Second Rh Negative pregnancy

[InsideOut91]

Hi, I am really hoping to hear from others who have had more than one baby and are Rh negative.

My daughter is nearly two years old, she is Rh positive and I am Rh negative, I had all my Anti D jabs during pregnancy and when she was born. I am now pregnant with my second, this is a planned pregnancy but I’m already regretting it somewhat because I’m just completely freaking out. What if I become sensitised in my first pregnancy without realising it and it puts this baby at risk?

Then there’s the added pressure of having to stay bump free when I have a toddler this time. I’m roughly five weeks and I’ve literally not even known for a full week and already my husband has turned over in bed and slammed his back end right knit my abdomen - I called the early pregnancy unit and she said anti d is usually only given after 12 weeks unless there’s bleeding/miscarriage etc. I am being so careful with my toddler, how I handle her, where I sit her on me, protecting my stomach if she’s climbing all over me, but today she jumped up and landed right on my abdomen. That’s literally twice in less than a week something has happened and I’m being so careful. I’m so stressed out and I have no idea how to get through this pregnancy without issues.

Please can some other Rh negative mothers of Rh positive babies share their wisdom or stories! How do I look after a toddler without getting slammed into all the time and having anti d constantly?!

If anyone has had a baby with Rh disease, how was it detected and what was the outcome for baby?

congrats OP! I’m RH neg, 1st DC is RH pos and 2nd is Neg like me. I have a bigger age gap so can’t help with the toddler issue but I was totally fine in pregnancy and both kids are healthy and fine, just make sure to get your anti D as I’m sure you will and like you already have just speak to your midwife team if you do get and knocks or toddler kicks. I know its hard not to worry but you’ll be fine. My mum is also RHneg and she has had 4 of us all fine with no comps (and that was a lot longer ago) x

Hi OP I’m Rh negative and currently pregnant and first baby was Rh positive. First baby is just shy of 2 years old so I also have the lively toddler complication that you currently have and I have had one occasion in this pregnancy of being excessively kicked in the stomach by my toddler during a major meltdown/tantrum where I was trying to cuddle them and calm them down. This was at just over 12 weeks so I called the EPU and they advised to come and get and anti D shot, which I did and I believe all has been fine since. The midwife who gave me the anti D was also Rh negative, had a toddler and was pregnant herself so hopefully that gives you an indication of the level of risk (fairly low).

I also think the bloods taken at your booking appointment test for antibodies for this and then you would know if you were sensitised or not anyway (as you’ve been given anti D before is very highly unlikely that you are sensitised).

as with a lot of things in pregnancy I think it’s all heavily precautionary and the risk of rhesus disease is actually probably pretty low. It’s really good to be aware of it and ring your midwife if you’re ever unsure if you should go and get an Anti D shot but I don’t think it’s worth stressing yourself out over. Chances are it will be absolutely fine 😊!

Sorry, am Rh neg and tbh I can't relate at all, it never occurred to me to worry about this. A good proportion of pregnant women have toddlers, surely bump bashes are par for the course?

I’m Rh negative and had a 2 year old when I was pregnant with 2nd. I got kicked by my toddler having a tantrum multiple times and fell over during the 2nd pregnancy and everything was fine. (This was after having several falls with the first pregnancy too and having to have extra anti-d injections). I had a wobble thinking the same as you for a while, but it was all unnecessary worry.

I don't think you need to be worried if you've had the anti D shot after your first pregnancy as that is the point of it. I'm negative but I believe my first baby was also negative and my second was positive, as they didn't offer me any jabs after the first one. I won't have more children now because this was years ago, but I would have felt happy to and not anxious.

If anyone has had a baby with Rh disease, how was it detected and what was the outcome for baby?

I was one! Obviously I don't know all the details of how it was detected but it was detected prior to my birth as my mum was induced a month early. I had exchange blood transfusions and spend some weeks in SCBU (Not too long I don't think)

This was over 55 years ago! Obviously I came through it perfectly fine 🙂. Medicine has come on dramatically since then (I believe there weren't even anti D shots back then although they came in shortly after).

Given they know all about it now they will be on the look out for problems and I don't think you need to worry.

Thanks! Honestly I know I tend to worry far too much about everything and despite Rh negative being the rarer blood type, I know a lot of women have it and it shouldn’t really be a big deal.

