Being pregnant is never easy, and the coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) pandemic brings new challenges to pregnant mothers, who are considered to be a high-risk group. This means that if infected, pregnant women are more likely to be hospitalized and require ventilation, and their risk of preterm birth increases. Besides health concerns for mothers and…
You’re pregnant! Congrats! You might be feeling excitement, anxiety, joy, trepidation or all of the above. That’s normal. Not only are you on the verge of a new chapter in life—especially if this baby will be your first—but it also seems there is so much to keep track of in those approximately 40 weeks of…
Though not everyone talks about it openly, marijuana and related products like CBD (cannabidiol, one of the active ingredients in marijuana) are a big topic in the world of motherhood. While there is limited research available on what effect marijuana has on a baby in utero, researchers and physicians warn against its use by moms-to-be.…
Today, obstetricians have many tools at their disposal to learn important information about the health of a baby. Most people are familiar with ultrasounds, in which a technician runs a wand over the belly to pick up high-frequency sound waves and make an image of the developing baby. But moms-to-be might be surprised that much…
When Nicole Starling was 18 weeks pregnant, she found out she was having a girl. And she learned that her baby girl had myelomeningocele, the most severe form of spina bifida, a birth defect that occurs when the spine and spinal cord don’t form properly. “At first, we were super excited to hear we were…
Pregnancy can be a very exciting and rewarding time in a woman’s life, but for the 1 in 5 women who experience a mental illness—including anxiety, depression, bipolar disorder and other mental health conditions—it might also bring new challenges. We talked to Mary Kimmel, MD, medical director of UNC’s Perinatal Psychiatry Inpatient Unit about pregnancy,…
The cries of babies whose mothers used cocaine during pregnancy have increased amounts of “hyperphonation,” a new study finds.
UNC researchers found that Chiari type 1 malformations of the brain are more common in children of depressed mothers treated with a certain group of antidepressants during pregnancy; genes and severity of illness may be involved.
Pregnancy comes with many decisions—what tests to get, whether to learn the gender, where to give birth—and soon, women who are pregnant or planning to conceive, will have to decide whether to get a coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) vaccine. Now there are two COVID-19 vaccines, one made by Pfizer and the other by Moderna, that…
Childbirth is life-changing: Not only is a new baby born, but also a new mom. Many women experience a flood of emotions, some happy and some not, and the postpartum period can be a difficult time for mental health. Most people have heard of postpartum depression, but there are other postpartum mood disorders, too. We…
Women are told many stories about how they will or should feel after childbirth: overjoyed, blissful, totally in love with their new babies. These expectations can cause pressure on new moms and ignore the reality that every woman will feel different, and not all emotions will be positive. In fact, many women feel sadness and…
