Pregnancy is a special time! Everyone experiences it differently

A positive test result. You are pregnant!

Have you been waiting for this moment a long time, or did it come as a bit of a surprise and do you need some time to get used to the idea? Regardless of your situation, you can be certain that things are going to change over the next couple of months.

As soon as you’ve found out about your pregnancy, you can get in touch with us to register. You don’t need to see your GP first. We will book your first appointment at around 6-8 weeks of pregnancy, but please contact us if you have any questions or worries before then.

Exit unhealthy lifestyle, enter folic acid

In case you hadn’t been taking folic acid yet, this is the moment you should start doing so. A daily dose of 0.4 mg of folic acid up until about 3 months into your pregnancy reduces the (small) risk of having a baby with neural tube defects (NTD). Folic acid can be bought over the counter at every pharmacist or chemist. Most of the pregnancy multivitamins also contain the recommended dose of folic acid. Also, we advise to supplement vitamin D; 10 microgram per day. You can buy tablets without a prescription.

If you are taking prescription drugs, you should consult us or your doctor as soon as possible to find out whether you can continue taking them during your pregnancy. And, of course, this is a perfect moment to give up smoking, alcohol and taking (soft)drugs.

Online information session 'the first months'

We warmly advise you to attend the online information meeting 'The first months' early in pregnancy - preferably before our first meet-up at the practice. This meeting a joint initiative of Amsterdam midwives. During the meeting you will receive a lot of information about lifestyle during pregnancy. Matters such as nutrition, sports, work, travel and smoking are discussed. General information is provided about blood tests and the possibilities of prenatal testing. Practical matters, such as arranging childcare or recording legal parentage, are also discussed. The meeting is interactive, so there is plenty of room to ask your questions.

There are several Dutch meetings per week, as well as regular English (weekly), Arabic and Turkish (monthly) spoken meetings. You can register yourself with first- and last name via this link. Are you registrated but unable to attend or do you have questions about the meeting? You can contact the trainers via eerstemaanden@sag-amsterdam.nl

Prenatal checks

We will try and schedule your first prenatal appointment (intake) when you are between 6 and 10 weeks pregnant and use that appointment for getting to know you better as well. We will try to arrange for an ultrasound to be performed during this appointment. We will be asking a lot of questions about your medical history as well as the medical history of your partner/the baby’s father. Ideally, we would like to see both of you during this first appointment if that is possible.

You will also be given information about blood tests and we will discuss the various prenatal testing options. Find out more about prenatal testing by clicking here.

During your next appointments we will be monitoring the baby’s development and growth and, of equal importance, we will discuss how you are coping. We will also be giving you information about other issues relating to pregnancy, labour and maternity care. And you are of course very welcome to ask us anything you want.

We won’t see you very often in the beginning of your pregnancy but towards the end your checks will take place every (other) week. Most pregnant women prefer meeting all five midwives in our team during their pregnancy. For an overview of all prenatal checks and everything you need to organise during your pregnancy, click here.

If you have questions or worries at any other time, you can always contact us by phone or email. If necessary or desired, we will schedule an extra appointment.

Open clinic: listen to your baby’s heartbeat

You can visit our clinic without an appointment every Tuesday between 17.30 and 18.00 to listen to your baby’s heartbeat. This is a wonderful occasion for bringing along a friend or family! This open clinic is meant for women that are pregnant 12 weeks and more; it is unlikely you can hear your baby’s heartbeat at an earlier stage.

If at any time you have any questions or worries, you can always reach out to us by phone or email. In case we think it is necessary, we will book you in for an extra check-up.

If things go wrong

Sadly, some pregnancies do end in a miscarriage. We also offer support and provide medical checks when you are miscarrying. For more information click here.

Calculate your due date