“Have you been taking your folic acid?”
There’s a question we hear in early pregnancy that can instantly send a first time mum into a guilt spiral:
“Have you been taking your folic acid?”
You’ve only just found out you’re pregnant.
You might not have told your friends or family yet. You might not have even spoken to anyone about it apart from the GP receptionist when booking your appointment.
Then you sit down with your midwife and hear this question.
And suddenly you’re thinking:
Oh no. Was I supposed to know this?
Why didn’t anyone tell me?
Have I already done something wrong?
And that’s the bit I think we need to change.
Of course folic acid is important. But what if you simply didn’t know?
You can’t act on information you haven’t been given.
Rather than:
“Have you been taking your folic acid?”
What if we asked:
“Have you heard about folic acid?”
Or:
“Has anyone spoken to you about folic acid yet?”
Such a small change in words, but a completely different feeling for the woman sitting in front of you.
It opens a conversation rather than making new mums feel like they’ve already got something wrong.
Because pregnancy isn’t an exam.
You’re not expected to know everything the moment you see those two lines.
And this is exactly why antenatal education is so important.
Our job isn’t to tell you what you should already know. It’s to help you understand what’s ahead, give you the information you need and, most importantly, give you a toolkit of knowledge and questions to take with you.
So you can walk into your appointments feeling confident enough to ask:
“What are my options?”
“Why are you recommending that?”
“Is there another option?”
“Can you explain that to me?”
“What happens if I say no?”
You don’t need to know all the answers.
You just need to know what questions to ask.
That’s what good antenatal education is about.
Giving you the information, confidence and tools to make informed decisions about your pregnancy, birth and those first few weeks with your baby.
Because the information matters.
But so does how we feel when we receive it.
And becoming a parent should feel supported, informed and empowered, not like you’re sitting an exam you didn’t know you were taking.