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Home › Articles › Fatherhood › High-risk Pregnancies

High-risk Pregnancies

Why Dads are a Crucial Part of the Support

By Teri Brown

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The Role of the Father
Fathers often feel helpless in the face of a high-risk pregnancy. It is very important for men to realize just how much their wives need them and how many things they can actually do. The role of the father during a high-risk pregnancy is as varied as it is crucial.

Dr. Joyce King, assistant professor for the Nell Hodgson Woodruff School of Nursing at Emory University in Atlanta, Ga., believes there are many ways fathers can help their wives cope with a high-risk pregnancy. Women can often feel overwhelmed with what they can and cannot do. One way dads can make it easier on them is by tracking all of the medical information.

"Dads can go to each OB visit with her," says Dr. King. "Keeping a visit diary with recommendations of the health care provider is very helpful. Frequently, the patient is so overwhelmed with all the changes going on in her body as well as the high-risk problems that she doesn't even hear what her health care provider is telling her."

If your wife is put on bed rest it is important to ask the following questions:

  • Can she get up to go to the bathroom?
  • What kind of bed rest is she on? Is it complete bed rest? Or can she sit at the computer or at a table?
  • Can she make herself lunch or should I pack lunch in a cooler for her to keep by her bedside?
  • What can she do to keep her muscles from becoming weak from lack of use?

Dr. King suggests that if the mom-to-be is put on complete bed rest, the dad-to-be may want to find out if it's possible for him to get family leave so he can be home to care for her.

At Home

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