Episode 36: OB-GYN Clinic: The First Ultrasound — 5,000 Core English Words

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Chapter thirty-six. The first visit to the doctor.

The test was positive, and now it is time to see a doctor. Emma calls a clinic that specializes in pregnancy and birth. Two weeks later, she and Ryan are sitting in a bright waiting room, excited and a little afraid.

Listen to how to make a medical appointment, what a nurse asks before the examination, and how to describe symptoms to a doctor.

Receptionist: Good morning, Riverside Women's Health. How can I help you?

Emma: Hi. I'd like to make an appointment, please. I've just found out that I'm pregnant.

Receptionist: Congratulations! Are you a new patient with us?

Emma: Yes, I am. My regular doctor referred me to you.

Receptionist: Wonderful. Do you know how far along you are?

Emma: About six weeks, I think.

Receptionist: Then we'd like to see you at eight weeks. I have an opening with Dr. Miller on the nineteenth, at ten fifteen in the morning. Does that work for you?

Emma: Let me check. Yes, that's fine.

Receptionist: Can I have your full name and date of birth?

Emma: Emma Johnson. June second, nineteen ninety-five.

Receptionist: And do you have health insurance?

Emma: Yes, through my employer.

Receptionist: Please bring your insurance card and a photo ID. And arrive fifteen minutes early, to complete the registration forms. It's a requirement for new patients.

Emma: Is there a fee for the first visit?

Receptionist: With your insurance, there's a small copay. We'll confirm the amount when you arrive. If it's an emergency before then, call this number at any time.

Emma: Thank you so much.

Receptionist: Good morning. Do you have an appointment?

Emma: Yes. Emma Johnson, at ten fifteen, with Dr. Miller.

Receptionist: Thank you. Please sign in here, and fill out these forms. Front and back. You can have a seat, and the nurse will call you.

Ryan: That's a lot of paper.

Emma: Medical history. Family history. Do you smoke? How much alcohol do you consume? Any medication? Any psychological treatment?

Ryan: It's complicated. Do they need to know all that?

Emma: It's the basis of everything. Be patient. Read a magazine.

Ryan: There's only a dusty one about publishing, with a poem on the back. And a boy dressed as a pirate, staring at me.

Emma: He's amused by you. You look more nervous than his mother.

Ryan: I admit it. I'm honestly terrified. In a cheerful way.

Emma: Hold my hand tightly, then. And breathe.

Nurse: Emma Johnson? Come on back. You can come too, Dad.

Ryan: Dad. She called me Dad.

Nurse: Step on the scale for me, please. Good. Now have a seat, and I'll take your blood pressure and your pulse. Just relax your arm.

Emma: Is it all right?

Nurse: It's perfect. A few questions. Is this your first pregnancy?

Emma: Yes.

Nurse: Are you taking any medication or vitamins?

Emma: Just a prenatal vitamin. One a day.

Nurse: Good. Any allergies?

Emma: Only seeds. Sesame.

Nurse: Do you smoke, or drink alcohol?

Emma: No. Not at all.

Nurse: Any history of problems with your heart, your lungs, or your liver? Or breast cancer in the family?

Emma: No.

Nurse: And how are you feeling? Any symptoms?

Emma: I'm very tired, and I feel sick in the mornings. I'm also sensitive to smells.

Nurse: That's very common. Dr. Miller will talk to you about it. You can get comfortable. He'll be right in.

Doctor: Good morning. I'm Dr. Miller. You must be Emma. And you are?

Ryan: Ryan. The husband. The nervous one.

Doctor: Every father is. Congratulations to you both. So, Emma, how have you been feeling?

Emma: Tired, mostly. And I have nausea every morning. Sometimes in the evening too.

Doctor: Have you been able to eat?

Emma: Small things. Toast, fruit. I can't look at meat.

Doctor: That's all right. It's not a necessity at this stage. Is the nausea acute? Are you able to keep liquids down?

Emma: Yes. It's unpleasant, but I'm not losing weight.

Doctor: Good. Any pain? Any bleeding?

Emma: A slightly dull pain in my lower back. No bleeding.

Doctor: On a scale of one to ten, how bad is the back pain?

Emma: A two. Maybe a three.

Doctor: That's normal. Your muscles are already changing. In my opinion, everything you describe is healthy. Now, would you like to see your baby?

