I went to visit my naturopathic doctor/midwife yesterday. She had two students with her, so it was sort of a group consultation. First she sat me down and asked me if I had any questions. I had many: what exactly will you be doing during the birthing process? What is the role of the backup midwife? Is it OK if Jeff goes on a ski trip on March 18, or should I ask him to stay around? Is anyone else planning a birth around the same time as me (and possibly creating competition for the birthing room?) What is your take on Vitamin K and eye drops for the baby? And on and on. I asked her if I really WAS huge for 29 weeks (as any number of people have told me), and she said no, I look like a typical 29-week mama.
Next, she asked me about my diet. I had been keeping track (see below) so she and the students looked over my list, proclaimed it good, but said that I should probably be getting more protein. (I went out immediately afterward and had a hamburger). She asked me about various symptoms I might have (headache, gastric problems, etc.) Apart from a pinched nerve under my ribcage, some lower back pain, and a lot of burping, I have been pretty free of irritating symptoms.
After this they asked me to lay down so they could measure the baby. My belly now measures 31 cm., which is about 1 cm larger than normal for 30 weeks, but certainly not outside the normal range. They listened to the baby's heartbeat (144?) and felt around to determine the baby's position. They were having a hard time distinguishing between the baby's head and its butt, but finally concluded that the baby is still head up, with its back along my right side. Apparently they don't start worrying about the baby being breech until 36 weeks, but she told me I should have a talk with the baby and tell it to turn over. So baby, if you're reading this blog... it's time to turn!
They also checked me for swelling, and said I was having a little swelling of the ankles. Apparently this is normal for the third trimester, but can also be caused by not enough protein in the diet.
The last thing she did was weigh me. My weight had jumped a bit since my last appointment, but she wasn't worried. She said that some of it was probably water weight because of the swelling. We made an appointment for two weeks away (appointments come every two weeks from now on!).
So there you have it - a typical visit to the midwife. It sounds a lot different than most of the OB appointments I've been hearing about, which usually take about 5 minutes. I really am glad that I made the choice to go to this birthing center.
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Jennifer in SC says:
I was just thinking while reading this that you sure got a lot of information. Compare to the last time I was at my OB office, for that aforementioned bacterial thing: the doctor was giving me an internal exam and she commented, "The baby is low." For some unknown reason, this exam made all the blood rush to my head and I got really dizzy, so I didn't think to ask what that meant. But later, of course, I thought, So she's low... does that signify anything? Is she low for her gestational age? Has she 'dropped'? Was the doctor just commenting in case I somehow couldn't feel the baby parked on my bladder for the past few days?
Anyway. I didn't ask, so I didn't get an answer. Normally I ask my OB a trillion questions per visit so she was probably glad I got dizzy. Oh -- and that's another big difference. This OB isn't "my" OB. Mine is Dr. Matkins, a cheerful young man who seems to think birth is really fun and not a big deal. But they round-robin you in the practice so you get to see everyone, just in case your doctor isn't around when you pop. It's kind of weird. I wish they would just bounce you between two, because at least ONE of them should be available, right?
Cool update, Jennifer. Thanks for sharing.
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