Booking Appointment

[TobleroneBoo]

Can anybody please advise what to expect of my booking appointment.

Is it just a chat, basically? Can DP come?

After being given the wrong month, and two different times - I have mine this week :)

Mine took just under an hour. They go through the pregnancy notes with you and complete all the sections. Includes medical history, family medical history, smoking/drinking. They weigh and measure you to look for risk factors. DP is welcome to go in my area, one of the questions is about DV so sometimes they will ask for DP to leave for a short while then. They booked me in for blood tests and referred for dating scan. They also explained the testing choices for both blood test and scans.

It's pretty dull tbh (as are all midwife appointments).

They'll ask you to fill out your basic details, weigh you, and take a family history and partner's family history of inherited conditions. They will also either take a blood sample or arrange for you to give one elsewhere.

Your partner can come if he likes but isn't necessary. Depending on area they may ask him to leave for 15mins so they can ask you if you have had any pregnancies he doesn't know about and whether you feel at risk at home and to share with you some DV resources and phone numbers.

You need to know your family medical history and your dp's. Lots of blood tests - they will ask if you want testing for hiv. The domestic violence qu is standard and they might want your dp to leave when they talk to you. Lots of form filling. Think about where you might want to give birth.

Oh, and you'll probably also get to pee in a cup so they can do a protein dip test.

My DH come to my first booking in appt with ds1. he didn't bother to come for the next 2 children!

Thanks Trash that is very helpful.

I went for a blood test last week as they specified it needed to be done before this appointment so hopefully they can go through the results then.

Will they give me diet advice do you know? I dont mean diet per se but I know that my BMI is terrible, and I need to do something about it - I feel ready to, now I dont want to throw up constantly!

Mine took an hour and a half, I took my partner with me, and it was basically a long chat about my medical history/DPs. We also worked out my provisional due date.
We discussed things like mental health, where me and the baby would be living, birth choices (midwife-led unit, hospital, home birth etc).
I had my weight and height checked, blood and urine sample taken and was given some freebies and lots of leaflets etc from the midwife.
She also told me what my 12 week scan would be like/ what to expect at the hospital.

I think they tend to give out general "eat a healthy balanced diet" advice but they're not really there for diet help. If your BMI puts you in a high risk category they may briefly outline what the high risk care pathway looks like in terms of appointments.

In general though the emphasis on pregnancy is weight maintenance/not gaining excessively rather than loss or reducing your BMI.

Sorry, cross posted!!

Thank you for all of your information - I would normally be happy to go alone but we are off for a day out straight after, so DP is happy to come along

Also, I am sure they will give you diet advice if you ask - they will tell you about foods you should avoid - so I am sure they would give you help on how to get the right nutrients for you and baby.

Thats is Tiramisu I dont want to lose any, I just want to be eating the healthiest way possible

I'm a size 12 but have always been heavy, so last time it was checked I was in the obese category :(

I don't have personal experience of midwife guidance but healthy eating in pregnancy is the same as healthy eating any time, really :)

I think Slimming World is OK to do in pregnancy from a health perspective, with a goal of maintenance/slow gain, so you could always ask them about that.

My appointment took almost 1.5 hours due to bloodworks taking 20 mins (I have very difficult barely there veins which they're used to now) and a long double checking of parental histories on both sides as mum was born in Kenya. DH turned up halfway through due to work and travel so by then DV question had already been asked nd he didn't need to leave the room.
I was also asked some extra questions because she could tell I was nervous as this was my 1st so she tried to put me at ease as much as she could.

Mine took an hour and 3/4, and my DP came with, and stayed in with me for the whole thing. It was at the hospital, and it was really warm in there, so not fun. They went through my family medical history, and my DP's, which took a while as he's not British. Did urine and attempted blood tests (I had to go to phlebotomy the following day as she couldn't get any blood from me), and explained what all the tests were for, weighed and measured me, and went through all the notes and gave me mine to keep. Talked about what happens next, talked about home life and what to expect in terms of support, and where I might want to have the baby. She also gave me contact details for my community midwife. She was fab, but it did feel like it took forever and I was so tired and dehydrated by the end of it.

My BMI was on the high side, I am a size 14, I'm also on the older side too at 35, so my info was refered for additional risk analysis, which came back as low risk. I've also been refered for a blood glucose analysis at the hospital, that happens at about 26 weeks for me. They also refered me to a healthy mums to be group run by the health visiting team, who had a nice chat with me a couple of weeks later and offered some additional support and monitoring for me if I was concerned at all about weight, diet, food etc. They were prepared to come to me once a month and plan food and exercise and answer any questions I had, so that might be something you could enquire about if you're concerned about your weight or diet. I didn't take them up on it because my lifestyle changed hugely for the better just before I got pregnant (change of job had a massive impact) and so I know I'm much healthier now.