Ana had her 16-year doctor appointment today. Here are her stats from the appointment:

Height: 5′ 6″ (80th percentile)
Weight: 155 lbs 9.6 oz (90th percentile)
BMI: 25.4 (88th percentile)
Blood Pressure: 102/74

Ana talked with the doctor about typical teenager stuff; depression, anxiety, and the importance of exercise and eating healthy. He also mentioned that she will need to transition to an adult care provider in the next few year. She was able to get her updated Covid booster and we were on with our day until next year!

Ana had her 15-year doctor appointment today. Here are her stats from the appointment:

Height: 5′ 6″ (80th percentile)
Weight: 154 lbs (91st percentile)
BMI: 24.9 (88th percentile)
Blood Pressure: 116/78

Ana completed her paperwork about mental/physical health, drugs/alcohol, and her social/academic life, as well as the Family Account Consent Form allowing me to access her patient account records. The nurse suggested we note on the form that I have permission to her records until she turns 18. We did the math and that meant I would have access until 12/2024. 2024. Like in TWO YEARS. I’m not sure why that was so shocking but the fact that we are so close to her being 18 caught me off guard! Then the nurse called us back and she did the usual weighing and measuring. Ana was thrilled that she made it to 5′ 6″! The doctor came in and talked with her for a bit them asked me to step out of the room so they could chat alone. Ana told me later they just talked about safety, sex, and relationships. “Nothing too embarrassing, Mom!” When I was allowed back into the room, I asked about when she was eligible for her next Covid booster and the doctor said she could get one today! He let the nurse know and we were so happy to not have to deal with the craziness of trying to get a separate booster appointment! We love our pediatrician!

Ana had her 14-year doctor appointment today. Here are her stats from the appointment:

Height: 5′ 5.35″ (80th percentile)
Weight: 150 lbs 6.9 oz (93rd percentile)
BMI: 24.79 (90th percentile)
Blood Pressure: 120/78

Ana completed her now standard paperwork about mental/physical health, drugs/alcohol, and her social/academic life, as well as completing a Family Account Consent Form allowing me to access her patient account records (who knew I’d need to get my daughters permission to see her medical info at only 14?!). The nurse did all the usually weighing, measuring, and intake questions. Once we were chatting with the doctor she asked him once again if she was still growing. He said she grew about an inch in the last year, and while it’s certainly slowing, she might not be quite done yet. Fingers crossed she can still break 5’6″!

There were not any concerns or issues at this time, so her appointment was pretty uneventful. Ana got her flu shot at Hadley’s appointment in November, so there were no shots for her today! Easy peasy!

Ana had her 13-year doctor appointment today. Here are her stats from the appointment:

Height: 5′ 4.17″ (80th percentile)
Weight: 136 lbs 4 oz (91st percentile)
BMI: 23.26 (88th percentile)
Blood Pressure: 118/80
Pulse: 78

After Ana completed all her paperwork about mental/physical health, drugs/alcohol, and her social/academic life, Ana chatted with her doctor about how things are going while he checked her over. She was wondering if she was still growing and he said since she grew about 3/4 of an inch in the last year she may do the same next year. She had a big growth spurt a few years ago but has slowed down quite a bit. She’s hopeful she can break 5’5″ before she stops growing! Fingers crossed!

The only other issue she has is with these irritating bumps on her legs. I thought it was really bad razor burn that wasn’t going away. We saw a dermatologist over the summer who diagnosed it as molluscum contagiosum. Ana was told to stop shaving until the virus healed because the razor was spreading it to other areas of her legs. It was getting better for a while but in the last couple of weeks it has been itching and bleeding which is really irritating Ana. The doctor looked it over and said he thinks it’s folliculitis. It may have started as molluscum but turned into folliculitis. So he gave her a prescription for a course of antibiotics and said it should clear things right up! Ana got her flu shot already, so there were no shots for her today!

Ana had her 12-year doctor appointment today. Here are her stats from the appointment:

Height: 5′ 3.78″ (93rd percentile)
Weight: 126 lbs 12.8 oz (92nd percentile)
BMI: 21.92 (86th percentile)
Blood Pressure: 100/60

We checked in for Ana’s annual appointment and she got her newly standard set of paperwork for her to fill out. She completed her questionnaire with the expected level of shock that they would be asking her about her use of drugs and alcohol (which is non-existent as you can check her response from here) and her sadness over the questions about moods, depression, and suicidal tendencies. Once I explained that there are some pre-teens who may have those feelings, she felt worse but I said it was wonderful that they were looking for it early so that those children may get the help they need. Ana agreed.

