Should I have a pre pregnancy exam

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Have a Physical
Have a Physical
Once you've provided your medical history and current lifestyle considerations, it's time for a thorough a physical exam. This pre-pregnancy exam is the identical to your usual, routine health evaluation. Your doctor will pay particular attention to all of the following:

• Head and neck exam. (includes, ears, eyes, nose, throat and oral hygiene)

• Thyroid gland

• Chest exam (includes, heart, lungs and breasts)

• Abdomen exam (includes liver, gallbladder and spleen)

• Skin and lymph nodes

• Pelvic exam including Pap smear

• Vital signs (includes temperature, heart rate, blood pressure, respiratory rate and weight)

After Your Physical Exam
Once your exam is complete, talk to your doctor about the medical care options available to you once you do become pregnant. Things to consider:

• Is your current doctor accepting obstetric patients?

• Do you want to continue under this doctor's care if the practice is open to newly-pregnant patients?

• At what hospital does this doctor have privileges? It may not be the hospital you want - certainly something to consider.

• Does your doctor's hospital accept your insurance?

Check with your insurance company. If you know the answers to these questions ahead of time, you won't be scrambling to find a caregiver when you're pregnant. You'll have time to carefully check out doctors, hospitals and birthing centers. Having time to do this thoroughly will better enable to you to choose the right people and place to help you deliver your baby when the time comes.

Why is this kind of planning so important? Again, we're talking about making baby's life as healthy as possible right from the start. Baby's health depends on your health. If you can spend a few months getting in tip-top shape before becoming pregnant, then that's your best course.

Use your checkup as a starting point and take positive steps to prepare your body for pregnancy.

Check out your insurance coverage.
Pregnancy is expensive. In 2006, nationwide costs for prenatal care with a vaginal delivery ranged from $5,000 to $9,000. Caesarean deliveries brought the costs up to an average of $12,000. Those numbers are for healthy babies with no complications. If you're uninsured, now's the time to start budgeting for pregnancy and delivery costs.

If you're lucky, a major portion of your pregnancy costs will be covered by medical insurance. Be sure to thoroughly investigate the benefits your medical insurance provides for pregnancy. Check which doctors and hospitals are covered by your plan. Find out what your co-pays are. Inquire about pre-certification. Do your insurance homework now while you're calm and clearheaded.

Ready, Set, Go
Figure out when you're most fertile - usually half way through your menstrual cycle - and get busy. Remember that most couples don't get pregnant on the first try, or even their second. It may take a few months. Try to relax and enjoy one another, rather than focusing solely on getting pregnant. You're actually more likely to get pregnant that way.

How long is too long to be trying? If you're under 35 and in good health, your doctor will want to see you if you've been trying to conceive for 12 months without success. Over 35 but under 40, call your doctor after six months. Don't get discouraged if conception takes longer than you anticipated. Remember, anything worth having is worth waiting for.

Consider keeping a pregnancy journal. It's not too early to start writing. Record your thoughts and feelings about planning for baby, your feelings as you begin this exciting adventure, your hopes and dreams for yourself, your spouse, your baby. You'll love having this memento when baby's no longer little and your pregnancy days have grown hazy. Can you believe that they will? Once those diapers, then tricycles, then report cards start coming in, you'll cherish having a record of your thoughts while you were making Junior.

Get yourself ready - mind, body, and spirit - for the ride of a lifetime. Your baby is waiting for the perfect moment to enter your life. If it's not this month, then maybe it's next month. And if baby is already snuggled up inside you, you just need to prepare a little faster. Either way, enjoy the ride.