I thought I was prepared....

So 5 weeks and 3 days. Still not feeling anything except boobs that feel like they're made of needles - on the inside.
And it's really hard to get up in the morning - although I am actually sleeping a lot deeper than usual.

So two days ago I went for my first prenatal appointment. It's strange, you have all this info about getting pregnant, finding out your pregnant and then ....what?

What do you do? Do you go to the doctor? The nurse? Do they need to confirm it, just take your word for it?

Anyway I decided to head to the Well Woman clinic at my GP. After a bum-numbing wait, we saw the nurse. I gave her my urine sample (i didn't bring one from home, they gave me the smallest container in the world at reception) and she tested my urine to see if I was pregnant - well first she asked me if I was happy to be pregnant!

Anyway there were a couple more questions I had. 6 years ago, I was diagnosed with abnormal cells in my cervix and they were removed. Fast forward to the present day and I have been having yearly smears to check that everything is still normal. Anyhooo - my yearly smear was overdue and I was suddenly disproportionately worried everything.
I tried to find some information online but the nurse looked at my records and told me there was no way they would do a smear test (pap smear) whilst I was pregnant. Now weirdly in America, a pap smear is part of the first examination after conception. Not sure why it varies so much but there was nothing I could do but be assured.

So to make matters worse, we are moving out of the area in a week's time and I have to re-register at another GP and see the nurse and find out where we can have our baby (fingers crossed we get to that point) etc etc!!

Anyway before we left the nurse gave me some motherly advice as expected and then threw me a curve ball by asking me when I was vaccinated for mumps and rubella (I was born before the advent of the MMR jab so I had single vaccines)
Apparently they don't last a lifetime and before you get pregnant you need to check that you still have immunity!! WHAT?!!

I have been on so many websites and read books and yet seem to have completely bypassed this hugely vital piece of information. If you're not immune to rubella (german measles) you have to basically RUN the other way if you know someone who is infected. Great    advice.

So here's to 4 more days and then telling the parents!!!


photo credit: BriceFR via photopin cc