Bed rest during pregnancy

Controlling the problem of bed rest may be a very important thing for a woman who is pregnant, due to the great amount of time spent in the lying position. There are several complications that may arise if the woman is not spending enough time in the bed. It is very serious to say that the bed rest depends from case to case. Usually the doctors determine how much bed rest is needed. Some need partial, while others need strict bed rest. Also, it can be full or periodic, and in some cases, a visit to the hospital is needed so that monitoring can be performed. Also, once the complication presents itself, the bed rest may be involved until the end of this complication, which may lead to the considerate time spent in the bed. Bed rest implies that a woman has to restrain from movement and stay in bed. But this happens is just a certain number of cases.

Reasons for Bed Rest

High blood pressure, eclampsia, preeclampsia and genetic diabetes are some of the common problems that can lead to bed rest during pregnancy. Also, bed rest may be prescribed in cases of placenta complications (like placenta accrete, placenta previa and placenta abruption) and cervical changes (like cervical effacement and incompetent cervix). Bed rest is also given if premature labor or vaginal discharge is present. Problems like poor fetal development, multiple stillbirth and loss of pregnancy are also problems that need bed rest. In these cases, a problem may lead to miscarriage, so bed rest is given in order to avoid this problem. The healthy pregnancy can be continued with the use of bed rest. The stress and blood pressure can be decreased with the bed rest, along with normalizing the body state. The position in which bed rest is conducted varies from case to case. Some women may need sleeping with bent hips or knees; others may need pillows between the knees. Also, some may need to have legs elevated while lying on the back.

Activity Level

What you can do and what you cannot will be determined by the doctor. Usually you need to stop doing some activities, like exercising and lifting. Sexual intercourse, exercise, showering, driving, bathing, light chores, walking and cooking activities are activities you should talk about with your doctor. Although bed rest may be a problem to someone, it is important to preserve sanity. You can do this by making bed or setting a routine to follow. Also, you can organize photo albums, address books or some similar organizing if you are confined to bed rest. Making phone calls and keeping in touch with friends is another way of killing time.