please help....any info would be GREATLY appreciated!

hi all.....
i haven't been on here in what seems like forever. my son was born 6/29/06 and my daughter was born 3/24/08 so its definitely been quite some time. anyway, i'm pregnant for the third time- but only about 4 weeks 2 days...(i know- thats like barely even preggo- lol)...
i have a major concern though and my doctor is out of the country and i just saw his PA and i'm REALLY upset at what she said to me. heres the story as brief as i can make it.....
i had an x-ray done on my hip last monday (would have been 3weeks and a day). it was not a shielded xray. they only took two images. i've been so concerned since sunday night after i took the test. i didn't think i was pregnant. anyway, bc of my concern i called the doctor early just to ask the risks and whatnot involved. they had me come in to see the PA who really only made me 100% more upset. she asked if i would be comfortable doing a certain procedure (termination- makes me ill to write it). i told her no. i then felt like she almost discarded the pregnancy. didn't look me in the eye even one time! i asked her the odds of the baby being born healthy and fine and she said i don't know probably 50/50...isn't that the same with any pregnancy? babies are miracles.....i asked what could be wrong with the baby and she said could have mjor deformities and when i first said my concern was that i had had an xray- before even looking at me she said oh, thats bad, thats really bad. admittedly bad. without even looking me in the eye!
anyway, my question is has anyone else been through having xrays early on in pregnancy and the baby has been fine? or what was the experience- good or bad- for you if you went through something similar? i just hate the waiting game and it feels like i could be playing it for quite some time.
thanks to all for any help! hope you are all well!!!!

Re: please help....any info would be GREATLY appreciated!

I am sorry I cant help you..but reading your post actually made my blood boil!!!! I cant believe the pa said that to you...what a bedside manner I am sure this has happened before..some people dont know they are pregnant for weeks and some cases months...I am praying everything is okay and i am sure it will be ...I am sorry you had to go through this experience really unacceptable

Re: please help....any info would be GREATLY appreciated!

I would post this on the parenting board for people who may have more experience with thi. I wish you all the best I pray your little bean is ok I would speak to another dr. but I would never take one docs. opinion

Re: please help....any info would be GREATLY appreciated!

thanks girls! i have been so upset for the last 3 hours...i agree, she should NEVER have even said anything in that manner. so terrible. my husband is so upset and angry and ready to call the office. i LOVE my ob though and just want to make sure i never see her again. thank you so much for the good thoughts! i think i will go post it on the parenting board. my brain is just not functioning right at the moment!

Re: please help....any info would be GREATLY appreciated!

That PA has no bedside manner!! You should definitely say something to your Dr about her.

I found this:

If you are pregnant and must have an abdominal-area x-ray exam, your procedure may be delayed while the radiologist consults with the physician who ordered the exam. Radiologists are physicians who specialize in the interpretation of medical images, and along with radiologic technologists, they make sure that the procedure is necessary and is performed properly.

Don't be alarmed if you had an x-ray examination before you knew you were pregnant. Remember that the risk is considered very small. However, if you are worried about the radiation exposure your baby may have received, you can discuss your concerns with your physician.

https://www.asrt.org/content/ThePublic/AboutRadiologicProcedures/PregnancyandXraySafety.aspx

This also may be helpful


http://www.aafp.org/afp/990401ap/1813.html

ETA the chart didn't post- but here's the important part: (the whole thing is at the above link)

Hip (single view)- 0.213 (amt of radiation per)
23 (# you'd need to reach accepted fetal amount of radiation)

"The accepted cumulative dose of ionizing radiation during pregnancy is 5 rad, and no single diagnostic study exceeds this maximum"

So, as long as you aren't having x-rays regularly- you should be fine!

Message edited 10/6/2009 5:01:22 PM.

Re: please help....any info would be GREATLY appreciated!

I have no experience to contribute but I just want to say that I am FURIOUS for you at the way you were treated by the PA. I think you should tell your OB exactly what happened and how much his/her PA upset you and your DH. That is just unbelievable and should not go unnoticed by your OB.

Re: please help....any info would be GREATLY appreciated!

This is what I understand, from my own research when I was neurotic about everything early in my pregnancy:

At such an early phase, your baby will either NOT BE affected or, with MUCH LESS CHANCE, terminate itself. There are so few cells developed that any damage actually done will completely kill the embryo.

I would treat it as a healthy pregnancy and carry on until a Doctor you trust tells you otherwise.

