Medical checkup routine

How would your childhood/adolescent checkups play out? Typically mine would start with auscultation, ears checked, palpation, then inevitably last would be the vaccinations. Was this the same routine standard or did it vary for you?

Mine was a bit different. Stripped to underpants to begin. Weighed, measured and other vitals checked. Listened to heart and lungs, tested reflexes and had me walk around and checked posture. Then underpants down (or off) for genital exam and inspection of the anus.

We only ever had such school medical examinations in our primary school which were not very memorable just a bit of a nuisance. My Mum would be there and I would have to just strip down to my knickers. I cannot really remember any details but it was just about seeing if there was nothing serioulsy wrong with us as their were still a few childhood complaints that were about at that time. Mum thought that they were a bit of a waste of time as if she had noticed anything wrong with me she would have made an appointment to see the GP which was far easier back then !!

For me it was almost like for "examined" each year of school and to the nurse's office of the school with school doctor and school nurse and no parent present , it was rather thorough and embarrassing ( undressing in just briefs in group of about 15 boys students all together under supervision of a Pe teacher before entering in the exam room and being stark naked in front of two females medic persons , sometimes three if there was also a young student nursing girl which happened very often even at last grade of high school, we were aged 17-18 and in the buff and she was certainly no more aged than 20 or 21 or may be 19 age if she was in first year )

As a kid and all through high school, they never varied much. Was told to undress to underwear. Parent always in the room. Height and weight, scale in the room, followed by blood pressure reading. After that, was told to lie down sneak turn over on my tummy, while the nurse got the rectal thermometer ready. Took it out of the alcohol filled jar, shook it down, and applied a generous amount of Vaseline. Underpants taken down and thermometer inserted, and held it for about 5 minutes, which seemed an eternity.

Was told to remove undershirt and wait for doctor. Was examined head to toe by doctor. Eventually underpants came down so he could examine genital and backside. Any shots were given at the end. Penicillin was given only if sick. Most of the others were vaccines round went in the arm, except for tetanus booster which was given in rear. After that, it was time to get dressed and leave.

For me it was almost like for "examined" each year of school and to the nurse's office of the school with school doctor and school nurse and no parent present , it was rather thorough and embarrassing ( undressing in just briefs in group of about 15 boys students all together under supervision of a Pe teacher before entering in the exam room and being stark naked in front of two females medic persons , sometimes three if there was also a young student nursing girl which happened very often even at last grade of high school, we were aged 17-18 and in the buff and she was certainly no more aged than 20 or 21 or may be 19 age if she was in first year )

I would have LOVED to have had an experience like yours!

Physicals during high school were conducted in the nurse's office and provided by the school nurse and a visiting doctor who was in his mid 60s. The process was to have males present for an exam during gym class with our teacher. 15- 20 of us marched to the nurse's office without any advanced notice and assembled in a large room. There we were told to undress to our underpants and then line up in the next room adjacent to where the doc would do his exam. Alphabetical order was required. The process seemed to take forever if you were midway to last on line. Upon reaching the nurse at the entrance of the exam room, she weighed you while you saw your naked peer standing in front of the doc. As soon as he finished with him, the nurse ordered me to remove my briefs and meet the doctor. His exam was relatively basic; heart, lungs, and then testicle and hernia exam. He did a visual inspection of the anus by spreading my cheeks wide open. Upon completion, he then dismissed me to return to the larger room where my classmates were dressing unless you had no proof of tetanus vaccination. For those it meant strip off your briefs, approach the nurse and get a shot in the butt.

More or less the same thing for me

My early childhood doctor visits were extremely terrifying. From ages 4-14 I was in foster care. I was asthmatic and underweight. The system (so to speak) gifted me with constant anxiety and low self esteem.

At one point I was taken to a juvenile care facility after my 3rd Foster Parents broke my arm during an abusive attack on me. Upon arrival at the facility I was forcibly stripped naked, examined (rectal thermometer) and then held down and given a tranquilizer injection in my right buttock

When I was 11 I had been attending a Catholic boys boarding school on a scholarship. If you think I was abused while there, think again. My teachers were exemplary mentors who challenged my intellect and convinced me to believe in myself. I was taught how to swim and started platform and spring board diving.

I stayed at the school until my HS years. My new FP's (age 11) could have taken me from the school but believed in the old adage "if it's not broke don't fix it" I was home on some weekends and holidays. This made the transition to a stable and caring home a very seamless experience. I was adopted by them at 14.

