Weekly Appointment Thread - 3/21

jarethinafrock · March 2016

Anyone have an appointment coming up this week? If so, feel free to post away in here. also, I wish everyone the best of luck!

kibylou · March 2016

I have my first appointment tomorrow (Monday) which is technically just a 45 minute phone call from a nurse for medical history. I'm anxious to talk to her because I started spotting this weekend and need some piece of mind!

kns1988 · March 2016

I have my 2nd ultrasound on Friday! 7w today. We ended up with an early US last week because I had some bleeding from an SCH. Everything is looking good so far... I'm not going to be able to really breathe until I get past the 1st trimester, and then I'm sure I'll find something else to worry about.

evilgreencows5 · March 2016

I have my second appointment thursday but my first with my ob. The first appointment was with a np. I'm excited to get my first ultrasound and talk with my doctor again. I'll be 8 weeks.

loko08 · March 2016

My first appointment is Thursday. I had some light spotting on Friday, called the nurse, and they added an ultrasound to Thursday's appointment. On one hand, I'm excited for the ultrasound as I wasn't expecting to have one until I was 10-12 weeks - but on the other hand, I'm nervous and just want to see that everything is okay.

hellopartyof5 · March 2016

Ultrasound on Thursday! Also going to ask if I can take anything for the nausea. With DS it was fine because I didn't really need to do anything. Now that I have a toddler, I can't just sit around all day and sleep in.

maggmagoo21 · March 2016

I've got my first ultrasound on Thursday. So excited to see this little nugget! And I just need to see and hear there's only one - I keep having dreams of twins...

g8rmama_16 · March 2016

I just booked my first appointment...28 April!! That is an ETERNITY! I have to wait until 8 weeks before Navy Medicine will see me. I get an ultrasound, so at least I have that to look forward to. All they needed was my urine test, no bloodwork required, which I find weird. Is that normal for people without any history? I feel like everyone here gets tons of blood work done right away.
On a plus side, I got to cancel the infertility initial appointment I had scheduled for Thursday!

m6agua · March 2016

@heyboohey everything you describe sounds normal. The bloodwork on this board is probably those of us who have had losses (there are quite a few of us). My first appointment isn't until the 27th of April and I'll be 10+2

eta month

g8rmama_16 · March 2016

Thanks, @m6agua! I guess I just need to be patient now...ugh.

MollySm · March 2016

I have my first appt on Wednesday, but it is just a group appt with the nurse practitioner. At least it's something, and hopefully I'll be able to schedule my first ultrasound at that point.

kms456 · March 2016

First u/s on friday. hurrrry up week!

jdebaie · March 2016

Had an appointment and U/S this morning and saw a nice heartbeat!

comealongponds · March 2016

Going to see my family MD tomorrow, and will likely have another US this week to check the status of the babies and the bleed. Still waiting to hear from the OB, hoping she'll have gotten back to my MD with an appointment...I refuse to go back to work until I get the all clear from her...too scary!

kristah2 · March 2016

I had my second apt with my PCP today! (My first was basically just to send me for bloodwork). It went well! Went over family history, weighed me, measured my belly, etc. She said we wouldn't hear a heartbeat yet (I'm 7+6) but I made my next appointment for April 21 and we should hear one then! She offered something for MS but I'm trying to hold off on my own. Hopefully I don't regret thah decision.

yosemite2018 · March 2016

I had an appointment this morning but all they did was schedule my next few appointments and do lab work. Next appt. is in 2 weeks on 4/4 for an ultrasound. It's a little early (7w2d) but hopefully they'll be able to see a heartbeat!

rencontrezmoi · March 2016

I have a repeat beta and progesterone blood draw tomorrow. I am so nervous

Last week, my beta was only 102 at 4w3d. I'm crossing all of my fingers and toes that it will be in the 1000s at least tomorrow.

