FAQ's

New parents have many questions about pregnancy, labor, birth and the care of their newborn.  Attending childbirth classes will give you the chance to have your questions answered and learn more about this time in your life.  Talk with your care provider about childbirth classes in your local area. 

During the last weeks of your pregnancy it is common to begin to be uncomfortable and have difficulty resting or sleeping. This section should be helpful in learning how to feel better and be more comfortable as well as beginning to learn how to relax. 

Some words we use to talk about pregnancy:

Amniotic Fluid:  Water-like fluid that is around the baby in the mother’s uterus.

Amniotic Sac (Bag of Waters):  Fluid filled bag in the mother’s uterus.   It stops bacteria from reaching the baby.  The bag tears when the “water breaks" and leaks the amniotic fluid to the outside of the mother’s body through the vagina.

Cervix:  The neck-like lower part of the uterus that opens and thins during labor to allow passage of the fetus. 

Chloasma:  The patchy, darkening of the skin or the face due to hormone changes during pregnancy.

Diaphragm:  The muscle that separate the chest cavity from the abdominal cavity.

Fallopian Tubes:  Tubes that extend from the uterus and open near the ovaries.   They capture the eggs from the ovary.

Fetus:  The name given to the unborn baby as it grows and changes inside the mother’s womb.

Fundus:  The upper, round part of the uterus (womb).  It is a thicker layer of muscles where contractions begin.

Gestation:  The period of time a baby is carried in the uterus.  It is usually talked about in weeks, 40 weeks is full term.

Gravida:  The total number of times a woman has been pregnant during her life.

Hemorrhoid:  A swollen blood vessel inside the anus or outside under the surface of the skin.

Hormone:  A chemical substance produced in the body that is carried through the blood stream and causes another gland to work.

Insomnia:  Being unable to sleep.

Intrauterine:  Inside the uterus.

Kegel Exercise:  An exercise to tighten the pelvic floor muscles.  It improves pelvic floor muscle tone and helps stop urine leaking when you cough, sneeze or exercise.

Lightening:  The feeling that the baby “dropping” as the baby descends into the pelvic cavity.

Linea Nigra:  A line running from the navel to the pubic hairline that darkens during pregnancy caused by hormone changes.

Mucous Plug:  A thick mucous plug in the cervix in pregnancy due to hormone changes.  It protects the pregnant uterus from bacteria present in the vagina.

Multigravida:  A woman pregnant with her second or subsequent child.

Multipara:  A woman who has given birth to more than one child.

Pelvis:  The bowl shaped ring of bones at the bottom of the body that connects the spinal column to the legs.  The pelvis is made up of four bones-two hipbones, the sacrum and the tailbone.  Cartilage and ligaments hold these bones together.  These joints will get slightly farther apart during pregnancy making the pelvis wider.

Perineum:  The space between the vagina and the rectum.

Placenta:  The round, flat organ in the pregnant uterus exchanges nutrients and oxygen between mother and baby.  It does not work as a wall to keep out things that might harm the baby, but is more like a selective system.  It is delivered after the baby and is often called the “afterbirth”.

Pregnancy Induced Hypertension (PIH): Swelling, headaches, and high blood pressure that begins in the last trimester.  It may be called preeclampsia or toxemia.

Premature Rupture of Membranes:  The membranes that hold amniotic fluid break before labor.

Preterm Labor:  Labor that begins before the end of 37 weeks of pregnancy.

Primigravida:  A woman who is pregnant for the first time.

Round Ligament Pain:  Pain in one or both groin regions from stretching or spasm of the round ligaments.  Round ligaments support the uterus.

Show:  Pink or blood-tinged mucous discharge from the vagina that can occur sometime before or during labor.

Trimester:  A period of three months.  One third of a full term pregnancy.

Umbilical Cord:  Connects the baby to the placenta and contains blood vessels.

Umbilicus:  Belly-button or naval

Uterus:  The muscular organ that holds the baby, placenta, membranes, amniotic fluid and umbilical cord.  It contracts during labor to move the baby through the birth canal for delivery.  Before pregnancy it is pear size and shape. It can hold about two teaspoons and weighs about 2 ounces.

Vagina:  The lower part of the birth canal that is about 5-6 inches long.