Do you ever take you DC to your own Dr appointments?

[Harmony08]

Is this done?  Do you think it is okay if it is just a quick talking kind of appointment and not like a pap, ya know?

[Alyantavid]

I'm sure plenty of people do.  I never have, I've never needed to and it's just much easier not to.

[BunnySlippers]

Yup,

Drs Appts, massage, chiro, bank, whatever, she is usually with me. No one ever blinks an eye.

[waiting2bemommy]

yep. Except in my case I take TWO kids with me. Ds has even been with me to get my hair done a couple times when he was under a yr old. No one cared in the least....I breastfed him while they were blowdrying my hair!

[just_lily]

I think it depends on the appointment, depends on the circumstances and depends on the kid. 

I took DD with me for my 6 week postnatal check up.  She just hung out in her bucket seat - babies are so easy at that age.

When she was about 14 months I had to take her with me to the walk-in clinic when I had strep throat.  My DH was working late and I had no other options, and I *really* needed to go to the doctor.  The appointment was short and we got through it.

Now that she is 2.5yo it would be much, much harder as she is all over the place and very head strong.  In a pinch I would still take her with me to a quick appointment that was urgent, like for a UTI or strep or something, but beyond that I would try to schedule appointments for when DH is home or a friend or Granny could take her for an hour. 

The nature of some appointments, like a pap, or the dentist, or the eye doctor, would mean that I wouldn't be able to adequately supervise and that is when trouble happens!

[nola79]

I do, yes. I'm a SAHM and sometimes DH is not able to take off for appointments. I've taken both with me, and never had a problem.

[isabchi]

Yes, all the time. I always have my two kids on tow.

[3xMama]

All the time. I'm a SAHM with no one to look after the kiddos while I go to an appt. If I can get enough notice to go to an appt, DH has a lot of flexibility at work and he can request to come in and work a late shift that day-but I've got to have at least a week's notice to the appt. If I have little notice (like I'm sick and need an appt that day) then the kids go with. I've never had an issue.

Luckily I don't have a lot of appts aside from my prenatals. My mw's office is in her home so its very kid friendly-you can usually hear one or two of her kids from time to time during appts! Even during the one well woman visit (aka pap) I had with her my DD and DS were with me and just played, no problems.

[Harmony08]

Wow.  Thanks for all the replies.  This is very liberating info:)

[Llyra]

I do. I bring all three of them, sometimes.

I wouldn't do it, if the appointment was one that was likely to be very involved, or if I was going to be in any kind of pain or if anything was going to happen my kids might find disturbing. For example, sometimes my GI visits involve examination of my anal area, and I don't want my kids watching me go through that. But for ordinary, non-invasive kinda appointments, I do.

I wouldn't, though, if my kids were disinclined to sit still. Mine mostly go very quiet and shy in situations like that, though, which means they sit quietly and don't bother anybody.

[texmati]

I see kids in my ob's office all the time, though none as young as my ds. If dh comes with me to an ob appt, we bring ds. 13 month old DS is *not* inclined to sit still, and frequently 'mocks' my ob when she start's talking. (she uses her hands a lot, so ds does the same and start's babbling)

TBH... I can see how it's not really appropriate, though everyone at this particular office seems really excited to see ds, so I keep doing it. At my office, I would be annoyed if I had to have meeting after meeting with people with kids in tow. That being said, I don't work in a customer oriented field. 

[Peony]

My kids are almost always with me. There are 3 of them, I only have a sitter for when I work my limited hours, and DH works all the time, so they come with. I bring toys, book, snacks along. I do have to pay a sitter on the rare time I go to my chiro, her office is not friendly and she isn't as willing to work around my kids as my previous chiro was but she is awesome so I deal. I usually get my teeth cleaned with them sitting there as well, I've known the dentist for years and he loves to see the kids. I've always had at least one kid with me for a pap, they don't care. It does get rough when DD2 has a specialist appointment, they are always late, the appointments are long, and 1 year DS goes nuts, after 2 awful appointments there, I will certainly have to find a sitter next time. 

