Doctor Visit #2

I saw my OB today. It wasn't a good start as he was an hour late, but the visit itself went pretty well.

I'm measuring right on target, no edema, kidneys sound fine, blood pressure good, 100/60 I believe.

He asked me if I would consent to two ultrasounds, one nowish, and one at the end of the pregnancy. He said they would be just about 30 seconds mainly to check on placental position and a quick assessment of the baby. I did consider consenting during this visit, briefly, mainly I think because I am a person who likes to be "good" and please authority figures. Also the fact that it would be quick was compelling. In the end I told him I wanted to wait and as I thought about it afterward I was so glad. Because as I discussed at length in an earlier post, I really don't see a good reason to have an ultrasound at this point in the pregnancy. All indications are that this is a healthy pregnancy. If the placenta were low-lying chances are very good it would migrate away from the cervix by the end of the pregnancy. According to The March of Dimes site, more than 90% of cases of placenta previa diagnosed in 2nd trimester have resolved by the end of pregnancy. And if he found anything else of concern, chances are we wouldn't be able to do anything about it anyway. Either way, the information would do nothing but stress me out, thereby paradoxically increasing my risks.

I may consent to the end-of-pregnancy ultrasound. At that point there could be benefits to be gained from the ultrasound information. If the baby were breech, we could attempt to turn her/him. If the placenta were obstructing or partially obstructing my cervix, a surgical delivery could be life-saving and I'd be grateful. Also the baby would be much more developed and therefore much less vulnerable to any risks posed by the ultrasound itself. And admittedly it would be handy to know whether it's a boy or a girl; then I could order non-generic diaper covers and leggings.

I can't blame Dr. Lopez for wanting to do an assessment. He just had a patient whose birth I was hoping to observe for my childbirth education course requirement. Turns out that her ultrasound at term revealed a partial placenta previa and so she had a c-section. A very risky surgery, Dr. Lopez tells me. He had to actually cut through the placenta to deliver the baby. And the surgery obviously had to be super fast, because the placenta is the baby's life support system until baby is out into the world. He said that it is not uncommon for women with this condition to end up with a hysterectomy. But things went well and thank God everybody is fine. So I'm sure that he would probably be thinking about that case the whole time I labour if we don't do a quick ultrasound to confirm placental position.

My labs revealed an asymptomatic urinary infection, which annoys me. Normally this would be treated with antibiotics, but he suggested we start with vitamin C. I like that very much. Pray for me that the vit C takes care of it! Internet research indicates that this type of infection may lead to low birth weight and premature labour so something must be done about it.

Otherwise my labs were good... including iron levels, yay!

I asked him if he has attended waterbirths and he said yes, and they were wonderful. I am getting quite excited about this part of the plan. I also asked him if he would have a problem with me catching my own baby and he said not at all. Yess! Now I have to convince him to avoid internal exams altogether during labour, and skip suctioning if baby is doing fine.