August 2013 Part 2: Looking forward to scans and the beginning of bumps!

[chocolatesolveseverything]

Here's a new thread for us summer mums-to-be.

A link to the first thread is here.

This first trimester will end eventually... it will, it will!!!

I don't know if we would terminate for downs syndrome or not. With our first we definitely wouldn't have. But now we have DS to consider too in any decision. Plus NT doesn't just detect Downs, if I recall correctly.

So we've decided to go for the test and if we had a worrying result we'd then consider whether to have an amniocentises (I'm sure that is not the right spelling) or what action we should take.

I'm going to stick my neck out and say that I am having NT done next week and if I get a positive result for downs (after harmony and cvs) I would terminate.
My parent has a cousin with downs and I have a step-sibling with a whole range of difficulties so my personal experiences very much affect my point of view. I see how much these families have struggled/sacrificed and I couldn't ask that of them again.

So, have 12-week scan today and am wide awake with the worst back pain of my life - can only think it's a trapped nerve. It's been coming on for a few days and last night got to the point where I could barely move without crying out in pain. Am taking paracetamol, but a night's rest clearly isn't helping.

Suppose I ought to get myself to the doctor! Sorry for the moan, but feeling a bt sorry for myself! Anyone else in a similar boat?

Snowshine, we decided not to find out risk for Downs also. My local NHS trust charges you to do NT scan (£180!) but you can have bloods if you want. I would not terminate for Downs so felt it was pointless stressing over a number for the next 26 weeks (which I know I would). I feel really happy with our decision.

Sorry have been MIA for a while but have tried to stay up to date. Great to hear about all the lovely scans but big hugs to Carrie hope all goes ok today.

Anyone else 'blooming' yet? Everyone keeps saying to me that I will be blooming soon... I feel rubbish, really tired, bad skin, greasy hair and back ache!!

Meant to add 14+4

sorry louise - my back is fine but i've been up since 5 feeling & being sick. misery!! good luck at your scan

rugbugs/jolly - hope it didnt come across that i would judge anyone in that situation for choosing not to continue with a pg, its just that i know i would and i find it quite strange how the testing seems so standard when all it seems to do is give you more stress since a blood test cant give you a definitive answer and the amnio carries such risks to what is potentially a perfectly healthy baby. But i do completely understand that people want to know and why they want to know at the same time.

chuck - 13+0 today and def not feeling too bloomy lol

Thank you Snowshine. Sorry you're feeling rubbish too. And Chuckaluck - as you say - bring on the bloom!

Snowshine

I had the combined test after telling doctor no CVS/ amnio and that we wouldn't terminate for Downs. He looked at me like I was about to lasso him with a rosary

I guess I am a test maniac. Also with my bleeding problems it was very encouraging to have the heart rhythm and circulation checked. Not by him. He didn't have the kit, then wrote a higher nt measurement on the forms for 'safety'. So i had 2 scans in the end. Also the bloods don't just screen for chromosomal problems - eg some can indicate placental issues.

So how do I fire a doctor who has been kind to me for a year, seen me at 30 minutes notice when I bled but has an antiquated ultrasound, cavalier attitude to Rh D - prophylaxis for repeated bleeding, shares no test results and thinks high risk pregnancy management is best confined to pats on back?

Hope everyone has a great day with no sickness or dizziness. Any scans today?

LittleMiss I didn't feel your question was at all judgy, and I felt the same as you last pregnancy. I just wanted to share my reasoning this time around :)

DH and I have actually not discussed it in detail as there's no point in worrying ourselves unnecessarily. So my views maybe wouldn't be the final decision we came to anyway.

11+0 here. Every week feels like another milestone. Now I've got my scan date I can plan telling everyone about my pregnancy so it is all feeling a bit more tangible now.

Last time I saw the consultant (as a debrief a couple of months after my last labour) he was running 1.5 hours late and hadn't read my notes. This is not inspiring confidence for him being on time next week! It is a 0940 appointment though, so how late could he have got by then? DH is coming to the scan and will come to the consultant appointment if it's on time.

