What Happens During a Thirteen Year Old Females Annual Physical?

No pediatrician should be doing a pelvic exam on a 13 year old. That's something that is done by an OB/GYN.

Why aren't you asking your mom these questions? Isn't she the one who set up the appointment for you?

Your mom should be able to answer these questions for you. If not, she can call and ask. She can also ask to switch you to another doctor if you are no longer comfortable. If you look up Kids Health, there is a site that gives you this information. (kids health.org)

Here is a year by year guide for what happens at physicals by age of the child from birth through 21 yrs old from the American Academy of Pediatrics
(you might want to bookmark it):

https://www.healthychildren.org/English/family-life/healt...

In my day - pelvic exams didn't start until you were sexually active or in your 20's - which ever came first.

My older girls are 18. They have never had a pelvic exam with exception of examining the stomach and feeling for anything out of the ordinary. They started breast exams around 16 and were taught how to examine themselves. Until last year, I would go in the room with them, then leave after the doc checked vitals and we discussed anything that we wanted to talk about. After I left, the doc would ask them if they had any concerns and examine further. She would examine the back and walk etc. When they turned 12, whenever there was a male doc (this is a practice and we see who is available sometimes) a female nurse or female intern would accompany him during an exam. They will probably talk to you about the hpv shot also. My girls chose to get it this year. I left it to them to decide.

Ask your mother to call the doctor's office and ask them for you. If the office has more than one doctor, you can ask to switch to a female doctor if you want to.

It's hard to say exactly what will be done in your exam - some of it depends on how developed you are at this point, and some depends on your needs. For example, a 13 year old who has decided to be sexually active at this very young age, and certainly one who has been assaulted in any way, might have a pelvic exam, whereas another 13 year old would not. Some of it also depends on family history, and some on your specific concerns.

I agree with Doris below - ask your mother to call, or if you are comfortable, call yourself and ask to speak to a nurse. If you have a male doctor, then a female nurse or medical assistant will likely be in the room with you, at least for some parts of the exam.

I do think it's a good idea for you to start having portions of the appointment without your parent in the room - learn to ask questions, listen to advice/answers, and advocate for yourself. Don't be afraid to ask the doctor to write everything down for you. And do make notes beforehand - any questions you have, areas of concern or self-care you want to know about, things you've heard or read that are confusing, etc. Also write down the dates of any periods you have had so the doctor can record that - are they regular/irregular, heavy/light, crampy/not crampy, and so on. That's a great habit to get into anyway.

My daughter's physicals as teenagers have been primarly like when they were toddlers and preteens (height, weight, ears, nose, throat, heart beat, blood pressure and a scoliosis check). Their pediatrician has never done a breast exam or a pelvic exam. That is what a gynecologist will do at an exam.

In our exam the doc, a nurse practitioner lady, only checked for lumps in our girl's breasts and pushed around on her abdomen. To see if there was anything abnormal there.

A non-sexually active 13 year old shouldn't need a pelvic exam. That would be creepy. If you see a male doc then you can talk to your parents about changing to a different pediatrician where a female doc or nurse practitioner is available for you to set up as a patient.

Since you have a male doctor, the office is also supposed to have a female nurse or doctor present in the room during the exam if your mom isn't in the room with you (and it's ok to tell your mom you don't want her there if you aren't comfortable, but also ok to ask her to stay).

Sorry I don't know what they will do in the exam. Just make sure there is a female adult present during the exam.

If you feel comfortable with your doctor, it is not weird at all that he is male, although it does mean that if you meet with him without a parent (and I think you should for a few minutes), he will probably have a female assistant in the room with him.

As soon as you arrive, when the nurse takes you back to get your height and weight, you can certainly ask that person what all the exam will entail.

In advance of the appointment, rather than focus on what they will do at the physical, I suggest you think ahead of time about what questions you have for him about your health. If you are embarrassed to ask those questions in front of your parent, tell him (or the nurse) you'd like to talk with the doctor without your parent in the room for a few minutes to ask those questions.

I hope that you can talk about issues like puberty and sex with your parent. But I also know that this doesn't always happen, and I would rather you get information about these topics from a doctor, not from friends/gossip, so that you hear the facts.

I have a male ob/gyn, and whenever he performs exams, there is a female nurse present. Your mother should be present, considering you're a minor and may not know much about any explanations or instructions your doctor may have. If having a male doctor makes you uncomfortable, you can always request a female doctor. Are you seeing an ob/gyn? If it's just a pediatrician, there is no reason they would do this. My primary doctor never checks my breasts, pelvis, or anything like that -- that is left to the ob/gyn. The primary care physician will check my reflexes (little hammer striking the knee), listen to my lungs, my heart, check my eyes, my mouth, my ears, and maybe feel around the abdomen. He also will ask if I have any questions or anything I want to discuss, or if something seems off. He then does blood work, and I go home. I did not see an ob/gyn as a teenager, but that is because my mom said unless I was sexually active, there was no reason for it.