Ode to an OB/GYN

MyPartner who is a OB/GYN : Nick Rubashkin Photo: SF Chronicle/Lacy Adams

Ok, not so much an ode, more of a spiel. Usually I blog about the issues and hurdles of my dual entrepreneurial and literary endeavors. Today I am breaking from this convention to write about my partner’s profession: OB/GYN. I mentioned both him and his profession a week or so ago in my placenta post, but a picture is worth a thousand blogs. I’m not sure what I more want to say about Nick‘s profession except that man, he has a a hard job. My 10 reasons for not being an OB/GYN are:

1. Twelve years of schooling/training
   (4 years of college + 4 years of medical school + 4 years of residency)
2. Hellish call schedule & unaffordable malpractice insurance
3. Abortion
   (whatever one’s beliefs, it’s never easy)
4. Uterine, ovarian, & cervical cancers
   (add these to breast cancer, and women definitely get the much shorter end of the gender cancer stick)
5. Tubals/ectopics, moles, & pre-eclampsia
6. Unexplained vaginal itching/bleeding/discharge
   (get used to it)
7. Prolapsing uteri & incontinence
8. Weekend inseminations & post-menopausal jellies
9. The rare unexpected stillbirth
   (gut wrenching)
10. The terrible aftermath of sexual abuse

Why then chose OB/GYN as a profession? According to Dr. Nick,

1. The balance of surgery, clinic, & continuity
2. The patients
   (in general, women don’t fight their bodies/illnesses like men and therefore are often far easier and more appreciative patients).
3. Women’s health advocacy
   (shocking how much this is still needed in this day and age)
4. Birth—there’s nothing like it

After finally seeing a live birth, I totally get it.

Nick Delivering Twins

Finally, I can’t end a blog about OB/GYN without at least one recommendation—right? I mean, whenever Nick and are are mixed company, questions abound. Since I’m not the OB/GYN myself (though I tell our friends that I feel like I could be. I’ve seen a C-Section; hand over the scalpel: skin, fat, fascia, uterine wall, baby), it’s probably not a good idea for me to give medical advice. But there is a piece of non-medical advice I think I can relay. When you’re getting all gussied up for your annual pap smear, pay particular attention to your feet. I know that sounds strange but just think about where, during the visit, your feet are in relation to your OB/GYN’s olfactory system.

Tags: abortion, cervical cancer, ectopic pregnancy, incontinence, malpractice insurance, medical school, menopause, mole pregnancy, Nick Rubashkin, OB/GYN, ovarian cancer, Pap Smear, placenta, preeclampsia, pregnancy, prolapsing uterus, sex abuse, stillbirth, tubal pregnancy, tupal pregnancy, uterine cancer, vaginal bleeding, vaginal discharge, vaginal itching, women's health