Pregnant at forty and over - thread 2

[cloudjumper]

To continue the support for those of us who are pregnant at forty and over.

Hello lovely ladies! Can any of u believe, i got lost on mumsnet!! Yeah..seriously couldnt find the thread..it suddenly disappeared! But thankfully i followed Cloud's posts and managed to get back in here! He he Grizzer does that make u feel better re ur memory??! ;)

Anyway, glad to read all good news here. Brook congrats hun, it s a big milestone u've achieved. Must be such a relief! Kat hi, congrats to u too. Hope u are less and less pukey in coming weeks. I am suffering from nausea too but am managing to keep things down (just about!)..am only 8 weeks at the mo..so long time to go!! :( Btw Grizzer and Brook thanks. Yes i did have my 8 week scan this week and by Almighty's extreme grace, all is well :)

Grizzer i really hope baby turns right direction so ur pain (if its related) eases soon x

Cloud u off work now?? Putting ur feet up whole day and now waiting for the big-day?? Hope u finally hv packed ur hospital bag! :)) xxx

Yeah Cloud! You made it! Hope you got spoilt on your last day.

cloud well done!!!

Hello! Is everyone doing well out there?? I really get back on right thread, right??

Just wanted to ask u ladies, as u know i am just abt 9 weeks but i having been having trips to loo at night about 4-5 times! Also during day, i go almost 45 min-1 hr but that i put down to me drinking lots of water. I dont have any UTI symptoms and i did a home urine test that was normal. Do think its normal?

Also, i feel sometimes i leak some urine in knickers esp. if i bend forward etc. Sometimes i feel the vaginal opening is a bit acidic (feeling of dull burning..thats th best i can describe it)..should i be doing/not doing anything? tia xx

Hi everyone. How are you all?
I think I went a lot in the early days Ellie but it eased off. Still getting up in the night but it's usually not until 4 or 5am so not too bad. 4 or 5 times a night sounds a lot! Not sure symptoms of an infection though.
What did you do with your first official day off Cloud?
I've got so much to do at work I don't know how I'm going to get it done in the next 2 weeks. Trying not to stress about it but every email I get seems to add 10 things to my list!
At home the tree is up & things are looking tidier so that's good. Might need to start thinking about packing my hospital bag now. 35 weeks tomorrow! Got my next appointment on the 15th. If the baby is still transverse they are going to try to persuade me to let them manually turn it. I'm going to say no. The consultant told me to google it which I did & the first thing I found was a mother trying to get it stopped after her baby died. I know that's rare but with my history, rare has happened to me so I'm not prepared to take the risk. I believe if the baby could turn or needed too it would. I'm going to try some acupuncture a bit closer to the date but other that, I'll keep bouncing & rocking on the ball.
Any one got any thoughts on turning babies? Am I being over cautious? Maybe a cesarean is just as risky...

Ellie - that was me too in the early days, but I can make it through the night now, so it does get better!

Grizzer - I'm already trying to persuade people to go to someone else / follow the process / not come to me directly, as I have a dread that I'll be trying to hand over after I've started my mat leave (and I'm only 25+5) - haha

Just spent 2 hours at the hospital this morning, having my blood glucose tested. Fasting on top of the wretched insomnia + glucose drink = sugar hangover plus feeling grotty. All in a good cause though.

Thank u Grizzer and Hebs, am really hoping it to ease off soon as i feel like i'm sleeping in the washroom! Grizzer i did suspect infection initially too and go my urine tested in the lab, but that has come back all clear.

Could it still be cystitis do u ladies think? (Esp. With the frequency and urgency and leak in the knickers..) Any advice to avoid complications?? I am drinking plenty (mainly coz of my constipation) so hope that should keep it all flushed away...

Also, i am only drinking warm mineral water (as appararantly tap water is quite hard at my place) but started to think if thats ok...any thoughts?

Grizzer i share your concerns re manual manoeuvres to turn ur baby and if i were u, i would also opt for LSCS. I have heard accupuncture has good success rate at this stage of pregnancy esp when they use something called moxibustion x

Ps: Hebs hope ur glucose tolerance test results are normal. Why did they do it on u anyway? Is this something routine in second trimester?

It has gone a bit quiet on here, hope that's a good sign and everyone is doing well!

ellie Sorry, can't comment on the weeing, as I have never had this as a pg symptom in any of my pregnancies. But it sounds normal to me, lots of people say that they have to wee all the time in early pregnancy. More so if you are drinking lots of water! I'd speak to your mw if you are worried about an uti.

grizzer I'm with you on the being very suspicious about the ECV procedure... To me, it just sounds so...brutal and violent, for want of better words! I have also hear the horror stories about the babies dying (although I do know that a work colleague's wife had it done successfully and was able to have a natural birth). But if it was me, I would try all the 'natural' remedies first, acupuncture, reflexology, bouncing, being on all fours. Possibly even moxibustion, depending on how desperate I'd get!

