Pregnancy and motherhood are often termed as the most beautiful times of any woman’s life. But when medical complications quietly sneak in they can make those beautiful moments an anxious wait, where the mother-to-be can’t wait for the day when her misery shall end and her precious baby shall be in her arms.

My pregnancy has been one of those very difficult times. Without going into too many medical details, I’d like to share the secrets with all mothers-to-be that kept me going in those very difficult nine months of my pregnancy.

I’d discovered that I was pregnant right on the first day I’d missed my period, for intense morning sickness set in. I couldn’t keep anything in my stomach, not even water for longer than a minute. This terrible state of severe vomiting and bouts of acid reflux lasted almost five months in my case. I have had a terrible miscarriage in the past and so the gynaecologist was as worried about my state as were everyone in my family.

I did seek medical help and safe medicines were on but to no relief. Putting on weight was a big concern for me, but somehow nothing was going as expected. At such a difficult phase in life, my gynaecologist turned to be a god sent. For she took care of me as a mother would care for her daughter. Her excellent knowledge and rich experience in the field with kind support and reassurances kept me going.

Related: My Pregnancy Chronicles

The second trimester brought along an end to the morning sickness around the fifth month but gifted me with severe hypertension (high blood pressure ranging from 140/90 to 170/110 around the eighth & ninth month) along with severe swelling in my feet and loss of albumin in urine. The outcome was the amniotic fluid levels were in a constant fall, endangering my life and of the baby inside me.

With repeated hospitalizations for constant monitoring and several needles being poked, I was in severe distress.Both physical and emotional. The stress of any possible mishap and the pain from medical interventions didn’t help my high blood pressure instead it was on a constant rise.

I still survived the full nine months and gave birth to a beautiful daughter because of the following:

1. A very compassionate, understanding and experienced Gynecologist – When you are in your initial stages of pregnancy or trying to conceive, select the gynaecologist with whom you are comfortable both in communication as well as the treatment choices he/she makes for you. Do not select someone just because someone known to you recommended him/her.Go by your instincts and do some research about the clinical experience of your doctor.

2. Be yourself and live the life you’ve always lived – Pregnancy is just a part of life not the sole aim of a woman’s life (though I agree the outcome is definitely going to be life-changing). Continue eating and living life the way you have always lived.Follow your daily routine just as you always have.Though avoiding all harmful habits as suggested by your doctor is mandatory, but don’t push yourself to unreal limits of eating healthy at all times. Rewarding yourself with a few snacks (often considered as unhealthy meals) once in a while isn’t a sin. Having said that, I strongly recommend you stick to the do’s and don’ts your doctor recommends according to your personal case.

3. We all have been stressed at some point or the other during our pregnancy. Don’t stress yourself for being in a stressful situation, it’ll do no good and will only add fuel to fire – I often had panic attacks for everyone around me kept saying, “don’t stress it’ll harm your baby.” The high blood pressure levels were beyond my control and panicking with the thought of potentially harming my baby made my situation all the more worse. Once I had delivered my baby and everything settled I realized, when you lose control, don’t let panic set in. Stress happens but things will be alright if you have faith in yourself, people around you and most importantly in your doctor.

4. Have faith – Be it in your doctor or the Almighty or the love of your family or even in your own self. It is vital to have faith especially in such an important phase of your life. It will keep you focused and the nine months shall fly in no time. The Gayatri Mantra helped me a lot at every point in staying peaceful at times when I’d almost lost faith.

5. Stay Cheerful – I know it is often very difficult to stay cheerful at all times. I had myself struggled to do so in the severe pain medical interventions brought my way. But I tried my best and it actually worked.

The positive energy staying cheerful brings, generates hope and strengthens faith.~ My Era

Smile as often you can, for all those positive vibes help the baby grow and remain stress-free in his/her formation days, that goes a long way in shaping his future.

To sum it all I’d say, trying to stay positive at all times is the most important tip that’ll be your passport to a healthy pregnancy.