First OB Appt was a drag..Not happy!

Hey girl! Sorry it didn't go as well as you would have liked. I know about the waiting part, but they didn't give me a reason...I watched patient after patient go in that came in after me, which with my hormones and nervousness made every minute seem like an eternity. Hang in there sweetie and if you feel more comfortable- try to find a different ob. I'm getting an ultrasoun in 2 weeks, but that's only because of my irregular periods and the fact that they have no clue how far along I really am. She told me if I had known and been regular my first one would have been at around 12 weeks, but every doctor's office is different.

Keep your chin up and don't let it get you too down!!

Hugs
Kerri

 Thanks girl!! Yeah I was getting my periods like clock work every 28 days..so as long as I was having them regular then my due date is correct.

 I'm sure this isn't what you want to hear but until your conditions show that they are causing you issues with the pregnancy, you're going to be considered low-risk.  And if I were you, I'd be thrilled with that!  The less intervention during a pregnancy, the better for both baby and momma!  

As far as getting an early US, even if you did receive an US before 18 weeks, it's unlikely that gender could be determined.  It just isn't visible enough to see!  Furthermore, there is evidence to show that repeated US can damage a baby's hearing since the waves of the US are the equivalent to a jet engine to us.  The fewer US you can have at this stage of pregnancy, the better!  It is most likely that your dr. will want to do US at a later stage (mine did 33 weeks) to monitor growth.

One thing I will suggest is that you ask for routine blood-work screening.  I've found this blog to be absolutely invaluable to me throughout this pregnancy:  www.wlsvitagarten.com 

She provides a great list of initial blood tests and then routine blood screenings that *should* be performed every 8 weeks.  I have followed that throughout this pregnancy and it has proved to be a great way for both myself and my drs. to monitor all of my mineral and vitamin levels.

 I am having blood work done every month. Well I have had blood work done 3 times already twiceb by  my OB and once by my regular primary dr. I have another one scheduled by my reg. primary dr next month and Ill prolly have another one by my Ob next month also. I am glad for them wanting to keep checking things like that. Well their most concern for all the blood work is my thyroid condition that I have right now.

Dee,
I am sorry your first appt wasn't what you had hoped.
I have to laugh, 'cause I'm glad I'm not the only to experience crazy things on a first appt. When I was pregnant with my son (born in 2005), I went in for my appt and they did minimal and said they would see me back. I finally had to ask them, "so am I pregnant?". The doctor assumed the nurse had confirmed and I'm not sure what the nurse was thinking...so it was a roller coaster.

However, I do recall that the actual real 1st appt, I could swear they did a vaginal ultrasound. Which I personally think is a good thing. While I know it's too early to hear a heartbeat, at least that ultrasound lets you see the heartbeat and size, etc. US are not always for gender purposes which I know is stereotypical of what everyone thinks we want one for...but for me, I am hoping they choose to do the internal ultrasound...I want to know that my baby is alive, safe, and growing  :-)

Good luck to you Dee. I pray that your pregnancy is a beautiful success! I hope that you find what you are looking for, either another doctor who does everything you would like, or peace with the doctor you have  :-)

Also keep in mind, sometimes it's not the doctors choosing...sometimes they are dictated by insurance. I've heard of some people not having ultrasounds because their insurance wouldn't pay for it..

Good luck, hugs!
-Jessica

If you didn't get a good feeling from your OB, get another one or look at midwives or even a primary care doctor.  The latter two tend to be somewhat hands-off, so you may want to stick with OBs, but you are early in your pregnancy and have a lot of time to switch if need be.

At any rate, long delays are very normal at OB/MW clinics, unfortunately.  My suggestion is that you have a bag packed for each visit with a book (the magazines get dull QUICKLY and some offices never have the new ones!), a snack or even a sandwich, a drink, any busywork you can do like paying bills or making to-do lists.  Ask if they have Wi-Fi and bring your laptop if possible!  And of course, if you do all this, you'll get in earlier, just because that's how things work. 

Hey girl! Sorry your appt was so disappointing. Maybe some of the ladies on here are being a little harsh on you....oh well, just open honesty...

But I remember how anxious/excited/scared I was for my first appt at 7 weeks. If I had to wait like you did and then not get to see an ultrasound or hear a heartbeat, I'd be a wreck!! But, they did a vaginal ultrasound to get a due date (even though I already pretty much had it figured out). We were within 2 days of each other on that.

I didn't have another ultrasound until 20 weeks to determine the sex. I will have another at 28 weeks to decide if I will need a c-section or not (my placenta is low and will hopefully move up before then).

I suppose every doctor is different as to when they do their first and following ultrasounds, but I sure thought the first one would be routine and important. What do I know? I'm not a doctor.

I did get some really good advice on this forum about renting a fetal heart doppler. I went to babysheart.com and rent one for $20/month. I got it in the mail the day I turned 10 weeks pregnant. I was able to hear the heart beat from that moment on. I used to listen to it daily, sometimes several times a day! Just for my peace of mind. I don't use it as much anymore since I can feel my boy moving quite often (I'm at 25 1/2 weeks now). But, you might think about something like that for the times when you need some reassurance since it seems like such a long wait between doctors appointments.   There are other sites for them too.

Anyway, there's nothing I can say to ease your disappointment, but I just wanted to say I sure understand!

Take care of yourself.
Best wishes,
Kina

Wls does not make you high risk in most places. I had the same care in the begining of my pregnancy also and I am high risk due to other situations. Waiting is always the way every doctor I have seen has been but I always go prepared. Next time bring some snacks and a book and relax. Makes it much easier.

Being that everyone is saying that its normal is correct, HOWEVER--being only 1 year post op does make it more "important". I can't say high risk, but my OB sees me every 3 weeks and I have several high risk issues, my age, RNY, unaffected carrier of CF (both me and hubby test positive) and the fact that I am not 2 years post op.   But you can try to find a different OB if your not happy. You need to make sure that you are comfortable with who you are with, no question. If you have any reservations see someone else.  We had been ttc for 13 years and I happen to see the dr and he scanned me that day and then 2 weeks later for viability.  Personally, i would find someone else if its an option...

Congrats to you though :)