Despite all the sex that may have occurred to get pregnant, once they are expecting, half of pregnant women have less nookie than before. The biggest reason? Reduced sexual desire.

According to a WiserPregnancy survey, 50% of women have less sex while pregnant, 38% have the same amount of sex and a small 12% have more sex.

Of the pregnant women who report having less sex, 54% blame a decreased sex drive for the change.

That’s not much of a surprise, considering the hormonal changes, weight gain, lower energy, exhaustion and nausea that often come in the first trimester. The second trimester can bring mood-killers of stress, fatigue, back pain and a growing abdomen. And by the third trimester, constant discomfort can make any woman opt for a warm bath instead.

But lack of desire isn’t the only cause of diminished sex. Women surveyed also cite these reasons:

• 17% are too busy
• 15% are concerned about the baby’s health
• 14% are on doctor’s orders not to have sex (Cervical insufficiency, a risk of miscarriage, unexplained vaginal bleeding, leaking amniotic fluid or placenta previa are among the reasons a doctor might recommend abstinence.)
• 10% say their partner’s sex drive decreased

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Pregnancy is a time of joy, anticipation… and mood swings. But when those ups and downs turn to depression, many women – and their partners – are left wondering what to do.

A recent WiserPregnancy survey has found that the majority of pregnant women don’t try to manage the condition on their own. Two-thirds of pregnant women turn to their doctors for help.  (The other one-third don’t seek help.)

Why seek treatment?  For one, depression can put mothers and babies at risk for serious problems during pregnancy and after delivery.  If you’re depressed, you may have trouble eating or sleeping, and you may be more likely to self-medicate with alcohol, tobacco or drugs. Also, depressed moms-to-be are more likely to neglect prenatal care.

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Every parent wants a healthy baby, which is why pregnant women eat healthy, take prenatal vitamins and get regular checkups. They also try to avoid anything potentially harmful to the baby.

For many moms-to-be, this includes opting out of some diagnostic tests.

According to a recent WiserPregnancy survey, less than 20% of women have either amniocentesis or chorionic villus sampling (CVS) – two tests that can tell parents if the baby has an increased risk of having a birth defect or inherited genetic problem.

That’s despite the statistic that 1 in 33 babies are born with a birth defect, says the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC).

Interestingly, although the tests have about the same risk of miscarriage or complication, women have different reasons for declining the tests:

• 50% say no to CVS because they see no benefit in knowing the test results
• 30% are not comfortable with the risk for a miscarriage or complications associated with CVS
• 41% of women are not comfortable with the risk for a miscarriage or other complications associated with amniocentesis
• 35% say no to amniocentesis because they don’t see a benefit in knowing the results

About 6% of women surveyed had a CVS and 10% had or plan to have an amniocentesis.  The primary reason: Their doctors recommended it.

So when choosing between easing anxiety or putting their baby at risk, many couples live with their anxiety.

Did you get CVS or amniocentesis? Why did you decide to do it or decline it?

As most pregnant women know, morning sickness is a lie – that wave of nausea can hit any time. And when it comes, there are few effective remedies for it, according to a new WiserPregnancy survey.

The survey found that pregnant women try, on average, 3 to 4 remedies for morning sickness. Yet none control the condition: Almost two-thirds of respondents (62%) report that no remedies are “highly effective.”

The three most popular remedies to try:

• Eating smaller meals more frequently (76% of women try this)
• Getting more rest (64%)
• Avoiding trigger foods (62%)

Unfortunately, the most effective of these – avoiding target foods – isn’t:  Only 27% of the women who avoided those foods found it “very effective.”

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Tomorrow is the Great American Smokeout – an occasion for smokers to kick the habit once and for all. But as many smokers know, it’s not that easy.

While smoking is one the hardest habits to break, for many women pregnancy is a powerful motivator, according to a recent WiserPregnancy survey.

The survey found that 41% of women who smoked quit the habit once they became pregnant. In comparison, only 3% quit before getting pregnant.

So how to quit?

With their baby’s health at risk, most women don’t opt for slow-moving remedies. The large majority of women (88%) quit cold turkey – and it works for most. In fact, two-thirds (66%) of women found it a highly effective way to quit.

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When it comes to picking a delivery location, you might think word of mouth – or even personal experience – is what determines a woman’s decision. Not so, according to a new WiserPregnancy survey.

It turns out that when planning for the big moment, many decision-making factors—cost, personal experience, friend and family member recommendations—fade into the background.  What matters most is a facility’s reputation and expertise.

Just under one-third (28.2%) of expectant moms cited birth location reputation and expertise as the most important factor when choosing where to delivery.  Even women who are already mothers still choose birthing facility reputation and expertise over prior personal experience with a facility.

