The mission of maternity clothing is to make the mother comfortable. For that reason experts are beginning to design raiment that is both comforting to the body and pleasing to the eye. The woman who has never worn flannels should not don them during pregnancy. They merely produce irritation which she should be spared. Union undergarments, with or without sleeves, come in cotton as well as wool, and are much better than the separate garments with bands. Particularly comforting are the maternity corsets, made largely of elastic. These have the side garters; no round leg garters should be worn. One-piece dresses with a drop skirt save the expectant mother another set of bands. All the clothing should be loose and easy, and it is well for the expectant mother to buy stockings, shoes and even gloves in a size larger than she ordinarily wears. Pressure on any part of the body affects the circulation and heart action of the pregnant woman. Patterns for maternity garments can be purchased at the agencies for all reliable pattern firms, and they deserve the consideration of the expectant mother who will suffer if she attempts to wear the clothing made for her use under ordinary conditions.
The teeth should be especially guarded during pregnancy. They should be examined at regular intervals by the family dentist, and small cavities promptly filled. Both physicians and dentists claim that the teeth are extremely susceptible to decay during pregnancy for two reasons: first, because the mother’s system is drained of the lime salts which go to build up the bones of the child; second, because, as pregnancy progresses, acids are often retained in the system, and these, together with slight indigestion, affect the teeth.
The breasts should be carefully watched, especially toward the end of pregnancy. The family physician should make an examination and see whether they require any special treatment. The nipples may be toughened by bathing them at bedtime and then covering them with lanolin and old linen or gauze. This prenatal care of the breasts and nipples may prevent great suffering immediately after the birth of the child.
“All this is very well,” exclaims a busy home-maker, “but to follow this régime I must rearrange our entire scheme of living.”
If this is true, then, indeed, motherhood will bring to that home a double blessing, for the life outlined in this chapter is a normal one, as good for the childless wife as for the expectant mother. And here is a case in point:
Among the prize-winning children at a Better Babies Contest on the Pacific Coast was a little boy, born of the type of woman commonly known as “delicate.” Throughout her girlhood she had been a semi-invalid. Her husband’s friends shook their heads when the engagement was announced. The first year of their married life was marked by frequent illnesses for the wife. When she learned that she was to become a mother, she was suddenly alarmed for the future of her child. She made an earnest study of how to reform her own life so that her child might be spared the ailments from which she suffered. She chose a normal, nourishing diet, and persisted in it. She gradually learned to take and enjoy outdoor exercise. She had a small porch converted into an outdoor sleeping-room. As a result—her labor was easy and natural, her child healthy, normal and good-tempered. Her own health was rehabilitated. She has never reverted to her former state of semi-invalidism.
CHAPTER II
BABY’S BIRTHDAY
CHOOSING THE NURSE AND DOCTOR—SANITARY BEDROOM AND ITS EQUIPMENT—THE BABY’S LAYETTE—PREVENTION OF BLINDNESS IN NEW-BORN BABIES—THE BABY’S FIRST BATH
The ushering of a new life into the world is an event so momentous and fraught with such wonderful possibilities for both mother and child that it should be planned with every possible precaution. No item of preparation, however trifling, should be left to the last moment. The mother should be able to find relief in the thought that all things are in readiness for the safety and comfort of herself and her child.
The doctor who will be in attendance should be chosen early in the period of pregnancy and consulted whenever the expectant mother feels any anxiety about herself. In this matter the wishes of the woman should be supreme, for her dread of confinement will be greatly lessened if she feels confidence in her physician. I have known women to become extremely nervous because, for reasons of expediency, they were forced to accept the services of a physician desired by husband or family. No one has a right to dictate in this matter to her who must pass through the ordeal of labor. If the woman prefers the family physician to the obstetrician recommended to her husband by friends, relatives, or neighbors, her wishes should be respected. Or if, on the other hand, she decides in favor of the obstetrician instead of the family doctor, there should be no interference. The faith which casts out fear, that indefinable sense of security which she feels in her chosen physician, supports her through the hours of confinement.