Finding your OBGYN

So in New York there’s a waiting list for everything that’s decent, and we’re not just talking Birkin bags (like I’d ever really be on a wait list for this).  The first thing I did was go onto all the websites & check out the good reviews.  Then all the people that everyone liked…none of them took my insurance.  So I checked my doctors, saw who was closest & which hospitals they went to & it was a process of elimination of who had the first appointment.  I happened to be very lucky, or maybe I’m just low maintenance.  My OBGYN, Dr. Anita Shrivastava, is awesome.  The first few visits were amazing, & I liked the idea of a practice where I’d meet all the doctors so I wouldn’t have a stranger up in my crotch business at birth.  One piece of advice, be aware of the rest of the staff.  How they treat you during your visits & the services they provide are JUST as important as the doctors because you spend more time with them & when you’re an emotional wreck they can make or break your experience with imagined slights.  Also, check to make sure your OBGYN isn’t pregnant, because then they’ll never ever be by your side at birth.  Be aware though, all those nice visits where they just take your blood pressure & monitor your heart?  They come around to PANTS OFF VISITS. After they lull you into feeling comfortable for 7 months of answering questions while you sit there in your warm comfy winter clothes, they tell you to undress from the waste down & then stick a hand up there to see how it’s going.  It’s a LOT different to be your skinny little self lying on a table at 6 weeks when they do the pants off visit than your current beached whale roly polyness.  After that visit, the proverbial gloves come off….be prepared.