1st Check Up

When we were planning for a kid, I spoke to friends who were already parents about their OBGYNs, the hospitals they were attached to, their overall experience in the hospital and my friends' personal opinion of the doctors.

My birth plan is natural with epi. So it is a little worrying when 75% of the mothers I know had to go through an emergency C Section. Not only were they not prepared mentally and emotionally but the price can jump from RM2k to RM12kin an instant.

From what I understand, many OBGYNs prefer C-Sec to natural because it's more manageable, it can be scheduled in, there's less risk (but longer recovery time) and they can charge more.

So I shortlisted the docs and selected those which try and push for natural where possible. I went for a consultation with them to meet them face-ta-face, check out their bedside manners and to see if the rapport was right.

So now that I am pregnant, it was easy to pick up the phone and make an appointment with my chosen doc.

I also decided on Damansara Specialist Hospital because of it's proximity to home. Monthly check ups which increase in frequency in the last few months can be a chore.

Not to mention the time you spend in the waiting room after making an appointment weeks in advanced if your OBGYN is one which comes highly recommended and is thus more popular.

My first appointment was at 12.30pm but I on;t got called in after 2pm.

I went in and said "Hi doc. When I first saw you, I wasn't pregnant but I am now".

To check he replied "Well done!".

I thought that was a rather odd response. Then I realized that in this day and age, it really isn't that easy to get pregnant. More and more couples are turning to fertility clinics. Damansara Women's Specialist is now Tropicana Medical Centre. So that says a lot. So I guess 'Well done" makes sense.

We spoke a bit then did a scan. That little being in me is 4.8cm and we could see it was almost fully form. Tiny, but the head, spine, limbs & fingers could all be sen clearly. It was jumping up and down and waving it's hands up. How strange. The scan showed that all is well and normal.

So I headed off to do my blood test. And I don't know if it was because of the needle puncture or sheer shock but when the cashier said the cost was RM580, I could not bring myself to bring out the credit card.

I knew having a kid was expensive but perhaps I'm not quite prepared. I'm gonna call my financial advisor soon to talk about setting up a trust fund.