Asking Questions and Educating Yourself
Your health-care provider is a medical expert and is trained to suggest options for your care. Still, you make the decisions and are in control of your own body. Because of this, it is very important that you work with your health-care provider, ask questions, and educate yourself.
While your health-care provider tries to offer the information you need, often questions and concerns come up that have not been addressed. At every appointment, make a point to ask the questions that have come to you. It may help you to write questions down and keep them in one place so that you can organize your inquiries. You can also call your health-care provider's office if you have questions between visits.
While online medical sites are a wonderful source of information, they are also very easy ways to misdiagnose yourself and cause needless worry. Use these sites for information and as a way of learning basic information, but leave diagnosis and treatment up to your health-care provider, who knows your specific situation.
You can also educate yourself by reading pregnancy books (like this one!) and Web sites about pregnancy. A wealth of information is available online and in bookstores. Many of your simple questions can be answered this way. You should never feel that your questions are too basic to bother your own health-care provider with. Whatever you want to know, she is there to discuss. Some women prefer to call the office and talk to a nurse. If this makes you more comfortable, do so.
Books and Web sites are useful because they can give you important background information and help you understand the terminology used when talking about pregnancy. They also let you know that you're not alone.
Lots of women have gone through what you are going through, and they've done so successfully.
