Hi all. Dinosaur - how very kind of you to get in touch; I will definitely CAT you. Fastasleep - thanks honey, that's really reassuring to hear.
Well, I went to the Fetal Medicine Centre today. They spent an hour and a half just scanning me - nothing if not thorough! They confirmed bilateral talipes i.e. two club feet. One side was quite mild, but they can't really tell till after the birth. They very carefully examined everything else (and I mean EVERYTHING else - how is it possible to spend 90 minutes looking at one tiny scrap of baby?!) and all looks fine.
I of course want to protect my baby from absolutely everything, but it is terribly reassuring to hear from mumsnetters that it needn't be a big problem - and I am grateful that they haven't found any serious problems. I'm also very glad to have found out now, rather than at the birth: we'll know what to expect and it gives me several weeks to do research on treatment options etc - which wouldn't be so easy with a newborn.
But I do feel very wobbly and anxious, which wasn't helped by the post-scan discussion with the doctor. I don't blame her for giving me the full information - I wanted to know all the risks - but blimey it was scary. First of all she offered me an abortion (for talipes! I'm very pro-choice but blimey!). then she warned me that they don't know the cause of it, but it may be linked to a range of chromosomal abnormalities and genetic defects and I should consider myself at higher risk. She then offered me an amnio, but warned that this will only detect some of those possible defects, not all. She did say the risks were low, and was careful to offer the amnio rather than recommend it. The third option she offered was to have an amnio at 30+ weeks, with the option of having a termination at that time (I was open-mouthed, thinking, 'But I just couldn't terminate a baby at over 30 weeks!').
She sent me away to think about it, but right now I can't really think that amnio is a plausible option. I can't take the miscarriage risk before viability (at my age, this is my last chance) and I can't picture choosing abortion after viability. I believe the risks she was describing are low, and I'm going to try to put them in the same mental package as all those scary things that could do wrong that we DON'T get screened for.
However, I do feel a bit freaked that they now want to monitor me much more closely, and I am going back for another scan next month (because any growth retardation could be a sign of chromosomal/genetic problems). I really thought they would tell me that the talipes can't be helped, but apart from that the pregnancy is normal and no need to worry. Monthly scans are really going to keep my anxiety levels up.
Sorry for going on at length - I just feel so drained and emotional at the moment. Will feel better soon, I'm sure.