I hate to sound so...annoyed/bitter/upset, but to be honest, this appointment seemed completely useless to me.
It may have been the fact that the office was running an hour and a half behind that put me in a bad mood, but it seemed like a waste of my day to have my OB talk with me for all of 7 minutes.
I got weighed, got my blood pressure taken, peed in a cup, and got the forms to do my first round of genetic testing. I learned that my OB doesn't do the NT scan at 12 weeks because their ultrasound technicians are not trained to preform it, and no one in the office is trained to read the scan. If Keegan and I were really worried (which we're not,) we could be referred to a maternal fetal specialist an hour away who could do the scan, but I doubt we'll make the trip.
I did learn that if anything is wrong with our anatomy scan, then we'll be referred to the specialist anyway. The way Dr. L was talking, it seemed like they refer many women, so we may be making the trip anyways.
I also learned that the genetic testing we're doing will not tell us the sex of the baby. Dr. L said that that type of genetic testing is new on the market, and insurance normally doesn't cover the test for the sex, so we'd have to pay out of pocket.
I was asked if I had any questions or concerns, so I brought up the cramping I've been having. Apparently Dr. L was never told about it, even though I was assured she was when it first occurred, but she just brushed it off as normal stretching pains. She even went so far to ask if I held my urine too long which could cause similar pains. I know that this is my first pregnancy, but I know the difference between having-to-pee pains and what I've been experiencing.
I did get to hear Breadcrumb's heartbeat on the doppler which was nice. It took Dr. L a good three minutes to find the heartbeat, but I wasn't too upset because I had found it myself a couple of days ago on our home doppler.
I then drove to the outside lab to do the genetic testing and they took 5 vials of blood. I really, really hope that my insurance wasn't lying when they said they'd cover the cystic fibrosis test, because if they don't, we're out $800.
All in all, a 10 minute appointment took over 2.5 hours. I scheduled our anatomy ultrasound for March 6, but while driving back to work, remembered that Keegan will be gone that entire week. I emailed the office to see they could move the appointment up a week, so we'll see what happens.
Ladies farther than me / with kids already: are all appointments (besides the anatomy ultrasound) like this? I know that it's important to check a woman's blood pressure and urine for preeclampsia, but the entire appointment felt like a waste of time. Perhaps it felt like that because I was used to doing something during our TTC appointments (ultrasounds, blood work, talking about our next steps.) I just felt really...rushed and pushed out the door with this appointment and didn't really get much out of it.
Oh, also, either my home scale or the doctor's scale is broken. I weighed myself on our home scale before I left this morning and I weighed 191 pounds. A 10 minute drive to the OB clinic and I suddenly weighed 203 pounds. I was chugging water so I could provide a urine sample, but I doubt it was 10 pounds worth!
ugh, I'm sorry! I just had my midwife appt. and I talked with the midwife and her assistant for an hour! They don't make me pee in a cup or weigh me! I think that is just one of the benefits of going with a midwife instead of an OB. But if you don't want a home birth or a birth center birth then I don't think you have much of a choice. You must be doing your anatomy scan earlier than 20 weeks? I'm planning on making my appt for the week of March 4th also but I'm 3 weeks ahead of you?! Ask your fertility clinic about the genetic testing...because the fertility clinic has shuch a large amount of women getting genetic testing the genetic test co. gives them a discounted price for the high tech test that also tells you gender. If we had let our midwife or a different Dr. do it it wouldn't have been covered by insurance and would have cost up to $1200 but because I did it at the fertility clinic it will only cost us $125 max! Totally worth it.
ReplyDeleteI would LOVE to go with a midwife practice, but the closest one to us is an hour and a half away, so I'm kind of stuck with OBs. After switching up our anatomy scan appointment, we'll be doing it at 16 weeks, 4 days which seems kind of early, but I think my OB practice is ok doing it anywhere between 16 and 20 weeks.
DeleteI'm ok with the actual genetic tests that we're doing, (cystic fibrosis, downs syndrome, other trisomy syndromes,) I was just curious if we'd be able to find out the sex from them since I have read so many other bloggers have been able to. My OB practice just doesn't do the newest type of testing yet.
With my first, pretty much all they did was take my urine, weigh me, listen to the heartbeat, and maybe talk to me for a few minutes. This was the standard appointment. I am convinced ALL OBs run way behind or I would find a new doctor because I usually spent an hour there for the five minutes with the doc.
