April Munchkins 2013- enjoying our wonderful babies!

[Steph82]

I just did some research and found out the following: most OB/GYNs bill at "global fee" at the time of delivery. So most of your OB fees as well as hospital bill are due at the time of delivery. That being said... I guess they have collected by annual deductible for 2013 and will not claim any services until I deliver. Any services that don't fall into their "normal" charges would have been due during that visit last year. I didn't have anything that wasn't part of it, so I guess I ha nothing to pay extra.

 

[Steph82]

Doing a cheeky update from work!

Maybe - glad that all is well! Good thing to talk to Dr, now you know what to look for and when to be concerned And screw those idiots at your work... now is not the time to be piling more stuff on you!

Kealz - I HATE borrowing stuff! I am always paranoid about the person needing it back or it somehow getting ruined etc... too much stress! Glad to hear you are getting stuff ready - it's always exciting to start doing that. Rediscovering all of DS's tiny bits made me all emotional LOL.

Readytomum - Have fun with yoga! It seems so relaxing but knowing me I would stretch and my waters would go! Hrmhp.

Nimbec - so sorry to hear about your back troubles... my back is already sore enough I cannot even imagine how aggravating it must be for you with the fracture and everything else! At least now you know what to expect re: delivery!

Doggy - I would have knocked that kid out! I know you can't being at school and everything but dang if he wouldn't have gotten daggers from me the next few weeks haha! Also sorry to hear about the shopping (or lack of) disaster. The best laid plans always somehow work out like that Also sorry to hear it is dragging for you, although that may not be a bad thing hehe! Speaking of blooming... my MIL told me I was getting 'the pregnant face' - gee thanks!

lily - it all starts moving fast when you hit the double digits, eh? Have to say the thought of maca right now is just urghhh... glad you are enjoying it though! And yay for stroller!

uk - hopefully the IBS calms down for you. Between that and the ribs I would just want to stay in bed all day long! Also glad to hear that your new solicitor is taking everything seriously! She sounds like a pitbull lawyer which is exactly what you need. Also, don't even get me started on Gordon Ramsey... no clue why but jesus that man is sexy! Total opposite of my usual but honestly I think the attitude makes him hotter hehe!

Momma - I was in hospital on bedrest from 20 weeks, and then strict bedrest at home for the last stretch til my water broke at 35 weeks with DS... rescue cerclage was done at 21 weeks and taken out at 34 because I started contracting and they didn't want me to tear the stitch through the cervix. It is good to hear a story of you making it to term! I so pray for term but even 35 weeks like last time I would be happy with at this point. I am just glad that they are seeing me Monday now instead of waiting until next Friday to check again... it is too late for a stitch now but I am still not on 'official' bedrest and am still working which I imagine will not be the case if it continues to shorten. The good thing is that at 20 weeks I was less than 1 cm with DS, and right now at 27 weeks this time I am still 2.3 and 2.4 - so hoping to hold out awhile longer!

littlespy - I can't stand the stupid recalls either. It gets to the point you almost expect disposable diaper labels to say 'do not reuse' or something - but on second thought they probably already do say that! I will have to investigate! And I really like your plan for work... so evil (totally deserved, obviously!) and so perfect!!! They should know better than to cross a pregnant woman anyways. I am also slowly counting down to being able to file my taxes... will be nice to get a big chuck of change right before baby is due!

Steph - yay for being fully paid! such a good feeling to go into it knowing it is all paid for and you won't have to worry about any bills afterwards. Glad you tolerated the GTT better than I did. The drink wasn't so bad but the after effects - ugh!

AFM - Had my GTT this morning and failed MISERABLY. Last time I was also diagnosed with GD but didn't fail nearly as bad. (Needs to be under 140, I was 147 with DS, and 185 this time - eep!) I totally saw this coming though so not a huge shock. I know it's nothing to take lightly but it was so bad I almost laughed when I saw the results! Going to ask just to skip the 3 hr this time around and just start monitoring my sugars. The strange thing is I have been testing already this pregnancy with my meter and haven't really had any highs yet... higher than usual for me but nothing that would be considered a high reading.

