SPECIALIZED CLINIC | WOMEN CARE CLINIC

Pregnancy and delivery management department

MATERNITY, A PROCESS TO ENJOY

We want to eradicate the idea that maternity is a problematic process, painful, dangerous and full of risk and we want to help you feel and enjoy pregnancy and maternity as natural processes because that is what they truly are. We want to return the leading role to future parents, especially the mother. Nature will conduct the process and we will be there to help nature, give all the necessary information so that the woman can now every detail of what is going on to her and the child within her. That way, she will be able to make her rightful decisions having all the information at hand.

We are here to solve any doubt, all the fears and to put technology to support an all-natural process. We have the best professionals and the most advanced gear, but we will only use it in the precise moment, when it is needed. We can use it to solve doubts, to reassure the future parents but you need to understand that pregnancy, labor and the recovery of our previous appearance are very natural processes. If we support them, without force, without wanting to direct nature, can be bountiful, they can be the best moments of our life.

Catalonia, thanks to quality hospitals such as this one, is one of the best countries with best results in the maternal-infant field due to the advanced control systems and pregnancy monitoring, labor and afterbirth. However, having the best technology does not mean we have to interfere in each step of this extraordinary natural process.

Each birth fills us with joy, and we want parents to live it with the commitment and tenderness it deserves. 

Control and monitoring of the pregnancy

The attentions that the mother receives while pregnant by our midwife and the doctor selected from our team of gynecologists-obstetricians have the goal of avoiding any unnecessary complications during pregnancy for the mother or the child.

We recommend to pay us a visit as soon as you have direct or indirect evidence of your pregnancy, and then we will set a calendar for medical visits and tests. We can adapt this calendar to your worries, as we will always be there for you. We would also speed up the calendar in case of any risk of complication, no matter how minimal.

This schedule will include ultrasounds and blood tests. We will also take care of performing the chromosomopathy prenatal diagnostic test (amniocentesis, chorionic biopsy) if you wish so; or safe blood screening (blood extraction). Depending on your history, these tests will be deemed mandatory.

Our center also has last-gen ultrasound machines, so you will be able to see your child in 3D: their real appearance inside your womb.

The obstetrician specialist of your choosing will monitor your whole pregnancy and will attend you during labor if you want. You also have midwives at your disposal, to keep you company at any moment, should you need advice, any questions, ease your mind… They will guide you to any of the you and will direct you the any childbirth preparation classes made after the 5^th month of pregnancy.

Physical training will include physical exercises and relaxation techniques aimed to improve both your physical and mood status and ease pain on contractions. A part of these classes can be made inside an acclimatized pool, too, since warm water can relax a lot. Obviously, if any problem or concern appears, our special emergency department will help you anytime (even at night, 365 days a year) and make contact with your obstetrician-gynecologist or your midwife. 

Changes during pregnancy

We will do everything in our power to make the life of the pregnant woman as normal as possible, so she can keep all her social and work life. However, we will inform you of some common –even necessary– changes to consider that the pregnancy is going smoothly:

Increase in breast size, with more sensibility in your nipples.

Increase in abdominal mass and general weight.

Increase in intraabdominal pressure that changes how you breathe.

Changes in your spine which modify your postural habits.

Frequent need to urinate.

Increased sensibility to any changes in temperature.

Fetal movement detection, the feeling that an autonomous life is growing inside your abdomen (after 22 weeks for first-time mothers, before for the rest of women).

There are other changes that produce inconveniences that are not always present, however if they show up, we will comfort you as much as possible.

Nipple secretion.

Leg pain and swelling, especially during the last hours of the day.

Stretch marks on the abdomen, breasts and buttocks.

Sleep changes.

Nausea or morning sickness. Distaste for some smell or food.

Heartburn or constipation.

Sensitive gums.

Changes in skin coloration, especially in the middle line of the abdomen and the face.

Mood swings. Mixed feelings.

Serious concern for the fetus’ safety. 

Healthy habits

Pregnancy is a glorious stage of life that nature allows women to experience, but you need to put special care in some aspects that will help us avoid any complications. Without stressing ourselves about it, we recommend:

Have a shower as many times as you want. Hydrate your skin in the sweetest way possible.

Protect yourself from the summer sun, especially your face.

Our dentists will help you care about your dental health, but make them a favor and brush your teeth after each meal.

Sleep at night and if you see any change of having a nap, take it!

Walking a bit or swimming will help you immensely.

We will teach you how to massage your perineal area to avoid episiotomy during labor.

How to correctly align your spine, lift up little weight with flexed legs.

Only take medications prescribed by your physician. Do not auto-medicate.

Avoid contact with any sick relatives to null any chance of contagion.

If you want to make a long trip or take a plane after the 30^th pregnancy week, please visit us.

Avoid smoking or drinking alcohol.

Try respect every meal, avoid excess fat and use olive oil. Low salt.

Drink around 1,5 to 2 liters of water.

If you have been prescribed with an iron supplement, try to eat it with products that are rich in vitamin C like oranges or kiwis.

Our Diet Department will help you make a well-diversified diet but rich in folic acid and vitamins (A, B, C and D).