TrulyBlessed22 · March 2016

I had my first apt today and it went well, very routine. We discussed my previous delivery and advanced maternal age and the cell free testing that is being offered given my age (35). She did a standard physical and gave me a blood work slip which I'll go and have drawn tomorrow. A dating ultrasound was scheduled for next Wednesday which puts me at 7w,4d based on O or exactly 7 weeks based on LMP. I guess I'll have a better idea of which is more accurate at that point. Cell free blood draw is currently scheduled for 4/19. I didn't expect an ultrasound until week 9 so I'm happy I won't have to wait as long and will be able to get some reassurance that all is well soon.

MrsDramaK · March 2016

I am going in on Thursday just for a blood draw (I have been having some weird pain on one side and have history of endometriosis so they want to confirm my numbers are good) then the following week I will be meeting with the doctor for my first official visit.

virginiaham · March 2016

My first appointment with the (my!) midwife today turned from meet and greet to first prenatal visit! I was wondering how she would handle that I'm soooo early on right now (5+1), but for my own reassurance and bc she was drawing blood for an OB panel anyway, she drew a beta today & I'll go in on Friday for another one. She also drew a Progesterone level. Since I'm a FTM she wants to see me every two weeks, so my next appointment will be right around 7wga. I sat down on the couch when I first got there and just burst into tears of joy that I was there. "Hi, nice to meet you, I'm a mess. I'll pull it together in 30 seconds, I promise."

zrain · March 2016

@virginiaham Yay! I'm so glad you liked her! I cried several times during my initial interview with my midwife in January. I'm sure I'll cry even more when I go for my first appointment with her next week (first for this pregnancy I mean).

CecilTheBear · March 2016

I have an ultrasound tomorrow morning at 6w3d. I'm very anxious to get today over with!

beforeyou · March 2016

Had my first appointment today. It was a pre-admit appointment with a nurse. It involved taking my weight, height, pee, giving us a ton of papers and information, going over family history, taking my blood pressure and then sending me on my way to get blood draws.

I told the nurse about my anxiety during this pregnancy and about my spotting, cramping and pinching pain I've had off and on throughout these first 8 weeks. She basically said that that can be normal and that since my HCG levels looked good they aren't going to run any more tests. She said that there would be no way to hear a heart beat at this time and they don't do ultrasounds until 20 WEEKS!!!! WTF? She said at my next appointment I will get to hear the heart beat though, but thats april 27th so DH and I are seriously considering buying a doppler.

I like what this office has to offer, I like the hospital (A LOT, I actually work for it but other than that its a top 100 hospital known for its labor/delivery services) but this nurse rubbed me the wrong way. She told me I should "just relax" and when I told her that is difficult for me to do without actually seeing that everything is ok, she said "I tell my patients to leave the worrying to God." Then she went on to say *TW- loss mentioned* if a miscarriage is going to happen then it's "a blessing in disguise."

Would this rub anyone else the wrong way or am I just sensitive?

*TLDR*: First appointment consisted of paperwork. Next appointment I'll hear the heartbeat (in a month). They don't do ultrasounds until 20 weeks (WTF) and my nurse rubbed me the wrong way.

MrsDho11 · March 2016

@peachykeen17 - yeah... that seems all kinds of wrong to me. I mean, if it's their policy not to do ultrasounds until 20 weeks, then that's their policy, I guess. But those things she said to you?! Not okay! Do you have other options in your area for OBs? If so, I'd probably consider trying out a new place. You never know, you might like it better.

beforeyou · March 2016

@MrsDho11 Thank you! It makes me feel better to know I'm not just being sensitive. I do have another option that is a little further away but uses the same hospital. They have less doctors and no midwives (which to be honest, I haven't done enough research on to know if I want to go the midwife route or not) but I do have some friends that have gone to them and liked them... and they got ultrasounds earlier.
I think maybe you're right and I'll make an appointment with them just to see if I get a better feel. I don't do well with this "just relax, i'm sure everything is fine" mentality. I need to know FOR SURE dammit.