Not at all LittleMiss, they are choices and I actually didn't have any screening with DD.

Good luck to those with scans today and thinking of Carrie

Our scan is next week, my Dad has worked out it's soon and I swear I've not spoken to him so often since I left home! He's calling me every other day asking about news (I live a good 5 hours away) bless him.

Morning all,

Sorry for my abrupt response last night about the nuchal testing. It's a very personal decision and no one answer is wrong, I started a thread over in antenatal tests here a few weeks back when we were stressing over it. It might help if any of you are still undecided, the posters over there are really knowledgeable.

So it's my first full day of sick leave today, and I'm up and dressed already as I have a long term hire car for work and they're coming to collect it before 10am (well they should be!).

When I was getting ready for bed last night DH grinned and said he could see a small belly. It looks like flab to me but he's adamant it's baby belly .

So exciting to hear all you scan stories, I can't wait until ours which is next Friday.
12+1

Thinking of you today Carrie. x

Good luck for everyone with scans today!
We'd probably terminate, but hopefully we'll never have to be in the position to find out.

Louise, last time around I had a trapped nerve in my back/arse area and it was horrible, nothing helped! So you have my sympathies.

What's everyone upto this weekend? DS is being packed off to PIL's so we're having a productive weekend of shopping for stuff & ordering carpets.

12+6

Hey ladies, sorry for late replys. I smashed my iphone screen yesterday arghh! Getting fixed tomorrow.

Going talk to midwife about fear of labour as i cant get it out my head. Finally telling people about bean which is nice and kinda exciting.

Carrie huge hugs for you today

Good luck with scans today who has them.

I cant upload my scan pic as i dont know how to do it :/ anyone care to explain :)

Xxx

blonde - my current GP and also the one I went to when I was pg with ds = both v old school! i've always gone midwife led care too, so i don't have any experience of consultants. I suppose in a weird sort of way old school GPs make you feel strangely reassured, i suppose they've been dealing with pregnant women and our various issues for years and years and they've kind of seen it all. Forefront of developments in modern medicine though? Not so much!!

ruck - embrace the bump, not flab, growing baby! After all your uterus is the size of a grapefruit by now :)

rugbugs - that's v sweet of your dad! mine has been texting a lot and him and my mum are always offering to take DS for me at the weekends so i can rest up. very invested in their future 2nd grandchild lol

jolly - I never did a post-labour de-brief although given how my last delivery went i prob should have! Going to have a quick chat with midwife about it at next appointment though, my 2 real concerns are:

1. that they would let labour go on as long as it did last time which ended up sending my blood pressure through the roof, and DS was in some distress by the time he finally arrived so I'd want reassurance that if things aren't progressing they would put me on a drip to speed it up.
2. That i'd be able to have an epidural if i wanted one, which is one of main reason i'm at this hospital instead of one i had DS in because they have a dedicated anethetist for labour wards
3. Post-DS i had quite a lot of pelvic floor damage and 2.5 years later things are still not 100% and in fact have gone a bit downhill since i got pg again. I'd want to make sure to minimise the probability possibility of doing any further damage, but mw has already referred me to see hospital physio next week so hopefully that will help.

I'm having the NT done and would have further tests to confirm, we've discussed it and would terminate, my DH has been honest and said he couldn't handle it.

Feel much better this morning, I forced some granola down and stomach is much more settled, I knew yesterday that if I ate I'd most likely feel better but couldn't bring myself to do it. Stupid I know.

Sorry you've got a bad back louise

Good luck to all of you having scans.

Carrie Thinking of you.

R.e NT testing, I had mine this time and did with ds1&2 it does detect more than downs. But I wouldnt terminate if the baby was downs, my aunty was downs and she brought many years of happiness to our family, and my nan is a shared lives carer she takes people in that are going through difficulties with there family and most of them are downs, so for me personally been brought up around them and seeing my nan still do that job i wouldn't terminate. But id still want to know so I could be as prepared as I can be.

louise I was in so much pain Yesturday but with all my leg and then it went up into my groin, I got a very hot bath to try n sooth it, it helped in the bath but as soon as I got out it come back.

