Dr. V

Friday was, in the world of a pregnant woman, a very exciting day. I had a doctor's appointment at Triangle OBGYN with Dr. V.

Due to Morgan's travel and work, he hasn't been able to make it to a doctor's appointment since my 20 week appointment, so I was really excited to have him with me to introduce him to the new practice and sort of re-engage him with the process of preparing for Thriller. He met me head on and had a list of as many questions for the doctor as I did.

Triangle offers a nurse midwife delivery as long as the delivery is vaginal and has OBs on call in the event of major intervention, such as a c-section. And, fundamentally, if the midwife has a question or approvals are needed, she has to check in with the doctor.

(Note: OK, this is more of a conservative approach than Morgan and I wanted to take to birthing, but as this is where we are I feel that it is a very good compromise. We found a practice and a hospital that will let us has a natural, midwife delivery and respects the methods we believe in.)

I have met 3 of the midwives, all of which I really liked, but meeting "Dr. V" was a big deal - sort of like meeting the man behind the curtain, and also the man who might have to cut me open if things go that way. Meeting with him gave us a chance to ask the hard questions to the decision maker to be clear about the theory behind the practice and what we can expect in delivery.

Dr. V could not have made a better impression on us.

(SWEET! YES! THINGS ARE GOING TO BE OKAY!)

He is super mellow. He told us to go read up on Ina May. He answered all our questions honestly talking about the best and worst case. And he had actually really reviewed the chart enough to know that Morgan works in solar and know about our travels, etc which I honestly did not expect him to have done.

Induction: Will go 10 days past due date with new mother - really like to avoid induction especially with first time moms.

Early Discharge: No problem, if everyone looks good.

IV Port: Only required if you have B-Strep. However, if you're looking tired at 5 centimeters then its going in so they are ready (reasonable).

Food/Drink During Labor: Anesthesia at the hospital says NO - but if you need to munch under the radar they don't really care as long as you are not preparing for a C-section.

Labor: Tub, Ball, Move Around - whatever works for you. He did say not to be afraid to lie down especially as you go into the 3rd phase to preserve your strength.

Narcotics/Epidural: If it is in your birth plan to go natural, they will not offer, you ask for it.

Intermittent Fetal Heart Monitoring: As long as there are no interventions or irregularities, preferred method.

And many other points .... most importantly he said that he trusts the midwives 100% and clearly thinks of them as equals as medical professionals. That seriously made a positive impression on me!

His obvious intelligence coupled with his very honest and mellow attitude made me feel so secure.

Some people might want someone who seems very engaged or enthusiastic and been turned off by Dr. V. Not me. Not Morgan. I can't think of anyone I would rather have in charge of taking care of me and Thriller should our natural birth plan not work. (God willing this won't happen!)

Part of what we have learned over the pregnancy is that at lot of unnecessary procedures happen because of overeager doctors (Wolfe may call them "Masters of the Universe") and I am certain that Dr. V is just not that kind of doctor. Whew.