However, I’ve found that it’s actually pretty interesting to go to the OBGYN when you’re pregnant. Why you ask? Well, sure there are those awkward moments when you’re like, “You’re going to do what?” Or you’re wondering in your head what exactly your doctor is talking about? So, you just nod your head and then go on the Internet later and research what he was talking about since you didn’t want to look stupid when he was talking to you. It’s probably happened to all of us in some doctor’s office at some point, right? I mean, who wants to look stupid? Not me!
Oh, and I’m using the pronoun he by the way because I have a male doctor. I go to Aurora and he’s super chill and very easy to talk to, something I find to be very refreshing in a doctor as most I’ve dealt with in the past are the complete opposite.
Now, once you set those weird times aside while visiting the OBGYN, it can be pretty interesting and informative to go to those monthly baby check-ups. Take the one that Dave and I went to today for example. I wasn’t all that excited about going to my baby check-up appointment to begin with. It meant that I had to get up early to go to work early to make up the time that I was going to miss. Then, I had to leave work, get there, wait for a bit in the waiting room, and finally meet with the doctor for a 20 minute or so appointment. It’s a process to say the least and can get a little old.
When we finally met with the doctor though, it was really, really worth it! Why, the reason being is we were able to hear our baby’s heartbeat! How freaking cool is that? You go in thinking that all that’s going to happen is your doctor is going to ask you questions about how you’re feeling with you telling him that you’re not feeling great. His reply is typically, “that’s normal,” and then the appointment’s over.
Well this time around, he busted out this machine, which is called a fetal Doppler monitor and yes I looked up what it was after the appointment since I didn’t want to ask and look stupid, that let us hear our baby! He located where my baby was nesting, right below my belly button, in about thirty seconds.
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| A picture of the monitor the doctor used to listen to the baby's heartbeat. |
After about a minute of hearing, “dunka, dunka, dunka, dunka, dunka, dunka,” the doctor said everything sounded good! It was an amazing moment and made me realize that it’s the little things in life that matter the most. Here I was all crabby about having to head off and rush to go to the appointment to begin with, yet when I got there, I was able to experience this wicked cool moment with my husband. Sweet!
During the question and answer portion of the appointment, my doctor did give me some helpful information when dealing with some of the things I’ve been dealing with. So, I guess that part of it wasn’t all that pointless as I made it out to be. For instance, I haven’t been sleeping well, so he suggested I take Benadryl before I go to bed. I’ve also had a cold for awhile and he said Sudafed is a good decongestant to take. I knew this one already, yet, it was nice to get some confirmation. Another thing he mentioned to do to stay regular, and yes this is gross, but I’m going to talk about it anyway given that it happens to a lot of pregnant women, is to take Fiber pills or Metamucil's along with a stool softener like Colace. This suggestion did make me feel like an old lady and kind of silly, however, if it helps I’m down to try it. One thing I’ve learned throughout the pregnancy is that if you need a little help with things, whether it be to use the lotion to fight dry skin or to use some fiber to feel better, do it because there’s no reason to feel uncomfortable. Before I would have just dealt with it, but now I’m all about making things easier on myself if help is available.
In another couple of weeks, we go back for our third ultrasound and another baby check-up. I’m actually looking forward to it! How crazy is that? I never would have thought I’d be excited about a seeing a doctor. There are decisions to be made before this one though, like, should we find out the sex of the baby? Hmmm, that’s a whole other blog post in and of itself. So until next time, it’s Carla the pregnant tomboy signing off!
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