You should ask that your records be sent to you - that way you will always have a copy. You should get a copy of your records and blood work, particularly since you may have already had much of the testing that your OB needs. This will give you the opportunity to meet with your OB and schedule genetic counseling and testing as appropriate. You should call for the appointment when you are about 7-8 weeks pregnant (before you are discharged from your RE), so that you have your first visit at around ten weeks. Typically, it takes time from when you call the OB to when they have an available appointment. There are also many practical things to consider as you make the transition to your OB. Unless you have one of these conditions, you typically will not need to see a high-risk OB. Your pregnancy may be classified as high risk due to advanced maternal age, multiple births, or other factors such as a chronic condition that you may have (diabetes, obesity or high blood pressure, for example) but not because you conceived using fertility treatment. Despite all the things that you went through to achieve this pregnancy, you are not at significantly greater risk for pregnancy loss or other complications than those women who had no difficulty getting pregnant. You do not need to see your OB as frequently as the RE. Once you start seeing your OB, you will be seen every four weeks. The bond that you develop with your RE or Nurse may make it hard for you to move to the next phase of your fertility care. In addition, you become accustomed to and comforted by the constant feedback on how your treatment is progressing. And though a happy time, this transition can also create anxiety. Because of the intense nature of fertility treatments, you often develop close relationships with the fertility team. And then you will “graduate” and be discharged to the care of your OB/GYN. You will continue to see your RE until you are approximately 8-10 weeks pregnant. Needless to say, these visits are reassuring and comforting. You will be able to see the embryo growing and hear the heartbeat. Typically, you will have ultrasounds weekly to evaluate the progress of the pregnancy. At approximately 5 ½ weeks pregnant, you will have an ultrasound to see that everything is progressing normally, and to check for a multiple pregnancy. Once you are pregnant, you will initially have blood work every 2-3 days to ensure that the pregnancy hormone level (beta HCG) is rising appropriately and that progesterone levels are adequate to sustain a pregnancy. If all goes well, your fertility treatments will be successful. Then there are the medications and invasive procedures. Fertility treatments typically require frequent, occasionally almost daily, office visits. It is emotionally stressful and also physically challenging. Once you start seeing your RE, you quickly find out just how hard fertility treatments are. While you are likely approaching this visit with hope, there is anxiety that the treatment will not be successful, anxiety of seeing a new doctor, anxiety about the cost, and anxiety about what to expect. Then, your doctor suggests that you see a reproductive endocrinologist (RE, a.k.a. What should you expect when you “graduate” from using an RE to a OB/GYN?įirst you realize that you are having trouble getting pregnant. Transitioning from an RE to a OB/GYN can be difficult.
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