5 Months!

This month marks the "half way" point! (I put it in quotation marks, because only God knows when little brother will make his grand appearance!).

Today, I had my first "regular" appointment at the Birth Center. I am taking advantage of a special option for care that the center offers. These appointments are called "Prenatal Plus" and are different than traditional check-ups at other facilities.

Perhaps you haven't been pregnant and wonder what I mean! Here's how the typical appointment has gone for me in the past:

-Check in and wait to be called back for your appointment. (Read a few magazines in the office!).

-Have vitals (blood pressure, temperature, and weight) checked and recorded by a member of the nursing staff.

-Answer brief questions about your health that day. (Are you in pain today? Do you drink/smoke? Any changes since your last appointment?).

-Wait for a doctor to visit the room.

-Answer brief questions about your health that day. (Are you in pain today? Have you had a drink or smoked? Any changes or questions since your last appointment?).

-Meet with the doctor and get a fundal height measurement (how big the belly has grown!) and listen to the baby's heartbeat via Doppler.

-Ask any pressing questions. (Or forget them...I have done this before!).

-Go home!

For me, since I had an uncomplicated process, I usually spent a total of about an hour in the office...10 minutes of which was spent with my provider. All in all, very straightforward and "boring"!

At the Birth Center, their Prenatal Plus appointments go a little differently. I am in a group with other mothers that are all due within about a month of each other. Today was the first of these appointments, so the order is a little different than usual, but here's what today's visit looked like:

-Arrive at the Birth Center and begin checking in myself immediately!

-Have assistance taking my own weight & blood pressure...record in my chart myself! (Track my weight on the "growth chart" for my specific BMI. Record blood pressure statistics.)

-Proceed to classroom and visit with other moms in my class while waiting for others to "process."

-Fill out my chart with my "symptoms" for that day. (Pain, diet, fetal movement, etc.).

-Enjoy a discussion/class on the month's topic. This month was healthy lifestyle (diet, exercise, and positive thinking). The class is led by one of the midwives who gives a lot of useful resources. This is also a time where moms share what they have experienced, and talk about information that is helpful for this stage of pregnancy.

-End the class by taking turns visiting with the midwife to track individual growth (fundal height and listening to the heartbeat via Doppler!).

-Go home!

The appointment lasted 2 hours (they always start and end on time), and almost the entire time was spent enjoying the company of other moms in the same phase, being involved in tracking my own health progress, and most importantly gleaning information from my midwife and staff. Far from boring, it was informative and fun! Yes, I learned some things, even the 3rd time!

I enjoy that the Birth Center encourages such active involvement in my own pregnancy/health. I carry my chart with me at the appointments, and can track my own progress! We are provided with a notebook to take home that includes handouts (related to the month's topic) and copies of a couple of the charts for my own personal reference. We are encouraged to write down questions and collect informative handouts and articles for future sharing in this valuable pregnancy resource.

Towards the end of pregnancy, I will have not only the Prenatal Plus class (monthly), but also a few additional check-ups as labor draws ever closer.

Today everything looked great...I am measuring right at 20 1/2 weeks, and little brother's heartbeat was a strong 150 bpm!

I am looking forward to my next appointment already...something I used to dread!

So, here's my 5 months snapshots. It's hard to believe time has flown by so quickly!