Pre-Conception Doctors

[BabyWrangler]

Hi Guys,
My husband and I are about to start TTC.
Im due to come off BCP in about 7 weeks.
I don't have a regular Doctor or GP due to moving around a bit and I want to know if anyone has any suggestions for a good Doctor to go to for my pre conception check up and so on.
Im in Melbournes Eastern Suburbs.
If anyone out this way can recommend a Dr that would be great.
I've started on Elevit, but I need to get the blood test etc done.
Thanks

[Shanti]

Hi baby wrangler,
I'm on the gold coast so sorry, not anywhere near you!

However we are going to TTC in 2-3mths too and i'm off the pills now. doc advised me it can take 6mths or more sometimes 12mths for your fertility to come back to normal after BCP's so if i were you, i would go off the pill now, that is if you are really keen about TTC in 8 weeks otherwise it may take bit longer than you hoped. then and again, you may fall preg immediately coming off pills... hard to say...

That's great you've started taking Elevit. I've started taking folic acid tablets and B vitamins too and soon starting to take Blackmores Pregnancy tablets....
I don't have a regular GP/Doc either as we move around alot too but finally settled now and i'm looking for a good female GP but cannot find one.....
Ask for blood test to check your rubella levels... i had one done last week and i am protected which is good. also check hep a/b levels too but i am immune to this already from 2yrs ago... so don't need to worry about that either. i think they are the main ones to check for. once pregnant, your doc will run lots of different blood tests.

good luck!!!

[BabyWrangler]

Hi Renstar,
I imagine it is definately going to take a while to conceive after coming off the pill.
However, we needed to plan to fall pregnant after a particular date (for financial reasons), so Im staying on the pill until end of July.
That way, if I get luck and fall straight away, then all will be well.
It will drive me insane if it takes a while, but we really need to wait this next 2 months out.

Thanks for the advice re blood tests etc, thats pretty much what I'm talking about, but I want to find a good doctor to do them all so they are all in the one file.

[Shanti]

yeah i agree completely with what you are saying... re: one doctor, one file. that's how i feel also. it's good you are looking now as once pregnant you may find you are switching between docs trying to find a good one, that's what i don't want to be doing either.

hope all goes well for you and you get your BFP at the right time It's an exciting time for us! Is it your number #1?

[sassy123]

hey renstar i am gold coast too

[Shanti]

hey sassy! Not long until you TTC (late June was it??) have you found a good female gp in the area? Which part of GC are you? I'm at Tugun. I can't find a decent female doc yet...happy to travel a few suburbs to find one too!

[Heaven]

Hey, I am really lucky, in the same situation as u but went for my blood test yesterday and got a really nice doctor so I'm sticking with her.
I went off the pill at the end of last month and my period hasn't come back, well it's not supposed to yet but I don't think I've ovulated yet which I should have. So that is worrying me a bit. So yeah, the point of that was it may take a while so just remember that! Good luck with everything!

[Shanti]

Good luck TTC #1 now SaraJane! That's very exciting
That's also great news you found a good gp you are comfortable with... i'm still looking!

[Rumpleteaser]

Hey, I am really lucky, in the same situation as u but went for my blood test yesterday and got a really nice doctor so I'm sticking with her.
I went off the pill at the end of last month and my period hasn't come back, well it's not supposed to yet but I don't think I've ovulated yet which I should have. So that is worrying me a bit. So yeah, the point of that was it may take a while so just remember that! Good luck with everything!

SaraJane: I have read a couple of your posts and thought I would add my 2 cents worth. I went off BCP in April, deciding that it would probably take a couple of trysbefore I conceived, I started temping etc... 51 days later I got AF type bleed. Never got confirmation of ovulation that month temping with FF. SO the cycle began again, continued temping hoping to get so clue as to when I would O, did a couple of OPK and got +ve, but still no obvious temp rise, kept getting +ve OPK, so did a HPT which came back +ve. Turned out I was 7 week PG, which coincided with stopping BC. Obviously I'm over the moon, but never in my wildest dreams did I think it would happen so quickly.

So be aware that if you are not using BC you might end up UTD before you know it. Anyway, good luck. I hope you get everything you wish for.

[Shanti]

That's so awesome Charlotte, that you fell pregnant so soon!! :P That's great! I've heard that you can be very fertile after just stopping BCP (well, some women anyway) and when I stopped taking BCP's i thought "i would LOVE to try now!!" but nope not the right time for us with the wedding approaching etc... i'm so glad it didn't take you long... we are marrying sept so hopefully we will be like you and fall pregnant not long after...!

[ME2006]

Dear Baby Wrangler,
Have you found a doctor yet? The Blackburn Medical Clinic on Whitehorse Road has several female gps interested in Women's Health and Obstetrics and they are really lovely, if you google that name it will show up. They would be worth a try if you are in that area.
Best of luck, ME

[Kristin27]

Hi Baby Wrangler,
Have you found a doctor yet? I might be a bit late, but the doctors at 'Doctors of Ivanhoe' are great, 131 Upper Heidelberg Road IVANHOE VIC 3079. Telephone
03 9497 1644.
Any news yet???

[vestalvagrant]

Hi gals,

I'm a newbie, this is my first post outside the Marketplace area.

My hubby and I are going to start TTC at the end of 2007. I plan to come off the pill in September and start pre-conception care then. I live in Collingwood in inner Melbourne and have been seeing GPs in Surrey HIlls for the past few years. They're great but I don't own a car any more and it's almost impossible to get there. I'm looking for a new GP, hopefully along the 86 tram line.

Kristen27, I might look up your 'Doctors of Ivanhoe' and see how close they are to my tram. Your recommendation might help more than one person in this forum!

[UPDATE] Hmm, they're not neat the 86 tram but are on a convenient train line. I might give them a try if I don't find an appealling GP around Clifton Hill or Nothcote.

[BabyWrangler]

Hi guys,
thank you all for your posts.
I managed to find a fantastic female GP in my area and have since had my blood test (everything normal WWOOOHHOOO...thats the only normal thing about me!!!) and have the all clear to go ahead and TTC when ready! 5 weeks to go!

[Kristin27]

Vestalvagrant,

I don't really know of any doctors in the Collingwood area, however I know there's a women's clinic with all female doctors near or at the Freemason's Hospital in Clarendon Street, East Melbourne. I've heard great things about them for TTC and general women's health. Good luck!