Before You Get Pregnant Pre-pregnancy counseling is important to you and your future baby. Talk with your doctor and let him or her know that you are planning to become pregnant. In addition, your doctor may want to start you on a vitamin with folic acid. Planning for a healthy pregnancy is a team effort. How often you will need to see your doctor depends on your personal medical history and your doctor's advice.
Healthy mothers are more likely to have healthy babies.
Women who receive prenatal care during the first three months of pregnancy have better outcomes than women who have little or no prenatal care. M-CARE, working with our network physicians, has developed the prenatal care recommendations on pages 20 and 21 to help you and your baby get off to a good start. Turn to page 28 to learn how to take advantage of these free programs. Additional Resources M-CARE's health promotion coordinators can assist you with additional prenatal educational programs and resources. The Covered Health Education Classes chapter and Resource Directory chapter list childbirth preparation classes and other support available to M-CARE members.