Anyhow... about an hour after I got my blood drawn (so two hours after drinking the stuff) I almost fainted at work. I have NEVER fainted in my life but my vision went all funny and I got really hot and sweaty. My fasting sugar this AM was 78, one hour after drink it was 185 and when I tested with my meter one hour later (when I had the faint feeling) it was down to 48 - which is the lowest I have ever had, ever... dropped almost 140 pts in one hour! Ate something and felt better after just sitting for a bit. So I called the dr to see if I could just start testing with my meter and skip the 3 hr... it's obvious to me I have it again and after that whole fiasco I'd rather not do it all over again! Haven't heard back yet but I am hoping to get out of the 3 hr... makes me feel ill just thinking about it!

Good luck to everyone else taking it and hopefully I took all the 'FAIL' vibes for this thread LOL!

Scarlett has been head down since about 16 weeks and already doesn't have room to turn because of my bicornuate uterus... so it's good she's head down or I'd be screwed already! Getting the crap thumped out of me alot... seems just as I start thinking she hasn't been as active she goes nuts which is always reassuring. At scan yesterday she was doing a freaking split - one leg down and one up by her face - sounds so comfortable huh?

Also wanted to say thank you to all you girls' comments for me... it helps so much to know that you guys are rooting for baby and I and that I have a place to come put all my worries on the table! You are all fantastic.

Well hopefully I didn't miss anyone after this novel of a post but I can't remember anything else so if I missed you!

Sorry to hear about the test
What are some of the symptoms of GD?

 

[LittleSpy]

Steph -- I think it varies among insurance plans. With dd, I postponed my first doc appointment to January 3rd just so I wouldn't get screwed with deductibles.

What happened for me was that I had to pay my entire OB bill by 24 weeks. That only included my appointments, u/s, etc (except for the urine dips, which they billed me for seperately somehow?). Then after I had dd, I got a bill from my OB, a bill from the anesthesiologist (A YEAR LATER!!! No, seriously, I got that bill this past July for the first time), a bill from the hospital for me (holy crap), and a bill from the hospital for dd. They let me combine the two hospital bills and make monthly payments (which could have been as low as $36/month but that would have taken me like 7-8 years to pay off at that rate!). I do still owe $600.

My insurance was a $350 deductible, then the plan paid 80% until my 20% reached $2k, then it payed at 100%. But when I had dd and added her, my deductible became $700, plan paid 80% until my out of pocket reached $4k, then paid 100%. My out of pocket ended up being like $3950 (including her ped. visits & phototherapy the first week). I'm not even exaggerating. I ended up getting one free psychiatrist appointment (for ppd)at the end of December.

 

[LittleSpy]

Oh, and speaking of phototherapy -- here's my "No one bothered to tell me this when I was pregnant the first time" tip of the day --

The majority (meaning ~60%!!) of full-term babies have jaundice at some point during their first few days of life! I was so scared! And I took it *so* seriously. Like -- she was in that light-therapy bed all the time for like 72 hours because I took them seriously when they said to use it "as much as possible." I had no idea it was like... a normal thing until a couple weeks later when I talked to other people about it. What we did to treat it was way overkill in hindsight. Better safe than sorry, I guess.

 

[ooSweetPea]

UK AHHH now I have gordon on the brain!

Steph for me the main thing was increased thirst. Has been happening for about the last 3 weeks and that was my main signal that the GD was starting to kick in.. same thing happened last time too but I didn't know much about GD at that point and didn't read into it until after the fact.

Increased urination and increased hunger are also 'symptoms' but honestly what pregnant woman doesn't have those symptoms especially towards the end?! Also if you feel more fatigued after eating sweets or larger portions of fruits because of the sugar crash afterwards. Many times the symptoms aren't strong enough to even tip you off though because most of them are just common in pregnancy in general.

I have watched carbs/sugars this pregnancy so far, and if I have them I combine with protein and it keeps me on an even keel so far. Haven't had any 'high' readings at home yet but I am pretty good about watching the carb/protein ratio just from having to during the last pregnancy, and I always feel more satisfied and have more energy when I eat along those guidelines during pregnancy anyway so probably won't have to make too many changes to keep my sugars stable I didn't have more than 2-3 (barely) high readings with DS so am not really expecting it to get too bad this time although you never know I guess. Mine was totally controlled with diet last time (and I use the term 'diet' loosely... I wasn't super strict!) and I am hoping for the same this time. As long as I don't have to go on meds I'll be happy. My levels were totally back to normal 12 weeks after I delivered as well when I took the GTT again too!