My mat leave has started really well, but so far, I'm really busy! Trying to sort out the house (currently a war zone due to the combination of baby stuff and Christmas decorations, both of which need to get sorted), booking things like car service, checking house insurance, etc. My hospital bag sits half packed in our bedroom, currently only contains my clothes and some maternity pads.
However, I did have a pedicure on Saturday, went to the hairdressers today and have just booked myself a pregnancy pamper session at our local beauty salon
Off to the airport now to pick up my mum who decided to squeeze in a visit and spoil half my pre-birth mat leave. She is quite hard work and drives me up the wall, so I need to think of ways to avoid her getting on my nerves. Wondering if I can get her to sort through the baby clothes and put up the Christmas decs for me ...

Definitely give your mum a long list of jobs Cloud. That's surely why she's decided to visit!?
Love the pampering too. I'm having my hair cut on Monday. Looking at the grey that's coming through, I think I've left it too long!
Good idea Hebs, I might have to tell people to stop sending me anything new now & hopefully I can see start ticking things off my list. That glucose test is horrible isn't it? I really struggled drinking the lucozade in the time. Bleugh.
Baby has moved loads today & I'm sure I've had some Braxton Hicks! I don't think I've had them before but I assume that's what it is. Feels like mild period pains.
Going to shave my legs & pack my bag just in case.....

Hi all

I am sorry I haven't posted for a while, life seems to have got very busy busy suddenly with hospital appointments, parents evenings and a busy work schedule.

I hope you get a chance to enjoy your maternity leave Cloud and try make the most of your Mum I guess, although I know how I would feel if my Mum came to stay!

That sounds positive Grizzer. Maybe baby is having a wriggle into the right position? Fingers crossed.

I had my 20 week scan last week and all was fine thank goodness. I can't actually believe I am now this far along We also had it confirmed that we are having a girl so we can now focus our name hunt a little more.

I also saw the consultant last week, well that's a lie, I saw his lacky which was really annoying as I had specifically asked to see him due to birthing worries. To cut a long story short they did agree that I could have a elcs due to my concerns with partial prolapse but they still thought I should go for another vbac with a cs booked at 41 weeks if I was late (I don't do well if induced so that has been ruled out). I still feel slightly unsure. I would love to go for another natural birth but I really don't want to risk further damage!

Anyway, sorry for the long post! Welcome to everyone new and I will try not to leave it so long next time

Hope everyone is well and happy.
cloud hope you've managed to make a nice big list for your mum.
ellie hope your wee frequency has lessened a bit for you and grizzer sounds promising.
sezramum congrats on your 20 week scan all being OK - that's great news.
hebs don't envy your sugar hangover - can't be pleasant!

I have my 24 week scan tomorrow, femur length on 20 week scan on short side, so hoping that it's evened itself out a little over the last 4 weeks. Fingers crossed it's all OK. I'm feeling pretty anxious, so looking forward to getting it out of the way.

It was at this stage with DS1 that they noticed a problem and he was born with IUGR at 35 weeks. I'm praying I don't have the same again and that my goddamn placenta and the aspirin do their job for the next 15 weeks!

Thanks notfrom.

I hope all goes well for you tomorrow. Keeping everything crossed!

Thanks notfrom. Its a bit better..but tbh urine test coming clear was a big relief..all the best for tomorrow's scan..i'm sure it will all be good news x

Sezramum hi and congrats on ur 20 wk scan. Dont worry abt lengthy post. I'm sure no one can beat me on that ;) even though its my 6th pregnancy, with no previous experience of a successful
pregnancy/having a child and still being in early stages of pregnancy, I'm the perhaps the most frequent poster with lengthiest of the posts, asking every silly question under the roof ;) ..

Cloud yes i am hoping to catch up with my mw tomorrow when i go for a repeat antenatal blood test screening! They squeezed six bottles out of me and sent them to the lab without labelling them! (Not even incorrectly labelled or half labelled!!). So need to get them redone tomorrow!! Grr..

Grizzer that all sounds really positive..fx for u x

Hi everyone -still no laptop so still can't do stats post I'm afraid. Would anyone else be able to do it?

32 week growth scan tomorrow, as well as diabetes consultation. Need to remember to take a urine sample this time as keep forgetting!

No more twinges for me. Didn't pack bag either! Everyone keeps telling my bump looks like it's dropped but pretty sure I can still feel the head & bum at the sides.
Lovely news on the girl front Sezra. Glad all is ok. It's hard making these decisions about birth options. Have they told you what the chances are of you having another prolapse?
Good luck tomorrow Notso. Hope it's good news.
Really annoying re bloods Ellie. Do you have to take more time off work for a repeat? I'd ask for a free pass in the car park too! I dread to think how much I've spent at my hospital. Has your mum put the tree up yet Cloud?
I'm always on my phone so can't help with stats Isla. Good luck with your scan too & with the horrible lucozade test.
How are you feeling Katz? Has the sickness eased at all?
I wrote my to do list at work today. Got a couple of them done at home tonight so I'm starting to see light at the end of the tunnel. No 1 on my list is not to add anything new to my list!

