2nd Opinions

Last week was rotten. I have never been so frustrated with a doctor/nurse before. Not that they aren't good at what they do. I honestly think it was the nurse who wasn't fully explaining what the doctor said that caused the problem. So here's how it went. Last Sunday, Ava and I stayed home from church because she was sick. I literally slept all day. It was delightful. In the evening my fingers were feeling puffy. So I decided to take my blood pressure. It was 152/102. I'm not a nurse, but I do have a medical background and know this is too high, especially for a pregnant woman. So I called the doctor the next day. My Dr. was out of town for the week. So I had to see the other dr's in his practice. I've met them all and they're all very nice. They sent me over to Gritman Medical Center to have a NST and BP check. Pullman was full apparently. So, of course my BP was still high. The baby was fine though. They made me stay over night and did blood tests, checked the babies growth and the amniotic fluid. All came back good. The only problem, my blood pressure. Initially, the doctor freaked me out with talk of doing the steroid shots and delivering in 2 days. It's WAY to early for that, I was only 31 weeks!! That would mean a whole lot of craziness because I'd have to deliver in Spokane and baby would have to be in he NICU for at least a couple weeks. So after all the tests came back they said I could go home and to call if my pressure was up at home. And to stay off my feet as much as possible. HA!! Not really possible with 3 kids and a husband finishing up a thesis. I got home and of course, my pressures are up. So I called them back the next day. They made me go to the hospital AGAIN for another NST. My first BP was 144/114. CRAZY!! I was sure they were going to make me stay. Luckily, the pressures came down and they let me go home and said I had to be on bed rest. Now, I had preexisting hypertension with Ava. I was medicated through my entire pregnancy with her. So my thought was, just give me some meds to control it so I can continue to care for my family. I so from Monday till Thursday I was on bed rest basically. It just wasn't working out. I called the doctor to find out what the hold up was on why I couldn't just have meds to control it. The nurse came on the phone and was, what I thought, rude. She told me I just had to find someone who could come and take care of my kids while I was on bed rest. I tried explaining that my family lives a considerable distance away and it just wasn't an option. She replied with, "well he's not going to give you any drugs." Like I'm some kind of drug seeker looking to score. I told her it wasn't like I'm asking for narcotics or anything, I just want to keep my pressure down. She was completely unhelpful and unsympathetic. I was SO frustrated. Especially since I'd been medicated through a pregnancy before and knew it was safe. I'm not much of a crier, but I was SO frustrated. I cried my little heart out that night and woke up the next day ready to figure this out. My doctor was still out of town, so my primary care doctor has OB's in his office. So I called and scheduled an appointment to get a 2nd opinion. My friend thought that was pretty brave to "go behind my dr's back" but I wasn't really, he was out of town! I'm so glad I went in. I had all my test results from the hospital etc, ready for her. So, she explained that the standard for medicating during pregnancy has changed since I was pregnant with Ava. They don't medicate unless your pressure is 160/110 or higher. If the other dr had explained that I probably would have been less frustrated. BUT! She also said, all the studies have shown that bed rest has no effect on the outcome of pregnancy hypertension. So I can maintain normal function as long as my pressure doesn't go above 160/110. They said to rest when I can, which I do, don't exercise and try not to do a million things. I can do that! Bed rest, I can't do. I was so glad I went in to see her. So now I've seen my doctor, and he agrees. I still have to do NST's 2 times a week and they'll check the baby via ultrasound once a week, to monitor how he's handling it. But I can handle that. My doctor is pretty sure this little guy is going to show up sooner then we had originally planned, but we'll see. If I maintain my bp like it is now, I can go to the original date, but my doctor thinks that chances are, it will be a bit sooner. The moral of the story, take charge of your healthcare. If something doesn't make sense, get a 2nd opinion. You have every right to "fire" your doctor and find a new one. (not that I did that) But, it's your body, your baby, and they should be able to explain to you what's going on. If they can't, go to someone who can. On a happier note, we're really excited for this little man to get here. I can't wait to see his little face. And his little toes!