Planning Pregnancy

I do like to hear about couples who are planning pregnancy. Especially if this is a normal pregnancy and not fertility treatment. The reason it brings a smile to my face is that regardless of your best laid plans, you can't just decide that you will become pregnant at a given time. Our bodies are just not like that, most likely the more that you want to become pregnant the more it will frustrate you.

Nevertheless, it is possible to start what is known as putting some best practices into place. This ranges from the obvious, quitting contraception. To the more forward thinking such as choosing the colour of junior's nursery. You will also need to think about your lifestyle, your health, diet and possibly your finances.

Planning pregnancy is not just a women's world either, the man has some responsibility here also. For example, a man that drinks a lot of alcohol, smokes cigarettes and works in a stressful position is probably not the best blueprint for making babies. So approach pregnancy planning as a team effort, work out exactly what each side needs to do and work slowly towards it. Try not to make too many changes overnight, as this can lead to bad blood, support each other when the time calls for it.

If you've read some of the other articles on this site, you'll already know our views, however we'll repeat them just in case. To give yourself the best chance of becoming pregnant, you both need to be in a state of relaxation and enjoying each others company. Don't try and force Mother Nature's hand, as she has a nasty habit of throwing in a few surprises.