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Is it time I make the switch? (Repost from Nov. 2012)

karkissy09karkissy09 member
in 1st Trimester

I had my first doctor?s appointment on Wednesday (today is Friday). I?m from a small town, so I went to my general practitioner at the clinic in another small town nearby that I?ve went to since I was born. She told me she won?t see me again until April 19?I?ll be a little over 10 weeks along and we?ll get to hear the heartbeat then, but we won?t do an ultrasound until I?m 20 weeks. Meaning if I were having twins or anything like that I wouldn?t find out until 20 weeks right?! Does that seem like a ridiculously long time to wait for an ultrasound to anyone else? She didn?t even do one to date the pregnancy?nor did they do any betas or urine test, they just took my word for it that I had gotten some positive pregnancy tests.

 

I should probably also add a short story. I?ve been through hormonal issues for the past 5 years and all of my symptoms matched up to PCOS. I went to this same hospital to get an ultrasound done then and the ultrasound tech SHOWED me the cysts on the screen. The next day I got a call saying I didn?t have any cysts, but I did have a fibroid tumor in my uterus. A month later I went to a OB/GYN in a city about an hour from where I live to get a second ultrasound done because I didn?t trust the first results. They told me I didn?t have any cysts at that time, but I also had no fibroid?meaning I never did, fibroids don?t just disappear. So they must have mixed my results up somewhere along the line.

 

There?s another small hospital near our town that DH went to as a kid. However, they have none of my medical history, I don?t know any of the doctors, they have none of my insurance information, and it?s kind of out of the way. If we decided to go there it?d be a special trip each time, unlike the clinic I go to where it?s in the same town we work, get groceries, etc. But they do have a clinic in the town we live in every few weeks.

 

Do you think it?s time I make the switch?

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Re: Is it time I make the switch? (Repost from Nov. 2012)

  • deejayeedeejayee
    I would. My OB does one around 8/9 weeks and then gives the option of an additional scan to check for neuro tube defects between 10-15 weeks. You really should have had blood work and urine done at the least to make sure there are no issues with YOUR body or the pregnancy. My first urine had high proteins (which was a complication I also had with my first pregnancy) so my dr is doing additional monitoring to make sure preeclampsia doesnt kick in. 
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  • CraftyKaylaCraftyKayla member
    I would definitely switch. It sounds like if you've already had issues, and you're already questioning the way they do things, it's not the place for you. Plus, I'd be really curious to see my baby (or babies)!
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  • Mrs.S-SMrs.S-S

    Hold on - I must be confused. Are you asking if you should keep seeing your general practice doctor for your pregnancy or if you should go to an OB/GYN? You need to find an OB, like, now. Or did you mean that your general practice doctor is an OB? I hope you mean that.

    If you ARE seeing an OB (if you are not, find one, now) I wouldn't necessarily switch because of the "no ultrasound until 20 weeks" thing. I think that varies by doctor and what is "medically necessary" under your insurance. Mine does 3 total but I have heard of doctors that only do 1 around 20 weeks. As long as you are ok with the care you are getting and all of the rest of the tests are being done, etc. I would think you would be ok.

    Of course if you are not comfortable with your care and you don't mind the inconvenience, then I would consider switching.

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  • SeptmomtobeSeptmomtobe member

    With my first pregnancy I only had an u/s at 20 weeks.  With my second, I changed obs (nothing to do with care the first time, I needed to change which hospital I delivered at b/c of NICU status) and they did a u/s at 6 weeks and at 20 weeks.  I am now at my 3rd ob (moved) and they also do an u/s around 9-12 weeks at at 20 weeks.

    I wouldn't switch strictly b/c of u/s.  There's nothing wrong with only getting one u/s at 20 weeks.  There are women on the multiples board who found out at that u/s they were having twins.

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  • MichelleL1118MichelleL1118 member
    You'd find out about twins before 20w, because they'll pick up more than one heartbeat when they check it.  But honestly, I'm concerned that they didn't do any bloodwork or even a urine check at your appointment.  My OB doesn't check beta levels, but does do quite a bit of other baseline bloodwork, and does a urine test at every single visit to check for protein and sugar, both things that can indicate bigger problems that could be dangerous in pregnancy.  If it were me, I'd go to the closest OB, even if that meant driving an hour each way for every appointment - I personally just don't feel like most general practitioners are well equipped or well trained to deal with pregnancy.  (I live in a really small town, too, and until right before DS was born, the closest OB office to me was 45+ minutes away - about a year before I got pg with DS, an OB office opened in a town 20 minutes away, so I transferred there.  I would never see my GP for pregnancy stuff.)
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  • karkissy09karkissy09 member
    imageMrs.S-S:

    Hold on - I must be confused. Are you asking if you should keep seeing your general practice doctor for your pregnancy or if you should go to an OB/GYN? You need to find an OB, like, now. Or did you mean that your general practice doctor is an OB? I hope you mean that.

