First Trimester

• Everything is new in your first trimester, and you will often have a host of questions about your developing pregnancy. You will want to have your caregiver establish your due date and ensure that the sac is forming correctly. Ask when your caregiver attempts to hear the heartbeat and how many ultrasounds will you receive.
  
  The first trimester is a good time to check the policies of your caregiver's office regarding emergency protocols. Ask about what constitutes an emergency and how to proceed if you experience one.
  
  

Second Trimester

• As you grow and begin the second trimester of your pregnancy, your questions will evolve as well. At this point, weight gain and your growing belly will become an important consideration. It might be helpful to ask your doctor for prenatal exercise recommendations, as well as sleeping position advice.
  
  Varicose veins and hemorrhoids can begin to occur at this point, so you should ask for help coping with these symptoms. Women generally begin to feel the baby move during this trimester, so you will want to find out the normal ranges for feeling these early movements.
  
  

Third Trimester

• The third trimester is the home stretch of your pregnancy, and women find that a variety of symptoms seem to be exacerbated at this point. Important health issues can crop up, and you will often have many questions about labor.
  
  In the third trimester, you should ask about fetal movement and whether you should maintain a journal of kick counts. Your weight gain might seem alarming to you, but check with your care giver to make sure it is on target. Symptoms might include exhaustion and heartburn, so find out what you can do to alleviate these conditions.
  
  Make sure your practitioner doesn't want you to restrict activities or travel. At what point does your caregiver consider your baby overdue? What are the policies on induction? When should you call if you suspect you are in labor?
  
  

Testing

• Doctors and midwives can have widely varying philosophies on prenatal care, with some being more comfortable with a number of interventions and tests, and others being more hands off. Since this is often a deeply personal area, it is helpful to have some idea of your doctor's views on these issues before it is time to take the tests.
  
  

Labor and Delivery

• When labor and delivery is imminent, you will want to know what to expect. You should check into the specifics of labor and delivery, and pre-register at your hospital or birth center as early in the pregnancy as possible.
  
  If your caregiver encourages birth plans, it's a good opportunity to ask a variety of questions and make your preferences known. Make sure you know at what point in labor you should go to the hospital or birthing center. Find out your caregiver's policies regarding breech births and VBAC deliveries (vaginal birth after Cesarean).
  
  Interventions during birth are another important topic of discussion. In which situations do they recommend Pitocin? Do they perform routine episiotomies?
  
  

Considerations

• You should ask any of these questions that you feel are important to you, but keep in mind that your doctor might not have any type of clear cut answers for some of these questions. Each pregnancy is different, and a good caregiver cannot promise you that he will not need to perform a C-section on you or an episiotomy or that you will be able to have the waterbirth you have always wanted. Your caregiver's responses can, however, give you a good idea of where they typically stand on a variety of issues.