My drs office called me back and told me I don't have to do the 3 hour and called me in a script for the strips and lancets for my meter. Not happy I have to test the rest of the pregnancy but glad I don't have to take the 3 hr only to fail hehe!

 

[Steph82]

Steph -- I think it varies among insurance plans. With dd, I postponed my first doc appointment to January 3rd just so I wouldn't get screwed with deductibles.

What happened for me was that I had to pay my entire OB bill by 24 weeks. That only included my appointments, u/s, etc (except for the urine dips, which they billed me for seperately somehow?). Then after I had dd, I got a bill from my OB, a bill from the anesthesiologist (A YEAR LATER!!! No, seriously, I got that bill this past July for the first time), a bill from the hospital for me (holy crap), and a bill from the hospital for dd. They let me combine the two hospital bills and make monthly payments (which could have been as low as $36/month but that would have taken me like 7-8 years to pay off at that rate!). I do still owe $600.

My insurance was a $350 deductible, then the plan paid 80% until my 20% reached $2k, then it payed at 100%. But when I had dd and added her, my deductible became $700, plan paid 80% until my out of pocket reached $4k, then paid 100%. My out of pocket ended up being like $3950 (including her ped. visits & phototherapy the first week). I'm not even exaggerating. I ended up getting one free psychiatrist appointment (for ppd)at the end of December.

Oh geez!!! Well my plan says that the entire pregnancy with delivery is covered 100% after $250 deductible (all hospital services for me and baby are included). The only thing that may be extra are certain lab copays or extra ultra sounds (which I didn't have last year and they will also be covered with deductible this year). If the doc is indeed billing me 2013 (which it sounds like), then I'm ok... Adding another dependent is a whole different story.. I know that baby is covered under me for the first 30 days without having to be added (with my plan)... So maybe I will just wait as long as possible into the 30 days to add him (then my deductible goes up to $500). I will have to call the insurance just to confirm...
I wish our medical system wasn't so difficult

 

[Steph82]

UK AHHH now I have gordon on the brain!

Steph for me the main thing was increased thirst. Has been happening for about the last 3 weeks and that was my main signal that the GD was starting to kick in.. same thing happened last time too but I didn't know much about GD at that point and didn't read into it until after the fact.

Increased urination and increased hunger are also 'symptoms' but honestly what pregnant woman doesn't have those symptoms especially towards the end?! Also if you feel more fatigued after eating sweets or larger portions of fruits because of the sugar crash afterwards. Many times the symptoms aren't strong enough to even tip you off though because most of them are just common in pregnancy in general.

I have watched carbs/sugars this pregnancy so far, and if I have them I combine with protein and it keeps me on an even keel so far. Haven't had any 'high' readings at home yet but I am pretty good about watching the carb/protein ratio just from having to during the last pregnancy, and I always feel more satisfied and have more energy when I eat along those guidelines during pregnancy anyway so probably won't have to make too many changes to keep my sugars stable

My drs office called me back and told me I don't have to do the 3 hour and called me in a script for the strips and lancets for my meter. Not happy I have to test the rest of the pregnancy but glad I don't have to take the 3 hr only to fail hehe!

Ah ok... Thank you! But I think your right... Drinking more, peeing more, fatigue... Def pregnancy issues anyway
I don't feel like I would have GD but who knows.. Just scared that I have to now take the 3 hour test because of that stupid orange ugh

 

[ooSweetPea]

Oh steph FYI on the 'baby covered under you for the first 30 days' thing with having baby covered under your insurance... if you add him to your insurance at all your (or baby's) deductible will automatically kick in from the day he is born/time at hospital (at least that is how pretty much all insurances are that I deal with at work). Hopefully that is not the case with you but I don't think I've ever come across a plan that didn't start billing 'baby' from day of birth even if they are added to your plan a month later within that 30 days. I think that's just protection in case you wouldn't be able to insure them or your insurance for some reason gets dropped so you aren't stuck with a huge bill afterwards.

 

[LittleSpy]

In SC, we have 31 days to make changes after a special event like a birth. And docs/hospitals won't refuse the baby service and will take your card for the baby for billing during those 31 days, but when you add the baby to insurance, the insurance company processes it retroactively (and if your baby is born the first half of the month, you get screwed into paying that entire month's premium! ). For me, dd was born 7/20, so I got 11 days in July for free (haha) and had to start paying for her coverage on 8/1. Butttttttttttt, they took all the coverage back retroactively to 7/20 so all the deductibles and everything applied starting then.

