Choosing the right doctor

I have always had a love/hate relationship with doctors. I love going to them, but always hate their solutions to my problems. I officially diagnosed myself with hypochondria at a young age and have struggled with the disease ever since. I have died 10X over from heart attacks, brain tumors and all forms of cancer. Due to extreme dizziness in my adult life, I have had countless amounts of blood drawn, X-rays, MRI’s and CT scans in search of the right doctor to tell me what was killing me. Well it turns out it was just anxiety...Who knew? But the point is, I have more doctors in my IPhone than friends and I realize that is a huge problem!

You can only imagine the stress I felt when it was time to choose a doctor that I would spend the next nine months with and help bring a healthy baby into this world. I was referred to a doctor by a friend and thought OK- maybe this wouldn’t be so hard.

That Friday I went to visit the doctor, I’ll call him Dr X. Shai met me at the office and both he and the flip video greeted me when I walked in (He loves to capture it all). I striped down and started crying with anticipation of getting to meet baby boo on the monitor. Dr X came in, congratulated me and immediately did the scan. Within minutes it was over. I got to see the monitor for all of two seconds and I felt confused and annoyed that the biggest moment in my life so far (minus my wedding) was so unclimactic and unemotional. Was this normal? Am I being overly sensitive and crazy like I usually am? After the sonogram we spoke to the doctor briefly in his office about all the things I can and cannot do and we left. On our walk home I expressed my annoyance to Shai and he looked at me and said, “If you’re not comfortable with him, we will use someone else”. Everything is always so black and white to him- god bless because I was having a flat panic attack in my mind. This doctor came highly recommended to me and best of all- he takes insurance, which is a rare find in NYC. I felt bad not to use him but Shai made me realize that my comfort is number one and I needed to go with my gut. The search began and I hit the Internet like a mad woman.

SO many doctors to chose and so little time. I wanted everything done yesterday and I needed this figured out ASAP! I asked another friend I trusted if she could recommend someone and she said she loved hers. That Monday I was off to Dr. Joyce Kim’s office with Shai in tow. The second I sat down I felt at peace. She was bubbly, funny, easy to talk to and I could see myself lunching with her at 40 Carrots. We chatted for an hour and a half about my history, dos and don’t of pregnancy and all that other good stuff. Next came the exam and the second round at meeting baby boo. As soon as the image came to life she announces with joy- “now isn’t that just the CUTEST little yolk sac”. OMG I LOVE her I thought!! I felt like she was my mother and was showing off with pride the little tiny dot in my belly. She took tons of pictures of the baby and explained everything to us, including that I was about 5 weeks and baby boo was conceived in Turks and Caicos. This is how I expected it to be- exciting, emotional and thorough.

There was no looking back now- she was the one. While it isn’t the ideal situation because she doesn’t take insurance- Shai said it’s more important that I feel at ease because she would be spending the next 8 months with me and my vagina.

5 weeks Preg!

For those of you looking for a doctor now I recommend you really take the time to meet them in person, ask TONS of questions and don’t be afraid to go with your gut. Even if your best friend loves her doc, it doesn’t necessarily mean you will too. Good luck ladies…it’s just an important as finding a good husband!