Pregnancy In The 1980's
I'm about two write 2 fics set in the mid 1980's an in them, there are two pregnant characters.
Now, I'm normally a huge stickler for getting settings right, and I know that obviously, pregnancy technology and standards that we have today weren't too much of a thing in the 80's. Off the top of my head, I know that epidurals and transvaginal ultrasounds were just starting to be a thing. I know that the Clearblue pregnancy test had been invented, as the pregnancy test before that was some sort of chemistry concoction that took 2 hours to get results from. I know the hospital nursery was a thing.
But I have some other questions from that time period:
- were prenatal vitamins pushed like they are today?
- how were complications like gestational diabetes or preeclampsia caught and treated?
- In the event of complications, was bedrest pushed?
- were regular OBGYN appointments a thing, and did they involve bloodwork and ultrasounds?
- was gender able to be caught at 20 weeks, or was it at birth?
Thank you so much!