Few things bring more joy in one’s life than the birth of a child. It’s estimated that each year in the United States, at least four million babies are born. After nine months, there’s nothing quite like seeing your baby boy or baby girl and holding them in your arms.

But the nine months leading up to that glorious moment can see a lot of ups-and-downs, even for pregnancies that are considered “normal.” If you’re dealing with pregnancy issues, it’s a good idea to get to a local urgent care clinic and be seen by health professionals. Between emergency rooms, urgent cares and primary care offices, all three of them play important roles. But where you ultimately end up for care is going to depend on what kinds of health issues you’re dealing with.

Urgent care clinics are the best places to go if you’re dealing with acute medical issues that aren’t serious or severe enough to be dealt with immediately. Some acute complications can include:

• Morning sickness
• Fever
• Dizziness
• Blood pressure issues
• Infections

One important note is that most urgent cares don’t typically have an OB-GYN on staff, but they do have licensed and experienced professionals who can help. It’s important for many pregnant women to have a good relationship with their OB-GYN because they get familiar with patients and the babies they’re carrying. In the event that you can’t get in to see your OB-GYN in a timely manner, urgent cares have physicians who can address many pregnancy issues.

If you’re expecting your first child, you’re no doubt excited for the life-changing experiences that are coming up. But that likely means you’re also concerns about your pregnancy, down to the smallest details. Every pain or cramp you feel, every chill or moment of warmth, every fever and every kick of the baby in your belly has likely got you wondering what’s going on with your body and whether or not you need to go to the doctor.

If you’re feeling anxious about your health and feel you need medical care, there’s nothing wrong with that. But be advised that not every medical ailment requires a trip to the ER. You can go to the ER, but you’re likely going to be in for a long wait and a hit to the wallet by the time you get seen, get treated and head out the door. If you’ve been to the ER before, you know that many of them are overcrowded and a only a slim percentage of issues and ailments actually require ER care. If you’re pregnant and close to your due date, the ER might be the last place you want to be.

If you’re in your first pregnancy, you’re going to experience different things depending on what trimester you’re in and you may be alarmed. Don’t be. If you need help, you can very easily go to an urgent care. As it stands now, urgent cares can treat:

• Pregnancy testing (if you’re experiencing symptoms of pregnancy, but aren’t sure)
• Spotting
• Morning sickness
• Fatigue
• Urinary tract infections
• Fever
• Abdomen pressure or pain
• Yeast infections
• Preeclampsia
• Preterm labor symptoms
• Pregnancy injuries such as slip-and-falls

If you’re dealing with any of those issues, visiting an urgent care facility is a wise choice. You’ll be seen by licensed and experienced medical professions who can do just about everything but deliver your baby.

It’s important to note that emergency rooms still play an important role in pregnancy, especially for severe issues. If you’re experiencing any of the following issues, don’t think twice about going to the ER:

• Severe pain, especially in the abdomen
• Heavy vaginal bleeding
• Chest pressure or pain
• Losing consciousness
• Signs you may be having a miscarriage
• Signs you may be headed for a premature birth

There’s no doubt pregnancies can be life-changing in so many positive ways, but they can also be complicated. When you have common pregnancy issues, visiting an urgent care can get you back to feeling healthy. More than three million Americans, including women, visit urgent cares every week and for women everywhere urgent cares can help ensure a safe and healthy pregnancy.