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Pregnancy

Nervous About Amnio :(

29 replies

Scotia · 29/07/2008 17:01

I just had the midwife on the phone - amnio is arranged for Thursday. DH is at work, DPs not around just now (dad not speaking to me since I told him about pg anyway) so just needed to bounce it off MN.

It's all happening so fast. I only had the pregnancy confirmed on Friday, and scan today shows I will be 16 weeks tomorrow. It was my decision to go ahead with the amnio, and I know about the risks so it will be awful if anything goes wrong because of my need to know.

DH will be with me and hopefully we sould get the results fairly quickly.

I'm just feeling so nervous and needed to share with someone.

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Ledodgy · 29/07/2008 17:03

Just make sure you have complete rest for a few days after the amnio. I had one with ds1 and it was over pretty quickly but resting afterwards is extremly important.

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elkiedee · 29/07/2008 17:10

Scotia, good luck on Thursday, there's a few of us going through this sort of thing at the moment if you look on some of the other pregnancy threads. I got "high risk" results and had CVS at 13+4 weeks on Thursday, fortunately my results were reassuring.

Are you having amnio because of your age, because of results from screening tests or because you need to know?

Whatever your reasons, hope it goes well for you.

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elkiedee · 29/07/2008 17:11

Are you at work or not? Is your youngest ds at school? Can your dh make sure you're able to rest Thursday/Friday/the weekend?

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legalalien · 29/07/2008 17:15

I agree with ledodgy. I ended up having to have my amnio on my own, and it was a bit rubbish - I felt as though I'd gone into shock afterward - I think because I found watching the needle go in on the ultrasound screen, with the baby there, so odd - I got a really protective "parental rush" (much more so in fact than I did when DS was actually born). I'd recommend taking boiled sweets or something along so that you can have something sugary afterward. I was really lucky that one of the nurses took pity on me being on my own and made me sit down in the waiting room for an hour or so afterward, and got me big, sugary cups of tea, and then came and sat with me when her shift ended.

Incidentally,the procedure itself is pretty straightforward - best of luck with it!

I imagine the timing of the test results depend on what you're testing for - IIRC the standard tests (downs etc) came back quickly, but in my case the amnio was for something different, so there was a time delay to cultivate cells / do the test etc.

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legalalien · 29/07/2008 17:16

I walked home afterward (what the hell was I thinking?)!!!!

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Sassafrass · 29/07/2008 17:19

I had an amnio a couple of months ago and was very very nervous. The procedure doesn't hurt but it is a little uncomfortable. Do make sure you have 3-4 days of resting afterwards. You'll probably get a bit of cramping so just try to relax.

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MamaGLovesMe · 29/07/2008 17:20

Can I ask why you are having the amnio?

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Scotia · 29/07/2008 17:27

Thanks everyone for replies, am feeling a bit tearful atm.

I should have explained, I have had an amnio when I had my DS, and it really wasn't too painful, so I'm not really worried about that side of things (although I am a bit of a coward about needles).

I'm having it done this time because of my age (42), and didn't have the blood tests because I will never forget the phone call from the midwife last time telling me about my 'increased risk' of Downs after blood test. My midwife (today) said I was doing the sensible thing - but am I really? I could be putting this baby at risk for purely selfish reasons.

I'm lucky DH is in a job where he can take time off to come with me, and my older (adult) DDs will look after DS for me, so I will have plenty opportunity to take things easy.

at legalalien walking home afterwards

We have also been invited to a family weddng (evening only) on Friday. Will I be ok to go or should I give it a miss? My cousin will understand if we can't make it, but I'm not sure if it's taking resting a bit far not to go along and show face. I won't be doing any dancing!

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bundle · 29/07/2008 17:29

scotia, have you had blood tests this time too?

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Scotia · 29/07/2008 17:33

No I haven't had the blood tests this time - midwife said my risk would much more than likely be higher than the cut-off for 'normal' risk (sorry, not sure how else to put that) because of my age alone.

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MamaGLovesMe · 29/07/2008 17:33

You seem very worried that you might miscarry. That is an understandable worry and a potential reality.

It seems to me you have decisions to make -

Have amnio, miscarry healthy baby.
Have amnio, miscarry baby with extra needs.
Have amnio, baby has DS.
Have amnio, baby is NT.
Don't have amnio, wait and see what happens at the birth.

Which is what you can handle the most?

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bundle · 29/07/2008 17:36

but you may get a "normal" (or even "better") result for 42 yr old woman.

Mine was fine for DS and spina bifida risk (at 38) but high for Edwards syndrome, so I opted for an amnio.

what would you do if you got a result that said DS was definitely present?

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Scotia · 29/07/2008 17:39

I honesty don't know what I would do. My worry if baby did have DS, is what will happen when DH and I are not here any more? That really scares me.

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MamaGLovesMe · 29/07/2008 17:41

I think you need to make some more decisions before the amnio tbh.

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bundle · 29/07/2008 17:44

talk to your dh about it before you make any decisions, write it all down if you need to, x

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elkiedee · 02/08/2008 11:50

Scotia, did you go for the amnio? How are you?

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elkiedee · 02/08/2008 11:50

Scotia, did you go for the amnio? How are you?

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mslucy · 02/08/2008 12:19

if the amnio is done by someone who knows what they are doing, the risks are much lower.

I had CVS done at 12+6 on Tues after a dodgy nuchal and it was fine.

The average risk of miscarriage is about 1:100 but the guy who carried out the procedure - the Professor of Fetal Medicine said that for that hospital, the risks were 1:700, because they only get very skilled people to do it.

CVS and amnio carry similar risks.

If you are worried about Downs syndrome and how you would cope, you should have the amnio.

It is always best to know the facts.

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Scotia · 03/08/2008 14:20

I had the amnio on Thursday, which was not too bad in itself. However, I woke up through the night in a wet bed - clear liquid, so had to go to hospital to have things checked out. The midwife heard the baby's heartbeat, and a doctor did an internal examination and was reasonably confident that my waters were not leaking, so I was sent home on Friday morning.

I'm left in limbo now until my next a/n appointment in two weeks time. To be honest, I don't feel too confident that I have not lost my waters or that the baby will be ok.

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Ledodgy · 03/08/2008 14:23

That's terribel you have to wait a fortnight. I think they really need to scan you to make sure your waters have not gone. get yourself down to your local EPU first thing tommorrow.

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mslucy · 03/08/2008 15:27

go to hospital tomorrow and get yourself checked out.

otherwise you will drive yourself nuts with worry.

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elkiedee · 03/08/2008 17:40

That sounds really scary, but it may well be extra discharge and nothing to worry about, I hope so for your sake. However, I'm sure you'll worry about it, anyone would. Would it be possible to get a local GP's appointment? My GP has the equipment to listen into the baby's heartbeat, though I don't know how common that is - she has extra training/qualifications in maternity related areas of medicine.

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Scotia · 05/08/2008 12:09

Thanks for the support on here, it's really appreciated. I had a call this morning to say the baby does not have Downs, Edwards or Patau, and I'm having another little boy

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elkiedee · 05/08/2008 12:57

Thanks for sharing your good news with us.

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mslucy · 05/08/2008 15:12

hurray!
same as me
when's he due?

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