So when I called the EPU a few days ago I asked about the ten week bloods and she said it wouldn’t show if I’d been sensitised in my first pregnancy and had antibodies, she said that would be a specialist test. Honestly I only got more freaked out after that as I was hoping that would put my mind at rest from worrying if I’d experienced sensitisation in my first pregnancy. She also said anti d isn’t usually necessary in the first trimester but I just wanted real life stories I think to help ease my worries!

Glad to hear you were fine! That helps ease my mind a bit that even if it happens it can be treated!

I think this is why I wanted real experiences as not only do I have a toddler but I work with young children too and as you say, it’s standard to get bumped and knocked into!

In my first pregnancy the advice was very contradicting as some midwives told me to only worry about the really hard bumps and others told me to worry about basically every little knock. So it doesn’t help you know what to actually be cautious with.

Thank you for all the replies and experiences!

I'm rhesus neg and my mum is no problems for either of us her age gaps were 16 months and mine were 2 years.
I think you really need to stop worrying. I know that's easier said than done but worrying does you no good.

I am Rh-.

after you had your first baby, you usually would have had a blood test to show if any of the baby’s blood has mixed with yours during the birth and if you have been sensitised.

You will also have had prophylactic Anti D immunoglobulin after the birth if your baby was born Rh+ to deal with any stray fetal blood cells and stop ‘sensitisation’ happening.

I don’t know why you were told you WONT be tested for Anti D antibodies in your blood. You will because you are Rh-, this will be alongside the standard ‘antibody’ testing all women have at booking (they are checking for other things too like anti Kell etc as well as anti d)

If they are evident (very rare now women have anti d injections)
your obstetric team will discuss that result with you.

Its the NEXT pregnancy that anti D in pregnancy usually is trying to protect so if your booking antibodies test is all normal that means your anti D injection schedule in the previous pregnancy did its job and you aren’t making antibodies against a potentially Rh+ baby

Here is a list of bloods that will be taken at booking. It includes an antibodies test. Hth .

https://www.esht.nhs.uk/service/maternity/pregnancy/your-antenatal-care/blood-tests-in-pregnancy/

I’m Rh neg and did become sensitized in my first pregnancy (hidden placental abruption).

in second pregnancy I had regular blood tests and extra scans, and extra anti-d injections. All was well but second baby was Rh neg anyway so wouldn’t have been a problem - but there are ways of managing it. You’re very unlikely to have been sensitized - I think this would have been detected in any case (by presence of antibodies in your blood)

My baby was born with rhesus disease, in my case I had no idea. I was RH positive and my baby was born RH negative. He had transfusional jaundice and spent a few days in neo natal care.

Hi,

im Rh -ve and was sensitised during a miscarriage. My son had Rh disease they found antibodies at routine bloods at 28 weeks when pregnant with him. We were monitored with weekly scans by fetal medicine and he was in NICU for a while after birth with blood transfusions, it all settled when he was 7 weeks old. He’s now 13 months and is fine.

Im pregnant again (25 weeks) and have been monitored really closely throughout. They found antibodies on my booking bloods and they were high. However a Fetus can’t become anaemic until 16 weeks (I believe they don’t develop red blood cells until then but could have got the wrong end of the stick) I have been scanned every 2 weeks since then- all fine so far. But despite my antibodies being high initially this baby is predicted Rh- and my levels are slowly coming down.

hope that helps

I’m rhesus negative and saw it as basically a non-issue. I had all the requisite Anti-D (including after baby #2 when I knew I definitely, definitely wasn’t getting pregnant again) and all was well. Both kids are rhesus positive as far as I’m aware.

Another Rhesus negative mother with two Rhesus positive offspring. It was decades ago but I recall bloods and injections and no real sense of worry from the medics.
I had several bumps and tripped up numerous times when pregnant, which I worried about far more, but there were no adverse effects, thankfully.
I am sure you'll be OK, OP.

I had two Rh+ children, am Rh-.

I never worried.

I was old enough that the probability of lots of other things was considerably higher.

honestly if you kept up your Anti-D then you shouldn't have issues. anyone with a toddler has issues with them ramming into the bump but baby is well cushioned in there else second children just wouldn't exist! before 12 weeks there isn't a cross between the blood streams so it's fine.

As for Rh disease. my dad had it in the 50s. he had a blood transfusion at birth and is now a healthy 65 year old and i am sure medicine is even better now. You will be fine i promise