How married couples can learn to grow together

One year into married life, newlyweds Max Collins and Pancho Magno have realized there’s a hard truth to “expectations vs. reality.” Below are some of the realizations and adjustments couples like them had to make to build a strong foundation for a long-lasting marriage:

From “I love you more” to “it’s love and more”
Love can make you feel all fuzzy inside.  Reality sets in, however, when one falls ill. 
Magno candidly admits his wife is pretty hard to handle when she is sick.  Luckily for Collins her husband is a registered nurse with a lot of patience. “Love is not just about kilig,” said Collins who married Magno in December 2017.    “It is also about prioritizing health,” added the 27-year-old Kapuso actress who hosts Healthy Ever After with her husband on GMA News TV (GNTV).  Between the two, it is Magno who makes it a point to workout regularly to stay fit and healthy. 

A big family or family planning?
After marriage, raising a family usually comes next.  While a big family looks fun, there are practicalities that need to be considered. “Are we ready to spend for the bare necessities of 10 kids?” Collins asked her husband in Filipino when the latter excitedly said he wants eight to 10 kids.  In one of their show’s episodes, the two became mom and dad for a day to a family of six kids.  After doing the laundry, preparing lunch, and taking care of the family’s baby, the couple realized more does not necessarily mean merrier, especially when the budget is tight.  Apart from the practical issues, both agreed the value of family planning would benefit women’s health.  “It will give the woman’s body ample time to recover from birthing,” according to Maria Rosario Vergeire MD, MPH of the Department Of Health (DOH).   Learn more about legal, safe and effective ways to family planning in the episode below:

Baby boy… baby girl or what matters most
Most newlyweds are eager to see their “mini-me” running around.  Even the Magnos are looking into baby names this early.  Collins thinks Ellie is perfect for a baby Max.  “It means shining light,” she added.  Magno, meanwhile, hopes to name a baby Pancho Theodore, which he learned means a gift from God. “I think I like a boy for our first child,” confessed the 33-year-old Kapuso Hunk.  Collins was quick to remind her husband that a healthy baby is more important than the gender. 
When the time comes, “we will give him or her the best newborn care out there,” declared Collins.

According to the 2017 National Demographic and Health Survey of the Philippine Statistics Authority (PSA), 14 out 1,000 babies die before they reach the first month of life.  Infant mortality rate decrease by up to 70% when babies have the essential newborn care.  This is why the DOH in cooperation with Philhealth is strongly pushing the Unang Yakap Program or the Newborn Packages.

Under the program, a newborn’s vital signs should be checked on the first 90 seconds after birth to ensure safety. More care should be done within three minutes to stimulate and normalize breathing. “Babies are put on top of [the] mother’s stomach to help maintain normal body temperature,” said Dr. Napoleon Arevalo, DOH’s OIC, Director for Disease Prevention and Control Bureau.  The skin-to-skin contact is a good way “to initiate bonding between the mother and the child,” added Dr. Arevalo.

To learn more about the program including Newborn Screening and Newborn Hearing Screening Test, watch the episode on postnatal care below:

Hosting a health and wellness show couldn’t come at a better time for celebrity couple Collins and Magno.  On the job, they learn about health care for pregnant women, essential care for newborn babies, the importance of vaccines and more.  After all, marriage is an opportunity to grow together.

For more health information, go to www.doh.gov.ph. Healthy Ever After airs every Saturday at 5:30PM, only on GMA News TV. Catch up on all episodes on GMA Public Affairs’ YouTube Channel at youtube.com/gmapublicaffairs.