First Midwife appointment - what can I expect?

[Nicki_Cooper]

I have my first midwife appointment this thursday and am not sure what to expect for sure... will I get to hear my baby's heart beat? I'll be just shy of 12 weeks at that point... she and I have had several long talks on the phone leading up to this point so we have extablished medical history etc... any input would be greatly appreciated....

Thanks
Nicki

[mraven721]

The midwife might try for the heartbeat, but don't be too disappointed if you don't hear it, it's still rather early for the doppler to pick it up.

I would expect to talk alot more about birth, breastfeeding, expectations, what further appointments will be like. I'm sure you will do a urine screen, she'll more than likely get your weight. You'll talk about fees and payments plans. You might hear about past birth stories, or look at pictures (if she has any to share).

It's very exciting! I went to my interview with my midwife, but I can't wait for my first actual appointment on Monday.

[danav]

It's very likely you will be able to hear the baby's heartbeat with a doppler at almost 12 weeks.

Since you've already discussed your medical history with her, at the first appt you might have some paperwork to sign but other than that it should be like any other routine prenatal appointment. With my midwives at the free standing birth center I go to, the appointments generally include:

* peeing in a cup to check for the presence of protein and glucose (which I do myself in the bathroom and tell the midwife what the results are)
* getting weight/blood pressure/pulse checked
* midwife asks if I have been having any unusual symptoms (weird headaches, swelling, etc)
* midwife discusses any questions I might have
* listen to the baby's heartbeat with a doppler and get the heart rate
* measure the fundal height (at 12 weeks, it should only be about 3 fingerwidths above your pubic bone so she might not even try to measure it yet - I don't think mine actually uses a tape measure to measure centimeters until 18 or 20 weeks or so) - but since she's never seen you before, she'll probably palpate your uterus a bit to see if it feels about the right size for your dates

I don't know how much besides medical history you've already talked with her about, so she might go over things like appropriate nutrition, warning signs to watch out for, and what expectations/wants you have for the birth. Midwives usually spend a pretty good amount of time with you at prenatal visits. It's a good idea to write down any questions you want to ask her or anything you want to talk about with her so you don't forget while you are there.

Hope that helps!

[MAMom]

At my first midwife appt for this baby I had all the things done that were mentioned by the 2 other posters (pee in a cup, weight, blood pressure, tried to listen to heartbeat, made our first payment to her).

We had already filled out & sent her our medical history, so she reviewed that with us. It was a 2 hour appt.

We did not hear the heartbeat (which I have to say I was disappointed about b/c we heard it right around that time loud & clear with baby #1).

I also had a blood draw to check for iron levels, white blood count, immunity to Rubella (obviously this should have been done pre-pregnancy b/c I am no longer immune & would have had the booster)

She also did an internal exam.

___________________________________
SAHM to a spectacular little boy, born 5/2003 :bf Feb 2006!
"When you teach your son, you teach your son's son." ~ The Talmud

[MelissaEvans]

You may want to do a bit of research on the doppler...
http://www.mothering.com/articles/pr...l-testing.html
http://www.mothering.com/articles/pr...und-risks.html

Depending on your midwife, there may be more that is checked in the urine - I think mine looks at 10 different things. She wanted me to bring the cup to her at first so she could see the color/clarity. She says that after a few times, she'll just let me use the stick and bring it to her.

I got to sign a bunch of "you know, you can use a hospital" and "if the midwife screws up and you end up at the hospital, you can't sue the doctor" stupid papers the state requires. They were pretty comical really.

Have fun!

[forest~mama]

Just a note that I went to my first appt. at 11w and she couldn't find the heartbeat yet. She made me an appt. for two weeks later to go in and try again. Good luck at your appt.!