For any of my IF sisters following this trail, I want to share something my doula--who keeps confirming her title as the coolest doula ever--shared with me after I emailed her an update of our appointment. Her two cents: 1) placentas after 30 weeks are often grade ii, no biggie; 2) unless your b/p is actually over 140/90, you don't have high blood pressure and the most recent ACOG standards say that is more important than whether your b/p is rising from its previous levels; and finally 3) the method used to evaluate my fluid level (AFI) is a lot more likely to give a diagnosis of low fluid than the single deepest vertical pocket method (SDVP) according to the latest studies (this is the method you'll get if you have multiples, as AFI doesn't work for twins and up). Finally, she noted that a reactive NST trumps all: the baby is kicking it (literally).
The moral of the story? Keep questioning. Watch out for the climate of anxiety that seems to haunt this process in the U.S.
I think docs are unwittingly--and with the very best of intentions--treating women who have dealt with infertility with kid gloves, making them more likely to react to a test and worry about results that are within normal ranges but not exactly perfect. After all, they know what's at stake and most likely long to do everything they can. That's seriously noble, but it leads, as I think it's doing in my case, to some concerns that are more faint shadows of potential problems than actual difficulties.
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A lot of truth probably to all of that. Another thought is that I think OB's pay one of the highest malpractice insurances and they are very extra careful to not have a bad outcome.
Hooray for rationality based on data!
That's so true, even in the general medical community. Don't trust the patient to be informed. And by god, do your best to make sure the patient remains uninformed. I think due to shoddy care in the past, I now fall into the hyper-vigilant category, which is only a hair away from the easily-swayed-into-panic category. I try very hard to lay low and just let any test result wash over me for a few days before I take any sort of action, but ultimately, I (lately) seem to end up with doctors who are more chill than I am. Which, with my super high information-need, often does not work for me. Sigh.
Ah, well. I read this and what I take from it is just further confirmation to trust yourself first. If you know something is wrong, something probably is wrong. And if your doc tries to convince you that something is wrong, getting a second opinion is NEVER a bad idea.
This is such good information, Shinejil. I'm glad you got it from your midwife and that you passed it on here - definitely something I will keep in mind in case I have similar experiences. This also makes me somewhat glad that my OB is fairly laissez faire about things - at least he is with me, as nothing has indicated any cause for concern, so he just says he's pleased with me and leaves it at that. Sometimes it is better for me just to be told that all is well instead of the details that might make me obsess and freak out.
Great that you got such reassurance from your doula - she does sound amazing!
For what it's worth, our low fluid levels turned out to not be low at all. Any of the methods of measurement are unreliable in my opinion, as are the measurements they do of the baby by ultrasound. It's just still an imperfect science at this point. I think your Doula is right. Good NST = happy baby.
Wow, that's a toughie - do you want to know every little detail so you can have the most advance warning on possible problems (the cynical view) or not be bothered with trivial thing so you can maintain peace of mind (the optimistic view)? As far along as you are, I think the arguments for the cynical view are few in number. Don't know what your doc's rationale is, but this is awesome information.
i'm so glad your doula was able to talk you down with good information. go bruiser!
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