ReplyDeleteBasically, I think they are just looking for problems with the urine test and/or heartbeat, and if they don't find anything you're on your way. Why it has to be so inefficient and time-consuming, I don't know.
I'm 3 weeks behind you on my second pregnancy, and I was literally in tears at my 8/9 week appointment because after waiting an hour and 45 minutes I still hadn't seen the doctor. I had a couple questions I REALLY wanted to ask but I just couldn't believe how long they kept me waiting. I've never been kept waiting like that with any other kind of doc.
I also have to go to an MFM for the nuchal tranlucensy scan (SP??). And because I'm < 35, my OB has discouraged me from doing the fancy new test. It may be too late anyway, I'm not sure.
I suggest bringing a book and/or a tablet and setting your expectations low. I will try to do the same.
Well it's good to hear it's not just my OB who's running late. Its strange, when I was going to the same practice for our TTC appointments, they were always on time and had all the time in the world for me, but as soon as I got pregnant, things changed and I wasn't expecting it.
DeleteI guess I never realized that not all doctors do the NT scan; I have heard all of my girlfriends and many bloggers talk about it, so I figured it was a standard test, which is why I was surprised when they didn't do it.
Taking a book is a great idea. I don't have much time to read these days, so it would be a great way to pass the time.
I hate to break it to you but most appointments are short and boring. I often spent more time waiting for the appointment than I did for the actual appointment. But hey, boring is good! Speaking of boring - it's probably good that you are not doing the NT scan - we were put through so much heartache basically for nothing. The only reason we did the NT was because we wanted to see Ladybug again and all it led to was DNA tests and MFM appointments that stressed us out.
ReplyDeleteI'll be honest, the reason I was so bummed about not doing the NT scan is I wanted to see Breadcrumb again; not seeing him/her until 16 weeks seems like too long! Since we're not worried about anything being wrong, we're not going to go to the specialist unless something comes up during our anatomy scan.
DeleteAnd you're right, boring is good!
In my experience, the typical appointments go pretty much as you described. Pee, check your blood pressure, check baby's heartbeat, and send you on your way.
ReplyDeleteWell, it's good to know that other OBs have similar appointments and mine wasn't just rushed. Thanks for letting me know!
DeleteI'm neither, but just remember that this is your doctor, and you're paying her to take care of you. If you feel rushed and unable to ask questions, that's a problem. You are the one in your body and you know it best, so she needs to listen to you. She's the expert on medicine, but you're the expert on yourself. Don't be afraid to stand up for yourself <3
ReplyDeleteThanks for the advice. I feel kind of stuck since this practice is the only recommended one in our area. There are others, but I've heard really bad stories about them. I never had problems with this practice when I was going there for TTC treatments (until the end when I switched over to my RE) but things just seem different now.
DeleteI spoke with the wife of one of Keegan's co-workers who's also at this practice, and she said that she feels the same way, so it's not just me being sensitive or hormonal (which I was afraid of.) We both agreed that if our RE wasn't 2.5 hours away, we'd make the drive there!
The first appointment is always such a let down...most of the appointment are kind of boring like this (if you're lucky, I guess), but you shouldn't feel rushed out. It's not uncommon to feel that way though :(
ReplyDeleteI'm glad that I'm not the only one who feels let down by the first appointment! And I agree, boring is good!
DeleteI hate when doctors run so far behind. In fact, I recently left my ENT's office after waiting for the doctor for an hour in the exam room. It was just a follow up appointment, so no big deal. But for prenatal appointments, it is a big deal. I don't know if your schedule allows for this, but I'm planning to make all my appointments first thing in the morning, so it's impossible for her to be running behind. Worst case, she's delivering a baby and my appointment gets rescheduled. As for the scale, in my experience, all scales are calibrated differently. Don't worry about the actual number, just make sure it shows consistent gain/loss and that it matches the gain/loss on your scale. (I always had the same problem with my Weight Watchers weigh-ins.)
ReplyDeleteWhat's crazy is this appointment was (almost) first thing in the morning! It was a 9:45 appointment when I believe the practice opens at 9. Unfortunately any appointments that my husband wants to go to have to be later in the afternoon, but the regular check ups I'll try to make as early as possible.
DeleteThanks for the advice about the scale. Now that I think about it, the OB scale did show about a 2 pound gain which is what my home scale shows as well.