November 1014 - thread 5 - the rainbow collective romping (and limping) into 2nd trimester!

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hi folks - thought we should have a new thread!

I'm trying not to worry about anything and give the bean as little stress hormone as I can.

Although I don't have a bump and I mostly don't feel pregnant any more, just tired, which is making not-worrying kind of difficult.

WHERE IS MY BUMP? I threw up until SIXTEEN WEEKS and I feel ENTITLED to a bump to show for it!!!

So am I the only one who didn't get offered doppler at 16 week appt??? I'm south Manchester, anyone else round here? I get the feeling my midwife's very experienced and won't be swayed on things nor do anything not medically necessary. Sensible I suppose but when you want something AND it's your birthday sensible doesn't compute!

I was quite amazed to read that Amy83. I know you mentioned the NICE guidelines - what is it in them that prevented her doing your baby's heartbeat?

Had my 16 week appointment this afternoon and had a student midwife listen to the heartbeat for me. I mentioned to the other midwife about not listening for the heartbeat (read your post this morning Amy) and she said something about after 24/26 weeks the guidelines say it's the best way to see how the baby is doing at appointments but before those weeks she said to me she would be laying me down to feel my tummy so she might as well listen to the heartbeat as well. She said she would ask everyone for their permission but who would say no really? I tried to listen to her response and the heartbeat at the same time!
I was all poised to order a Doppler off Amazon this afternoon if she didn't listen to it!

On another note these anti-sickness tablets are giving me headaches. So I either have to decide if I want to feel sick or have a headache! (It's not forever, it's not forever, it's not forever she mutters to herself!)

Petal take the tablets and take paracetamol for the headache. They're safe in pregnancy. A Gynae SHO gave me some the other day!

Will do, thanks Anna :-)

I've not read the guidelines myself but I believe they say not to try to listen that early as there's a good chance of not finding it causing unnecessary worry / possible scans when it was all fine all along.

Babycentre says it's not recommended as part of routine antenatal visits. Also says they only start feeling bump from 34 or 36 weeks. I guess the moral of the story is that care and midwives and experiences vary!

I got the odds for DS today and they are 1 in 231. I know this is low risk, but it's higher than I would have liked. I wonder if the low papp-a has pushed the chances up. I also wonder what the other markers were like. If just the papp-a was abnormal, should that still raise overall the risk? Or can you look at it in isolation and just leave it out of the calculation, giving a lower risk?

What I mean is, does low papp-a on its own still mean there's a higher chance of DS?

Another worry in this pregnancy. Should I do a nifty test?

On the subject of feeling the bump: during my examination for pain the other day the Gynae doc felt my stomach and said to himself: "thats a leg...." And he was right as I'd just had my scan (which he wasn't at) and the legs were indeed over there.

I've been feeling my belly myself and i'm baffled. It all feels the same! He must be magic!

Anna I had an ultra hard bit near the middle of my belly this morning which we think might have been the head or bum right up against my belly?

I also have that feeling that by belly is too hard/ full and stretching til it will explode :P

Feeling a bit low today, saw someone we really did not want to see whilst out today and I'm a bit low about it :/ sigh...

Blamber that is still a low risk result but if you are going to spend weeks stressing then get the nifty to put your mind at ease.

Finally back in! Stupid phone app has locked me out for days and I rarely get on the laptop. Not even going to try to catch up past this page!

Happy birthday Amy!

I've been hearing the heartbeat on my doppler since 7 weeks but my mw only listened for the first time at my 16 wk appt.

Re weight gain I've gone from 8 stone to 11 stone 3 oz last Thurs, not sure if there's any more on now! But I'm 6 foot tall so this weight is what would be normal for me not pg according to the text books but I'm usually naturally very underweight. I've not thrown up once though and just been eating 24/7 since 4 weeks so kind of expected! I have a bootie! And now have a craving for toast and cookie dough ice cream which I probably will give in to in a minute...

My diabetes test results came back - surprise surprise no diabetes just as I said when they flew into the panic. Had my first physio appt - pointless. As if doing some stretches and pelvic floor exercises is going to suddenly cure SPD ffs.

Other than that I'm doing fine, baby is kicking away happily, all cool here. Hope everyone else is doing OK!

Alita, sorry to hear that you are feeling low. You should be strutting around showing off that cute bump esp to people you don't want to see. Just focus on the happy feelings you felt with those first movements.

