Comprehensive well-being...from the comfort of your couch!

Dr. Robin Berzin, MD, is the founder and CEO of Parsley Health, an online bicoastal membership-based healthcare practice that is reinventing how we approach medical care. She focuses on optimizing your health with a whole-body approach to wellness. We were lucky enough to chat with her about pregnancy, fertility, and general well-being during this time of COVID-19! Here are some gems from our IG Live:

If you are pregnant → All pregnant women are at a slightly higher risk for viral illnesses in general, but the great news is that they don’t seem to be at a higher-than-normal risk for the novel coronavirus (mostly because women who are pregnant also tend to be a young and healthy population overall). There also doesn’t seem to be an increased risk for birth defects or preterm delivery if you DO contract the disease; it’s possible that COVID-19 may cross the placenta but doesn’t seem to severely affect infants. Information changes daily as we learn more about it, so always check with your doc to get up-to-date medical advice.

If you are breastfeeding → If you are actively symptomatic, wear a mask and wash your hands to breastfeed your babe. If possible, try to self-isolate for the 14-day incubation period and exclusively pump, but no matter what, keep breastfeeding! Novel coronavirus has not been found in breastmilk and your milk is chock full of antibodies and immune-boosting components that are great for protecting your baby and fortifying their immune systems.

If you are trying to get pregnant → Are you and your partner actively trying to conceive naturally? Keep at it! There is no direct risk to getting pregnant during the pandemic; it’s more about the resources and services that will be available to you as you seek quality prenatal care. If you are having trouble conceiving, you may also consider using this time to ensure you are healthy and examine potential causes of impaired fertility; Parsley Health can help assess your genetics, hormones, possible underlying conditions, etc...and they’re all online!

Mama Pro-Tip → If you are in the middle of an IVF cycle or other fertility treatment right now, it’s generally recommended that you continue. If you are about to start or have a planned transfer, guidelines are to wait (because of the increased risk of going into medical settings). You can go ahead and freeze your eggs or sperm at any time, however!