Fantastic, fabulous 40+ Mums-to-be! Part 4

[rosiedays]

as i filled the last post on old thread it seemed only polite to start the new one. hope i've done it right

To those who have just found this thread, Welcome and congratulations on you BFP. please feel free to join this amazing supportive group of 40+ mums to be. A very nonjudgmental and friendly place to hang out and share your pregnancy.

Blundermum 40, DC2 due early May?
Lotsofcheese, 40/41, DC2 (girl) due May (DS 4y)
Onemoreforgoodmeasure, 40, DC1 due 06/06
cyclecamper, 42, DC1 due 14/06
Newchoos, 40, DC2, due early July
Blueeyes1970,42, DC1 due on 8th July
BadMissM, 45, DC2, due 22/7
Rosiedays, 43 DD3 due 23rd July(ish)
ScubaSarah, nrly 40, DC1?, due July 22-Aug 1
Iclaudius,45, due 29/07
LottieH, 44, DC5, due mid August
Sparklysapphire, 44, DC2, due 28/8
BuzzBee, 40, DC2, due Sept
Notsoold, 41,DC3 due end of October
Animol, 42, DC5 due 13th
November

Thank you all, I still can't quite believe that after all the losses and heartache, there is actually a baby in there
I'm 8 weeks today, and I know that I'm not completely out of the woods yet. The sonographer found a small bleed under the sac, so it's not all completely as it should be. But she did not seem very concerned about this, apparently it's quite common, and she also said that it being under the sac instead of above is much better.
I will tell my boss tomorrow, as I will have to take time off for my booking appointment and for the haem consultant next week. It's all very surreal, I honestly never thought I'd get here, ever.

JBrd a heartbeat and everything looking normal at 8 weeks is a great sign,chances of things going wrong drop quite dramatically now!
I had a haematoma under the sac with this pregnancy too, I was told it might result in some bleeding but it never did, subsequent scans just showed it shrinking and resolving on it's own.
When will your next scan be?

Thank you, Irish. I've been pondering over the statistics, too, and am very pleased about the fact that they say if a heartbeat is seen at 8 weeks, chances of a good outcome are 98%. I've been on the 'wrong' side of the stats for too long, really hoping that I'm going to be lucky now.
On the other hand, I know that it will be difficult to keep believing this, especially as I'm not likely to get another scan until the 12-week one. I will talk to the midwife about this at my booking appointment tomorrow, maybe she can pull a few strings for me. The stress of the last 4 weeks is not something I'm particularly keen on experiencing again (gosh, I can't believe it's only been a month since I got my BFP, it seems forever).

Hope everyone else is doing OK - any news, Morien...? Felt reassuringly bleurgh yesterday and this morning . I seem to be going down the 'only eating helps the ms' route again, though, so am a bit worried what this means about my weight... I ate an insane amount of cheese yesterday, I'm really craving salty food!

JBrd I was given an NHS scan at about 7 weeks, then another at 9 weeks and then the normal 12 week scan but I had a few private scans in between, I found it too stressful waiting and wondering if everything was still ok. The place I found for my private scans was great, the sonographers were all NHS trained but had much more time to explain things, show me in detail on the screen what they were looking at.They took accurate measurements of the haematoma and checked each time it was reducing.They could also put a trace over baby's heart so we could hear the little heartbeat at 8 weeks rather than waiting to hear it at 16! It cost about £60 for each scan but it was so worth it for peace of mind, I'd recommend doing it!
Glad to hear you're feeling sick!!

DD arrived yesterday morning, weighing just over 4 kg (8.9 lbs). Not the easiest of labours (40 hours) and deliveries, but the important thing is that she's fine, and so am I. I'll post more once we're home (tomorrow, I hope) as the internet's rubbish here.

Jbrd, so pleased for you.

Morien - huge congratulations on the birth of your daughter.

