMART MOM!
Physical
Before you embark on getting pregnancy, you should at least take the time to make an fertility consultation appointment. Your doctor will check over you and likely give you a prescription for some prenatal vitamins. Nonprescription prenatal vitamins generally contain 500 to 800 mcg of folic acid. Prescription-strength prenatal vitamins generally have 1,000 mcg, also labeled 1 mg. Therefore, SMART MOM, if you take TWO 500mg non prescription vitamins, it may or may not save you some money. Do the math. Either way, prenatal vitamins ARE CRITICAL TO HEALTY BABIES and should be taken even before you are pregnant. WHY? Studies have shown taking folic acid every day during the first three months of your pregnancy can help prevent or severely reduce the risks of serious birth defects of the brain and spine.
If this page of information and education doesn't scare you off, give you spouse/partner a huge kiss and tell them you are ready as be to finally conceive!
Drinking and Pregnancy
We all know that drinking is a bad thing when it is mixed with driving. Driving under the influence is just as horrible as pregnancy under the influence. You can do severe DAMAGE to your unborn child if you drink while you are pregnant. Fetal Alcohol Syndrome is one thing that you DO NOT want to give your child. Remember NEVER NEVER drink more than ONE glass of wine while you are pregnant, if you don't you may never forgive yourself. |