That's a shame Grizzer. I fell over when expecting DD2 (trying to rescue DD1 on wobbly stabilisers on a bike ride) and although she was fine, I did nudge her out of position. I seem to remember spending a lot of evenings on all fours doing yoga breathing exercises! It was fine but she only went diagonal for a short time so not transverse like you are. I also wouldn't like the idea of them trying to turn the baby and can understand your worries.

Thanks Ellie I am afraid my endless weeing has only just eased off and I am only expecting a temporary break until she gets heavier and starts sitting in my bladder again!

Grizzer the Dr I saw was useless. All he was interested in was that my last birth was a VBAC, even though it was that which caused the partial prolapse. He told me that I had a 75% chance of having an unassisted birth if my labour started naturally but when I reminded him that my concern was causing further damage his attitude was that I would eventually need surgery anyway at my age so the birth 'might' just bring this forward. I must add that this conversation happened after I had sat in his room on my own for 20 minutes whilst he went and spoke to the consultant that I had specifically requested seeing in the first place! I felt a bit like he was suggesting that 'at my age' these things were inevitable . I told him that as I was only 43, I felt I would like to keep things intact for as long as possible!

I went home and cried on DP. Firstly because I was so mad about not seeing the consultant (I understand they are busy) and secondly because I still wasn't sure I had done the right thing by booking the CS. Anyway, I am a bit more chilled about it now (honest) and I know that I can still change my mind further down the line.

The problem is, it is all ifs, buts and maybes and that makes it harder to feel like I am doing the right thing.

Oh dear, I did another long one. Sorry!

Oh I've already been diagnosed Grizzer so no lucozade test. But I have to see consultant monthly with my blood sugar results to see if meds need to be increased or if I need to start injecting. Fingers crossed I don't have to do that!

Gm all! I know most of you have crossed this stage safely, so wondering if you could help with my dilemma between Panorama and Harmony test. I tried to enquire the cost. Panorama will cost me £500 and Harmony £300 as its gonna be done via pvt wing of the nhs hospital. I hv learnt that Panorama covers more tests such as triploidy and microdeletions etc but because Harmony test has been there for long so i think that might be more reliable..i'not sure as Panorama claims to be more diagnostic. Which ones did u have and why? Your prompt advice would be much appreciated. Have a great day everyone x

Ellie Neither the Harmony nor the Panorama test are diagnostic, they will only give you a risk for a chromosomal abnormality. For a diagnostic test, it would have to be CVS or amniocentesis.
The Harmony is by now pretty well established, I don't know much about the Panorama test, but always thought that they are very similar. I did the Harmony in my previous pregnancy, but it didn't work - I think that is still its greatest disadvantage, that it will fail for a certain number of people. I tried it twice without success, but they just could not isolate enough feral DNA to run the test. I would definitely ask what the policy is for that in your place, and wether you get any refund if either test doesn't work!
We didn't bother this time because we got such a good result from the combined screening, but I found myself thinking I wish I had done the Harmony test, just for that extra peace of mind - so much more accurate than the combined screening.

Thank you Cloud. I know they are not diagnostic but to avoid the diagnostic tests which are so invasive, i am thinking of going for it. Oh i never knew this could also be scenario, did they tell u the reasons why they could not isolate fetal DNA from ur blood..was it just one of those 'chance' things associated with this fancy test? How far were u in ur pregnancy at the time of testing/retesting? Must be a big deal for u to not choose to get tested this time but after a great result on combined screening i am not sure i would have been in double mind too but for me its like doing something to reassure myself while waiting for 12 wk scan which seems so so far away...!

Hello all! Great to hear how you're all getting on.

sezra I had my 20 week scan last week too - we are having a little boy! I'm actually really glad I know now (we weren't going to find out then we couldn't help ourselves) it makes it seem more real and yes, it really cuts down on the name hunting! Perhaps you can send some of your boys' names my way

cloud hope all goes well with our mum - yes obviously she wants to help, so give her a lovely list of jobs!

notfrom I hope the scan goes well today. I'm 22 weeks (with DC1) and I think I'm feeling little pops here and there - are you feeling anything like that?

ellie hope you're doing well. Yes the wait until the 12 week scan feels like forever and then it seems to go a little faster after that.

grizzer when are you due? Sounds close!

Brook yes so far so good thanks. I just keep picking things to make myself more anxious..Did u hv either of these tests (harmony/Panorama)? Any advice??

ellie I just had the NHS blood test and it came back 'low chance' - that was good enough for me. I certainly wouldn't worry about it until you have to (easy to say, I know). How many weeks are you now? Have you have an early scan?

Brook That is so reassuring to hear 'low chance' stories from you and Cloud. I am only 9+ dear and am awaiting impatiently for my 10 week scan next week...

Grizzer yes it was a waste of everybody's time really to get a 'routine' blood test repeated..but i didnt have to pay for the parking, so thats good :)

Isla, what meds are you on? I m guessing you must also be following a special diet?! Fx you wont have to go on injections x