20 week scan this afternoon...

[twiglet2]

I'm not really sure what to expect with this - is it just a more detailed version of the 12 week scan?

Everyone is expecting me to be excited, but this feels like a pretty serious scan to me, rather than a 'fun' scan. I've had a pretty straight forward pregnancy so far and I'm not a real worrier but can't help thinking about it.

Yes it is a bit more serious. Our one went roughly 15 mins of quiet looking by the scanner - they measure everything, check all bits are where they shpuld be and look at blood flow etc.

At the end she said "right, ive got everything I need, let me give you a little tour" and showed us heart, brain, liver, limbs etc.

She asked if we wanted to know the sex amd we said yes so she gave us a look.

Yes it is abit more serious it's the foetal anomaly scan so basically they're are checking everything is ok with the baby. They will be quiet while the check and then after the have everything they need they will do a few minutes of the nice things and show you sex if you want to know and if they can see :)

It is a pretty serious scan but don't worry too much.

Only a tiny % (less than 1% of babies) have something 'life limiting' or 'life long' wrong.
Then maybe 1 or 2% have something which will require treatment and Drs need to know about but not very very dangerous (for example a twisted foot or cleft palate).

99% of mums see a baby with normally placed body parts and (if they want) find out the gender.

Thanks for the stats Squizita and the reassurance ladies.

The baby seems to be having a bit of a party this morning - obviously enjoyed the yogurt and fruit I had for breakfast.

I'm sure everything will be ok, I'm just trying to be prepared if the news isn't great, but its hard when everyone is telling me how excited I should be.

It is incredibly likely you'll come out of there with a big grin on your face, clutching some nice scan photos, having seen your baby developing well, quite how much he or she has grown since 12 weeks and also knowing (if you want to) whether it is indeed a 'he' or a 'she'.

But yes it is a serious scan for serious purposes and some sonographers can be a bit quiet and studious whilst they're busy taking measurements etc.

I get unreasonably irate by people who call it the 'gender scan' and treat it as if the point is entirely so they can go out and paint the nursery pink or blue and have some pictures for Facebook. There is nothing wrong with being positive at all but trivialising it winds me up.

Sorry about the mini-rant, and good luck today!

My tip would be to ask the sonographer for their "ground rules" before they start - some comment as they go along, but some like to work quietly, and it can be frightening to see them staring at their screen and not hear anything. So just have them tell you what you should expect before they start!

Hope everything went well twiglet

Glad you guys told me what to expect. The sonographer was very thorough, and quite serious, but friendly. She checked everything, and we found out we are having a girl :) so relieved that everything was ok, haven't got used to referring to the baby as a girl yet!

Congratulations OP!

Congrats - I am already nervous about mine, and I have 4 weeks to go! :)

Congrats.. I had mine 5 weeks ago.. I'm due with baby no 2 so knew what to expect.. He was also quiet but once in a while talked because he noticed that I started to tense up. Because I was nervous. Can you believe it me pregnant with no 2 and still felt nervous going to the scan.. Well my first is a boy this one will be a girl.. Looking forward..

Enjoy the rest of the pregnancy

Always good - had mine last Tuesday and it felt wonderfully informal as I know the sonographer through Guiding. It meant everything was chatty but she still reassured us that everything was fine. Also, because we didn't want to know she didn't even look down there (Blueberry was being coy anyway) after getting the Femur Length and checking for club foot, etc.

Congratulations! I think that we do need to remember that scans aren't for fun. They wouldn't be funded by the NHS if they were.

Congrats - good to know the protocol as I have mine next week and I'd worry if they just silently looked at the screen for 15 minutes!