Then we got to see the doctor. Ana and the doctor talked about nutrition, staying active, and minimizing screen time. She was nervous that the homework she was doing on her computer combined with using the iPad to look up piano music was pushing her over the “safe” level but he assured her that active screen time (where she is inputting information) was fine but inactive (social media, TV, YouTube, etc.) is what we needed to watch out for. He explained that for YouTube there is a strong correlation between increased screen time and depression/suicidal thoughts. That statistic hit home with all of us!

Ana got her flu shot at Hadley’s annual appointment in November so there were no shots for her today! He said aside from her annual flu shot, she won’t need shots again until she is 16! Then we were sent on our way with a clean bill of health and told to keep up the good work!

Ana had her 11-year doctor appointment today. Here are her stats from the appointment:

Height: 5′ 1.93″ (96nd percentile)
Weight: 115 lbs 6.4 oz (93rd percentile)
BMI: 21.16 (87th percentile)
Blood Pressure: 110/70
Pulse: 90

When we checked in to Ana’s appointment, for the first time ever there were forms that Ana needed to complete. I took my clipboard and handed her one of her own. There were mostly questions about depression, safety, body imagine, etc. to make sure she isn’t feeling any unusual levels of emotions during this typically unstable time of adolescents. I’m happy they are checking but it made me so sad that it is even necessary.

Ana did it again. She had another big growth spurt. The doctor reconfirmed his theory that girls her age don’t typically have that big of a growth spurt this early and that she is growing faster than normal. This means she will likely be done growing sooner. Last year the doctor thought she may grow to be 5’6″ but now he said it’s looking closer to 5’9″. I believe it. Just look at this kids legs!

Ana and the doctor talked about all the things she is doing to stay healthy (eating fruits/veggies, staying active, and avoiding too much screen time) as well as monitoring her calcium and Vitamin D. She’s an avid milk drinker so he thinks she is great on calcium but we likely need to supplement her daily multi-vitamin with additional Vitamin D to help her body actually absorb all that calcium. Then it was time to talk vaccinations. She got her flu shot at Hadley’s annual appointment in November but she still had to get three today: Meningococcal, Tdap, and HPV. She took it like a champ and even smiled through the pain (and for the picture).

Then we were sent on our way with a clean bill of health and told to keep up the good work!

Ana had her ten-year doctor appointment today. Here are her stats from the appointment:

Height: 4′ 10.11″ (92nd percentile)
Weight: 88 lbs 9.6 oz (82nd percentile)
BMI: 18.45 (73rd percentile)
Blood Pressure: 100/70
Pulse: 100

According to her numbers Ana has had a recent growth spurt. The doctor said girls her age don’t typically have that big of a growth spurt this early so he thinks she may be growing a little faster than normal which may mean she will be done growing sooner. I said she was following right in my footsteps because I grew early and was done by 8th grade. He thinks she is right on track for that but may only reach 5’6″ (I’m 5’8″). I’m holding out that she can at least grow to be taller than her Aunt Jeni and Aunt Darcie.

During her exam he noticed a little curvature to on her back. Official chart diagnosis “Adolescent idiopathic scoliosis of cervicothoracic region” but said it was very minor and we will just keep an eye on it. Otherwise there wasn’t much to note. She’s growing, she’s healthy, and that’s all we can ask for. She got her flu shot at Hadley’s annual appointment in November so she didn’t have to get any shots today! She was quite happy about that!

Ana had her nine-year doctor appointment today. Here are her stats from the appointment:

Height: 4′ 6.33″ (79th percentile)
Weight: 72.6 lbs (74th percentile)
BMI: 17.29 (67th percentile)
Blood Pressure: 100/60

Ana is growing right on track. They even mentioned the dreaded “p-word” (puberty) which we already knew was in our imminent future. Ana, always wanting to be prepared and know what’s going on, used her birthday money to buy the American Girl book “The Care & Keeping of You” so we’ve already discussed these, uh, changes. (If your daughter hasn’t read it, I highly recommend it.) I figure it’s best to be open and educated than learn the wrong thing on the playground!

Anyway, back to the appointment. Since high cholesterol runs in the family, the doctor wanted to run a lipid profile to check her cholesterol. Better to be aware early than blindsided later! So Ana got to have her first blood draw! She did great and the lipid panel came back totally normal. Whew!

The appointment wasn’t totally shot free, as she had to get a flu shot but otherwise everything was good to go!