A few weeks into the summer I was taken to a pediatrician for a complete physical exam. My FP's were concerned about my health issues and struggles with anxiety. I was dreading going to the doctor but eventually getting my yearly check up became a positive experience due to my doctor's kind demeanor. I now had a great team on my side. A decent education, loving parents, a kind doctor and a stellar child psychologist along with a loving and playful Airedale Terrier had me going in the right direction. I was treated with some new medications that greatly reduced my asthma from a consulting pulmonary specialist. My doctor recommended a high carb and fats diet to get me out of my borderline unhealthy underweight status. One of the house rules was daily physical activity. They had me exercising with dumbbells and resistance bands along with a hefty dose of pushups, sit ups etc. My parents are healthy and physically fit so they knew how to train my growing body. Exercising together was also just good bonding. Running and playing with the dog (she had boundless energy) gave me a good cardio workout. I gained some weight and muscle tone along with a high degree of self confidence. My performance on the diving platform greatly improved and I excelled in other high school athletics. I became a new boy in so many ways but I certainly did have my struggles and challenges. I still have bouts of insomnia over my early childhood experiences.

My annual physicals were always quite thorough. I had to strip to my underwear in front of my doctor and FPs (I started going alone at 14). I was weighed and measured and my vitals signs were taken. Then came a full body exam. HEENT, neck, thyroid and auscultation and percussion of my torso and back. Lie back with my hands behind my head. Round two of more auscultation and percussion of my throat and chest. My armpits were felt for swelling and sometimes I actually had a breast exam. My abdomen was auscultated and percussed in all four quadrants. She would lower my underwear and check my femoral pulses. Then I was instructed to me to point my toes and lift both legs, then one leg at a time. My thighs, knees and calves were felt with a moderate amount of pressure followed by an orthopedic exam of ankles, feet and toes. She would turn out the light and reexamine my eyes. When the lights went on I sat up and was given a neurological exam. Follow my finger with the eyes and reflexes in arms and legs. ROM test of arms and legs. Stand up straight, arms out to the sides then slowly lift my arms above my head, bend over and touch my toes. My spine and back were felt and she would lower my underwear a little to check my spinal base. Then stand up, squat down and duck walk. Remove the underwear, hands behind my head with feet shoulder width apart. She would then check my femoral pulses a second time then feel my crotch area then examine my penis head and shaft. Both testicles were then rolled followed by a hernia check. Then I got back in my underwear while the doctor complimented me about how strong and fit I was getting and told me I did a great job and all that was left was an ECG and a Pulmonary Function Test completed by a technician. I also received any immunizations that were due. During my first exam I took 4 shots. Then off to the conference room to meet with my FPs where we talked about school (I always did well) and how I was managing my anxiety and insomnia. Things were slowly getting better. I had a great doctor. She then sent me to have some blood work, a urinalysis and a chest x-ray.

I’m not sure I remember the exact order for childhood exams but it went something like this:

Office was in an old multi story house (google ‘3 decker’. It’s an old New England mill town type of housing.) He was on the 2nd floor.

Wait in the waiting room until called. Often they had Highlights magazine which I loved.

Get called and it was everything off, but not consistently. I distinctly remember having to take everything off and I distinctly remember keeping panties on. I think the fully nude was when I was younger, the panties on when I was preadolescent.

Height and weight were done early on. Weight was always drama as I was always underweight. I didn’t like eating. I’ve had stomach issues (IBS and lactose intolerance) from way back and little kids drank milk in those days. My father in law had the same issue growing up and in the damned 1930s his doctor/family was smart enough to recognize it and give him goats milk. Mine not so much. I was forced to drink milk which made me sick. Catch 22.

Up onto the exam table for heart and lungs, ears and throat, reflexes. No temp or BP. I do remember the ‘quick peek’ at my genitals. I wasn’t spread or anything (that came later and I’ve written about that enough) but I swear I remember one time him having me stand on the exam table with my panties down while I talked about something to do with my genitalia to my mother. I remember him pointing and sort of touching. I don’t recall the details.

If there was a shot it came last. Usually in the arm, rarely in the bum.

We didn’t have school medical exams beyond lice checks.

I like the term “3 decker”. It might be a term used by the Boston F.D. And surrounding municipalities that had similar structures.

And I often heard the term “ mill construction a common type building in New England. The things I learned in the Fire service.

@OverRainbow One of my work colleagues grew up in Boston. I have herd him use that term on more than one occasion. It is without a doubt a Boston colloquialism. The movie The Departed when referring to South Boston working class as "Three Decker Men at best."

It's a New England thing, not just Boston. It's ubiquitous throughout Massachusetts, Rhode Island, and parts of Connecticut as well as some of the larger cities in Maine and New Hampshire. Less so in Vermont because they don't really have them.

I went to the pediatrician until I was 11 and it was the same every time. Undress down to underpants, get weighed, HENT, listen to heart and lungs, reflexes, abdomen then the genital check lying down. Shots came at the end and I got dressed.

From 12 on I went to our family doctor and it was the same except he had me standing for the hernia/genital and had me bend over and spread my cheeks for a visual anal exam.

At my pediatrician, they would call me back and have me remove my shoes to do height, weight, and blood pressure in the hallway.

