May 2017 Thread #2 - sore boobs, early scans & feeling rather queasy!

[lullaby23]

Thread #2 for those due next May!

Link to thread #1

Morning all. On holiday and thankfully at 11.5 weeks I think (fingers crossed) sickness is starting to ease off. 12 week scan next week and nuchal, did anyone else who had the Harmony test get advised not to have the nuchal plus bloods? They said it could give conflicting results. As I understand it with Harmony you'll get a positive result (ie an abnormality) or a low risk 1:10,000 score but then if you go for the nuchal it could be a lot worse ratio which would be a concern. They said get the nuchal measurement done and if it's a thin one then don't get the bloods. Any thoughts?

I'm not sure I'll be any help as I'm not getting the harmony test (and perhaps I'm not entirely sure what it is!) but doesn't Nhs NT test for Down's syndrome plus all the trisony (sp?) conditions...so I'm not sure what the harmony test does that is different...if nhs deems you high risk you would be offered amniocentesis so would get a definite answer then? I'm probably not being helpful but if it were me I would go with nhs test to be honest.

Tea, I'm not sure about having them both but I would be interested to know as I have my harmony the end of next week.

Sonnet, I don't think the NHS test for all the different trisomys I thought it was just downs and their test is not as accurate as harmony. I think NHS was something like 80-85% and harmony is 99%

Oh also do partners need to go to the booking appt with midwife? I'm assuming not?

lucieloos You don't really need your partner with you at the booking appointment. Nothing interesting really happens, it's just taking down lots of details from you (takes ages) and a blood test.

Ok brilliant thanks mamushka. It's a really awkward time so would have been difficult for him to come.

Luci my NHS trust (Greenwich) will be doing scan and bloods and testing for Downs, Edwards and Patau all together and then put you forward for follow ups if required

That's good raspberry. I think mine does both too although I don't think they are as accurate as harmony and I just need to know ASAP so I can hopefully start to relax a little.

Hope your apt goes well lucieloos. You have to fill in most of the booklet yourself before you get there (assuming we all have the same paperwork?) so if you do that with your DH you can ask him about his family history side of things and that's all you need.

My nausea's back today, the plumber's working on the house all smoke and the smell makes me retch. Appetite's been much less the last few days as well but apples and smoothies are still going down alright.

I desperately want to buy something tiny and cute for the baby but it also feels far too soon. What are other first timers doing? Waiting till 12 week scan? 20 weeks? Already gone mad and bought all of the tiny booties?

Thanks Peach - managed to move my booking appointment to this week and my scan to the end of the month so I'm back on track. I'm not particularly patient so now that I've got my head around it, quite happy to find myself at almost 11 weeks rather than 7! Also means I can tell people sooner

Anne I couldn't resist and bought some neautral baby grows the other day.

We've been very lucky that the few friends we've told have off loaded a ton of things to us too so we already have a Moses basket and a bouncer etc in our spare room.

My parents are so excited too that every time we've seen them since we told them they've bought us something new too bless them.

Anne it's my first but I'm waiting until 20 weeks before I buy anything. Did however buy a sewing magazine yesterday which had a super cute newborn section which has inspired me to get the sewing machine out. But not quite yet!

Same as raspberry regarding what the NT test covers plus 20 week scan detects abnormalities associated with syndromes etc so I'm happy with what nhs offers- not "dissing" (cringe word but can't think of another!) the harmony test though and totally support others going for it!

Regarding the booking appointment...the midwife likes you to come to one without your partner so they can ask you if you are experiencing domestic abuse. Seriously. I didn't know how vehemently to say "no!" In case they thought I was protesting too much!! Be prepared for a few amusing questions at booking appointment- I am very immature and laughed at a few. It was ok, the midwife laughed too!

I'm mainly going for harmony as the NHS missed edwards syndrome with one of my close friends and she had to have a termination at 26 weeks and give birth to the baby as it wasn't compatible with life. I know that's probably very rare but if there is something wrong I want to know ASAP! Definitely worth the peace of mind at 10 weeks I think.

My midwife followed me to the toilets when I went to do my urine sample to ask about Domestic Abuse... I found it helpful having DH there though. It's our first baby so meant a lot to both of us

Somebody else mentioned they will take me to one side as well and ask if I'm being abused. I suppose it has to be done! I'm not going to go with DH though. I think if it had been an early appt I would have but because we've had IVF he has already had to have a lot of time off work for appts and I don't see the point in making him sit there for a couple of hours to go over my medical history. I will update him on it all later.

AnneLovesGilbert I think they must do things differently depending on which NHS trust you come under. Not sure what booklet you're talking about but where I live you don't get anything until the booking appointment. Then the midwife gets a fresh set of maternity notes out and starts adding a few initial notes to it. She types in all your information on a computer form as she asks you questions. I think that form then gets printed out and added to your notes.

If anyone's wondering what sort of questions, it's all sorts. e.g. Have you ever had a family history of heart problems (and a whole load of other health issues), is this your first pregnancy, was was the outcome of any previous pregnancies, have you ever suffered from depression, anxiety etc, what is your home life like, are you employed, what's your job title, what's your partner's ethnic background, when was your last smear test, what medication are you on, how much alcohol do you drink, do you smoke, when did you start taking folic acid, etc etc! (Not in that order...!)

I have the booklet Anne mentioned. It seems like it's the full set of maternity notes. They've asked me to complete most of it before I go to save time I imagine but there's bits in there for further appts down the line and things the midwife needs to discuss at different stages etc

Thanks for info re the booking in, I have mine this Friday and was curious.
My GP asked me about domestic violence when I saw her to be referred to the midwife,she also asked me how my DH was feeling towards the pregnancy, I assume midwife will ask me too.

Luci my husband didn't come to our booking in appointment because he was working but even if he wasn't I don't think he'd have come to that, it's pretty boring to be honest! My letters all say that I need to attend at least one appointment on my own.

I did too Rasperry, it's my first, though not DH's. And they decided to put me under consultant review for a heart thing I have so it was nice to have him there to ask questions and remember stuff I didn't.

Before my booking in I got a pack of info with a screening leaflet and an A4 green book Mamushka. I filled in the first few pages before the appointment - history, family history, lifestyle, emergency contact, all sorts - then she asked me more stuff and filled in a few more pages.

After the appointment I went for bloods and when I got back the green book was in a folder with scan appointment info and a load of other stuff I have't yet read through. The green book is the thing you're meant to keep with you all the time in caee anything happens.

They were very clear it's the ONLY RECORD of everything and not to rely on it being on a computer. Seemed very old-skool!

After DS was born and the HV came round she asked "are you and your husband related?" I was like "I bloody hope not!". "You'd be surprised at the answers I get to that one" she said.

Sonnet and Raspberry the current NHS tests are only accurate to 92-93% whereas Harmony is 99.9% accurate. Also NHS would offer you an amniocentesis to confirm if you got a worrying result and then you have a risk of miscarriage from that whereas Harmony works from just a blood test so it's not invasive.

Tea sadly I'm not in a position to spend £400 on a test privately so the NHS will have to do I guess