"well baby" visits

[lismcc]

my first little one, malcolm, was born at home on may 27, 2011.  we had a midwife serve us for prenatals and birth, and there were no invasive procedures done during this time (no vitamin k, vaccines, circumsion, no ultrasounds).  the midwife has been continuing care for us since malcolm's birth, and next week is the last visit.

i am curious about how others handle "well baby visits" that pediatrianss like to do at 2 month increments until 6 months, and then 6 month increments after that.  we plan to give no vaccinations.  i also plan to do my own continuous well baby checks, since he is with me all the time.  he is nursing so well, sleeps with us, is interacting, and gaining weight beautifully.  i have Aviva Jill Romm's book Naturally Healthy Babies and Children, which offers lots of info on observing and promoting your childs wellness.  i am also quite healthy myself.

basically, i see no real reason for these visits.  i do however want to have a relationship with a pediatrician just in case, though going to the dr. is never my first line of defense.  (my partner and i are uninsured, very healthy, and havent been to a dr. in years.  we see an acupuncturist and treat with herbs as need/for prevention).  i met a woman ped. i really like.  she is wise in ayurveda (indian herbal medicine) and we got along great.  she totally promotes the well baby visits, though i told her we may not do them all.  i am thinking of just going at 6month, then 1 year.  this is far off, though.

im very curious about all the different ways people handle this.  do you just go to all visits? none?  some?  please help me with your own experiences.

thanks!  

[P.J.]

I am also someone who does not visit doctors unless I have some acute condition.

However, I would not skip those well baby visits. Although you can monitor your baby's health on your own, a doctor is trained to notice subtle things you may not see. And with health and development issues, it's better to know about them sooner than later, kwim? Plus what you mentioned: you never know what will happen with your baby's health over time, and it is much much easier to handle whatever health issues come up when you already have an established doctor you like. Not to mention that if you end up in an emergency room / doc visit and it comes out you haven't been bringing your baby to the doctor all along, some doctors would call Child Protective Services on you and you really don't want that. (I'm not saying this is justified, but I have heard stories that this does indeed happen).

We found a pediatrician we love. She is primarily a homeopath and treats everything that way first, would only resort to antibiotics and such when nothing else works and in very acute/painful conditions. She's great with kids, doesn't give us unsolicited advice about how to raise our son and is a really nice, easygoing, likeable woman. She also follows the program of delayed and only a few vaxs, which we wanted. IMO it all comes down to finding a doctor you like and who respects your parenting and health decisions. It sounds like you may have already found one. Why not just go and see how it is with her? And if you don't like her after a visit, you can go to the Tribal Areas local forum here at MDC for your area and ask for a reference to a good pediatrician.

One more thing: I also usually try to treat my own illnesses like flu or stomach bugs.....but I was surprised to find that when DS got sick I got more worried than when I am the sick one (after all a baby can only scream and often you're not even sure what is wrong) and I was very grateful that I could either call the doc or bring him in and she could diagnose exactly what he had (he got Roseola when he was around 8 months and even after reading all sorts of info I did not come to that diagnosis). It was a reassuring backup to have in that situation and even though yes we all would've survived without the doctor, it made my life as a mom through those situations (and having a sick baby is NOT fun!) a little less stressful to have her reassurance / diagnosis/ advice.

Good luck!

[MoonWillow]

I don't use Pediatricians for my children as I have found them to be heavy on the unsolicited parenting advice. But we have a lovely DO now and I do take the kids occasionally for well visits. I agree that its important to develop a relationship and another reason why is that when they know you and your child it actually helps to diagnose/treat issues.  

[sosurreal09]

I know CPS considers not going to well visits medical neglect over here....so we do them. We have a holistic ped and no longer vax (we did at first, blindly, and DD had all kinds of problems)

[Monarchgrrl]

Congrats on your baby! We also had a midwife do baby checks for the first 6 weeks. Then we went to a ped appt at 6 months, just to meet the ped and see what we thought about him. He's great and is cool with us not vaccinating. I really like him a lot. He's very natural-minded. We won't be going to another visit (unless there is an issue) until 1 yr though. We won't be doing any anemia testing at 9 months, like I've read that most peds want to do at that visit. We will probably go once per year after that, just to keep a relationship there for any illnesses or need to call after hours.

Edited by Monarchgrrl - 7/14/11 at 9:45am

[lismcc]

thanks for the thoughts and opinions.  i am not sure what i'll do yet ... im going to look into what CPS in NC thinks of skipping well baby visits first and keep asking around and meditating on it.

what i feel most comfortable with is to go at 6 months, then 1 year.  however, i dont want to end up in an awkward situation if we have to go for sickness before then ... just not sure.  of course you never plan on your babe being sick, but it does occasionally happen.

moonwillow what is a DO?  doctors office?  new baby, new mama, new to abbreviations.