Then they would lead me to an exam room and have me strip to my underwear and socks and give me a gown.

After the doctor came in, he would start by checking my eyes, ears, nose, and throat. He would also feel around my neck.

From there, he’d undo the toes to the gown and listen to my lungs and back and then move to listen to my heart over the gown. Sometimes lowering the neck and using his stethoscope on my skin.

From there, he’d have me lay down and he’d lift the gown up to my neck and listen and feel my abdomen. He would then move my legs around to check range of motion.

After that, while laying down, he lift the waistband of my underwear and visually check my genitals.

I’d then sit up where he’d check my reflexes and then hop off the table and bend over to check my spine.

From there he’d sit down. And have my lift the gown up and lower my underwear to mid thigh and do an examination of my testicles.

That would be the end of my exam.

Strip to my shorts. Tongue depressor to check tonsils, felt the adenoids on my throat, penlight in the eye, check the ears, reflexes, heart and lungs, then a hernia exam. About all I remember, pretty straight forward and easy.

If I was sick and went to the doctor, they often did a more detailed exam and ask my mother or father "can you strip him to his underpants only please" and I would be examined in my briefs or boxers, depending on how old I was, in front of them and my big brother.

I would stand against the wall to get my height taken, hope onto the scales, an old Detecto style one, to be weighed and then hop onto the table.

They would then examine my eyes, ears and throat, take me temperature orally, listen to my breathing, heart and belly with a cold stethoscope, and do reflex tests, before watching me walk around the room and lean over to check my spine. I can remember having my bellybutton felt inside for an umbilical hernia.

If needed I would get shots, but in my arm, not my bottom.

It general would begin by having to strip to underpants, weight, height and gait checks, then auscultation, palpation, temperature and blood pressure, then naked for genital examination

My routine exam was eyes, nose, ears, mouth, bra removed, auscutation, breasts, abdomen, panties down, I must to open my legs, labia spread to inspect the vulva and vagina and a quick look at my anus.

We went to different doctors when I was a kid/teenager, and routines varied, but the most frequent one we went to and the one whose routine I can remember the best was a big pediatric/adolescent clinic. First, a physicians assistant who worked there would take the family back to a double-room that they used for physical exams or family visits with multiple people. When you went in there, you first were in a room that had a round conference table and seating along the wall as well as storage cabinet (where they kept gowns among other things). Adjacent to that, through a wide doorway that had no door on it, was the actual exam room with the exam table, scale, more cabinets, etc.

So, first the PA would take everyone in there. My brothers and I would be told to sit in the chairs along the wall while the PA went over forms and questions with my parents at the conference table. Sometimes the doctor himself would do that. The PA would then take us or whichever one of us was getting a physical back out of the room for all the preliminary stuff they did for full physicals including blood sample, urine sample, hearing and vision tests, cardio/resp tests, and sometimes Xrays and other things.

After that, you would be brought back to that double room and you would undress. When it was your turn, you would be weighed and measured, then BP and temperature, then the HEENT stuff, then reflexes, then heart/lungs with stethoscope, then abdomen, then all the joints/movement/coordination tests both on the table and also up and walking around, then examination of genitalia/rectum, and then finally any special things that were required including vaccinations and boosters.

More or less the same thing for me

There were old days when doctors wouldn’t hesitate to strip a boy or a girl completely for a check up. When my parents took me to a paediatrician for clearance before sending me to a scout camp, I was always examined naked.

Depending on the doctor and time our exams would vary some but generally it was at a private pediatrician practice and my brother and me together. My mom generally took us and was present the entire time.

We would start in the hallway and step out of our shoes to use a scale that had a height measuring part so they could get our weight and height at once. A nurse would do this and then take us into an exam room where she would get both of our blood pressure. She'd usually get some basic information as this all went on and then leave us alone for a while before the doctor could make it to us.

The doctor would then come in and we would decide who would be getting examined first. I'd sit on the exam table covered in paper and he would start with ears, eyes, throat, all that and usually feel around the neck with his hands and then go on to listening to my heart and lungs. Using the stethoscope up my shirt first in front and then on my back asking for deep breaths. Once he was done listening he would usually kind of squeeze my belly and feel around and then feel my back some.

After that he would have me lie down on the table and depending on what I was wearing either lift my shirt up or have me remove it completely. Then he would listen to me again but more focused on the belly and slip the stethoscope below the belt line (I assume to listen to the bladder?). Usually there were some leg tests involved with having to push against his hands and checking motion, the order of things would vary some. Then there were percussive and palpation examinations all over my abdomen and again his hands would make their way down to the waistline. He would go deeper to feel where my thigh met my body and feel around too.