Other factors that women consider important include:

• Prior personal experience with the facility (17.0%)
• Health care provider recommendation (14.3%)
• Proximity to home and/or work (13.0%)
• Visitation rights of the healthcare provider (12.6%)
• Cost (10.5%)
• Recommendations of family and friends (2.5%)
• Policies for who can attend my birth (1.5%)
• Décor and amenities (TV, music, etc.) (0.4%)

Unsurprisingly, first-time moms are much more concerned with a facility’s reputation and expertise than repeaters. Approximately 34% of first-time moms consider it the most important factor, compared to only 25.2% of experienced moms.

What mattered most to you when you chose a birth location?  If you’re an experienced mom, what seemed important the first time around that didn’t matter as much the second time?

You wouldn’t think that pregnancy would turn a couch potato into Ms. Fitness. But often, that’s exactly what happens.

A recent WiserPregnancy survey found that almost 2/3 of pregnant women regularly exercise. Non-pregnant women? Only 32.9% of those 18 years and older regularly work out in their free time.

So why would a woman who’s not usually a gym rat start exercising when she’s expecting? One factor could those regular medical checkups, which include weigh-ins and potentially disapproving looks from the doctor.

But more likely, it’s hard to find excuses when your baby’s health is at risk.  Maternal weight gain affects baby size and well-being, and a large baby poses risks to both mother and child.

Then there are the feel-good benefits: More than half (57%) of pregnant women report that exercise is useful for managing pregnancy symptoms such as back pain, heartburn, constipation, shortness of breath, fatigue, headaches and nausea.  Also, you’re likely to look and feel better, lose baby weight faster and be less likely to suffer postpartum blues.

Are – or were – you exercising during pregnancy? Why or why not?  What helped keep you motivated?

Whether you love or hate your job, you’re probably glad to have employment during these tough times. But as a result, many pregnant women are reluctant to share their baby news with the boss.

A recent WiserPregnancy survey found that income makes a difference when pregnant women share the news.  Higher-income women are less likely than lower-income women to tell their employer early in the pregnancy:

• 53% of women from low-income ($30,000 or less per year) households share the news in the first two months
• 38% of women from high-income ($100,000 or more per year) households tell their boss in the first two months

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Sinus infections, UTIs, strep throat… if you’ve had one of these bacterial infections, your doctor likely treated you with antibiotics. But when you’re pregnant, it’s normal to start questioning the safety of everything you take into your body.

And in light of a recent CDC report linking two antibiotiocs to birth defects, the caution is certainly warranted. However, the report does affirm that most antibiotics are safe for pregnant women.

That’s good news for the majority of pregnant women who do take antibiotics. An ongoing WiserPregnancy survey finds that most pregnant women do take antibiotics when prescribed by their doctors:

• 87% of pregnant women who tested positive for Group B strep were given antibiotic
• 91% of pregnant women take prescribed antibiotics when they have a UTI during pregnancy
• 100% of pregnant women with bacterial vaginosis take prescribed antibiotics during pregnancy

The two types of antibiotics warned against by the CDC are nitrofurantoins and sulfonamides (also called “sulfa” drugs); they are most commonly prescribed for urinary tract infections. These two drugs have been linked to an increased risk of having a baby with a birth defect such as anencephaly (malformation of the skull and brain), heart or limb defects and cleft palate.

On the safe list (unless you are allergic to them): penicillin, erythromycin and cephalosporin – three of the most common infection fighters.

You’re not alone if you’re torn about taking antibiotics if you contract a bacterial infection during pregnancy.  Many women are willing to deal with the annoying and sometimes painful symptoms to keep your baby safe.  However, your doctor may urge you to take antibiotics to prevent you from developing potentially dangerous complications, such as preterm labor or maternal sepsis (blood infection).

Have you taken antibiotics for a bacterial infection during pregnancy?  How do you feel about taking antibiotics during pregnancy?

To epidural or not to epidural – for many women, that’s a key question.

So what influences a woman’s decision? Peer pressure, concern about the baby’s health, bragging rights? Sure, those can all be powerful influencers.

But what doesn’t seem to play a role is the birthing class a woman attends. Wiser Pregnancy’s recent survey of pregnant women found the following:

• 46% have attended or plan to attend a childbirth education class.
• 65% have had an epidural during delivery.
• 53% who have gone to childbirth education classes have said that the class didn’t help or only somewhat helped them prepare for labor and delivery.

That last statistic, in particular, is pretty interesting. More than half the women who took a birthing class found that it didn’t help or only helped a little.

Whether the choice is Lamaze (which doesn’t advocate for natural or painkiller-assisted birth) or Bradley (which supports natural birth), it turns out that women have pretty much made up their minds about an epidural, regardless of the class.

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