I just want to say, after my appointment yesterday, that my OB practice is seriously awesome. I liked my last OB and was sad to leave them when we moved, but this practice is even better! My doctor is super nice and always acts like she has time for me. (My last doctor was great but I got the feeling he was overbooked and in a rush.) I always get in really fast, no long waits. The doctor performed the u/s herself at the appointment (at the last place we had to schedule a separate appointment with the u/s tech, and she wasn't allowed to tell us very much so we just had to wait for the doctor to call). Plus they had their own lab there at the office so I could get my bloodwork done right after my appointment without having to go anywhere else to get it done. AND they had me schedule every single appointment for the rest of my pregnancy so I could get all the times I want (DH will be able to come to all of them, if he wants to!). Sorry for the long post but I just had to share how I grateful I am!!
Nov 17 BMB May Siggy Challenge: Mother's Day Fails
Hallelujah! Everything checked out perfect he said. He prepared me that it may be too early to pick up a heartbeat but he picked up a strong hb of 156 right away and the baby even gave him a couple of kicks in the dobbler.
Had my appointment yesterday and we got to hear the heartbeat on the Doppler which was amazing! There is a healthy baby in there.
I am irritated that we didn't get an ultrasound after being told we would. Dr said since she found the heartbeat right away there would be no ultrasound until 18-20 weeks! I might go crazy.
@mrsrundmc I would call on Monday and ask for some more details about your prenatal care plan. You should at least have the option of the NT test, not everyone does it, but it should be discussed with you.
Dating ultrasounds are necessary unless there is real concern that the ovulation date could be off. If women want the extra testing you can ask but it's not considered "routine". Some doctors wait until the 12 week appointment to discuss genetic testing/imaging. I was given a hand out and told we would talk about it at a later date.
@MaximumEffort I think that depends on the practice. My doctors office does a dating ultrasound for all confirmed pregnancies, regardless of how accurate the conception date could be. Also, I'm having my Panorama blood test done at 10 weeks, and my NT test done at 13 weeks, so waiting till 12 weeks would make it difficult to give me enough time to weigh out my options and make an informed decision, as well as schedule my appointments. Maybe my office is quick to do these things, but I think it's important to have the discussion as early as possible to give parents adequate time to do their own research.
@cmessamore my midwife had the info talk my first appointment. Not being routine doesn't mean it's not done. We used to wait until 18-20 weeks for any ultrasound and that's the only one we would get, some practices stay that way, mother's demanding more has made a change. I've known mom's who have a scan at 36 weeks for positioning even though we all know a baby can flip on a moment's notice and you can feel the position. I'm not getting any of the testing done.
@MaximumEffort I totally understand the options. And with my first we only did the anatomy scan as that was all that was offered by our practice 10+ years ago. My concern for @mrsrundmc is that it doesn't sound like her practice has even had those discussions yet and didn't offer the option of an early ultrasound. I completely respect your decision and anyone else's not to have any testing done. As I said with DS1, I only had the anatomy scan. With DS2, I had two scans-one for dating and the anatomy scan, but he came early and had complications, so with DS3-which was a really difficult pregnancy and now with this LO I am doing the full range of testing that my insurance will cover. Each set of parents is entitled to make their own choices, I just hope they get the opportunity to make their own informed choices.
@mrsrundmc If you don't know the exact date you ovulated based on tests/charting, then I would ask for an u/s to date the pregnancy. Even a difference of a few days can make a big difference later on. Without a dating u/s with my first, my due date would have been much earlier and my doctor might have induced too early (DD was small even 2 days after her due date, so this could have really affected her health). However, if you are sure about the ovulation date, then the u/s probably isn't necessary. Kind of a bummer though.
Nov 17 BMB May Siggy Challenge: Mother's Day Fails
@emucoleman@cmessamore We did talk to the doctor about testing and we did discuss that we were not interested in tests that were not conclusive because it would just make me nervous. Also, we do not plan to do anything at this point if there is an abnormality. So maybe that is why she is waiting until the anatomy scan? Is the NT test a probability test or conclusive?
Re: Weekly Appointments 4/17
I am irritated that we didn't get an ultrasound after being told we would. Dr said since she found the heartbeat right away there would be no ultrasound until 18-20 weeks! I might go crazy.