So! I made it to 36 weeks. Cue hilariously unflattering bump pic:
Now I really do feel like a ticking bomb. Because the first baby (the one closer to the cervix) is breech, barring any drastic changes in position, I am staring down a C section, whether scheduled (ideal) or emergency (not ideal). We have a C section scheduled for the 28th, although it's always possible they decide to come before then. And if the babies come before then, any spontaneous birth would be classified an emergency C. Obviously we want to avoid that.
Compounding the pressure is the fact that Michael is deathly ill right now and racing madly to catch up on several work deadlines. Every time he sees me awake at an odd hour or groaning as I try to get out of bed, he croaks in a panicked voice for me to take it easy and please not to have any contractions. As if it were in my control!
I am still feeling good overall, with the only big issues being an intensified acid reflux at night or when I lie down, and my feeling like I need a crane when in bed. Shifting positions while lying down feels downright scary, as there is a tipping point where my belly gains all of the momentum and drags the rest of my body with it, and my creaky hips and pelvis have no choice but to be wrenched into the new position. Getting up requires creative use of my arms and hips as there is truly no room for me to lean forward.
I just had my final checkup at the public hospital this past Friday. I've managed to put all of the bad memories of the GD drama and the inpatient debacle behind me, and these past few weeks have been meeting with an OB and an endocrinologist that I actually quite like, in QMH's outpatient facility. I was still relieved to be done with my final appointment, but at the same time I was able to leave feeling grateful and appreciative of the care that I received at their hands. They are busy and bureaucratic and tell you everything on a need-to-know basis only, but I think they did a good job overall with my (outpatient) care. Because the first baby is breech, they have basically released me to the private system, knowing that if surgery is the route I have to take I would rather do it in a private hospital. And because my blood sugar numbers still look largely under control and satisfactory to them, they were happy to have me continue my current insulin regime until delivery.
I will instead deliver at the eye-wateringly expensive private hospital, Matilda, on the Peak, which is also where I delivered Lola. It's difficult to get to and the room, doctor, pediatricians and anesthesiologist costs total more than 100x the cost of the public hospital (truly, I'm not exaggerating) but it is very comfortable, I would have my own private room and bathroom with balcony, Michael and the babies can stay with me whenever, it's quiet, the food is good, and I know the routine from my previous experience. They are supposed to be a very breastfeeding friendly hospital but I know from my previous experience that breastfeeding is probably the worst part of it all for me, and I have no illusions about how arduous and challenging it will be with two. In fact, I found going through all of my previous pumping supplies and bottles, getting things ready for their arrival, super depressing.
I've saved the biggest drama for last, though. A week and a half ago, my private OB unexpectedly told me that she was leaving for vacation in 3 days and that she would be gone for a while - and not be present for my birth and delivery. This was so shocking to me that I didn't know how to react during the appointment. It also sounds like a ridiculous oversight on both her and my parts. On my part, I just assumed that she would tell me if she was away and never thought to ask directly. We had a relationship from my first pregnancy, she had been seeing me from the get-go on this pregnancy, and we spoke pretty freely about things - wouldn't this be the first thing she tells me as soon as she knows she has a vacation scheduled? On her part, whether this was a deliberate or accidental omission, shame on her! An OB is an intensely personal choice - of course any doctor who is potentially your life-saving surgeon is an intensely personal choice - but I believe there is an intimacy and vulnerability, not to mention a whole process of growth, that sets the pregnant patient and OB relationship apart. And it would have been a different matter if she had made it clear that they were a practice of OBs in which any one could replace the other. In all of our discussions about vaginal versus C section delivery she always made it sound like she would be one there.
Anyway, I had heard of the doctor in her other practice and actually also had some interaction with her way back when, at the beginning of my pregnancy with Lola. I don't have any terrible reviews of her, and she is very popular and generally well liked, and has been used by friends and colleagues of mine. But there was a reason I switched from her to my current doctor originally, and I was so turned off by this whole recent turn of events, that I decided to try another private doctor in another practice. It was a change at the 11th hour (I had my first appointment with him at 34.5 weeks and his receptionist could not contain her sputter of shock when I made my booking). But ultimately, I decided to switch doctors.