[lkvosu]

We do all our well-baby visits, although I know it's mostly a waste of time, lol. I'm paying for her to basically tell me what I already know - that ds is wonderfully healthy! I go mainly because I like to have ds weighed and measured, just for fun and to mark it down in his baby book. That's obviously something that could be done at home, though, if you wanted.  I also like to go so ds recognizes the ped's office and it won't ever have to be a new or scary experience for him, especially if we ever have to go in for an actual problem.  And it's nice that I've built a relationship with the doctor. She's super cool and friendly and so far hasn't given unwanted advice.  I like that she knows us.

Also, DO is a doctor of osteopathic medicine. Different than an MD but still a licensed medical doctor.

[MoonWillow]

Originally Posted by lismcc 

thanks for the thoughts and opinions.  i am not sure what i'll do yet ... im going to look into what CPS in NC thinks of skipping well baby visits first and keep asking around and meditating on it.

what i feel most comfortable with is to go at 6 months, then 1 year.  however, i dont want to end up in an awkward situation if we have to go for sickness before then ... just not sure.  of course you never plan on your babe being sick, but it does occasionally happen.

moonwillow what is a DO?  doctors office?  new baby, new mama, new to abbreviations.

A DO is a Doctor of Osteopathy. They tend to be more holistic but are still licensed physicians. Here's a wiki about them:

Doctor of Osteopathic Medicine (D.O. or DO) is a professional doctoral degree for physicians in the United States. Holders of the DO degree are known as osteopathic physicians and have the same rights, privileges and responsibilities as MDs.

DOs are licensed to practice the full scope of medicine and surgery in all 50 states, equivalent to their MD counterparts. Depending on state, licensure may be issued from a combined board (DO & MD) or a separate board of medical examiners;^[1] regardless, all of the 70 state boards are members of the Federation of State Medical Boards.^[2]

Family practice MD's also tend to be respectful of alternative choices and a little more hands off with the parenting advice than a Pediatrician.  

[BabySmurf]

i would say that if you have found someone that you feel comfortable with and is on the same page with you, then it's not a bad idea to see her.  IMO it's important in these early years to have your doctor/practitioner/etc "know" you and your family, so that they are able to recognize early "issues", and understand what your values are.  It's much easier to work with someone you know something about than it would be to treat a complete stranger, kwim? this way it's also easier for you to trust the advice she gives, or decide if she doesn't really practice they way you anticipated - before you are in a situation where you really need help.  maybe you can talk with her about what she would feel comfortable with? i also think that limiting your visits may make some doctors nervous about missing early symptoms of something and then making an error.  i dunno - that's just my perspective!

[gemasita]

Where are you in NC?  We have a great Family Doctor who sees our son.

[lismcc]

i am in boone.  we have some good options of a ped. and a ped. nurse here.  just unsure if i want to do all the visits 

[gemasita]

Oh.  I didn't think I would do well-baby visits but I like his doctor so much that we've been doing them.  :-)

[SeattleRain]

I love the WBV! I don't think there's really any reason not to go, as long as you feel confident in what you believe in and say "no" when something happens that you don't like. I think it does put you in a bad position when you want to go for an issue. It's good to develop a relationship with a physician or nurse or whatever (as long as they can prescribe medicine) so that they can be there if/when you need them.

[lismcc]

im going to go to the first WBV at 2 months and then go from there.  i agree it is wise to have a relationship with the care provider.  plus it is my first babe so there is much for me to learn.  being a mom is a personal practice for me to set boundaries and realy stand up for my beliefs ... the real opportunities for this come from situations like doctors visits, (and others), where their are varying opinions on things

[minkajane]

We don't do them. They're not set up to meet any special needs of the babies, they're timed to coordinate with the vaccine schedule. It's more, "It's time for the vaxes, and hey let's see if s/he's doing ok while we're at it." Since we don't vax and DD shows no signs of any issues whatsoever, I see no reason to go. We did the 2-month checkup just to be on record there to make it easier for if she gets sick. We won't be going back for the 4-month or basically ever unless some problem or illness arises.

[P.J.]

Originally Posted by minkajane 

We don't do them. They're not set up to meet any special needs of the babies, they're timed to coordinate with the vaccine schedule. It's more, "It's time for the vaxes, and hey let's see if s/he's doing ok while we're at it." Since we don't vax and DD shows no signs of any issues whatsoever, I see no reason to go. We did the 2-month checkup just to be on record there to make it easier for if she gets sick. We won't be going back for the 4-month or basically ever unless some problem or illness arises.

I guess in the States that may be true, but I think  it really really depends on the doctor you have. We are not in the US, but also have a doc who generally does not vax in the first year (when there are 6 WBV) and would be happy not to vax at all if agreed upon with the parents. So, at least IME, it is not all about the vaxing. But I am well aware how a large portion of the entire medical system (esp. in the US) revolves around the pharma industry so what you're saying makes sense. I'm just adding that it doesn't always have to be that way and even in the States there are docs who respect a parent's choice not to vax and use the WBV to check development and general health and whatnot.

[nia82]

I reluctantly do them, to appease medical records in case someone would ever call CPS on us. We don't vax until 24 months.... But some things that I like to have checked are fontanelles, hip dysplasia, anemia (my DS was really anemic so I have an eye on that one and want DD to be checked at 9 months). We see a family practitioner and while he has to give a vax speech (which goes like: I'd really recommend HiB and DTaP blabla...). But he doesn't press me or pushes me in a corner or anything like it...

