How to Prepare for Pregnancy in 3 Months: A Comprehensive Guide

If you’re reading this, you’re probably thinking about having a baby and preparing to conceive. But before you get serious about trying to have a baby, check out this pregnancy preparation guide.

Have you started your trial yet? No problem. It’s not too late to make lifestyle changes to improve your health and your health during pregnancy. We’ll tell you how to prepare for pregnancy and what to do before trying to conceive.

3 months before TTC

Most experts agree that scheduling a checkup with your doctor is a great first step when trying to conceive. During this pre-pregnancy visit, your doctor can advise you on things to consider in preparation for pregnancy, like stopping birth control, determining which medications are safe, and managing your health conditions. It’s also a great time to visit the dentist.

Book a pre-pregnancy check-up

You and your partner (if you have one) should schedule a pre-pregnancy test, during which your health care provider will review your health history along with other routine medical exams.

“Understanding a patient’s gynecologic history and past pregnancy experiences can be important in planning a healthy pregnancy,” said John R. Sussman, MD, associate professor of obstetrics and gynecology at the University of Connecticut School of Medicine.

This checkup allows your health care provider to make sure your vaccinations are up to date. According to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC), you should have the following vaccinations before or during pregnancy:

• pertussis
• influenza
• COVID-19
• RSV

Also, if you haven’t already had the chickenpox and measles, mumps, and rubella (MMR) vaccines, you should ideally get these three months before trying to conceive – both are “live” vaccines and therefore not recommended during pregnancy.

Organize your medicine cabinet

Your medicine cabinet is probably filled with over-the-counter medications you take to treat headaches, allergies, constipation, and a variety of herbal products. Now think about what’s inside it.

Some of these products may contain ingredients that could affect fertility or harm your unborn baby. Your preconception visit is the perfect time to ask your doctor questions about what is safe as you begin trying to conceive.

Learning about stopping birth control

The obvious step to preparing for pregnancy is to stop using birth control, although depending on the type you use, recommendations on the best time to stop using it may differ.

If you are using a barrier method of birth control, such as a condom, diaphragm, or cervical cap, you can continue to use it until the day you officially start “trying.” However, if you are taking oral contraceptives or other hormonal contraceptives, you may be advised to switch to a barrier method of contraception.

Some people start ovulating immediately after stopping birth control pills, while others may take several months. Injectables like Depo-Provera can take even longer to work, and other birth control methods like implants and IUDs require a doctor’s visit to have them removed.

Going to the dentist

You might not think of dental care as something you need to consider when preparing for pregnancy. But because gum disease has been linked to premature birth, see a dentist before you become pregnant to make sure your oral health is good. If you need any dental work, x-rays, or medications, it’s best to get these done before you become pregnant.

Consider workplace safety

If you are concerned about exposure or risk to toxic chemicals in the workplace, long periods of standing, or high levels of stress, talk to your employer for more information. Accommodations such as a different workstation or chair can be simple solutions to address work-related exposures and stress. Of course, your partner should also know about their work-related exposures.

Ensuring chronic health conditions are managed

If you have any chronic medical conditions, such as high blood pressure, thyroid disease, diabetes, epilepsy, heart disease, or lupus, these should be carefully managed before and during pregnancy. For example, if you have diabetes, getting your blood sugar levels under control before pregnancy can improve your chances of having a healthy pregnancy and baby.

If your doctor suspects you may be at risk, your pre-pregnancy testing should also include a diabetes test. Particular care should also be taken if you currently or have a history of depression, anxiety or mood disorders.

2 months before TTC

Once you’ve scheduled your appointment and spoken with your healthcare provider, you can focus on simple ways to improve your fertility and overall health. Preparing for pregnancy ideally involves closely evaluating your diet and activity levels to ensure you’re as healthy as possible for pregnancy.

Get your vitamins and vegetables

The United States Department of Agriculture (USDA) offers the “MyPlate” tool, which recommends a balanced diet of vegetables, fruits, grains, and protein. Therefore, evaluate how well your diet meets these recommendations and adjust it to include more food groups that may be lacking. Additionally, health care providers recommend starting to take prenatal vitamins before trying to conceive.

One of the most important ingredients in a multivitamin supplement is folic acid. The American College of Obstetricians and Gynecologists (ACOG) recommends taking a vitamin with at least 400 micrograms (mcg) of folic acid daily to reduce the risk of neural tube defects, such as spina bifida, in newborns.

However, if you have previously given birth to a baby with a neural tube defect, it is recommended that you start taking about 10 times the dose, or 4 milligrams (mg), three months before you become pregnant, so talk to your doctor to make sure you’re taking the right dose.

Evaluate your weight

According to ACOG, being overweight is a risk factor for pregnancy-related complications, including:

• High blood pressure
• Pregnancy Toxicosis
• Gestational diabetes
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Therefore, if you are overweight or obese, ACOG recommends losing weight before pregnancy to reduce these pregnancy-related risk factors.

Of course, being underweight also comes with risks: According to the Department of Health and Human Services’ Office on Women’s Health, underweight women are more likely to experience infertility, premature birth, and low birth weight babies.