    If you ARE seeing an OB (if you are not, find one, now) I wouldn't necessarily switch because of the "no ultrasound until 20 weeks" thing. I think that varies by doctor and what is "medically necessary" under your insurance. Mine does 3 total but I have heard of doctors that only do 1 around 20 weeks. As long as you are ok with the care you are getting and all of the rest of the tests are being done, etc. I would think you would be ok.

    Of course if you are not comfortable with your care and you don't mind the inconvenience, then I would consider switching.

     

    The closest OB is over an hour's drive away. There's 3 small hospitals and 2 bigger ones in the area within a 30 minute drive, but that's it and none of them have an OB, just general practitioners.

    Also, my SIL told me she went to one of the two bigger ones and didn't get an ultrasound until 20 weeks. I'm anxious to make sure everything is okay--my sister miscarried about a year ago and we both have had the same hormonal issues.

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  • Bubblytoes118Bubblytoes118 member
    imagekarkissy09:
    imageMrs.S-S:

    Hold on - I must be confused. Are you asking if you should keep seeing your general practice doctor for your pregnancy or if you should go to an OB/GYN? You need to find an OB, like, now. Or did you mean that your general practice doctor is an OB? I hope you mean that.

    If you ARE seeing an OB (if you are not, find one, now) I wouldn't necessarily switch because of the "no ultrasound until 20 weeks" thing. I think that varies by doctor and what is "medically necessary" under your insurance. Mine does 3 total but I have heard of doctors that only do 1 around 20 weeks. As long as you are ok with the care you are getting and all of the rest of the tests are being done, etc. I would think you would be ok.

    Of course if you are not comfortable with your care and you don't mind the inconvenience, then I would consider switching.

     

    The closest OB is over an hour's drive away. There's 3 small hospitals and 2 bigger ones in the area within a 30 minute drive, but that's it and none of them have an OB, just general practitioners.

    Also, my SIL told me she went to one of the two bigger ones and didn't get an ultrasound until 20 weeks. I'm anxious to make sure everything is okay--my sister miscarried about a year ago and we both have had the same hormonal issues.

     

    Yikes!  I wouldn't even consider allowing a physician who wasn't an OB to provide you with prenatal care.  I would switch immediately.

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  • Starry14Starry14

    I would start seeing the OB.  I haven't had my first appointment yet, but they do a urine test every time I am there, just to be thorough.  Since the OB specializes in pregnancies, I would feel much better trusting their word.  I have not had anything like a fibroid, but have had cysts, which can come and go normally.  Whether or not you have a high risk or regular pregnancy, or other health problems; it's always better to be safe than sorry. 

     You want to make sure they are dating your pregnancy accurately.  A bigger concern after that might be: Where will you give birth?  You should definitely add this into your equation so that you have an experienced medical staff on your case.

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  • ks3pinkks3pink member

    imageMichelleL1118:
    You'd find out about twins before 20w, because they'll pick up more than one heartbeat when they check it.  But honestly, I'm concerned that they didn't do any bloodwork or even a urine check at your appointment.  My OB doesn't check beta levels, but does do quite a bit of other baseline bloodwork, and does a urine test at every single visit to check for protein and sugar, both things that can indicate bigger problems that could be dangerous in pregnancy.  If it were me, I'd go to the closest OB, even if that meant driving an hour each way for every appointment - I personally just don't feel like most general practitioners are well equipped or well trained to deal with pregnancy.  (I live in a really small town, too, and until right before DS was born, the closest OB office to me was 45+ minutes away - about a year before I got pg with DS, an OB office opened in a town 20 minutes away, so I transferred there.  I would never see my GP for pregnancy stuff.)

     

    Twins aren't always detected early with a dopplar.  Mine couldn't be heard at all at 12 weeks so I was sent for an ultrasound and that's when they discovered it was twins.  I know some people who went all the way to 20 weeks thinking it was just one.   

     

     As for if you should switch you should def be seeing an OB though one ultrasound at 20 weeks is perfectly normal. 

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