I like the FP because he supports breastfeeding for as long as you want to, doesn't give me unsolicited parenting advice (he doesn't tell me to CIO, not to cosleep or stuff like that), and he has a in my opinion better education when it comes to nutrition. He recommends a well-balanced diet, no juice for children (the peds we saw wanted us to feed back then 12 months old DS juice and wean and give him wholemilk instead), doesn't recommend Trivisol but vitamin D only and so forth.

[MrsBone]

Wow, I've never heard of not going to well visits as medical neglect. I don't think that's applicable here in Texas but I'm not sure. I took DS at 2 mo, 5 mo, 8 mo, 12 mo and 16 mo and haven't taken him in for one since. He's now 2 1/2 and I'll probably take him pretty soon, since it's been over a year. I just took my 2 mo old baby girl in for her first visit today and will probably take her again at 4, 6 etc, all the recommended times up to a year and then just go yearly after that. I don't know why, it's a bit arbitrary in my mind, but its what I feel comfortable with. It seems silly to try and make sure I've got someone to watch DS, go wait in a doctors office, pay a copay, and have a ped tell me mostly what I already know(I inform myself greatly on all health topics in general) when my baby's perfectly healthy, but I do it mainly for all the stats. we aren't vaccinating, so I don't really have to keep to a schedule.

[coffeegirl]

Originally Posted by lismcc 

thanks for the thoughts and opinions.  i am not sure what i'll do yet ... im going to look into what CPS in NC thinks of skipping well baby visits first and keep asking around and meditating on it.

what i feel most comfortable with is to go at 6 months, then 1 year.  however, i dont want to end up in an awkward situation if we have to go for sickness before then ... just not sure.  of course you never plan on your babe being sick, but it does occasionally happen.

moonwillow what is a DO?  doctors office?  new baby, new mama, new to abbreviations.

Well we started doing them when our baby was born, we just went along with the schedule like the peds recommended. The good part of that-- I liked knowing her weight and height and where she was falling in the general percentiles for those things. And usually every 1-2 months there would have been SOME question/concern/something that would come up that I'd want to get my pediatrician's opinion on. Be it diaper rash, or CIO, or this weird bump on her chest that turned out to be nothing, etc. 

Bad part-- the immunization schedule and the pressure to do it. I have no problem with vaccinating my daughter, but I do have a problem with vaccinating her when she's sick. It was uncanny-- my baby would get a cold a day or two before every visit for the first 2-3 well baby visits. And I guess with so many people questioning vaccines these days, some doctors are a bit more adamant or....jaded, maybe? about it. So during that first visit when I expressed that Annie had a stuffy nose and a cold and I'd like to postpone the shots for a couple weeks, he really bulldozed me into doing it right then anyway, despite my better judgement. And sure enough, my daughter came home that night and got a high fever and was miserable for almost 2 days after that. Really pissed me off. That was the last time I allowed that to happen, and because of that incident I find myself still keeping up with the well baby visits, but postponing them and rescheduling them as much as I need to depending on how my daughter is doing. 

My opinion is that there's no reason for you to be scared of taking your child to the doctor, but it's good to be prepared so you're not bulldozed into doing or allowing anything you're not comfortable with.

[sosurreal09]

Well from my understanding, where I live, it's like "icing on the cake". So say this was the scenario:

Family member calls CPS on you for whatever reasons:

You don't vaccinate...

They look at your 1 y/o's medical history and see you have been there once when he was 2 m/o and once when he was 7 m/o

They could (theoretically) build a case out of that and say they you were not vaxing due to medical neglect and the proof is that you have only been to the Dr 2x in a whole year for an infant,  and there are x amount of "physicals" or WBV in the first year, that you never scheduled or did not attend...

Say

You also have a family bed and your 3 y/o DD and your 1 y/o DS sleep with you (in my state this is not OK and you have to provide them with there own ROOMS)

Now they could have a serious case against you for those things (and YES that really is very possible) and they remove your children until you can 'fix" things to their liking and prove you were not neglectful and provide whatever they ask of you, pretty much.

Originally Posted by MrsBone 

Wow, I've never heard of not going to well visits as medical neglect. I don't think that's applicable here in Texas but I'm not sure. I took DS at 2 mo, 5 mo, 8 mo, 12 mo and 16 mo and haven't taken him in for one since. He's now 2 1/2 and I'll probably take him pretty soon, since it's been over a year. I just took my 2 mo old baby girl in for her first visit today and will probably take her again at 4, 6 etc, all the recommended times up to a year and then just go yearly after that. I don't know why, it's a bit arbitrary in my mind, but its what I feel comfortable with. It seems silly to try and make sure I've got someone to watch DS, go wait in a doctors office, pay a copay, and have a ped tell me mostly what I already know(I inform myself greatly on all health topics in general) when my baby's perfectly healthy, but I do it mainly for all the stats. we aren't vaccinating, so I don't really have to keep to a schedule.