It doesn't help that every stupid plan is completely different and every state has different laws about it and all that crap.

I really, really hope your insurance is as awesome as it sounds!! We have a plan like that where I work but it's WAY out of my price range (it's ~$1000/month for full-family coverage.... and that's on top of what my employer pays for it, which is like $800/month! So for us, the extra $700/month just doesn't make sense when we're not going to get $8k of extra benefits from it each year).

 

[maybesoon]

Steph & Mommabrown.... I'm right there with you 2. I haven't paid a co-pay since my very first appointment which was actually my yearly exam where they confirmed my pregnancy. I'm not sure how it works I need to contact my insurance company also & see what's up. I honestly feel that since it's all related to "a pregnancy" then whether or not it goes from one year to the next it should all be counted towards the deductible for the year it began. I guess what I'm saying is, if my deductible was met for 2012 for this pregnancy then it should be met for this pregnancy whether the actual pregnancy runs into 2013 or not. If that makes sense to anyone but me... lol I know that's not how it works, but I feel that's how it should work.

 

[Steph82]

Oh steph FYI on the 'baby covered under you for the first 30 days' thing with having baby covered under your insurance... if you add him to your insurance at all your (or baby's) deductible will automatically kick in from the day he is born/time at hospital (at least that is how pretty much all insurances are that I deal with at work). Hopefully that is not the case with you but I don't think I've ever come across a plan that didn't start billing 'baby' from day of birth even if they are added to your plan a month later within that 30 days. I think that's just protection in case you wouldn't be able to insure them or your insurance for some reason gets dropped so you aren't stuck with a huge bill afterwards.

Crap lol... And I thought I found a loophole ahaha

 

[ooSweetPea]

^^ pretty much what littlespy said is the deal here too!

I have a freaking $3,000 PER YEAR deductible - I would die for $500 lol! I cover myself, Tommy, and will cover the new baby. It would be $1500 deductible for just me. My employer though, THANK GOD, has been putting in $2000 each year ($1000 if you are covering just yourself) to a health savings account (which rolls over and isn't 'use it or lose it') for the last two years however they are thinking of decreasing that next year... of course. I get paid biweekly so I pay $40 every two weeks for insurance and then on top of that I also pay $35ish every two weeks into a health savings account to accrue the other $1000 of my deductible that I am responsible for. It's a bunch of crap.

I got through my deductible really fast this year because DS had his tendon release early in 2012 and that took a huge chunk... I actually hadn't 'paid in' enough to my HSA to have the full deductible amount because of it coming out of my checks across 12 months (so paid out of pocket for some things) and ended the year with about $450 left to roll over into this year - only $550 to go until my deductible is all saved because my employer already put in their $2000. That $550 already started accruing with my first check so by the time delivery rolls around I'll almost have that saved from my checks anyways... and the hospital can wait for the rest HAH!

 

[Steph82]

In SC, we have 31 days to make changes after a special event like a birth. And docs/hospitals won't refuse the baby service and will take your card for the baby for billing during those 31 days, but when you add the baby to insurance, the insurance company processes it retroactively (and if your baby is born the first half of the month, you get screwed into paying that entire month's premium! ). For me, dd was born 7/20, so I got 11 days in July for free (haha) and had to start paying for her coverage on 8/1. Butttttttttttt, they took all the coverage back retroactively to 7/20 so all the deductibles and everything applied starting then.

It doesn't help that every stupid plan is completely different and every state has different laws about it and all that crap.

I really, really hope your insurance is as awesome as it sounds!! We have a plan like that where I work but it's WAY out of my price range (it's ~$1000/month for full-family coverage.... and that's on top of what my employer pays for it, which is like $800/month! So for us, the extra $700/month just doesn't make sense when we're not going to get $8k of extra benefits from it each year).

LittleSpy that makes sense... I will need to call the insurance and get all the detail...

