How long is normal to wait for an appointment?

[Hell19art]

Hi everyone! I found out last Friday that I'm pregnant. It's a total shock and very scary as it's my first one, and also I'm 38 so know I'm considered 'old' by doctors etc... anyway, I applied for 'early bird' self referral to see the midwife for the booking appointment and have been given my appointment which is on 21st Feb - which is another 3 weeks away! Is it normal not to see anyone at all until this time? By this date I'll be 9 weeks pregnant and not spoken to anyone?

Is it normal to go straight to the midwife and skip out the GP? Or should I try see the GP first?

I've also seen a few posts about private scans. I think this is something I'd want to do as I'm going to Scotland in March where my parents live, by which time I'll be 11 weeks. What's the ideal time to get a scan do you think?

Thanks ladies! I'm completely new to this so any advice is welcomed

Well of course it’s normal! What on Earth do you expect them to do? Genuine question.

If you want a scan then you pay. Or wait until 12 weeks ish - if in England.

Booking in appointment is about medical history and bloods.

I saw the midwife around 9 weeks. I think they ideally like you to see the midwife between 8-10 weeks, so sounds totally normal. Your GP will probably tell you to self-refer to the midwife but I don't think they'll confirm the pregnancy or anything. Congratulations!

Congratulations Op!
Totally Normal, I never had a midwife appointment until I was 11 weeks (found out at 4 Weeks!) and my scan was at 13 Weeks.
Obviously you can pay for an early scan if you wanted! If you're worried anything is wrong before your initial appointment your community midwives will have a helpline number

@Hell19art first of all, congratulations on your pregnancy! I'm 37 and pregnant with my first so can definitely relate.

In our area, it's the same. I picked up a form from my.doctors reception and self referred to midwife for booking in appt. I never saw the GP. The booking in appt is usually between 8 and 10 weeks (mine was at 9 and a half) then the first scan is between 11 and 14 weeks (mines not till 13+6).

My OH is in a different country and they do more early scans as standard over there so I did have 2 scans at 6+1 and 8+2 which was reassuring....I don't think I could gave waited till nearly 14 weeks!

First of all congratulations!

This is completely normal timescale, so don't worry. I had my booking in appointment with the midwife at about 8-9 weeks and my 1st nhs scan I will be 13 and a half weeks (I think they get you in between 12-14 weeks for the scan). There is no need to involve your gp, it should all be done through your midwife.

This is my first pregnancy and I didn't want to wait so long for my scan as it didn't feel real so had a private one done at 7.5 weeks just to see the heartbeat and I'm glad I did ☺️

I've never seen a GP in any of my pregnancies. The receptionist always reroutes you to the MW. 1st appointment should be at 9 weeks, or shortly thereafter so sounds perfectly normal.

You just need to be seen and have a scan around 12 weeks. That's an early appointment you've got. Don't worry.

Congrats OP! In the UK it is normal to wait until 9-10 weeks.

In Australia you have an early dating scan at around 6 weeks (assuming you know that you are pregnant this early) and the appointments all kick off from there.

@MrsPear I had no idea! Hence the question.... all the sites etc say "see your GP or Midwife ASAP as soon after you find out". I didn't think over 2 months was soon? But from all the comments below I see it's a normal amount of time to wait and that's definitely put my mind at ease.. so I guess if anything happens before then I should go to the GP?! Honestly I've no clue about any of this stuff.. so sorry if I sound stupid!

@London91 Thank you! Definitely put my mind at ease :)

@Showmeyourhero Thank you! I'll think about a private scan. I don't want to tell anyone until I have that and would be great to tell my parents face-to-face since they're in Scotland and I'm in England :)

@sel2223 aw congratulations to you too! I just thought with being older and 'higher risk' they'd have me in sooner, but obviously not! The comments have definitely put my mind at ease knowing it's a normal amount of time to wait. I'll have a think about a private scan, I don't think I can wait that long either!

@Sarahlouise86 that's how I real at the moment. It doesn't feel real! I don't have any symptoms at the moment really, other than tiredness so it's kinda scary. It's good to know it's a normal amount of time to wait.. I'll definitely have a think about a private scan! I don't think I can wait till like 12+ weeks! :)

@SnoozyLou thanks for the reassurance! I definitely feel better now!

@georgialondon phew!! That's good to know! Thank you :)

@HomerSimpsonSmilingPolitely Thank you! That's definitely put my mind at rest :)

Thanks everyone!! That's definitely helped put my mind at rest :)

@Hell19art in my area they don't really class it as an older pregnancy any more unless you're over 40, and even then, you'd only be high risk if there were other factors as well.

If you do decide to go for an early scan, my advice would be to wait till 8/9 weeks if you can, you'll see much more than if you go earlier..
I was lucky at my first scan and heard a heartbeat but scans before 7 weeks can be a worry as sometimes there's nothing to see or hear yet.

@Hell19art I should add, my pregnancy is classed as high risk for reasons other than my age but that still didn't make any difference. As I said before, I've not even got my dating scan till almost 14 weeks and my first consultants appointment is not till 15 weeks!

@Hell19art you don't need to see the gp unless you are on medication.

@Hell19art You're welcome. I'm always a bit mystified when people mention seeing their GP about pregnancy on here. You'd never get past the receptionists at my surgery.

And congratulations!

@SnoozyLou in my area you can't self refer to the midwives so have to have an appointment with the gp first. You basically go in and say "I'm pregnant!" and they say "great. I'll let the midwives know and they'll send you an appointment" feels like the biggest waste of time for everyone involved!

I'm 15 weeks pregnant (I'm 37) and had my first midwife appointment at 10 weeks, then had my scan at 12 weeks. So all perfectly normal.
The best thing you can do now is eat well and start your antenatal vitamins. Go Dr's if you have aby concerns.

I found the first 12 weeks was just about surviving the nausea and sickness!

I'm always a bit mystified when people mention seeing their GP about pregnancy on here. You'd never get past the receptionists at my surgery.

Really? That's strange because in Australia it is quite normal for your gp to be involved in your pregnancy. I saw mine probably 4 or 5 times during my pregnancy, as well as seeing a midwife.

@HomerSimpsonSmilingPolitely it varies from trust to trust in the UK but, in the majority of areas, you have very little contact with the GP (if any). I'm 12 weeks now and not seen or spoken to the GP once.

You're also lucky with the early scans in Australia. First one is not till 11-14 weeks in the UK.