Interesting material...wishing there was more time!!

In the past week I feel as though I am living and breathing this class non stop. I am constantly checking and rechecking deadlines and trying to get done with what I can in between the rest of my life...... Other than that I have found the material very interesting and informative. I am at a point in my life where I would like to have more children and have felt that time is of the essence; the text has only confirmed my fears....I am getting older!! I feel it is important to make good healthier decisions when it comes to raising a family and that includes starting healthy habits before you even conceive. In chapter 2 especially I learned that even thought yearly 30's may be young in most of our books it is actually closing in on a deadline to have the least risk of such things as still births, Down syndrome, and low birth weights in newborns. I also learned that fathers can contribute to Down syndrome by increased age over 35 and other birth defects as well. This has been kind of alarming to me and is forcing me to consider a more structured plan to what and how I want my family to grow.

I was also intrigued by the information on stress and it's effects on baby. It was amazing to me to learn that stress in a pregnant mother can have effects on her child until age 10!! And I will also have to change some medications before considering to conceive. Apparently even the mildest of medications can have harmful effects on baby. It is great to have read this info and be even more prepared when making life plans.