Fantastic news Morien, congratulations and well done! A warm welcome to the world to your DD

Congratulations Morien glad DD arrived safely, you must be exhausted though, 40 hrs in labour! Hope you get some well deserved rest now xx

How are you doing willitbe , I've been thinking about you x

Congratulations*Morien. Fantastic news. Hope you're recovering ok and baby is doing well. Great news for you too Jbird. Hope you can settle into a very dull and boring pregnancy.

So sorry to hear your sad news willitbe.Hope you're ok and taking care of yourself.

Had a really busy week( is there any other kind?) so just catching up with the thread now. Off to the hospital for my weekly scan. Baby getting weighed again today so hoping for a growth spurt.

How are you Irish? Hope things are going well.

Hi ladies, I noticed my name as this thread popped up on threads I am on. Thank you for your kind words and thinking of me. On Sunday when I was 11+2 finally the miscarriage started naturally. It was sudden and a bit dramatic, and within 2.5 hours I was in theatre with an emergency ERPC due to the hemorrhaging. This might be TMI, but I was grateful as it has meant that chromosomal testing will be able to be done. I managed to avoid having to have a blood transfusion, but am very anaemic now. I am home resting and recuperating. I am feeling ok emotionally. A little sad, but mostly we have been saying we are thankful for the short little time that our little one was with us in spirit and how it lifted our own spirits during the time while the tiny heart was beating. I love reading how your pregnancies are progressing, and it is encouraging, hearing of Morien's safe arrival of her daughter is fantastic. My dh and I are discussing whether or not to restart ttc, logically we should not, but somehow, knowing that others have successfully had babies even at my age, is hard to ignore..... time will tell. I hope you won't mind me occasionally lurking here to check on how you are all doing?

willitbe you've had such a traumatic time, having to rush to hospital must have been a scarey experience,you will need lots of time to recover physically and emotionally.I'm glad you can have chromosomal testing and get some answers. With my mmc when I was trying to decide if I would wait to miscarry naturally or not I asked, if I opted for surgical management if I could have testing but was told not,because of my age(good old NHS!) so I'm glad your care has been better. It sounds like your DH is supportive , I know what you mean about being thankful for the time your lo was with you, it was a valued little life that existed, however briefly, I feel the same about the babies I lost. Whatever you decide with your DH about continuing to ttc I hope you will stay on the thread.xxx

Hope your scan went well today guthrie and your baby is growing. I'm fine,I had my whooping cough vaccination today,just managed to fit it in before 32 weeks,it had been mentioned at my booking in appointment months ago but not since and when I enquired a few days ago it was a rush to get it sorted out. My arm is getting quite sore but it's a small price to pay if it gives baby some protection. Has anyone had any side effects from the vaccine?

Hope you're safely back by now Morien and settling in at home with your little girl!

willit I'm sorry to hear that it all kick off so suddenly and that you had to get an emergency ERPC - what an ordeal. I hope that you are getting plenty of rest now and are recovering well... Please look after yourself!
As you say, time will tell - it is such a rollercoaster, and you will have a lot of thinking to do. What does your DH think?

Hello everyone else, how are you all doing?! It's been a bit quiet here...

I'm 9+1 today, the furthest I have even gotten without any bleeding etc. in my mcs, so I am rather hopeful... I don't dare to think what I'll do if it'll go wrong again...
But I'm being very nauseous, again, taking that as a good sign, as I didn't have any symptoms with the mcs. I spent yesterday afternoon in bed because I felt so ill, rather annoying, (but I'm not complaining). Somehow I seem to be able to cope better at work, where there is lots of distraction (well, most of the time anyway). But I have to constantly eat at the moment to keep the sickness at bay.

