Switching ob's

[jennistarr1]

I wish you guys were local and could help me compare the actual practices but in lieu of that...

Im curious about process:

practice a: I delivered my daughter 5 years ago with them. You see a different doctor every visit so then you are acquainted with who is on call. I hated my birth experience (failed induction, csection, daughter in nicu for minor breathing trouble but they didn't even do so much as hold her up so I could see her until hours later...along the way I felt like I wasn't given options like walking or different positions or pain relief). But I guess I just don't know how much things would have been different with a different doctor. At no point were decisions being made based on distress to baby. I was easy going about it all at the time but after the fact it makes me upset.

practice b: midwife practice, same hospital, a l&d delivery nurse at that hospital recommends this practice over the other, in general the feedback I hear about them is frustration with appointment scheduling and long wait time. Same idea, see a different midwife each time and then you get whoever is on call.

also important: I want a vbac. Practice a supports it with natural labor. Not sure about practice b other than they do it

i had a sonogram at 7 weeks, doctors appointments at 9 weeks (there was a sonogram but really unofficial as the sonogram person was out and doctor said "let me see if I can see anything")

that doctors appointment took a while to schedule, in the meantime I scheduled at a new practice who couldn't get me in until after 10 weeks.

i was going to go with whoever saw me first which is practice A. But part of me wonders, why not keep the appointment with practice b to see what I think. Will it be covered? I have bcbs? Will I need to transfer records? 

So has anyone switched practices or possible gone back n forth

[sunflower17]

I don’t think it’s realistic to go back and forth. You want continuity of care. I don’t know how insurance would handle, but the practice would surely ask you to choose because you can’t be “missing appointments” with one and following next with another group.
I don’t have personal experience with vbac, but here’s my 2 cents. There’s a possibility you may end up with a c section (and that’s a possibility for anyone vbac or not), and it will be performed by an Ob—if you see only midwives, they will only assist with an ob that you’ll probably have never met if you’re not seeing OB physician group (at least that’s how it works in my hospital).

You had a bad experience, so I say go with your gut. A second opinion with the midwife group is fine and then just stick where you’re comfortable.

[swiftlyirun]

I’ve been through this decision twice- my thoughts:

My practice is a doctor/midwife practice- you choose who you want to see but whoever is on call delivers.

With #1, the midwife was rude an impatient with me and didn’t believe my pain levels, turns out I just dialate really quickly.

With #2 I debated switching but there are SO many unknowns with switching I decided to stay with the practice I knew. I ended up being induced with my FAVORITE midwife... she ended up missing my birth.

With #3 I’m staying with the same practice again and will plan to induce with my same favorite midwife if possible.

In the end, I just realize there is so little you can control in childbirth and I preferred to know what I was getting vs taking a risk that it could be worse. Basically, the benefits of moving for me did not outweigh the risks.

[jennistarr1]

Jan 20, 2020 3:41:36 GMT -5 sunflower17 said:

I don’t think it’s realistic to go back and forth.

I definitely don't want to go back and forth through the whole pregnancy. Just if I checked out new practice and decided against it, keep on keeping on at old practice

[sunflower17]

Jan 20, 2020 11:07:41 GMT -5 jennistarr1 said:

Jan 20, 2020 3:41:36 GMT -5 sunflower17 said:

I don’t think it’s realistic to go back and forth.

I definitely don't want to go back and forth through the whole pregnancy. Just if I checked out new practice and decided against it, keep on keeping on at old practice

Gotcha. It was like 3 AM when I replied so..lol

[somersault72]

I was with a different group for each of my pregnancies (forceps/vaginal birth with #1, planned C-section with #2). (Granted they were 10 years apart). Both were pretty similar, but I worked at the second practice and my OB is a close friend so I pretty much only saw her. I had enough anxiety with my 2nd pregnancy, so it was nice to have a doctor I trusted implicitly.

If you don't like your current practice, it's worth at least checking out this other practice. Which ever practice you go with I would voice your fears and concerns as well as your plan for this delivery, just know that when it's time all that planning can go out the window.
My epidural wore off with DS and no one believed me, so I made darn sure to tell my new doctor about it.

[Susie]

I had baby #1 with practice #1.  It was ultimately fine, but I had the strong impression that they were not big on the idea of things like birth plans, unmedicated labors, etc.  I very strongly wanted, and ultimately had an unmedicated spontaneous labor with #1, but it was luck that she came early, on her own, and very fast.  I did not get that due to any support from them.  Medically, everything was fine.  But I was a little unhappy with the experience I had with them because I felt they over-medicalized my prenatal care.  I had well controlled GD, and they treated it like having GD affected EVERYTHING from there out.  When in reality, I felt that as long as my GD was well controlled, and it was, it shouldn't affect much at all.  I also struggled postpartum, and felt they were very poor with postpartum support.

When I got pregnant with #2, I made a first app't with practice #2.  It was recommended to me by seemingly everyone.  My PCP's office, my prenatal yoga instructor, etc.  They have OB's and midwives, and are more supportive of the kind of birth I wanted.  When I went for that appointment though it just wasn't good.  I didn't like their progression of early appointments.  Whereas practice #1 does u/s's at 9w to date, and again at 12w for NT scan, practice #2 sees you at 6w, does a urine test to confirm pregnancy (um, did that at home already, thanks), you see a nurse who is no help at all and does nothing, and then they don't see you again until 12w.  So I never even met an actual provider, and no u/s until 12w.  I was AMA and nervous, and I just didn't feel good about any of that.  So despite the raves about them, I went back to #1.  I thought maybe I'd switch later after 1st tri, but I never did.  I had baby #2 with practice #1, and it was fine.  Honestly since I knew what to expect from them, from the process, from how they do things, from myself... it was easier to advocate for what I wanted and what I felt their shortcomings were.  

It helped that I did not have GD the 2nd time, but there were other things that were not perfect -- like I ended up wanting an elective induction, and some practitioners in #1 were super supportive (suggesting induction as early as 20w), while the one I saw at 39w was like "well if you reallllllllly want to I guess we can, but we prefer you wait to go on your own...." (sigh).  That was annoying.  And scheduling the induction turned out to be annoying.  But probably no place is perfect and I can't say I regret my choice.  When it came down to it, I had an elective induction that was otherwise unmedicated with an OB who helped me have the birth I wanted.  I had a Saturday induction, when everything was pretty quiet.  She arranged for me to have an OB nurse 1:1 (since I was on pitocin I had to have 1:1) who was a midwife in Jamaica before she immigrated here and she was amazing.  My OB just came in at the end.  I have good memories about the whole thing.  And H and I were ready and watchful in case I struggled again postpartum, but I turned out not to need help this time.

YMMV, but for me it turned out that the "devil I knew" was the better fit.  

ETA:  My practice #1 is also super efficient with appointments.  They are really pretty good with scheduling and staying on time, which was important to me among other things.  And they were convenient to get to from work.  You spend a lot of time doing that especially in 2nd/3rd tri, and that mattered to me.

[tiptoetulips]

I really struggle with offices that perpetually run late.
Have you talked to them about what made you unhappy about your last labor?
I would be tempted to keep your appointment with the other just to see. If you don’t mind the unpredictability of the timing of appointments then i would move.

[jennistarr1]

Thanks Susie that was really helpful and relatable

[jorja]

I would check out the new practice...ask about how they would handle a VBAC, etc, and go from there.