Has anyone else been getting major headaches?

beckie - had a couple of headaches, think caused by getting deydrated when really sick or maybe cos i'm having a lot less caffeine than usual

To clear the NT thing up - again, probably because of being in N.I. i'm pretty sure NT isn't offered as standard to ladies here (I certainly have never been offered it nor have any friends), unless maybe they are in a v high risk category. We are only offered (and even then only in some hospitals) the quadruple test. This test basically only really screens for Downs and another thing called Edwards Syndrome and all they will give you is the odds that your baby has either, at which stage you have to decide on whether to go through with an amnio to find out for sure, knowing there's a 1% chance of miscarriage. So I guess it's a slightly different choice for me, quadruple test would not show me if anything was wrong with placenta for example, just the odds of our baby having Downs or Edwards. And yes, like I've said, I wouldn't terminate but of course I'd like to know and to be prepared for that happening. But ultimately I wouldn't have the amnio because after having had 2 mcs the 1% risk factor is too high for me and without the amnio the blood test would potentially just give me something to worry about for next 6 months when there might be nothing to worry about. Anyway, hope that kind of explains where I'm coming from - I only did a bit of googling this morning to see the difference between the test a lot of you ladies are having and what we are offered, so though I should clear that up!

I didn't have the screening snow I'll stick my neck out and admit I think it is unethical. I would certainly consider it if it meant picking something up that needed to be managed or treated during the pregnancy, but it doesn't. The 20 week anomaly scan does however, so i may get that. It's also very unreliable and they usually cause more stress than piece of mind. I did do disability studies at uni though so have studied the ethics, reasons and reliability of screening in detail.

I wanted to ask how a few of you are doing, unfortunately I find it hard to keep up on the app so sorry if I come across all me, me, me.

My sickness has been replaced with utter exhaustion. I have been breathless and dizzy too, so have just started taking liquid iron. I think my extreme sickness must have depleted all my very low stores. I was vegetarian before this pregnancy. I'm temporarily eating neat because it was strangely all I could stomach for a while. So the last few days I've been really irritable and snapped at DP a lot. I apologised to him last night and he admitted it is really hurting him. This of course made me feel even more shit. It's my day off today so just going to hide in bed I think and wallow so I don't upset anyone else. Anyone else really irritable and unreasonable?

Peace of mind*

Beckie
I don't mean to worry you but be careful with v hot baths. You can't sweat in a bath so your body temperature can increase. And you don't want that above 38.9 C. I love hot baths and am banned

I had a similar pain and had to give up big handbags for the duration and Physio helped. Hot water bottles are fine too

Having said that I am sure women in Finland go to the sauna while pregnant and are just fine?

blonde I know I remember that from last time, I don't stay in long and I dont mean super hot I put lots of cold in too, just a tad hotter then I normally would have it, cause I usually have ds2 in bath with me all time he won't get in unless its with me lol. but its only thing that helps with the leg I often get leg pain but yest was really bad and paracetamol didnt move the pain x

Thanks for the nice messages! It's eased off a little bit since a warm bath and some more paracetamol and the doctor's prescribed some codeine for if it gets really bad again. Should be able to hobble along for my scan later on this afternoon!

beckie - yes, I've had a few headaches too, although they've gone now I've got back pain! Hope you're feeling ok.

Good luck, anyone else with a scan today.

Just checking in and catching up not procrastinating about a job I don't want to do at work at all

I've looked through my notes, and there's no mention of NT measurement at all. I remember the midwife discussing blood tests (which had to be done at 12 wks and 15?wks) which give you a ratio though, so maybe they just do the blood screening, not the NT measurement in our area. I have my 15 week appt with the midwife next week, so will ask then.

zippy maybe they don't then, cause I just had the measurment and then the bloods. I don't have 15wk bloods.

louise good luck for your scan Today :)