Still trying to make up my mind if I want to get another scan at 10 weeks, or go for the Harmony test in London. DH is rather un-enthusiastic about either, he can't really see what we would gain from this. Somehow I seem to have failed to make him see how anxious and stressed I have been and am starting to be again. I still have brown discharge, which makes me nervous. I know that he is probably trying to stay detached, in case it all goes wrong again, but I would really like some more of a standpoint from him, either a 'yes' or a 'no', that's something I can work with

Popping on to post a little update - willitbe I am so sorry to read your news. Take care of yourself.
Yesterday I had my booking in appointment with the midwife - thankfully she was lovely (don't know why I was worried about that, I've never met a nasty one!) She was fairly reassuring about my concerns over mmc, this is something which is looming over me like a big grey cloud. I haven't had any early scans but I just have a horrible feeling that I would get to my 12 week scan and there would be nothing there. I really don't know why - my symptoms have been fairly consistent since week 5 (I'm 10 weeks today) and I haven't had any blood loss or cramps. A small amount of brown spotting on 2 occasions a couple of weeks ago, which was only enough to show when I wiped after going to the loo (sorry tmi) but nothing on my knickers etc. However as I'm sure you all know, in the life of a pregnant woman this is a Sign of Doom!

When I got home from work last night I decided I had to be more pro-active so I have booked a Harmony screening test for Thursday night. So I guess one way or the other I will have news to share by the end of the week - frantically crossing fingers, touching wood and saluting magpies until then!

Good to hear the updates. Willitbe I hope you are recovering and being looked after? Have been thinking of you and coming to terms with mmc.

JBrd good luck with making a decision. I think it's difficult for partners to totally get the constant stress of early pregnancy, as they don't live with every twinge, feeling etc. I can guarantee they wouldn't ever get nervous about what they might find when they go for a pee! Would you go for a harmony test anyway, or only if your Downs results are high? If so it might be best to do it early, then at least you are getting some other info other than reassurance. I didn't do the Harmony test in the end as I was quite reassured by my Downs result (1:239). Funny, 10 years ago I would have thought that really high, but now with a background age risk of 1:50 or so, it seems quite reasonable!

Officelady good luck for Thursday! I know what you mean about expecting to see nothing even though you have symptoms. It's a shame our brains and bodies are not a bit more in sync sometimes. Am sure it will all be fine.

I had an exciting scan yesterday - it was a private scan at 19 weeks. A bit of an indulgence as this is our last baby so doing all the extras this time. Also I didn't find out the sex with the other two, but for various reasons, not least because there is no guarantee DH will make it to the birth this time, we wanted to find out together. So, looks like we're having a little girl :-) and all is well. It was lovely finding out together and also not in a totally exhausted state where I could actually take the news in! I was able to check if there was a nasal bone as I've heard this is a Downs marker, and all is well, so happy.

The scanner did prod me about a bit and it seemed to set off some quite strong round ligament pain - had to lie down for a couple of hours after. I seem a bit more prone to that this time round. Okay - on with work now. I've had a bit of a full on time with my normally very part time job recently. Back to back trips to the Philippines and Germany and feeling pretty exhausted. I don't think I can do any more trips whilst pregnant as it really took it out of me this time, so I need to figure that out with my work. It's a tricky one.

Have a good week everyone!

rainy Good to hear your lovely scan news! But I don't blame you for not wanting to travel to the Philippines for work, that's a tough journey even when you're not pg! Do they let you fly business class? Hopefully, your work will be understanding.
I also find that I can get quite sore after scans, depending on how much pressure the sonographer applies.

I'm thinking we should do a stats list soon, there are now quite a few people on here again and I'm really nosey

I have now booked the Harmony test - and strangely enough, feeling very nervous again all of a sudden! Going in next Tuesday for the first part, scan and blood taking, then two weeks later for the Harmony results and the nuchal scan.
Now that I'm counting down again to another scan, I'm going all tense . I wonder if I will ever be able to relax in this pregnancy...

Still plenty of nausea, without actually ever being sick. I have dug out my travel accupressure bands again, I wore them 24/7 last time, not sure if they actually help - but hey ho!