Unfortunately venus it was someone I didn't think I'd ever see here as they live in a another town and probably the only person don't want to know I'm pregnant, so was glad for the shopping trolley to hide my bump as I was wearing a very tight top!

Blamber - sorry you're worried about the DS risk. Mine came back as 1 in 64 so I went ahead with a Harmony test which came back fine thankfully. Like you I wondered about the low Papp a result and what it 'meant'. Despite trying to read up on it on the internet, I didn't really find out much that was very informative.

I have a friend here who is my age (37) and due next month. Her Downs risk came out very similar to yours and whilst she said it was a bit of a shock to get that kind of probability, they didn't do further testing. As she said, post 35 the risk does start ramping up quite fast. Sorry I don't know how old you are, but it might be a factor as well as the Papp a in your overall risk.

With a 1:200+ risk I would try visualising 100 babies all in a row and think that less than half a baby would be DS (if that doesn't sound too weird ). Even with my risk of 1:64, 98.5 babies would still be healthy.

Not sure any of the above is helpful, but I do understand what it's like to have that doubt in your mind.

Thanks, kantha. I'm under 35 and the average risk for me is 1 in 900 I think. Wonder if its just the low papp-a that increased it.

Great news your harmony was fine! I'm tempted to do it for peace of mind, but at the same time I'm sure it'll be ok. It's a lot of money though but it might be worth it. I'm seeing a consultant next week and will ask him/ her all about it! Did you have a low papp-a also?

Has anyone else had general ache at the lower part of your bump/abdomen at all? It's not like the stretching or pulling from movement I have had before, and isn't cramps. It is more like the general ache before a period. I had it yesterday and woke up with again this morning but it is worse today, it just feels a bit weird! Any ideas if it is just things stretching?

Hi barmybunting, I've had exactly the same thing the last couple of days, it feels like what I would have just before period pain kicks in. Have been googling like mad but all it seems to say is that as Long as there is no bleeding it should be fine so fingers crossed it's just the uterus moving out of the pelvis or something....

Thanks MrsStardust, I hope it disappears soon for you! It is a strange feeling.

Just got back from my 16 week consultant appointment. Saw the midwife first who checked BP and urine, but forgot to check my iron levels (silly me realised afterwards).

To my surprise, the consultant wheeled in the portable scan machine so I got to see baby again . Unfortunately the cheeky so and so had its legs up and crossed, so nothing could be seen. Baby woke up half way through and did an almighty kick, which I managed to feel. Felt like a bubble popping, but at least I know what to feel for now . If I didn't see it I wouldn't have known any better. No feel of my tummy or anything else, didn't get to hear the heartbeat as the machine wasn't good enough for that, but at least I could see it there flickering away.

I'm booked to see another specialist in early August to discuss the possibility of a 'managed' vaginal birth whatever that means. Initially I was told by the head consultant a CS was my only option, but apparently now they are going to see how I progress .

Amy I work in North Manchester and live on the manchester/lancashire border!

Well I just had a big hormone driven hissy fit for nothing! My ex blocked taking DD to a private scan last weekend to find out the sex, my NHS scan is in 3 weeks, I wanted her to come to a private one before then to find out together, next weekend is the last chance before the NHS one because I definitely want to find out asap. hospital called this morning, scan has been changed to 9.40am tomorrow. Cue huge meltdown about what a bastard he is & how he's causing me so much stress and affecting DDs relationship & bonding with her sibling and feelings towards him/her, how he's blocking an educational experience and a lovely lifelong memory for both of us etc, there were tears and yelling, angry emails to my solicitor to kick his arse as he's not responded, even had an argument with my Dad because he said "we'll get him back for this" which sent me into a rage because nothing can ever make up for what that bastard has done to me and DD over the last few years. Rang the hospital to check if I need to drink. She said it's a scan for a dodgy lump on my neck, not the baby. Oops. Yay it's only potential cancer not the sexing scan!!! And yes that is so much better and such a relief! Lol! Oops! Seriously got to get these bloody hormones to chill the hell out.

Oh how wonderful to see baby again, Brandsnob!

I haven't felt any bubbles popping but have felt tiny "birdscratches" inside for last two days. Have absolutely no idea what they are. Movement or muscular? Who knows. I have an anterior placenta so wasn't expecting any sensation at all. I know from my scan baba is bouncing around like mad, so am hoping its movement but don't want to get my hopes up.