Phases of Life... As Experienced at the OB/GYN

Some years back, when I was having my first son, I had an OB/GYN who was just... so... (as we say around here) country.  When the exam was finished he would have the patient dress and meet him in his office to discuss the findings.  This part was quite civil, although sitting in his office and looking at the duck hunting diorama gave one a little bit of a feeling of being at a country veterinarian's office.  At the end of the visit he would smile and say "Good for another 20,000 miles."  (I am not kidding.)  However, he was an expert OB and likely saved my son, whose cord got wrapped around his neck during delivery.

Soon after my first son was born, that doctor retired and I had to find a new OB/GYN.  My second doctor was a petite, energetic woman with a cloud of unruly red hair.  She would blow up rubber gloves for my older son to play with while we talked about how son #2 was developing.  I had a lot of confidence in her, but soon after the birth of my second son the practice dropped its OB services and replaced them with a skin-care clinic.

So now when I visit the GYN, there are binders full of women's before and after pictures, showing their transformation through chemical peels or injections of various sorts.  I miss the seriousness of the OB mission, but I do understand that rising insurance costs and being on call 24/7 for OB emergencies could wear on anyone.  What I didn't expect was how fully their new services would mesh with where I am in my life.  I know it's vain, but I WANT that chemical peel.   Things that used to make me scoff, such as dermabrasion, now seem worthy of consideration.  I haven't made the leap yet, mostly because the skin clinic only stays open until 4pm and I am usually still working at school at that time, but maybe... just maybe...

There's no shortage of 40-something women like me who want to look a little better, so their skin care clinic will probably continue to thrive.  Yet one thing I wouldn't recommend is that the people running the practice go into the clothing design business.  A few years back they created tee shirts and drink cozies that said "V****** are Way Cool."  The shirts weren't exactly flying off the shelf, even when they forced the staff to wear them.  I think they quit that after the second workman's comp claim related to REI (Repetitive Embarrassment Injury).   Some things are very popular, and yet a tee shirt about them sill won't catch on.