Woke up this morning feeling really positive and actually looking forward to my scan tonight, then went to the toilet and saw pink discharge when I wiped. I've now had 3 instances of spotting, all seemingly for no reason and midwife said "probably" nothing to worry about because there has been no cramping or clots etc.
Now I'm absolutely dreading the scan. Dh is still being so optimistic, half of me wishes I could be like him, but the other half wants to punch him in the gonads. And I've got a horribly busy day at work today, all I want to do is crawl back into bed and hibernate.
Sorry for the negativity, don't want to bring the thread down but this is my safe place for talking about things. Nobody in "real life" knows I am pregnant so can't share with a friend. Thanks for listening x

office It is such a rollercoaster, isn't it! One day, you're on top of everything, the next day down in the dumps. It is so difficult to stay positive all the time! Feel free to let it all out on here, that's what this place is here for.
I also had an occasion where there was bright red blood when I wiped a few weeks ago, and I swear my heart stopped for a moment. But it was all fine on the scan. Have you had more pink discharge since then? Your mw has a point, if there is no cramping or anything else, there is a very good chance that everything will be OK. There are so many things that can cause this.
Work might distract you and give you something to focus on, but I know how hard it is to concentrate, when all you are doing is wishing time away.
Good luck and fingers crossed all will be well!

Thanks JBrd, you are the voice of reason. It was just the one time when I wiped, there was some pink on the toilet paper. My heart just sank. Obviously I have checked eleventy million times since then and nothing else seems to be occurring. I'm in work now so it will be head down and flat out for the next 9 hours, no time to worry hopefully.

Oh, Officelady you poor thing. I'm sure all is going to be well with your scan later. It's worry, worry all the time with this pregnancy gig. I hope lots of work makes the day pass quicker, and at least you'll have definitive news later today.

JBrd I hope Harmony scan and test goes well for you, too on Tues. The NIPT really helped my confidence. I hope it does for you, too.

Morien congrats on the little one!

Willitbe I hope that you're recovering and that you get some answers from the test.

I told work this week, and everyone was really pleased for me. What a relief! I've never made it this far before, and it's all starting to feel a bit real.

Good luck with your scan Officelady ,hopefully it will provide some reassurance for you. It's hard not to feel paranoid with any spotting but it can be fine, I bled at 9 weeks and 15.5 weeks with DD2 and she was perfectly ok. With this pregnancy a haematoma was noted at an early scan which I was told might bleed but not affect the pregnancy, it didn't, but if I had started to bleed it would have been a logical explanation and it wouldn't have necessarily meant there was a problem with baby IYSWIM.

Glad to hear your scan went well Rainy , we've indulged in private scans this time too and the sonographers have much more time than during an NHS scan. It's helped the other DC bond with their new sibling before he/she is born too.

I hope your Harmony test goes well for you JBrd ,it will be great peace of mind to get a good result. Sorry you're feeling nauseous, but in a way glad to hear you've lots of symptoms!

IAte it must be nice people know about the pregnancy now and you can talk about it openly at work. How many weeks are you now?

Hello everyone. Not been on for a week or so, so hope everyone is doing well. I'm 34 weeks now and baby still small but seems to be growing. Still getting scanned weekly to check everything's ok. Really busy at work so that's helping keeping the worries at bay. Maternity leave not due to start for another 5 weeks but feeling really tired at night now. May have to reconsider that one!
Hope all scans/tests go well for everyone.

Thanks, IrishMammy I'm 15 weeks tomorrow. It is really nice to actually talk about it, but at the same time I miss when it was just my and DH's special secret, just a little.

Guthrie I'm glad to hear that the baby is growing. Not too long to go now.

Well ladies, I'm off the list. Scan last night was awful, I have had a mmc, probably at least 3-4 weeks ago. There was no heartbeat. Unfortunately my body hasn't got the memo and I'm still getting all the pregancy symptoms. Not looking forward to the next couple of weeks of waiting for the inevitable to happen, especially when it looks like it will end up being some sort of surgical intervention. This will be my last pregnancy so I won't be back to this thread, so I wish you all the very best for healthy and happy pregnancies xxx