Pregnancy at 38: Doctors' Opinion on the Risks

2024 Author: Priscilla Miln | [email protected]. Last modified: 2023-12-16 00:21

The birth of a child is the next step, a new life that is full of happiness, joy and pleasant worries. But what to do if you didn’t have time, couldn’t, didn’t meet the same person, didn’t allow your he alth or financial condition to give birth to the first, second or fifth desired baby earlier? What if pregnancy threatens at 38? The opinion of doctors is ambiguous. Let's weigh the pros and cons.

Pregnancy and age

Pregnancy is physiologically possible in girls from the beginning of the arrival of the first menstruation - at the age of 11-13 years. Fortunately, today this is more a terrible exception than the rule - the days of early marriages and the absence of contraceptive methods are gone.

Women's fertility plummets long before menstruation stops completely. And with the onset of menopause, usually after 55 years, the ability to conceive is reduced to zero.

Early delivery

By eighteen-twentyyears, the reproductive system of the girl is completely ready for bearing and giving birth to a child. But the lack of psychological readiness to become a mother keeps most expectant mothers from such a serious step. More than 80 percent of all pregnancies at a young age are accidental and unplanned. Often such a mistake leads girls to have an abortion, which inevitably affects the future reproductive function of the body. Those who decide to leave a child at the age of 18-20 often experience pregnancy complications associated with hormonal instability, anatomically narrow pelvis, immaturity of the muscular layer of the uterus.

Correct, according to doctors, the age for pregnancy and childbirth

The ideal age for the birth of the first child is 20-30 years. It is during this period that a large proportion of all planned pregnancies and childbirths occur. The body of a woman has not yet had time to acquire serious chronic diseases and is completely ready for procreation. Psychologically, young mothers and fathers are set to have children, age crises have already been passed, and there is still a lot of strength for nightly ups and downs.

Late pregnancy

After 30-35 years, women usually give birth to a second or third child. But thanks to the achievements of medicine, more and more often at this age it is possible to become a primiparous mother. After all, not everyone manages to get pregnant the first time before the age of 30. Career, financial instability, lack of a reliable partner and housing, problems with gynecology, incompatibility of spouses, chronic miscarriage, tubal ligation, difficulty conceiving - all thiscommon problems leading to first pregnancy at age 38.

The opinion of doctors about conception at this age is uncertain. On the one hand, it is great that medicine today actively uses in vitro fertilization (IVF), has a huge arsenal of means to stimulate pregnancy, maintain it, the possibility of a thorough intrauterine diagnosis of pathologies, timely and safe delivery, resuscitation and treatment of newborns. But we must not forget that with age, the risks of genetic disorders and malformations in a child increase, a woman’s body is more difficult to tolerate pregnancy, childbirth is less natural and often traumatic. In addition, after 30 years, it is more difficult to physically cope with a newborn baby.

First pregnancy at 38

Doctors' opinion is debatable. Many argue that bearing a child at this age can adversely affect the he alth of the mother, cause pathologies in the fetus and complicate the process of childbirth. But practice shows that careful preparation for conception, serious control of pregnancy and timely correction of possible complications help to bear and give birth to he althy and strong babies at any age.

The planned first pregnancy at the age of 38 is, first of all, the preparation of the body. Often, it takes a lot of time to pass tests and correct violations, which is not left at all. By the age of 40, fertility is getting lower and oftenhaving trouble conceiving.

How to conceive after 35

First pregnancy at 38 years old is a great success. The chances of getting pregnant naturally closer to the age of 40 fall sharply. After all, the ability to conceive (fertility) is already significantly lower than that of a twenty-year-old girl. According to statistics, subject to regular sexual intercourse (at least three times a week), 70 percent of women become pregnant within a year.

How to help the body?

• Take prenatal vitamins.
• Get enough sleep and rest whenever you have a free moment.
• Drink plenty of clean water.
• Don't be nervous, get rid of stress.
• Eat he althy and wholesome food cooked in the oven or steamed, do not overeat.
• Include legumes, nuts, sour-milk products in your diet, eat plenty of fruits and vegetables.
• Get rid of bad habits (smoking, alcohol, coffee drinks - all this has a bad effect on sperm motility and can prevent ovulation).
• Lose weight if necessary, or gain weight. Being underweight or overweight has a bad effect on the possibility of conception and the course of pregnancy.

Re-birth at 38

If it was decided at the family council that one child is not enough for you, you will have a second pregnancy at 38. The opinion of doctors is this: the second and subsequent pregnancies after 30 are much better than the first. The woman knowswhat awaits her, and the body has already gone through all the stages during the bearing of the previous child. Therefore, neither the second nor the third pregnancy at the age of 38 should scare future parents. The opinion of doctors should be taken into account only in case of serious he alth problems and high risks of complications for the mother and child.