Veggies cooked in a variety of ways, cereal and carbohydrates where you least expect it, fruits at any given time, just the right amount of meat, fish and eggs, dairy and dried fruits well-served… 

Birth plan

During the pregnancy, without rush, we will discuss with the future mother to know her preferences about labor. We call it Labor Plan to the gathered information about your expectations or support needs or how you want to live the birth of your child.

Even you have expressed your needs, if during the evolution of the pregnancy you change your mind or the context changes, the medical activity will change accordingly.

Some questions that can configure your plan:

Companion preferences:

You can select whether you want to be on your own during labor, or with your partner.

Physical space preferences:

Dilatation room, and labor room for one.

Possibility of listening to music.

Possibility to adapt light intensity.

Procedure preferences:

Enema.

Pubic area shaving.

If we need to administer medications, you can have the option to approve it or not.

Fetal control

As much as possible, I would like:

Ongoing monitoring.

Periodic monitoring.

Pain relief

I would like to relief my pain via alternative methods:

Relaxation.

Breathing techniques.

Massage.

I would like to labor without any type of anesthesia.

I would like the epidural as soon as possible.

I would like local anesthesia in case stitch was necessary.

I would like to decide about the pain relief methods when in labor.

Midwife escort in the initial moments of labor

We offer the midwife home service so that she can be with you on the way to the hospital. 

Labor

The time for labor is more or less 40 weeks after pregnancy. That is 280 days, more or less 10 lunar months (it is considered normal that labor comes between the 37 and the 42 weeks and the pregnancy time starts the first day of the last menstrual period).

Even if your wish is for your labor process to go as natural as possible, we need to take care of it inside a hospital because, if any trouble shows up, we will have more resources to counter it. This does not mean we need to medicalize all labors, though.

Our hospital has extensive experience guiding mothers every year through these important and delicate moments. You will find the best obstetricians and the best midwives, and all the support staff that makes maternity a joyful experience.

Labor is a process that, due to the womb contractions, the fetus can come out and become a newborn child alongside the placenta. We consider that a woman is laboring when contractions occur two every ten minutes, are intense and do not fade with rest.

Dilatation stage: contractions make the cervix wider and wider. This stage can be longer depending if it is your first child or not, how big the child is, the intensity of contractions, etc.

Expulsion stage: contractions and the mother’s own effort expels the fetus outside of the body. The duration of this stage can vary from person to person, but 2 hours is considered normal.

Childbirth stage: when the newborn has been born, the uterus continues to contract until the placenta and the ovular membranes. This process can last for about 30 minutes.

The hospital has all the necessary equipment to make this unique experience the most comfortably possible.

The professionals that have come during the whole pregnancy will help you in this decisive hour and you will be able to keep in touch with them in case you need anything or think the labor may be on its way.

The vast majority of labors are common and no instruments are needed (forceps, spatula, suction pads, etc.) but there is always a small chance in which they are advisable. In any case, we will inform you of our criteria to use them.

In an even smaller chance, a cesarean might be needed (a surgical procedure where the baby is extracted via an abdominal incision). Obviously, if we consider it necessary for the survival of the fetus or its mother, we will inform you and all the surgical team will deploy, ready for the procedure. The hospital has a surgical staff ready with the most advanced technology.

The contractions are painful and the expulsion of the newborn from the birth canal can become intense and unpleasant. This is why (always respecting your choices), our specialized staff will tell you how to ease this pain. There are different tiers of analgesia and also the anesthesia of one part of the body, known as the epidural.

We would also teach you the best position to help dilating the cervix and the descent of the newborn’s head.

Once the newborn opens their eyes to this world, it needs to feel your warmth, recognize as soon as possible who made them possible and who will love them forevermore. We will leave you enjoy this moment as natural as possible.

Our way of attending and understanding maternity is the intense dialog between the pregnant mother and the newborn that begins their autonomous life. The dialog between the naked skin of the mother with the tender skin of the newborn, the pairing mother-child still remains even without umbilical cord. This pairing is even more important now than when the newborn was still inside the womb, that is why it is so important to breastfeed them as soon as possible. Our midwives will teach you how. 

…and after labor

Pediatricians will visit your child and the obstetricians (and of course midwives) will take care of you the days you stay in the hospital. There is also the possibility of having them at home, in some cases at least:

Care of the wound caused by the episiotomy or cesarean if that was the case.

Blood loss from the vagina as it has served as the birth canal.

Breasts, transformed now in a very important tool to breastfeed your newborn child. Let-down reflex control, taking care of your nipples, treating cracks in case they appear, etc.

A healthy feeding of the newborn and the mother. You need to take care of any hemorrhoids that might have appeared during pregnancy with a diet rich in fiber to avoid constipations.

Total recovery of the genital area, of the perineal muscles and the abdomen as well.

Our maternal and child clinic will guarantee the needed careful and sensitive control so that these secondary questions do not distract you from your main goal: enjoy your child.

Related information

Pregnancy and delivery management department (Spanish)

Pregnancy and delivery management department II (Spanish)