Informing GP

[Mae2B]

What did your GP do when you informed them of your pregnancy and you don't have any indication for early investigations (like in case of previous losses)?

Did they immediately book you a blood test for confirmation? Did they refer you to the maternity unit, or did they just told you to do it yourself?

My maternity unit website says we can self-refer after the 6w mark, not sure what to do until then and if there is any point in telling the GP lol

There’s no point telling them - they usually give you the details of how to refer yourself in to the midwives, but it sounds like you know how to do that already. Your first midwifery appt won’t be until 8-12 weeks so it’s fine refer at around 6 weeks. The nhs website has a good page on recommended vitamins, foods to avoid etc.

I didn't tell my GP. Just self referred to the midwifery service.

Assuming your in the UK, I was told to self refer online and then someone contacted me after a few weeks to book my booking appointment. No blood tests to confirm or anything, your sort of left waiting till 8/9 weeks then thats when you first see your midwife.
I dont know how different it is if you have had losses though

Where I am, there's a Microsoft Form to book in and then midwife gets in touch to arrange booking in appointment.

I originally phoned my GP and the receptionist literally just told me to Google the form. Booking in was online (like Zoom) at 10 weeks-ish, and my bloods etc were done at the hospital at the same time as my 12-weeks scan.

My midwife is attached to my GP surgery so the appointments with her are there, but basically the GP has nothing to do with us unless something is wrong before 17 weeks. 🤷🏼‍♀️ After 17 weeks we call the hospital if something's wrong.

But the NHS website says we need to do some blood tests before the 10 weeks. So if you have bloods at your 12 week scan, isn't this too late for those particular ones?

IME you have to self refer to the ante natal care of whichever hospital you hope to give birth at. You win then have a "booking in appointment" with a midwife at about nine week which is when the blood tests are done.

In England at least, ante natal care does not come under the GP.

But if you have nausea at weeks 6 or 7 for example, who manages this? Your GP or the antenatal unit?

You'll have the blood tests at your booking in appointment. This used to be somewhere between 6 and 10 weeks, but tends to be closer to 10 weeks now, because there's nothing they can do about losses at early stages.

They'll do bloods then and take medical history, and then you'll be booked in for your 12 week scan, which takes place between 11 and 14 weeks.

Nobody verifies that you are pregnant, via blood or urine test.

GPs don't offer antenatal care, so you don't need to tell yours x

I access midwives through my GP. At a previous GP I could book directly, this one I fill in a form and they call me.

Once you have notified whoever gives you access to midwives a booking appointment will be made usually somewhere between 6 and 10 weeks. You will get some blood tests then and more at your 12 week scan. My midwife has booked my scan after my booking appointment. I have a choice of 3 hospitals for scans and 2 for maternity care so I tell her at the booking appointment what my preference is.

If you are struggling with pregnancy sickness you get a GP appointment. You qualify for free prescriptions so make sure you get the appropriate form to sort this out. I'm on regular medication and struggling with sickness in pregnancy so I always ask my midwife for the exemption certificate when she calls to book my booking appointment. I think the form is part of the forms I needed to fill in to register to see her and she then emails me the certificate.

My 12-week scan was actually when I was 13 weeks. They can screen for Patau's, Down's and Edward's at 10-14 weeks and HIV etc is recommended before 10 weeks. But they screened me for everything at 13 weeks and it was fine.

I do think the process varies by region - where I am, you're essentially on your own until the scan; the booking in is literally just filling paperwork. It sounds brutal, but I think it's about NHS capacity -- they can't do anything about early loss so doing blood test etc at scan means they know the pregnancy's viable, so can allocate resources to it.

The GPs in most UK trusts have very little involvement in pregnancy, if any at all.
In my area, you self refer online via the hospital then will receive a booking in appointment which is normally around 9 or 10 weeks.

That's it.

Nobody confirms your pregnancy, you are basically just left to your own devices in the first trimester unless you have a problem like bleeding or severe pain. It's a very strange time and can be quite lonely as most people won't know you're pregnant and you don't get that reassurance that everything is OK.

Morning sickness is completely normal and it's generally self managed by most pregnant women unless it becomes absolutely debilitating. At the same time, some women don't get this at all and that can also be totally normal.

At your booking in appt, initial bloods will be taken, these are separate to the ones they take at your 12 week scan.

I'm now 31+3 and I haven't seen a GP once during this pregnancy.

I didn't tell my gp at any point. Self referred to the midwife and they took my word for it that I'd done a test and when my last period was, no confirmation blood tests needed.

My midwife is based at my gp surgery so I initially called the gp when I discovered I was pregnant and they made me an appointment for booking in at 8 weeks. I also get my pregnancy related vaccinations through my gp. It seems to differ based not just on region but by GP practices so possibly worth giving them a ring, even if they just add a note to your record with them to say that you're pregnant.

You either self-manage or ask your GP

If it’s hyperemesis gravidarum then GP

if it’s run if the mill nausea you self manage