“I’m not hanging up until you tell me you’ll see a doctor today!” A mother’s intuition isn’t a small thing to ignore
Being twenty-five years old and expecting your first child in a foreign country is a little overwhelming. Still, I was thrilled to have the zechus to give birth in Eretz Yisrael.
I started off using a private doctor, sure that this was the prudent thing to do with the Israeli socialized medicine setup. However, since my insurance only allowed a limited number of private visits, after a few uneventful months, I switched to a regular clinic doctor for the duration of the pregnancy.
In my last trimester, I started experiencing a heaviness in my right foot. It was an ache, a slight dragging feeling. I shared it with my doctor, who pooh-poohed it. “All pregnancies carry some degree of discomfort,” he said, waving his hand dismissively.
I took my lead from him and ignored it, despite the fact that the ache persisted for the next three months. I was sure it was just the baby pressing on a nerve, and after I’d given birth, I’d be fine.
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