quote:

ORIGINAL: KatyLied

And doesn't your doc tape measure your uterus, from the outside?  Or do they no longer do that?  My doc could always tell me the approx weight of my baby when I asked him.  

quote:

ORIGINAL: NakedOnMyChain

Warning:  This is long.  I need to rant.  Sorry.

I'm not quite sure where to begin.  I've been very pleased with my doctor (OB/GYN) throughout my pregnancy.  She's done a great job.  Unfortunately, today I realized this was because I never questioned her judgement.  I would ask her a plethora of questions, and she would answer them very well, so I didn't need to.  She didn't do so well today.

First, I had my blood pressure taken by the nurse.  It was 72 over 34.  Definitely a little down from my 120/80 norm.  I explained to my doctor that I had been seeing stars and feeling very faint a lot and had passed out once last week, even though I wasn't doing anything strenuous.  I was just sitting here, typing on collarme, and I passed out for a few seconds.  (Fortunately I was propped up on my comfy arm-pillow.)  My doctor said it was because I was laying on my back and depressing a major artery.  I said, "No.  I wasn't, and it happens regardless of what position I'm in."  She said, "Well then it's probably high blood pressure."  I asked her if she'd looked at my charts.  She glanced at them and said, "Well then it might be low blood pressure."  I asked her about my 50 point blood pressure drop, whether I needed to do anything about it, and she said, and I quote, "You'll be fine."

Then I asked her if she still thought my due date was on track.  (Long story.  It was originally July 19th [today], but she changed it when she saw the ultrasound.  She pushed my due date back to August 20th based solely on my baby's weight, and didn't take into account that I had been horribly sick around the time of the ultrasound and I had lost ten pounds.  Nor did she take into account that the new due date would mean I had missed a period then gotten pregnant.  Let me tell you, this baby has already dropped and I'm having prelabor contractions.  She's damned wrong.  Two more weeks, tops.  And now, back to the story.)  She had to look at her file to see when I was due, and she looked at me and said, "Oh definitely.  August 20th."  I gave her a funny look and she added, "Give or take a couple of weeks."  I said, "You know that if I carry to August 20th I'll have carried to 42 weeks, right?  At least?  Because my periods are like clockwork.  I would have had to have missed a period by two weeks and then gotten pregnant to be at August 20th."  She said, "Anywhere from 38 to 42 weeks is normal."  So I said, "Then why did you plan to induce my sister the day after her due date last year?"  She said, "There must have been extenuating circumstances."  (There weren't.)  So I replied, "Then why would you give a couple of weeks?  I could see take a couple, but if you give a couple I'll have carried to 44 weeks.  Honestly, carrying over 41 weeks poses a significant health risk to myself and my baby."  Once again I received the "You'll be fine," reply, which I now realize is her way of saying, "Because I said so." 

After that I asked her what my baby's approximate weight was.  She didn't consult any notes, didn't hazard a guess on her own.  Instead she pulled out a chart, looked at the average weight of a baby at 35 weeks gestation, and said "Four pounds, twelve ounces."  I asked her if she could give me a bit more personal of an estimate.  She said that weight was correct.  I replied good-naturedly with, "Do you really think so?  I mean, I've only gained seven pounds, but I've lost about twenty from the rest of my body.  So overall I've gained nearly the exact right amount of weight.  Do you really think he's so small?  My belly's huge!  Plus that weight is still hinging on the August 20th due date."  All she said was, "Yes, it's correct.  Your next appointment is next week."  And she walked out. 

Grrrrrrrrrr!  Talk about not taking me seriously!  Anyway, I came home and called our local Urgent Care facility to get the advising nurse's opinion on my blood pressure.  She said I'd be fine for tonight, but to be careful not to drive or do anything to strenuous.  She said to stay in bed, or resting if possible, and to call my doctor's office first thing in the morning and confront them about it.  I plan to.  I tried to call back after my appointment, but apparently they closed at 4:00 today. 

I know that my doctor was probably just having a bad day, as her behavior was extremely out of character.  But if  this doesn't change, I think it's fair to say that I don't want her anywhere near myself or my child during the birthing process.  I mean, what happens when she decides she doesn't agree with my birth plan?  What if she decides the informed consent (which is the first thing on my birth plan) that I deserve doesn't matter that much to her?  I'm just frustrated.  The above questions were serious, if not to her, then to me.  She didn't take them seriously.

On a side-rant, the house we wanted fell through.  Apparently it doesn't meet the health code.  My father-in-law (a former Building and Construction management professor at Purdue) went with us to look at the place and noticed the one thing that Ty and I didn't.  The pipes in the entire house aren't made of galvanized steel like the health code says they need to be.  They're made of extremely old iron which has corroded on the inside and outside to the point where it would be unsafe to drink or bathe with the water they hold.  We were going to be moving this weekend.  <sigh>

However, there is a huge silver-lining in that cloud.  We decided we could afford to spend a little bit more, even if it meant taking out some extra student loans, to get a place that we would feel safe in, that was nice, that we would be proud to raise our son in.  We found two places within a block of each other that are fantastic!  Both are only five blocks from Tyler's classes, they're in a great neighborhood (professors), they're large, they are very newly remodeled, with brand spanking new appliances, full basements, and one of them has a garage, huge fenced backyard, and huge wooden deck.  <good sigh>  We're looking at them tonight.  (We poked around earlier today.  We actually had permission this time.)  They are both ready to move into, so we might still be moving this weekend.  The people who rent them are wonderful, too!  It's amazing the difference that throwing an extra hundred dollars a month into the mix makes!  It moved us from the absolute ghetto to a great place! 

Thanks for listening to me.  I'm sorry it's so negative.  It just gets frustrating when I'm not being taken seriously, especially about something that is important to me.