Given that I have no relationship with either of those doctors, and no time to build one, I decided that I had to look at other factors to make my decision. I have reason to believe that they are both competent and experienced surgeons, and no amount of comparing or agonizing is going to completely remove the risk of something going wrong in surgery. On that front I can only hope for the best. And usually, if I was prejudiced to pick one person over the other, I would probably pick a woman surgeon over a man, figuring better to give the benefit of the doubt to the person who had to overcome more obstacles to get to where she is today.
But I immediately loved the way the clinic of this new doctor is run - it was tidy, clean, quiet. I showed up and was seen within 15 minutes; whereas my wait time at the other clinic was up to an hour or more. The bedside manner of this new doctor was really good, for Hong Kong - he did not hurry me, he asked me questions, he did a careful (but not lengthy) ultrasound examination. He seemed calm and not easily perturbed or frazzled. I felt comfortable. With the other practice (including the new doctor which I had only had limited interaction) I felt like my answers were never directly answered - as if the the doctors had an answer but were also not that clear cut or authoritative about it. The other practice is always a bit frenetic and this time around especially I felt like I had to keep reminding them of things that they would forget (should I re-test my blood at 28 weeks, when should I do a Group B strep testing, did I already do a whooping cough vaccination, etc.) Unsolicited, this doctor gave me a printout of all the babies' stats and pictures; at the other clinic I never got any good ultrasound pictures to take home despite a request, and much more limited printed information on their size, weight, etc.
It's probably not an entirely fair comparison. I'm sure this new doctor is not perfect - he wanted to make a good first impression on me and he definitely wanted my surgery fees (it's 1.6x for twins, too!) and if I had had him as my doctor for the whole time, I'm sure I would have discovered other pet peeves or had complaints.
But honestly, I left the appointment with a feeling of great relief, and wishing that I had switched my OB months ago. I have another appointment on Monday and then it's just keeping the fingers crossed that I make it through Christmas without the babies arriving!
Compounding the pressure is the fact that Michael is deathly ill right now and racing madly to catch up on several work deadlines. Every time he sees me awake at an odd hour or groaning as I try to get out of bed, he croaks in a panicked voice for me to take it easy and please not to have any contractions. As if it were in my control!
I am still feeling good overall, with the only big issues being an intensified acid reflux at night or when I lie down, and my feeling like I need a crane when in bed. Shifting positions while lying down feels downright scary, as there is a tipping point where my belly gains all of the momentum and drags the rest of my body with it, and my creaky hips and pelvis have no choice but to be wrenched into the new position. Getting up requires creative use of my arms and hips as there is truly no room for me to lean forward.
I just had my final checkup at the public hospital this past Friday. I've managed to put all of the bad memories of the GD drama and the inpatient debacle behind me, and these past few weeks have been meeting with an OB and an endocrinologist that I actually quite like, in QMH's outpatient facility. I was still relieved to be done with my final appointment, but at the same time I was able to leave feeling grateful and appreciative of the care that I received at their hands. They are busy and bureaucratic and tell you everything on a need-to-know basis only, but I think they did a good job overall with my (outpatient) care. Because the first baby is breech, they have basically released me to the private system, knowing that if surgery is the route I have to take I would rather do it in a private hospital. And because my blood sugar numbers still look largely under control and satisfactory to them, they were happy to have me continue my current insulin regime until delivery.