[Marissamom]

I haven't gone to an appointment without my 18 month old yet. but her dad also comes too because I don't drive, and he's a student so it's easy to work around his schedule. 

[AutumnAir]

All the time.  I'm a SAHM and DH can't get time off, and we don't have any friends or family here that I could leave the kids with, so they always come along (though it's really only been DD1, since I haven't had to go to anything since DD2 was born).

[mbhf]

Yeah, I take my kids everywhere. And they were actually all there for my pap, my 2yo nursed through it. I nursed through my last eye exam too. I don't think I've gone to a single doctor appointment without a child since I've had children. No one has ever said a word or been anything but professional.

[crunchy_mommy]

Yes, DS always comes with me to appointments. Usually they are just talking & quick exam which DS hates (he doesn't like doctors touching me). For long exams however (dentist, eye doctor) DH & I book our appointments back-to-back on the same day so neither of us has to take extra time out of work or anything, we get it all done in one shot and one of us is always available to entertain DS while the other is being examined.

Last time we went to the dentist DH got lost on the way there so I ended up having to take DS in for my cleaning. It was a disaster, he screamed the whole time (which I would've expected) and wouldn't nurse or anything so I couldn't get him to calm down. The (pregnant) hygenist was very patient but the dentist was NOT happy, I guess he didn't like a kid screaming in the background while his other patients were getting painful, anxiety-provoking procedures done.... I don't blame him & I would never purposely put any of us in that situation again!

Oh also when I had to go for an echocardiogram my mom took time off work & came with me to watch DH during the test (to avoid the above!) but he doesn't tolerate being with anyone but me or DS so he ended up back in the exam room with me halfway through anyway, he was crying so much that the nurses begged the tech to let him in the room to see me.

[texmati]

This is such a good tip!!!!
 

Originally Posted by crunchy_mommy 

Yes, DS always comes with me to appointments. Usually they are just talking & quick exam which DS hates (he doesn't like doctors touching me). For long exams however (dentist, eye doctor) DH & I book our appointments back-to-back on the same day so neither of us has to take extra time out of work or anything, we get it all done in one shot and one of us is always available to entertain DS while the other is being examined

[crunchy_mommy]

Yes, just make sure you both book it with the same person (hygenist or same eye doctor or whatever) so you will actually be 'back-to-back' rather than on 2 different hygenists schedules that may not align, KWIM? (And make sure your DH doesn't get lost lol)

Originally Posted by texmati 

This is such a good tip!!!!e
 

Originally Posted by crunchy_mommy 

Yes, DS always comes with me to appointments. Usually they are just talking & quick exam which DS hates (he doesn't like doctors touching me). For long exams however (dentist, eye doctor) DH & I book our appointments back-to-back on the same day so neither of us has to take extra time out of work or anything, we get it all done in one shot and one of us is always available to entertain DS while the other is being examined

[newbymom05]

Yes, I frequently have to bring my 5 and 2 y/o boys with me. Today we all went to the dentist for the 5 y/o's checkup, and the dentist said how great it was that I brought his little brother along to watch and get acclimated. Um, have no choice! Usually mif it's for me  DH will take off and meet me at the drs and then watch the kids, but lately he's insisted on coming anyway, so then it's all 4 of us in the tiny doc's office. Now that does embarrass me.

[tea_time]

I've taken my now 3yo DD to many appointments including: chiropractor, doctor, car repair and gyno.  When she was tiny DH and I would do dentist appointments back to back.  Now that she's older I have gone without her to some more personal appointments (last yearly at the dr) so that I could focus more on me.  I've also left her with my friend or DH when the appointment requested no children (hairdresser). 

I prefer to take her with me places b/c that's how we do life.  She's a part of my day-to-day.  Most places I've gone understand that.