Re: please help....any info would be GREATLY appreciated!

thank you to all for everything! i read your posts to my husband and we are both so appreciative of all your kind words. any info that was looked up and sent to me also was so helpful to read. i'm going to remain hopeful for now...what more can i really do?! i truly believe in my heart of hearts that eveything will be ok. as for the PA- i will NEVER see her again. my husband is ready to have her job. such a bad experience. she literally took away from me any little speck of happiness i was feeling at that moment. i will not let that happen again. as for now, i'll wait until i see my doctor and i will MOST CERTAINLY be sharing my story with him.
thanks again girls! your support is awesome!!!

Re: please help....any info would be GREATLY appreciated!

I'm sure you don't have a reason to worry. At three weeks, your embryo was probably about 100 cells (you learn a lot when you go through IVF). The embryo is pretty fragile at that point. It either would have died or would not have implanted if something were wrong. There aren't enough cells at that point to sustain any major damage and continue to grow, KWIM?

The PA is a moron and I might switch OBs because of it; you may not be able to avoid her for the rest of the pregnancy.

I would call the radiologist or the orthopedic or whoever did the x-ray to seek their opinion if you are really concerned.

Best wishes for a H&H pregnancy!

Re: please help....any info would be GREATLY appreciated!

i don't have any experience with this but just had to say how horrified I am with the way the PA treated you. This is something you should def bring up to your doc and I would never see the PA again. I hope all is ok.

Re: please help....any info would be GREATLY appreciated!

Posted by jennarose023

i don't have any experience with this but just had to say how horrified I am with the way the PA treated you. This is something you should def bring up to your doc and I would never see the PA again. I hope all is ok.

Re: please help....any info would be GREATLY appreciated!

i think that person is nuts. think of all the things people do so early on not knowing they're pregnant...drinking, drugs, smoking, etc.

my aunt has 5 kids all born to different fathers and her 5th one was born addicted to crack. Yet, they all turned out healthy. MY neighbor is on her 4th kid and smokes like a chimney through her pregnancies..all healthy babies amazingly.

I think its absolutely disgusting what this PA said to you and how she reacted. Im sure the exray had minimal effect so early on.

If your pregnancy is meant to be, its meant to be. Your body will tell you otherwise.

I would certainly complain to your dr. about this person when you see them again.

Re: please help....any info would be GREATLY appreciated!

I'm sure you babies fine xrays dont put off THAT much radiation, if they did they wouldnt be safe. now if you were getting them everyday or working in a radiology office unscreen then u would have cause for concern.
just relax everythings fine.. I would really complain to your dr about that PA though thats soo messed up..

Re: please help....any info would be GREATLY appreciated!

When I was exactly 6w I went to the ER with chest pain and difficulty breathing. They thought I had a blood clot in my lungs and the only way to know for sure was to have a CT scan. Since those have a LOT of radiation, I refused and was really upset about it. The ER doctors just kept saying that if I had the blood clot, it would be fatal, so that I should really have it. Thankfully one of my OBs was on call at the hospital that night and decided to admit me for observation overnight first to see if I improved on my own. They DID send me to have one chest xray and I told them that I did not want it but they made it very clear that the new digital xrays have much less radiation than traditional xrays and that one xray would not cause a problem. I insisted on speaking to 2 doctors about this because I was that worried, but they both agreed.

I know someone who didn't know she was pregnant and had hip or chest xrays. Her daughter was born healthy.

I pray the same will happen with your baby and mine!

And thanks to Kahlua for posting that info!

Re: please help....any info would be GREATLY appreciated!

wow girls! thanks again so much! its really SO comforting to know that people have either gone through a similar experience or even just that i'm not overreacting about how i was treated. the worst part is that my other two children were in the room with me. thankfully they are both so little and wouldn't understand anything she was saying but still....she has never met me before and says things like that to me?!?! and then never says are you ok? or do you need some time to digest this? so strange and so frustrating. i held it together in the office but the second i loaded the kids into the car i was hysterical. my 3 year old kept saying, "mommy, don't cry...." i'm definitely going to be addressing the situation with my doctor next week upon his return. she will NEVER see me again. like i said, my husband is so determined to make sure she never sees any woman again. unbelievable! thank you though, to all! i really can't express how appreciative we both are for your kind words of encouragement! for now, i'm going to take a deep breath, relax (as best i can) and hope for the best! its out of my hands, right?! i'll be keeping you all in my thoughts!!