MrsDho11 · March 2016

@peachykeen17 - honestly "there's no way to hear a heart beat before 20 weeks" concerns me too because it's just not true! "We don't do it" is not the same as "it can't be done," and it sounds like she was telling you the latter. I'd hope she knows better than that!

beforeyou · March 2016

@MrsDho11 No, no. Sorry if my wording was confusing, I'm a little annoyed at the moment and tend to type faster than my brain thinks. It was the ultrasound that they don't do before the 20 weeks. She said there would be no way to use the doppler to hear a heartbeat at this appointment (8 weeks) and that I'd have to wait until my next appointment at 13 weeks.
She said she had been doing this for 40 years, but she seems very stuck in her ways and I'm really hoping that the whole practice isn't like that. I've just never heard of someone not getting an ultrasound before 20 weeks and I honestly don't know how I would have the patience to wait that long. I don't know how any of their patients have been able to handle that!

EmmieAnn22 · March 2016

@peachykeen17 A nurse shouldn't behave like that ever. How horrible. I would look for another doctor ASAP. Having an understanding doctor and nursing staff is so valuable during what can be a stressful process.

I have a home doppler and really liked using it once a week with my last pregnancy. It can cause more harm than good. Sometimes it's hard finding the heart beat and that can cause you more anxiety. So really think what kind of person you are and if it will really help.

virginiaham · March 2016

@peachykeen17 I second @MrsDho11...even if that's her deeply held conviction, it's unsolicited advice and honestly a pretty flippant and disrespectful thing to say to any patient. And 100%, their policy=\=what's possible. You can hear a heartbeat via Doppler around 8-10 weeks. It sounds like either she doesn't know her stuff or she's really bad at communicating. It's absolutely your right to request an ultrasound well before 20 weeks.

Gibbs7911 · March 2016

@peachykeen17 With my DS, I got a dating ultrasound at 7 1/2 weeks only because I ovulated on day 51 and they needed to confirm dating. I guess I didn't realize until this pregnancy that they didn't always do first trimester ultrasounds. When I asked them about it, they said many insurances don't cover more than one per pregnancy. I was very upset about this and was considering switching practices even though I love my OB, so I definitely understand being upset. That nurse was definitely out of line. When I was going through my loss a couple years ago, I had a different OB and nurse than I do now (same practice) and I refuse to go to her because of her poor bedside manner. Are you new to this OB? I'd say if so, try out others. If you've been there before and never had any issues, hopefully the other nurses will be more sensitive.

beforeyou · March 2016

Ugh I want to hug you all. Thank you for making me feel like I'm not crazy.

@EmmieAnn22 You're right, I do need to think about if I could handle the stress of possibly not finding a heartbeat. I feel like I'm so desperate for concrete information that everything is ok that the thought of having something at my fingertips that could possibly give me that reassurance is pretty irresistible. I don't know, DH and I will have a good long discussion about it tonight.

@virginiaham I completely agree, I was really taken aback when she started talking religion and with her "blessing in disguise" comment. Completely unsolicited and pretty bold thing to say considering she knows nothing about my beliefs. Bad at communicating hits the nail on the head.
I was thinking about requesting that they add an ultrasound onto my appointment on April 27th. I guess it doesn't hurt to ask and if they say no then I just go to a different practice.

ETA:
@Gibbs7911 I didn't realize that most insurances don't cover more than 1 ultrasound. I think I'll give my insurance a call and ask them if they do. Thanks for the heads up. I am new to this OB, this was my first experience with them. I'm hoping my appointment with the doctor goes better, but I like the idea of "shopping" around so to speak and trying out another practice too. Not sure how that works with billing and insurance though. Any thoughts?

Gibbs7911 · March 2016

@peachykeen17 I don't know a lot about insurance, it's just what they told me. I kind of feel like it's all in how they code it for insurance. I was taking weeks predictor tests and spun myself into a little frenzy. I messaged them and they were super sweet about my anxiety and are actually getting me an untrasound tomorrow. They never said anything about it being out of pocket, so that just lends itself to my theory. If you decide to stay there, you could always pull out your inner SS and annoy them into getting your way. I know they have patients that need them more than me, so I won't do this often, just when I need a little more from them.

beforeyou · March 2016

@Gibbs7911 that made me lol. I do love to pull a SS now and again. I agree with you that others probably need it more than me, but if they can fit it into my already scheduled appointment then I don't see the harm. I just really fricken need to know that everything is ok in there! Thanks for the tip, I'm going to get a hold of our insurance tomorrow hopefully.

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