ALL.THE.QUESTIONS????

[princessisadora]

Hi girls. My brain is about to explode! I have all.the.questions. today.

1. What are your thoughts on Vitamin K1 for the baby, yay or nay? Injection vs oral?
2.  Hep B shot?
3. Gentamicin eye ointment?
4. Talk to me about transverse babies...My little man is still tranverse at 30wks. I have started doing head stands in the pool and daily forward leaning inversions. Any one else
5. How did you pick your pediatrician? 
6. So far this is it but I am sure I will edit to add more.
7. Did you invite your doula to the baby shower?


ETA: #7

[pbandj714]

I'm only good for info on #4. One of my twins was transverse at my last growth scan at the end of March. They didn't seem concerned about it because babies can keep flipping and changing positions sometimes all the way up until delivery. It's sort of uncomfortable for me since there's not much room in there anyway, but oh well! It very well could have flipped by now (hard to tell because that one is always a mover and a shaker). Good luck! Hopefully your transverse baby cooperates!

[frecklesnbrains]

1,2,3 - I'm a pediatrician so I say absolutely YES to all three of these. Vitamin K and eye ointment are 100% safe interventions proven to prevent rare but devastating newborn complications. Knowing all the science behind these I wouldn't even flinch about accepting them. Hep B can be given later at your first pediatrician's appointment if you prefer, but should definitely be given in infancy, as it is a common infection. Any rumors you may read about it causing neurologic or immunologic problems are false and poor science.

4. As of yesterday my baby is currently breech at 32 weeks and my OB isn't concerned at all. They move around a ton at this time. In fact, I'm pretty sure I can feel him flip position on a regular basis. I'm not sure how much all the positioning really helps but it's fun to read about and certainly can't hurt!

5. I haven't picked a pediatrician yet - it's on my to-do list! Convenience is a major factor for me because I'll be a working mom. So it needs to be close to where I live and have flexible hours including evenings and weekends, as well as same-day sick visits.

7. I don't have either a doula or a baby shower, but I'd say it depends on how close you feel with your doula. I imagine the intimacy of the relationship people form with their doulas can differ greatly. But in general I think if I did have a shower I'd want my nearest and dearest there. That may or may not include your doula.

[titania]

frecklesnbrains, Do they normally give vitamin K and the Hep B shot after delivery? I know about the eye ointment, but on the hospital tour they didn't mention the other two.

princessisadora, I am really of no help... I'm on Kaiser so our Pediatrician is assigned at birth (no picking in advance). I don't know if I would feel obligated to invite my Doula to the shower unless she was a close friend or relative.

[babyzebra]

For #1-3 I say yes for all the reasons freckles mentioned.

For transverse and breech babies I believe you can start doing the spinning babies stuff when you get closer to your EDD. They can definitely still flip around in there now, so there is time for the position to change.

I picked my pediatrician based on my insurance and convenience of their office hours. I'm pretty low maintenance when it comes to that stuff, so I'm probably not the best person to ask.

I have no experience with doulas, but I would think it would depend on how close you are to her.

[frecklesnbrains]

titania, Vitamin K is pretty routine in most hospitals. It is usually given in the delivery room at the same time as the eye ointment. I'd ask your hospital specifically about the Vitamin K if they didn't mention it to you. The HepB vaccine is a bit more variable - most hospitals will offer it after birth (usually before discharge) but in my experience some places put it off until one of the early pediatrician appointments.

[titania]

Thanks frecklesnbrains! I will ask!

[soultrane]

DS was transverse pretty much my entire pregnancy last time and ended up perfectly head down at the very end so there's still plenty of time to move!

As for choosing a pediatrician, location was a big factor as was appointment availability. The practice that DS goes to (and DS2 will go to) has same-day sick appts available 364 days a year, as well as evening appts M-F. They also have a team of lactation consultants on staff which is a huge perk! It's a large practice so his sick visits rotate based on which doc or PA is available, but his well visits are always with his primary doc. We met her prior to choosing the practice and made sure that her approach and the office's policies aligned with ours (vaccination beliefs, breastfeeding vs. formula feeding, etc.) We also based our decision quite a bit on how we felt when we visited. How welcoming was the staff? Did we felt like we clicked with the doctor? Did we feel rushed at all?

