Bed Rest – What Expecting Mothers Should Know

The majority of expectant mothers get through their pregnancies without any need for bed rest. However, in about one in five American pregnancies, a doctor may prescribe partial or complete bed rest, meaning you should spend part or all of the day lying down, for the sake of your health or the health of you infant. In rare cases, the doctor may prescribe bed rest in a hospital, or suggest that you use a bedpan rather than get up to use the bathroom. It is important to find out exactly what level of activity your doctor thinks you should get, it may be more – or less – than you think.

Complications Lead to Bed Rest

Pregnancy complications that may lead to a bed rest prescription include:

• Preterm labor or early contractions.

• Hypertension (high blood pressure) and preeclampsia.

• Incompetent cervix, also known as cervical inefficiency.

• Placental abruption.

Why Bed Rest?

Bed rest is thought by doctors to help stave off premature labor, ease high blood pressure and swelling and avoid miscarriage. Not much well-designed research has been done on bed rest, but what research there is has not found any benefits to the baby. However, some studies have found that bed rest found mothers at increased risk for blood clots and decreases their cardiopulmonary fitness. Nonetheless, many women with high-risk pregnancies prefer to follow their doctor’s bed rest orders in order to be sure they are doing everything they can to avoid a miscarriage or birth injury.

Avoiding Bed Rest Complications

To avoid complications from bed rest, it is important to make sure you drink lots of fluids and eat lots of fiber to help prevent constipation. Doctors also recommend having six to eight small meals a day rather than three larger ones, to help you feel full and avoid heartburn, a common but minor pregnancy complication. Ask your doctor whether gentle exercise, to keep up your fitness and strength levels, is appropriate for you. Women who have been prescribed extended bed rest may be prescribed an anticoagulant medication such as heparin. And of course, it is important to continue going to your prenatal care appointments and keep taking any medications or vitamins that you have been prescribed.

How to Survive Bed Rest

Bed rest is a radical lifestyle change and a major inconvenience for pregnant women and their families and employers. Mothers who must take to their beds need logistical, emotional and sometimes financial support. If you work outside the home, talk to your employer or clients about which duties you can still perform from bed. Some employers may allow you to telecommute right up until your due date. For household chores like shopping, cleaning and cooking, ask family (including other children) and friends to help. Make a list and divide chores so that everyone knows what needs to be done. And if you have to go to the hospital, make your hospital room your temporary home by bringing your own clothes, bedding, decorations and entertainment.

If you or your infant have suffered pregnancy complications, miscarriage or birth injury, you may have a medical malpractice or medical negligence case. If you think you might want to file a birth injury or medical malpractice lawyer, you can try to contact Illinois personal injury lawyer as a qualified birth injury lawyer, who can help you decide whether you should file a lawsuit.

(Article from Birth Injury and Medical Malpractice Legal View)