Emma: Yes, please.

Doctor: Lie back comfortably. This is an ultrasound. It uses sound, not radiation, so it's completely safe. The gel is a little cold. Now, look at the screen. Do you see that small shape?

Ryan: That shadow? There?

Doctor: That's your baby. And do you see that tiny movement, like a light going on and off?

Emma: Is that...?

Doctor: That's the heartbeat. Let me turn on the sound.

The room fills with a fast, steady rhythm, like a small horse running.

Emma: Oh, Ryan. Listen.

Ryan: I hear it. I can't say anything. I'll just kiss your hand.

Doctor: One hundred and sixty beats a minute. Strong and regular. The measurements indicate that you're eight weeks and two days. With this method the accuracy is very good. It's accurate to within a few days. Your due date is the twenty-third of June.

Emma: June. A summer baby.

Emma: What should I do now? Is there anything I have to change?

Doctor: Very little. Keep taking the vitamin. Your intake of iron matters, so I may add a small dose later. I'll write down the dosage. For nutrition, eat what you can. A little, often. There's no special regime.

Emma: Should I restrict anything?

Doctor: No alcohol. Limit coffee to one cup. Avoid raw fish and soft cheese. Don't deprive yourself of sleep.

Ryan: Can she work? Can she climb a ladder?

Doctor: She can do anything she did before, if she feels well. Pregnancy is not an illness. Our species has done this for a long time.

Emma: Thank you. I've been saying that.

Doctor: If you observe any adverse signs, bleeding, strong pain, a fever, call us. Don't wait. Otherwise, I'd like to see you every four weeks. The assessment at twelve weeks is the next important one.

Ryan: Is there anything I should do?

Doctor: Yes. Be there, and don't read too much online. There's a theory for everything, and every self-made healer has a different one. Consequently, fathers arrive here more frightened than mothers.

Ryan: That's me. I read a thesis on birth canals last night. I didn't understand it, and I couldn't sleep.

Doctor: Exactly my point. My only criterion for good information is this: ask us.

Emma: We will.

Doctor: Then I'll see you in four weeks. The nurse will give you a picture to take home.

Ryan: Look at it. It's the size of a bean, and it has a heartbeat.

Emma: I can't stop looking. It's the most attractive bean in the world.

Ryan: I wasn't ready for the sound. I've never felt anything like that. It revived something in me.

Emma: Me too. I feel firmly on the ground for the first time in weeks.

Ryan: Is it inevitable that I'll cry at every appointment?

Emma: Yes. It's a variation on your personality. An advanced one.

Ryan: He was good, wasn't he? No embarrassment, no boredom. He let us wander through all our stupid questions.

Emma: They weren't stupid. And his whole philosophy is, don't be afraid.

Ryan: I noticed his certificates. He graduated thirty years ago. The foundation of that calm is thirty years of babies.

Emma: Curiosity question. Did you see the sign on the wall? "This facility is a place of safety." There was a symbol on it, and a number to call. It's for women who are threatened at home. For victims of abuse.

Ryan: I saw it. It made me think. Not everybody departs from that room into a car with someone who loves them.

Emma: No. We're lucky. I want to remember that. And I'd like to broaden the Saturday class one day. Something for young mothers. Art, and a quiet hour.

Ryan: That's a good concept. You'll evolve it into something big, like everything else.

Emma: First, lunch. I think I could eat a real meal. Don't tell the doctor.

Ryan: It's not cheating. He said eat what you can. I'll take the liberty of ordering two.

Emma: My defense is weak today. And my immune system wants pancakes.

Ryan: Then pancakes. Oh, I almost forgot. The pirate. When we left, he was wearing a bandage on his injured arm and reading poetry to his mother. Out loud. She must be deaf by now.

Emma: I love this clinic. Even the mess in the waiting room. Take a breath, Dad. We're easy to please today.

That is the end of chapter thirty-six. A phone call, a form, a few questions, and a heartbeat at one hundred and sixty.

Keep these with you: "I'd like to make an appointment." "Are you a new patient?" "I feel sick in the mornings." "On a scale of one to ten." "Is there anything I should change?"

In the next chapter, the baby needs a room, and Ryan and Emma go to a very large furniture store.

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