I am EXTREMELY lucky because I work for a German company. Since healthcare is free in Germany, the company pays almost the entire monthly cost (except my $20/month premium for just myself). I believe the cost to the company is close to $700 per employee, so they really are amazing!!! It's also I huge company with lots of employees in the US so we get a pretty good deal through Aetna. The CEO that set up this system here came over from Germany and felt that healthcare should NOT be as expensive as it seems to be the norm in the US. Again... I hope I am right and I don't end up with unexpected expenses . I really need to call them before Grayson gets here lol

 

[doggylover]

I've watched these series in their entirity and liked them:
Bones
Alias
Firefly
Angel
Buffy the Vampire Slayer.
.

Littlespy you an I need a sit down TV marathon- I own the entire series of angel and buffy, and have seen all of bones! And I'm sorry you have been getting shit on at work as well, but like you say, counting down the days until you never have to work for them again, and can tell them where to stick it!! Also yay for perking the crib! Grab it while its a bargain...and just eat noodles for the rest of the month!

Mommabrown I also love criminal minds! Definitely high up my list of fave shows. I'm just waiting for the new series to start here, and it seems to be taking forever!

Ukgirl- people in supermarkets drive me mad all the time...people with trolleys are generally lethal IDIOTS. Luckily our local tesco seem ps to have a catchment area of about six people, so is never too busy! Sorry to hear about Aaron being a bit funny, maybe he's on his man-period?!

Sweetpea: the "pregnant" face?! Haha, charming! Maybe she meant you were glowing?! And yep, that kid at school will not be in my good books for the next 8 weeks and 1 day...until I leave! Sorry to hear about the GD, but if you had it before I'm sure you know exactly how to handle it. Worrying to hear your levels were higher this time, but hopefully it doesn't mean anything bad in the long run. And well done Scarlett for being head down already! She's maybe just eager to get herself out! She may stay in a while yet!

steph great news about your gtt test being totally covered. I'm sure it's a weight off your mind. Plus nobody likes to pay for tests they don't particularly want to have to do!


Other than that...gosh so much happened while I was at dinner I could never catch up! and it's not often that happens!

 

[doggylover]

Holy crap, just reading quickly over the money/insurance situation with some of you American ladies. Absolutely insane! It's all so complicated, I don't know how you ever figure it all out!

 

[maybesoon]

I just spoke to my insurance company & from what they are saying I have a $2500.00 deductible then 70/30. I need to remember to ask my doctor about her billing me on the 29th when I go back to see her. She hasn't mentioned it at all throughout so I don't know when it's standard for her to bring up the fact she wants to get paid!!!! lol

 

[LittleSpy]

sweetpea -- Before I got pregnant this time and qualified for Medicaid (and since we're single income "family of 4" now, it's pretty easy to qualify when pregnant), hubby and I were on a plan with a $6000 deductible. Just a huge waste of money (because our premium was still like $100/month) but I couldn't leave us wide open to some health catastrophe. I had an HSA which we used any time we actually needed to go to the doctor/dentist but my employer didn't contribute, so that's awesome that yours does!

 

[LittleSpy]

I just spoke to my insurance company & from what they are saying I have a $2500.00 deductible then 70/30. I need to remember to ask my doctor about her billing me on the 29th when I go back to see her. She hasn't mentioned it at all throughout so I don't know when it's standard for her to bring up the fact she wants to get paid!!!! lol

Sounds like you're likely to get socked with a huge bill from her a couple months after delivery.

 

[LittleSpy]

Holy crap, just reading quickly over the money/insurance situation with some of you American ladies. Absolutely insane! It's all so complicated, I don't know how you ever figure it all out!

I don't know that you do! I worked in employee benefits (a huge part of my job was explaining our insurance benefits to employees) for five years and I was still thrown for a loop with all the billing associated with my pregnancy and birth of my daughter. I mean, as confusing as just the deductibles/copays/coinsurance max/etc can be, then on top of all that, there are all these services that some insurance won't even cover. For me, it was the urine sample at every OB appointment. WTF? Why wouldn't they cover that? They didn't at all, but at least they told my OB that they could only charge me $6 for each one instead of the $18 that they billed.

And because it's all soooo complicated, it so easy for doctors to make billing mistakes (in their favor, no doubt) and for patients to get way overcharged and never even know.

 

[doggylover]

Lol I can imagine doctors make the odd 'mistake' on people's bills and many probably don't ever notice. A few dollars off everyone will soon add up!

Honestly, I don't even understand what deductibles, company's etc are. Never heard of them until today! I do not envy you ladies right now!