The moment a couple first realizes they're having a baby can be an exhilarating and terrifying experience.

Couples often have no idea where to start to get ready for parenthood.

But there's no need to panic. Health care providers have been helping new couples navigate the ins and outs of first-time parenthood for generations, and amid the emotional highs of the first days of pregnancy, they have some advice on the safety pins and needles of preparing to have your first baby.

The first thing to do when a pregnancy test comes out positive is to double check.

Birth control tests, especially home tests, can sometimes be inaccurate. couples should double check with either a second home test or by having a doctor take a blood test. If the positive result is confirmed, congratulations! Now the real work begins.

“You want to get prenatal care as soon as possible,” said Dr. Thomas Wojciechowski, a Butler Memorial Hospital pediatrician.

This means meeting with an obstetrician and finding a pediatrician.

When looking for a pediatrician, Wojciechowski recommends that expectant parents shop around a bit before committing.

“You want to get to know your pediatrician and pick one you get along with,” said Wojciechowski. “Get some ideas from family and friends.”

Choosing a pediatrician is a long-term commitment: Children should be under the care of the same doctor for much of their childhood.

Couples should try to choose soon however, as it is important that they begin meetings as soon as they can. That way, pediatricians and obstetricians can begin teaching expectant parents about how to get through a healthy pregnancy and childbirth and how to prepare for the day they bring their baby home.

The first thing to learn is how to have a healthy pregnancy.

“Don't smoke, don't drink, eat healthy and exercise,” Wojciechowski said. “The regular basic things that people should do but don't do enough in this country.”

Alcohol, tobacco and other drugs are what are known as teratogens, or “monster makers.” Consuming these substances can cause or contribute to birth defects and health problems in children that often do not go away. It is important to completely abstain from these during pregnancy.

It is also important to get rest. Once the baby comes, there will be very little of that to be found.

Pediatricians also want to know what couples are wondering about and how they can best help the parents-to-be understand their roles and responsibilities.

“Most questions are concerning breast feeding, immunizations, the childbirth process,” Wojciechowski said. All these things and more should be taught before the baby is born to best transition into parenthood.

Babies also come with shopping lists.

“Cribs, monitors, clothes, if you're not breastfeeding you need formula, toys, books,” Wojciechowski said. The list goes on and on.

He recommends reading to babies to help their speech development.

“The more words babies are exposed to the better,” he said.

Pediatricians also spend some time dispelling myths surrounding pregnancy and parenting.

“Vaccines are the biggest one,” Wojciechowski said. “Unfortunately there was some bad research done in the late '90s. And now we've seen measles, mumps, pertussis — that is, whooping cough.”

Skepticism of vaccines has been bad for health care in the nation, and Wojciechowski says if a couple doubts the need for vaccines, that he would try to answer their questions and explain the benefits.

Other myths surround skepticism of vitamin K shots and fluoride. None of these concerns are based in scientific evidence, Wojciechowski said.

Once the baby is born, it is important for couples to maintain healthy habits to guard their own health as well as the infant's. Babies need a lot of attention and parents often do not sleep much for the first few months of raising their baby.

Wojciechowski said that it is important to be on the lookout for postpartum blues or postpartum depression. Maintaining a healthy lifestyle helps with this. It is also important to keep hobbies and a support structure.

“Get some time for yourself,” he said. “It is good to have two-parent families or babysitters.”

And don't worry about being alone without your baby, he said.

“You're always going to the child in the back of your mind. Whether that's now or when they are 13 and going to a dance.”

For parents wondering where to find services in Butler, the Butler Health System can help with that.

For parents looking for a prenatal care, “we have two different practices here in Butler, I'll give them the name of both,” said Ann Marie Snodgrass, Butler Health System nursing director who oversees the maternal services program.

Snodgrass recommends the numerous courses the hospital offers covering breastfeeding, childbirth, hygiene and more.

“Be open and take all the information you can get either at the classes or at the hospital here,” she said.

While the main source of information and treatment will come from an obstetrician, a pediatrician or other health care professionals, doctors and nurses know that parents will often take to the Internet for further information.

Snodgrass recommends that they instead turn to people they trust and respect and who have been there before.

“Someone who has done it before would be better to listen to than reading something off Facebook,” she said.

For parents in need of assistance, the hospital has a community resources book that can help parents with everything that Butler County has to offer. That includes community support, financial assistance and more.