Let’s talk about getting pregnant.
Preconception is a period of time that often gets swept under the rug by the medical community. At Oula, we don’t believe that “call us when you’re pregnant” is enough. We want to know how we can help you learn about your body and meet your family building goals. Planning for pregnancy can be an amazing time of learning, self-reflection, and positive motivation and at Oula we are so excited to be a part of that journey!
We’re pleased to announce we have launched our Virtual Preconception Coaching visits. At this visit, you’re going to sit with a midwife one-on-one and we’re going to do three things: get to know one another, take a deep dive into your medical history, and make a plan so you walk away feeling educated and empowered.
About Preconception Coaching at Oula
We know your medical history is not a true picture of who you are, so we also want to hear about your plans, your hopes, your fears, your social support, and your journey to this point. But sure, your medical history could have a big impact on your fertility, so we want to talk about how that history will help to guide our recommendations moving forward. And, of course, we want to educate you to think about your body in new ways. We’ll talk about how to track your cycle, how to think about sperm meeting egg, and how to tweak your diet or your lifestyle to maximize your fertility. Whether you’re planning a pregnancy right away, or thinking ahead about your reproductive plans in the future, the preconception period is an important opportunity to prepare your body and your mind for pregnancy.
How to prepare for conception
Here are a few things to think about in advance of our preconception counseling session:
Start tracking your cycles: Whether you use an app, start a log of your cervical mucus or your body temperature changes, or try some ovulation “LH predictor” urine tests; knowledge is power and it may take months of tracking before you start to see patterns in your cycle.
Tweak your lifestyle: Eat the (fruit and veggie) rainbow. Manage your blood sugar by focusing on a diet of whole foods that is rich in protein (like lean meat, tofu or legumes) and low in simple carbohydrates (like sweets, white rice or white bread). Move your body every day: run or dance or even walk! Establish a sleeping and waking schedule you can stick to. Increase your water intake. You get the idea.
Take a vitamin: Prenatal vitamin? Sure. Multivitamin with added folate or folic acid? That works too. The folate is the most important thing you can do in the preconception period because the fetus needs folate before you even know you’re pregnant. If you wait until you see the two little lines, you’ve missed the largest benefit window.
Benefits: Speaking of benefits, think about how your health insurance needs might change in the next year. Pregnancy + a high-deductible health insurance plan can be an expensive combo. Reach out to your employer to ask about family-centric benefits (like paid family leave, pre-tax childcare benefits, or alternate health plans) and consider switching things around during an open enrollment period.
We have lots to talk about! We’re here when you need us.