I sure was shell shocked at my first OB appointment today - they did not do much of anything and I did not get to see the baby which I was not happy about at all. They went over my history and weighed me and took my blood pressure and urine and that was about it.
The doctor came in and said nice to meet you - which I did not like being that I have been there like 10 times and he did my D&E last year. He proceeded to try the doppler but it was too early to get a heartbeat on his crappy little thing. So that had me all upset - then he did a pap and that was it.
I sat in his office and he told me that I have to get an ultrasound but if I want a NT Scan done I can just wait another week and get it all done at once - I have to go the hospital for the ultrasound - obviously I knew I would for the NT Scan but for all ultrasounds (if needed) because they do not do them in the office - which upset me a bit.
Then he said I have to get bloodwork done and they do not do that in the office either so I have to go to yet another hospital to get the bloodwork done - I do not like that they basically do nothing in this office. I wonder if I will have to get bloodwork for every appointment??
It was a total of over two hours and I did not feel any better when I came out of there - I miss my RE and the hand holding and seeing the peanut every time I went there - I guess I am just a regular pregnant girl now. He did say he will have me start going to the MFM at approximately 16 weeks - he said there is no need to go now since my plan is already in place and I am already on my Lovenox and doing well.
He gave me a list of about 20 doctors that may possibly deliver my baby and some of them did not even look like they spoke English - he did mention again that I will probably be induced at 39 weeks so at least then I may know who will be delivering my baby.
I had to fill out alot of forms and had to take even more forms home to fill out - like the pre-registration for hospital admission for the birth. It was overwhleming and it is crazy to think how much goes into having a baby. I am just going to try and take it one step at a time. First step going this weekend to get my bloodwork done - it needs to be done before I see the OB again in 3 weeks. Also I am waiting for a girl from his office to call me to set up my NT Scan - hopefully for next week but I will have to see how that works out.
I do not like that I may possibly have to run around all the time - to the OB and then to the hospital for bloodwork and/or ultrasound - then to the hemo doctor and then after 16 weeks to the MFM - how do women do this who work full time - I have already missed 5 hours of work this week due to appointments and travel time - how will I ever catch up??
4 comments:
The change from a RE to an OB is the worst! A definite culture shock for sure. The only thing that lessened the blow for me was that we were having twins so we would have more frequent appointments and get scanned more often. You can bet we opted for every scan and test we could to get a peek at our little peanuts - otherwise the visits would have been pointless (in my mind of course)!
And you do miss a decent amount of work - I would maybe consider taking a half day off when you know you are going to have visits? And consider stopping by on your way in to work or home from work to have your blood drawn, so it isn't a special trip in the middle of the day? And I don't know for sure how often they will draw your blood, but it's typical for them to draw it around 8-10 weeks and again at 26 weeks, then that's it. Your MFM may want blood more often, or whoever is monitoring your lovenox, but your OB wouldn't want "standard" OB testing probably any more than that. Oh, and either make your appointment first thing or last of the day, that will cut down on the time you miss work too. Hope that helps! I remember that transition and it sucked! Hang in there =)
It was hard going from an RE to an OB. I ended up switching OB's after 2 appointments because I didnt like them. I felt like I got shuffled along and no one cared. I am so glad I switched because now I love my OB and her office staff. They also do everything there. I would suggest checking out another office if you can.
I know nothing about changing from an RE to an OB, but I had to have ultrasounds once a month because of placenta previa, some extra bloodwork because they were worried about my sugar levels being too low, and even an MRI to check on the placenta towards the end. All of the stuff had to be done at a hospital because my doctor didn't do any of it at his office. Luckily I'm a teacher so I get out by 3pm every day and 2:30 on Friday so I didn't have to miss much work for any of it. Good luck!
Wow, what a crappy appointment. I'm surprised they couldn't do an u/s there. My office they couldn't hear the beat on the doppler since it was too early and so they did a quickie u/s. But the big u/s and the fluid checks and all that I had to do were at the hospital. Can you get bloodwork done at a lab somewhere else that is closer and not have to go to the hospital, then they can send the results to your dr. Or go real early before work- I know many places open at 7 am. That is a hassle. My OB had a lab in the same building and I didn't have to go to the hospital which was nice. It was a big help for the glucose test. I drank the stuff, went to my appointment and then after went back to the lab to get the blood work done. Maybe the MFM will be better. But in my opinion if you still feel uneasy you should switch OBs. And 20 drs to deliver...maybe he was covering his ground. My place had 3 drs but others could deliver on holidays or things like that. So maybe he was giving you the worse case scenario.
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