I will instead deliver at the eye-wateringly expensive private hospital, Matilda, on the Peak, which is also where I delivered Lola. It's difficult to get to and the room, doctor, pediatricians and anesthesiologist costs total more than 100x the cost of the public hospital (truly, I'm not exaggerating) but it is very comfortable, I would have my own private room and bathroom with balcony, Michael and the babies can stay with me whenever, it's quiet, the food is good, and I know the routine from my previous experience. They are supposed to be a very breastfeeding friendly hospital but I know from my previous experience that breastfeeding is probably the worst part of it all for me, and I have no illusions about how arduous and challenging it will be with two. In fact, I found going through all of my previous pumping supplies and bottles, getting things ready for their arrival, super depressing.
I've saved the biggest drama for last, though. A week and a half ago, my private OB unexpectedly told me that she was leaving for vacation in 3 days and that she would be gone for a while - and not be present for my birth and delivery. This was so shocking to me that I didn't know how to react during the appointment. It also sounds like a ridiculous oversight on both her and my parts. On my part, I just assumed that she would tell me if she was away and never thought to ask directly. We had a relationship from my first pregnancy, she had been seeing me from the get-go on this pregnancy, and we spoke pretty freely about things - wouldn't this be the first thing she tells me as soon as she knows she has a vacation scheduled? On her part, whether this was a deliberate or accidental omission, shame on her! An OB is an intensely personal choice - of course any doctor who is potentially your life-saving surgeon is an intensely personal choice - but I believe there is an intimacy and vulnerability, not to mention a whole process of growth, that sets the pregnant patient and OB relationship apart. And it would have been a different matter if she had made it clear that they were a practice of OBs in which any one could replace the other. In all of our discussions about vaginal versus C section delivery she always made it sound like she would be one there.
Anyway, I had heard of the doctor in her other practice and actually also had some interaction with her way back when, at the beginning of my pregnancy with Lola. I don't have any terrible reviews of her, and she is very popular and generally well liked, and has been used by friends and colleagues of mine. But there was a reason I switched from her to my current doctor originally, and I was so turned off by this whole recent turn of events, that I decided to try another private doctor in another practice. It was a change at the 11th hour (I had my first appointment with him at 34.5 weeks and his receptionist could not contain her sputter of shock when I made my booking). But ultimately, I decided to switch doctors.
Given that I have no relationship with either of those doctors, and no time to build one, I decided that I had to look at other factors to make my decision. I have reason to believe that they are both competent and experienced surgeons, and no amount of comparing or agonizing is going to completely remove the risk of something going wrong in surgery. On that front I can only hope for the best. And usually, if I was prejudiced to pick one person over the other, I would probably pick a woman surgeon over a man, figuring better to give the benefit of the doubt to the person who had to overcome more obstacles to get to where she is today.
But I immediately loved the way the clinic of this new doctor is run - it was tidy, clean, quiet. I showed up and was seen within 15 minutes; whereas my wait time at the other clinic was up to an hour or more. The bedside manner of this new doctor was really good, for Hong Kong - he did not hurry me, he asked me questions, he did a careful (but not lengthy) ultrasound examination. He seemed calm and not easily perturbed or frazzled. I felt comfortable. With the other practice (including the new doctor which I had only had limited interaction) I felt like my answers were never directly answered - as if the the doctors had an answer but were also not that clear cut or authoritative about it. The other practice is always a bit frenetic and this time around especially I felt like I had to keep reminding them of things that they would forget (should I re-test my blood at 28 weeks, when should I do a Group B strep testing, did I already do a whooping cough vaccination, etc.) Unsolicited, this doctor gave me a printout of all the babies' stats and pictures; at the other clinic I never got any good ultrasound pictures to take home despite a request, and much more limited printed information on their size, weight, etc.
It's probably not an entirely fair comparison. I'm sure this new doctor is not perfect - he wanted to make a good first impression on me and he definitely wanted my surgery fees (it's 1.6x for twins, too!) and if I had had him as my doctor for the whole time, I'm sure I would have discovered other pet peeves or had complaints.
But honestly, I left the appointment with a feeling of great relief, and wishing that I had switched my OB months ago. I have another appointment on Monday and then it's just keeping the fingers crossed that I make it through Christmas without the babies arriving!
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