He's been seeing them for almost 4 years now and we haven't had any complaints, but it's also important to remember that choosing a pediatrician is a decision that can always be changed later if you aren't happy with them once you see them in action. Getting real-life referrals from friends or relatives, or even mom's groups online, may be a good place to start!

[bighair12]

1-3.  Yes, yes, and yes.  As a provider you can guarantee that I recommend this to all my patient's.  With DD we did them all.  Agree with frecklesnbrains, on all accounts.
4.  Babies can flip for weeks.  I wouldn't worry at all.
5.  We picked our pediatrician office based on location.  We actually switched pedis while in the hospital with DD because I had so many complications and he was the one on call.  He was aware of everything going on and I didn't want to explain everything to another provider.
 
Didn't have a doula.

[Flair Underwood]

1-3, everything Freckles said.
4. Position is completely fluid at 30 weeks. No worries!
5. Just asked friends and coworkers. It's not a permanent decision - so if you don't love your pet you can switch.
7. No doula - but I probably wouldn't because it's still a professional relationship.

[carolinaheart]

1-3. absolutely yes for us.

4. I actually have no idea how this girl is positioned and won't worry about it until my doctor does.

5. Before we moved I picked a pediatrician based on word of mouth from family and friends. But now I know no one here and am on my own. I actually looked at the list of in-network providers and their reviews on my insurance website and then cross referenced those reviews with Angie's list. I wanted one with an available lactation consultant and same day sick visits. I probably put more time than necessary into this though because I'm 100% open to switching if I'm not comfortable.

7. I probably would not.

[princessisadora]

Thanks for your answers.
The midwife at my OB office was talking to me about spinning babies. She also said it doesn't hurt to start doing inversions. So I'm going to give it a go.

[sandandsea]

Apr 14, 2016 9:40:44 GMT -5 princessisadora said:

Hi girls. My brain is about to explode! I have all.the.questions. today.

1. What are your thoughts on Vitamin K1 for the baby, yay or nay? Injection vs oral?
2.  Hep B shot?
3. Gentamicin eye ointment?
4. Talk to me about transverse babies...My little man is still tranverse at 30wks. I have started doing head stands in the pool and daily forward leaning inversions. Any one else
5. How did you pick your pediatrician? 
6. So far this is it but I am sure I will edit to add more.
7. Did you invite your doula to the baby shower?


ETA: #7

1/2. I don't remember.  I fully trust my pediatrician and follow their recommendations.  So, if it is recommended by the APA, DS probably got it.  We follow the guidelines for all vaccinations as I'd rather risk the potential side effects than any of the diseases that are known to be deadly.  And, DC requires it.
3.  Yes, we did this
4.  We still have plenty of time for flipping around, so I wouldn't worry about it for another month of so.  My theory is what will be, will be, so I try not to worry about the maybes until I have to.
5. We got recommendations from friends and interviewed 2.  We went with one and have loved them since.
7. N/A, I didn't have a MW of doula

[nymama917]

1-3 are all yes for us. I really don't remember the eye ointment or vitamin K but I"m pretty positive DD got both. Hep B is given at the pediatrician and I believe we got it at her 1 month appointment. She didn't get any shots at the hospital (except vitamin K if they did a shot). Now I'm feeling bad for not knowing this stuff, but honestly I am for these types of things and remember talking to my BIL (resident in family med) about it before DD so I'm sure we did it.

Pediatrician - We asked some friends and then read some reviews. Convenience and sick appointments were things I looked at. Vaccine schedules was something else I looked at, but the one we picked was just standard guidance. I wanted a low intervention place, not someone that would dish out medicine....in hindsight I think they are okay, but I don't love them. The office is great but I don't love the main doctor at the practice (and we schedule well visits with the other doc who is only there 1 day a week). It's too much trouble to switch now and we're most likely only going to be here another year so we are just sticking it out. Nothing to hate, just don't love.

I didn't/don't have a doula but if you feel connected to her/him then invite. If not, then I think it's no big deal not to.