Remember, many people of different body types and weights have had healthy pregnancies, so try to think of improving your nutrition and physical activity as holistic goals rather than weight-related goals. When in doubt, talk to your health care provider.

Join a program (fitness)

If you already have a regular exercise routine, keep it up (but if you’re interested in running a marathon or taking up extreme sports, talk to your doctor to make sure the activity is safe and won’t negatively impact your fertility).

Physical activity during pregnancy has the following benefits:

• Pain relief during pregnancy
• Boosts energy
• Helps you sleep
• Make you feel better
• Helps you cope with stress
• Preparing the body for birth

If you prefer lying on the couch to doing aerobic exercise, consider starting a program while you’re trying to conceive and continuing it after you’re pregnant.

1 month before TTC

One month before you start trying to conceive, evaluate any unhealthy habits you can eliminate, such as smoking, drinking alcohol, using illegal drugs, misusing prescription medications, etc. Additionally, this is the perfect time to cut down on your caffeine intake.

If you are struggling with substance use, help is available: you can call your health care provider or contact the Substance Abuse and Mental Health Services Administration (SAMHSA) online or at 1-800-662-HELP (4357).

Quit smoking or e-cigarettes

“There are a lot of things you can’t change to give yourself the best chance of having a healthy baby. Smoking is one of the things you can change,” says Arlene Karam, M.P.H., of Sutter Medical Center in Sacramento, California.

According to the CDC, smoking can lead to the following pregnancy-related risks:

• Reproductive issues
• Fetal growth restriction
• Premature birth
• Fetal brain and lung damage
• Abnormal bleeding during pregnancy and childbirth
• Some congenital disorders
• Sudden Infant Death Syndrome (SIDS)

If you don’t smoke or vape, but your partner does, let them know it’s time to quit. Tobacco smoke and secondhand smoke also increase pregnancy-related risks. For example, a 2021 study on secondhand smoke during pregnancy found that the risks to the fetus are similar to those from parental smoking during pregnancy. Specifically, infants exposed to tobacco smoke in the womb are twice as likely to be born low birth weight or short-lived compared to infants who were not exposed.

Quitting drinking

No one has been able to determine a safe level of alcohol consumption during pregnancy, so ACOG recommends abstaining from alcohol when you start trying to conceive and throughout your pregnancy.

According to the CDC, women who drink alcohol during pregnancy are at higher risk for the following conditions:

• Premature birth
• Fetal brain injury
• Fetal Alcohol Spectrum Disorder (FASD)
• abortion
• stillbirth
• Low birth weight

Quitting drinking will be easier if your partner also abstains from alcohol. Alcohol not only has an adjuvant effect, but it can also have a negative effect on male fertility. Therefore, abstaining from alcohol is a good idea for both expectant and non-expectant parents.

Limit your caffeine intake

While you don’t need to cut out caffeine completely if you’re trying to conceive, now is a great time to evaluate your caffeine intake and start reducing it, because excessive intake (defined by most experts as more than 300 mg per day) is linked to an increased risk of infertility, miscarriage, premature birth, and low birth weight, so it’s important to consume it in moderation.

ACOG recommends limiting caffeine intake to no more than 200 mg per day, which is the equivalent of two small (8 ounce) cups of brewed coffee or just over two shots of espresso, and warns not to forget that caffeine is also found in tea, chocolate and energy drinks.

When you are trying to get pregnant

If you’re trying to conceive, there are some extra steps you can take to increase your chances of a healthy pregnancy.

Knowing what foods are safe

Experts recommend avoiding certain foods during pregnancy and while trying to conceive. Seafood can be part of a healthy diet during pregnancy, but fish high in mercury, such as mackerel and swordfish, should be avoided to reduce the risk of heavy metal poisoning.

 Additionally, to reduce the risk of Listeria infection, which can be especially harmful during pregnancy , ACOG recommends avoiding the following: 

• Undercooked meat or seafood
• Cold Cuts
• Any food made with raw or lightly cooked eggs
• Unpasteurized soft cheese
• Unpasteurized milk and juice
• Bean sprouts raw vegetables

Some herbal teas are not considered safe during pregnancy, so be sure to talk to your healthcare provider about any herbal teas first.

Delegate the dirty (and dangerous) work

If possible, delegate tasks that are unsafe during pregnancy, such as painting, using solvents or pesticides, cleaning cat litter boxes or rat cages, etc. If you must do these tasks yourself, make sure the room is well ventilated and wear gloves and a mask.

Keeping sperm healthy

Wearing boxer shorts helps keep the scrotum cooler than underwear (thus creating a more sperm-friendly environment), so if possible, ask your partner to switch to wearing boxer shorts while you’re trying to conceive. Additionally, keeping your laptop off your lap and limiting your bike ride to no more than two hours a day, six days a week, will also have a positive effect on your sperm.

Learn how to find your fertile window

You can only get pregnant during a limited period each month, including the day of ovulation and the five days before. To find out when this period is, use our ovulation calculator below.