I'm 43 and just discovered I'm pregnant

[Winnievamp]

No friends, no family, no clue on the first thing to do!!

And yeah I'm single. Boyfriend is old and doesn't want kids, already has 3 grown up kids. So I'm alone on this.

Tried calling the GP today but I was too late for a phone appointment so I'm trying early tomorrow again.
Any advise no matter how silly you think it is will do please.
Watched a video on YouTube and they were talking about folic acid my head was like uh??????

Yeah, I'm clueless about everything!
Any advise/opinion/app/website/food to eat/not eat/group to join etc please....

Thank you

Congratulations!! One thing at a time. Buy folic acid, take daily. Tell your gp, get booked in with a midwife. ❤️

Do u want to keep it?

If so go to boots and ask about folic acid it's a small tablet take it every day until told otherwise. It helps the development of the baby. Mention to midwife and she will tell u if or when to. Stop taking it

Congratulations!

I booked in online. Didn't even need to go to the GP. See if that's how it works with your local hospital/ midwifery team too.
It took 2 minutes and I heard from them pretty quickly, with scan booked etc.

Congratulations OP! I'm also 43 and pregnant with a very much planned and wanted baby. I had my twins at 41 - being a mum in your forties is just wonderful - I've never felt better! You sound as though you are very prepared to do this alone if you need to but it's possible than your partner might come around to the idea once he's processed it for a while.

I would say get yourself onto a good pregnancy multivitamin ASAP - that will include the folic acid you need (unless you have a very high BMI in which case your GP will prescribe extra). Do you know how far along you are? If you're around 6 weeks or more make sure you register with your local midwife - your GP surgery should be able to tell you how to do this in your area. The NHS website has good info on foods you should avoid.

Congratulations!

Start taking folic acid. You can pick it up cheap with the weekly shopping. I only had my second baby a few months ago, but think you need to take vitamin d as well. (Baby brain).

Have a look at the nhs website for what foods and drinks you should avoid.

First step is to get booked in with a midwife, you’ll have bloods/urine tested. And they’ll take a bit of a health history. You’ll have a routine nhs scan at 12 and 20 weeks.

Some of those freebie apps are quite informative, I liked the ones that told me how big my growing baby was, week by week.

Congratulations 💕

Congratulations! Any idea how many weeks you are?

Definitely take folic acid, and my midwife also recommended vitamin d tablets.

Avoid smoking and alcohol (but don't worry if you have already had a drink before you found out).

Eat as healthily as you can (if you have morning sickness you may only be able to stomach very plain foods).

Those are the main things I can think of.

Congratulations! Is it your first? A good pregnancy supplement would be a good idea.

Hey OP, I had my baby at 41 with literally no clue about babies or pregnancy and never having been interested in any of it before!

Don't worry! You'll be fine.

Get yourself some Pregnacare multivitamins from Boots for pregnancy which contain folic acid and everything else you need.

The NHS website contains information about what you need to do to take care of yourself. Book a GP and then start looking at hospitals near you and where you'd like to go.

Tell a friend or trusted family member so you have one other person to share with whilst you get used to the idea.

You will be fine x

Congratulations, it will be the best thing to ever happen to you x

Your age isn't an issue.

Going it alone might be, if you feel unsupported. But there will certainly be other women out there in the same situation as you. Try to connect through NCT, FB local etc.

It's exciting. Congratulations!

Pregnacare, book in with a midwife, NHS for general health information, NCT for groups, get on to a pregnancy yoga class, down to a bookshop for breastfeeding info and everything else!

Congrats!

I didn't take folic acid as wasn't ttc but found out at approx 6 weeks so started taking it then.
Won't lie, l was terrified of babies and spent the whole pregnancy worrying about giving birth.
Then baby was born and it all just slotted into place- best thing ever!!

Congrats!! Yes take folic acid daily. I take prenatal vitamins that contain folic acid and all the other good stuff too daily. Eating wise just avoid the obvious smoking alcohol. Try and eat healthy if u can. I couldnt tbh its not easy to eat veggies throughout a pregnancy! Caffiene is limited i went from 3 cups of coffee a day to half. Enjoy ur pregnancy!

@Winnievamp
Congratulations! How far along are you?
I’m 41 and around 9 weeks. Planned but a surprise as we’d been trying for a long time.

I’ve found the seven seas pregnancy vitamins ( with a 2 on them) best. They also contain ginger which has helped with my nausea. I didn’t like the pregnanacare ones, they made me feel unwell (before pregnancy)
All vitamins are currently 3 for 2 in boots.

My bmi is over 30 so I have to take an additional folic acid supplement which no one told me about until my midwife apt at 8 weeks. ( so if you know your bmi is higher I’d ask your gp about it when you speak to them.)

The only other advice I have for now is if you’re using this site, go to the search page and type in acronyms or abbreviations and a list will come up. I’m an nurse and have no clue at all what most of them on here mean, abs they are used a lot! 😂

Rest up and enjoy x

Wow! That must be a surprise! Take some folic acid as suggested above and take your time to think about it all. Very best wishes to you, whatever you decide.

Your boyfriend can't just opt out. He's a big boy. He knows he'll have to provide financial, if not emotional, support. And your child's half siblings might be thrilled, you never know.

Do you want to keep it OP?

If the answer is yes or maybe, then get yourself some pregnancy vitamins - they all include folic acid, which prevents spina bifida. It's important that you start taking them today. Any brand will do and you can buy them in any decent-sized supermarket, as well as Boots, Superdrug, etc.

If you drink or smoke or use drugs please stop now and seek support if you need it in order to stop. Pharmacists can talk to you about nicotine patches, gums, etc if you need advice. And if you are on prescription medication, please talk to your doctor about whether it's safe in pregnancy when you speak to the doctor today.

Ditto if you are overweight/obese - weight management in pregnancy is recommended and with support doesn't mean that you'll gain masses more. Doctors/midwives can direct you to whatever support you need to have a healthy pregnancy.

As for diet - just eat a healthy, balanced one with plenty of fruit and veg and lean protein.

Congratulations!

Sending all best wishes to you op

How are you feeling?

And pp was right about the father. He can't just opt out.

Thank you so much

The most immediate thing, are you taking any medications that need to be changed for pregnancy?

You have time to work out the rest. Don’t absolve the father of his financial responsibilities, but don’t rely on him meeting them.

Congratulations OP! I’m also 43 and newly pregnant, I have two teen DDs but still feel a bit clueless! Very excited in a cautious way and a bit astounded that my body has achieved this...
I’m taking folic acid and vit D, just the generic ones from Sainsbos, stopped drinking any booze and cut down to one coffee a day, aiming to give up the coffee completely but haven’t managed yet. Otherwise just carrying on as normal and pinching myself every so often x

Congratulations! Get booked in, folic acid and lots of research!