Complications and risks

After thirty-five years, doctors warn of the possibility of the following complications:

• Genetic disorders (chromosomal pathology). The chances of violations in the chromosomal set of the fetus increase. These errors can be eliminated with a high probability by passing a qualitative screening examination at the 11-12th week of pregnancy.
• Miscarriage. This happens to women of all ages. But due to the lack of hormones in old-bearing women, such cases are much more common. This can be prevented if the doctor sees the problem in time and prescribes the appropriate medications (Utrozhestan, Dufaston).
• Placenta previa. Misplacement of the placenta during pregnancy can lead to complications during childbirth or abruption during pregnancy. This condition requires special monitoring and may be an indication for a caesarean section.
• Diabetes and preeclampsia. Due to excess weight and instability of blood pressure, gestational diabetes mellitus may develop. This complication sometimes forces doctors to resort to an emergency caesarean section to rule out chronic fetal hypoxia, nephropathy, and stillbirth.
• Preterm birth and underweightnewborn. Very often, children from mothers after 35 are born prematurely and, accordingly, have a small weight - about 2.5 kilograms. With proper care, these babies have a good prognosis for later life.

Of course, when pregnancy occurs at 38, risks cannot be ruled out. You can only reduce their likelihood through careful preparation and observation by good specialists.

Pros of late pregnancy

What is good if there was a late pregnancy, childbirth? 38 years is a respectable age, which has its advantages. So what are the benefits of late pregnancy?

• Stability. Most likely, your family has already reached that minimum of material we alth, which allows you to breathe calmly and not think that tomorrow there is nothing to eat. This means that it will not be your career and early exit to work that will bother you, but only your own child.
• Confidence in your spouse. Usually, at this age, all the passions of the young have already subsided and you and your husband are in a calm and good relationship, which the pregnant woman and her child need so much.
• Rejuvenation of the body. Everyone knows that motherhood makes a woman beautiful, and the production of female hormones and collagen helps smooth out wrinkles, makes the look bright and glowing from the inside.
• Awareness. Only now, when you are not in a hurry and are on the border of understanding the meaning of life, you can completely give yourself to the baby and enjoy every day with him.

This is how positive it is for all women to look at pregnancy at 38. Each will find its pros and cons. But still, if you have already decided to take this step, try to think positively and not be afraid of anything.

What doctors advise

There are several rules that will help prevent complications when planning a pregnancy at 38. The opinion of doctors and their advice are as follows:

• Pass all the necessary tests: urine, blood and other standard tests during medical examination. Check the status of chronic diseases and examine the genitals.
• Treat all possible illnesses before pregnancy.
• During planning, start drinking special vitamins containing an increased dose of folic acid. This vitamin can reduce the risk of neural tube pathology.
• Get tested for sex hormones. Such a study allows you to know in advance or from the first weeks of pregnancy about the need to adjust the hormonal background.
• Check the quality of sperm. Not only a woman needs to prepare for pregnancy. The quality of paternal material can greatly affect the pathologies of fetal development. The daily routine, the rejection of bad habits, good nutrition and an active lifestyle will improve the quality of the seed material.
• Adjust nutrition, monitor weight and get rid of bad habits. A he althy lifestyle can improve the condition of the body and make pregnancy easier.
• Do not use drugs and dietary supplements without consulting a doctor. For example, an excess of vitamins D and A increases the risk of anomalies in a child.

Pregnancy bytestimony

Sometimes it happens that doctors strongly recommend a woman over 30 to become a mother in the near future. List of key indications:

• polycystic ovaries;
• uterine fibroids;
• hyperandrogenism;
• fibrocystic mastopathy;
• endometriosis;
• breast fibroadenoma;
• vegetovascular dystonia.

Doctors give such recommendations not in vain. There are a number of studies proving the healing effect of pregnancy and childbirth on cysts and fibroids. Breastfeeding often leads to resorption of mastopathy. But even if pregnancy does not improve he alth, the sooner it occurs, the less likely a woman is to remain childless due to chronic diseases.

Late delivery

If the first pregnancy has come and passed safely at the age of 38, the opinion of doctors will be as follows: there is another important and difficult stage ahead - childbirth.

It is necessary to carefully prepare for this important day. Courses teaching breathing techniques and pain relief, literature, fitness for pregnant women - all this will help the expectant mother to feel more confident and control the process.

When a pregnancy passes at the age of 38, the opinion of doctors often sounds like this: a woman herself will not be able to give birth. Then the diagnosis of "weak labor activity" is made and it is recommended to perform a caesarean section. If the doctor recommends this method of delivery, do not panic or refuse the operation. This is most likely the safest way.the birth of your baby.

Pregnancy at 38: reviews

Many mothers say that childbirth and pregnancy at the age of 38 (the opinion of doctors here is very different from the feelings of women) left only the best impressions about themselves. Often at this age, awareness of one's position and readiness to become a mother makes a woman absolutely happy and peaceful, life again takes on meaning and is filled with joy.