GP appointment after a year of trying - Feeling dismissed
CW: Miscarriage
I need to vent a little bit, and also get some perspective if anyone else has had a similar experience.
I'm 35 and my husband and I have been TTC for a year now. I did become pregnant in January (cycle 12 of trying) but unfortunately miscarried at 5.5 weeks. We kept trying and I've had two more unsuccessful cycles since then.
My husband saw a GP last week and has been referred to a fertility clinic for a semen analysis.
I went to the GP today (same practice, different doctor). My experience was very different to my husband's.
To begin with, the Dr fixated on my miscarriage, reassuring me that these things can happen, that is unlikely I'll have another etc. Which is fine, but I had to remind him that this appointment wasn't about the miscarriage, I wanted to discuss fertility testing.
He then started telling me that, as I have technically conceived, fertility testing would be unnecessary. This goes against what I've read online, that you should start fertility testing after a year without a successful pregnancy.
He told me to keep on trying and was all set to end the appointment there, until I told him my husband had already been referred to a fertility clinic. He seemed quite annoyed to hear this, and then said he would book me in for a routine blood test "to check your hormones, since your husband is being checked anyway".
The blood test is booked for this Saturday. The Dr didn't tell me exactly which hormones they would be testing (I should have asked, but it felt like he just wanted me out of there). I checked the appointment notes on the NHS app afterwards and apparently it's to check LH and FSH. I ovulated last week, period due next week, so checking these things must be completely pointless?
I'm feeling really deflated tonight. Before the appointment getting the ball rolling on testing felt like a scary but positive step forward, now it feels like I need to battle to be taken seriously. Not to mention the double standard that my husband has been offered testing and I haven't!