Goal, Gadget, & Good News: Early Pregnancy
Another rotation is wrapping up, so it’s time for another iteration of GGG! Early Pregnancy Rotation, which is primarily family planning, was a totally different pace than past and future rotations. The hours were fewer, the mornings were later, and the weekends were free. All of that to say that it has also pushed and challenged me in new ways. Family planning is the most controversial corner of OB-GYN but understanding and accepting patients’ needs without judgment is one more reason I love this field. Please enjoy this rotation’s GGG.
Goal: Exercise (even just a little)
It’s hard sometimes as a former daily runner to be okay with the discomfort of being completely out of shape- so hard in fact that it’s easier to just quit all together. My goal going into my next rotation is to maintain the mentality of running even just twice a week and feeling pretty terrible is probably better than completely abandoning a routine that’s boosts my cardiovascular and mental health. I have a secret goal of signing up for the LA Marathon, so if I can maintain a few runs a weeks for the next few weeks, I will share a three-day/week marathon training program I have used and loved in the past for any aspiring or current long-distance runners.
Gadget: Elf Eyebrow Pencil
In my previous beauty picks, I included a Bare Minerals brow pencil. However, a conversation my fiancé and I have a lot is how I am a member of the Finer Things Club.* Well I do believe this is true (I love the finer things…) and it’s always said in jest, the serious part of the conversation is being a couple that is growing up together, getting jobs together, and spending together. A lifestyle that is so common, especially in LA, is characterized by luxury matched in every aspect of one’s life. So, a fancy home means a fancy car means a fancy handbag etc etc. It’s an endless game of matching one’s own status in her material belongings. This mentality is something I do not want to adopt or feel susceptible to because of the environment I live in. So, this past weekend when I set out to buy all new make up (as it all ran out simultaneously like it always seems to do), I went for this trusted, tried, and two-dollar eye pencil (I like taupe). It does not match the fanciness of some of my other makeup products- but it doesn’t need to. It’s a great eyebrow pencil and I think Pam, Toby, and Oscar would approve.
Good News: CMQCC is Taking-on Maternal Suicide
The California Maternal Quality Care Collaborative (CMQCC) is an organization committed to “ending preventable morbidity, mortality and racial disparities in California maternity care.” Since their inception in 2006, maternal mortality decreased by 55% while maternal mortality around the nation continued to increase. However, there is always more work to do. While they continue to tackle morbidity and mortality associated with pregnancy and delivery such as hemorrhage and pre-eclampsia, a recent CMQCC report focused on another element of maternal mortality: suicide. The California rate of suicide among reproductive age women is lower than the national average, and pregnancy-associated suicide is lower yet. However, as CMQCC says, “While the suicide ratio for pregnancy-associated deaths is notably lower than that among other reproductive age women, this is a time of intense engagement with the medical system, so there are multiple opportunities for recognition and treatment, and preventing suicide.” CMQCC’s impact on maternal outcomes has been tremendous. I hope to see similar improvements in preventing maternal suicide during my training and career as a result of their latest report, the recommendations included, and “translating these recommendations into action” with a “multidisciplinary collaboration across multidisciplinary sectors.”
- Ari