When you first discover that you have been blessed with the opportunity of becoming a mother you can feel quite daunted by this fact as there are so many things that you need to do to prepare for the pregnancy to ensure that the next nine months go as smoothly as they can. One of the first things you must do is go for a medical check up as this will give you a clearer understanding of how you are progressing and it will also highlight any significant issues or problems early on. Below are a list of things to expect from your medical check up:



* You will be asked to fill in a form that will require you to give such details as: name, address, marital status; medical history and general health, including your lifestyle habits.

* A urine sample will be requested to test for any problems or complications.

* A nurse will measure your weight and give you a blood pressure test.

* The doctor will give you an internal examination; this will be the last one you have until near the end of the pregnancy and again it will be for the benefit of both yourself and your baby to ensure that there is nothing wrong.

* When you are pregnant your body requires vital vitamins and minerals that will help to keep your body in the maximum of peak physical fitness; hence you will be given a prescription for prenatal vitamins.

Changes to Your Body (what to expect):

When you first receive the news of your pregnancy physical changes might not be as evident as you think they would be. However, almost straightaway your breasts might feel swollen or sensitive. Somehow, your breasts seem to know about your little unborn arrival before any other part of your body and consequently they will start to grow, which can cause you to feel uncomfortable and restricted in your usual clothes.

Another factor of pregnancy is your uncontrollable desire to want to go to the toilet more whatever time of the day. If you do feel that you might have difficulty in making it to the ladies room on time, there are special underwear towels that you can purchase for little accidents to save any embarrassment.

As with your period you can suffer from PMS, though with pregnancy it doesn't tend to go away and so your mood swings can cause irritation to those around you. You can feel happy and elated one second and then want to kill some one the next, but don't let this worry you or stress you out as it is a natural process of your body coping with your situation.

In addition to nightly visits to the toilet you can expect not to be able to get back to sleep when you return to your bed. This is because your body will become very fatigued and as a result of feeling tired, you may not be able to switch off when you want to.

Baby Bundle's Arrival:

One of the most important pieces of information that you will be given within the first few weeks of learning that you are pregnant is the due date of your child. However, though the doctor will try and give as accurate a time as possible it is not always one hundred percent true, as the precise date of conception cannot always be determined and different situations can cause an early or even late arrival. There are two formulas that you can use to try and gather a better estimate of when you chid will enter the world:

1. Write down the date of the first day of your last normal menstrual period. Add to this seven. To that date add nine months. That's your estimated due date.

OR

2. Write down the date of the first day of your last menstrual period. Add 40 weeks to this date - this potentially could be the date your baby is due.