[packerfan4life]

I haven't read all the other responses yet

1. What are your thoughts on Vitamin K1 for the baby, yay or nay? Injection vs oral? Absolutely. Injection. It can prevent baby from a serious bleeding disorder.
2. Hep B shot? Another yay from me. Although if your hepB neg I don't think waiting to do it at the 2 month visit is really a big deal
3. Gentamicin eye ointment? I plan to do it. Although if documented negativefor gonorrhea and chlamydia I don't think it's the worst to skip
4. Talk to me about transverse babies...My little man is still tranverse at 30wks. I have started doing head stands in the pool and daily forward leaning inversions. Any one else I'm still trying to figure out which way this baby is facing. I'm doing hypnobabies that suggest doing some exercises like pelvic tilting and butterfly stretches. Supposedly it can help baby get into the right position. I'm not sure what gestational age it's recommended to start things like spinning babies
5. How did you pick your pediatrician? The clinic I wanted to go to had one Black female physician and I thought it would be a good role model for my daughter (who is Black, transracial adoption). I also had heard good things about her.
6. So far this is it but I am sure I will edit to add more.
7. Did you invite your doula to the baby shower? N/a No doula here

[frecklesnbrains]

Re: eye ointment. It's important to know that there are multiple other causes of bacterial eye infections in newborns aside from chlamydia and gonorrhea, so even if you're negative for these the antibiotic ointment will protect babies eyes from the other types of bacteria too. In fact, over half of newborn conjunctivitis cases are caused by one of these other (non-STD) bacteria.

[pdxlaurens]

1. What are your thoughts on Vitamin K1 for the baby, yay or nay? Injection vs oral?
2. & Hep B shot?
3. Gentamicin eye ointment?

Yes for 1 and 2, although I think for DS the hep b was at the 1st follow up, not in the hospital. We skipped the antibiotic eye ointment, but only because I'm allergic to that antibiotic. That type of allergy isn't necessarily genetic but my dr. agreed that it was a risk to factor in.

4. Talk to me about transverse babies...

My LO was head down at my appt Monday but I'm almost positive later this week he flipped and then maybe flipped back again. You have a few weeks still before you need to be concerned.

5. How did you pick your pediatrician?

They work in the same building as my OB and are in network for the insurance. I asked my OB to recommend someone in the practice.

6. So far this is it but I am sure I will edit to add more.
7. Did you invite your doula to the baby shower?

No doula but I might if I had one. Depends on the size of the shower and if I felt it would make me more comfortable during labor to have that social frame of reference or to have kept it professional. You can always ask, she might decline if it is abnormal for her work patterns.


ETA: #7[/quote]

[birdhut]

1,2,3 yes to all. DD got whatever was routine after delivery. When it comes to vaccines we do all vaccines.

5. Ours was recommended to us by a friend and we are very happy with him. I would ask some friends and get pros and cons. We like the idea of having a pediatrician at a pediatricians office instead of a family doctor. We were going to switch to our family doctor but we just love how geared toward kids her doctors office is. Same thing with the hospital this week. When she was younger she got croup and we took her to just a regular hospital in town but this time we went to a women's and children's hospital and we just really liked how the doctors were with her since they deal with kids all day. It's not that the others are bad they just don't work with only kids all day.

[happyday]

1-3.

I'll speak up. We refused all three with dd1 at the hospital and had hep b done at the pedi a bit later. She never had eye ointment or vitamin k. I would have done it if it was a boy and we were circumcising. (It wasn't a boy and we wouldn't have - but FYI).
With this baby, we will do the vitamin k at the hospital bc of urging of our pedi. We will stick with hep b at the pedi at a later date. I will refuse eye ointment. I've never had an std and our risk is very low.

4. Talk to me about transverse babies...My little man is still tranverse at 30wks. I have started doing head stands in the pool and daily forward leaning inversions. Any one else

This baby was transverse last time we checked. I'm 99% sure she dropped head down into my pelvis two days ago. I won't start spinning babies until 33-34 weeks if im wrong.

5. How did you pick your pediatrician?

We went to a meet and greet. And lots of personal recommendations.

7. Did you invite your doula to the baby shower?

I'm not having a shower, but no, I wouldn't. She's doing a job as a doula -- I wouldn't want her under an obligation to buy us a gift. We hired her.