At the end of that he would either lift the underwear to take a look or he would have me lift my butt and pull my pants down to see my penis. He would take a quick feel of the testicles, mainly making sure they were there I think, and then let me stand up and bend over for a scoliosis check and peer down my underwear from the back quickly. Then we would switch places and my brother would have his full exam. Again, these varied but that's kind of what the general exam was like from the doctor that we went to for the longest time.

Then he would listen to me again but more focused on the belly and slip the stethoscope below the belt line (I assume to listen to the bladder?).

Listen to your femoral pulse?

Listen to your femoral pulse?

That might have been it, yeah. He would feel that area with his hands for sure.

First me freaking out in the waiting room because i was scared i was going to have to get a shot or get my finger pricked or something like that. i would ask my mom if this visit would include a shot and she always said something like "i don't know" or "we'll see". then the nurse called us back. it was always me and my sister together.

when we got back, we were told to strip to our underwear (later underwear and bra) and the nurse measured height, weight, temperature, and blood pressure. then we were told to wait for our pediatrician. he would come in and examine us, always starting with my sister because she was older. at some point during the exam, we would be completely naked.

then he would inevitably say we needed shots so don't get dressed just yet and the nurse would be back to give them to us. i would start crying then and there and when i was really little i would try to run around and hide to avoid it. nurse would come in. i don't ever remember seeing her prepare the shots, but i was also too little and too scared to really focus on that. my sister would lie down on the table and get her shots. then i would scream and be afraid. sometimes i'd get a little spank and get held across my mom's lap so i could get mine. when i was older, i would just lie on the table and get mine. then i would cry some more and when it was done, the nurse said we could get dressed again.

then he would inevitably say we needed shots s

Can anyone list the actual kinds of injections children would get? Which specific kinds of injections and for what specific reasons?

I know I was vaccinated with whatever came along as my mother was a firm believer. But even now, except for perhaps the obligatory diphtheria and mumps, measles shots, perhaps smallpox when travelling outside the EU back in the day. I just don't remember getting injections except perhaps when I was truly ill with a specific ailment.

But otherwise? I read a lot about getting shots after every exam, but that just doesn't rhyme with my US doctors experiences.

Where docs just injecting vitamins for the hell of it, to charge extra? Or antibiotics for a case of sniffles?

I'm really curious what the injections were specifically for.

Can anyone list the actual kinds of injections children would get? Which specific kinds of injections and for what specific reasons?

I know I was vaccinated with whatever came along as my mother was a firm believer. But even now, except for perhaps the obligatory diphtheria and mumps, measles shots, perhaps smallpox when travelling outside the EU back in the day. I just don't remember getting injections except perhaps when I was truly ill with a specific ailment.

But otherwise? I read a lot about getting shots after every exam, but that just doesn't rhyme with my US doctors experiences.

Where docs just injecting vitamins for the hell of it, to charge extra? Or antibiotics for a case of sniffles?

I'm really curious what the injections were specifically for.

The younger Americans on here would have realistically gotten at minimum a flu shot every year, and most annual visits under 18 would include others. See the CDC's childhood vaccine recommendations: https://www.cdc.gov/vaccines/schedules/downloads/child/0-18yrs-child-combined-schedule.pdf. Nowadays annual vaccines will likely be Flu+Covid-19 so that's two a year for everyone six months and older that the forum will probably talking about in a decade or so. Most doctors since the 90s are avoiding unnecessary antibiotic use, but the sicklier people among us could have definitely gotten one a year. I generally get a sinus infection each winter but I'm allergic to penicillins so I've never gotten that shot and most clinics don't keep other types on hand; I'd greatly prefer a single shot over a weeklong course of pills or even just to give them a jumpstart, but alas, that's never been an option for me.

I have a hard time recalling the routine for a regular check-up while the visits I most vividly recall are when I was ill. One that is indelibly burned into my memory is when I had been sick and one symptom was a rash on my torso. I was sitting on the exam table with my shirt open and my pants unzipped as the doctor inspected my stomach and abdomen. He backed away and I began to zip-up my pants and he made a remark to leave them open as "...we still have business down there." That's when I knew I was definitely going to get a shot.

In those days, it seemed like an injection of antibiotics was culmination of any visit to the doctor. He advised I should lay face down and I complied, actually prospectively shrugging my pants and underwear down to expose my bottom. I clearly remember watching his nurse drawing the medication into the syringe as I lay there with my bare bum ready to receive the injection. The doctor always gave the shots and took the filled syringe from his nurse. He quipped something about using a particular freckle on my butt cheek as a landmark and sank the needle into my tushie, followed by that incredible aching, warm tightness as the fluid was forced into my little glute. I still also remember the ride home as my butt throbbed and I now mark that event as the beginning of my shot fetish.

Nowadays annual vaccines will likely be Flu+Covid-19 so that's two a year for everyone six months and older that the forum will probably talking about in a decade or so.

I was thinking about the 1950s and early 60s which most of the recollections are about.