help.......

[2003]

hi,im 33 weeks pregnant with my second little girl but i didnt find out until i was 26 weks pregnant and was drinking heavily at least 3 times a week up until i found out,im really scared that my baby will be born with fas,im always on the internet lookink at info but there dosnt seem 2 be anything on people that have been in my situation with anything positive to say.ive had 2 scans now an shes growing fine but im not due 4 7 weeks and just feel like i cope with the fact that i could of damaged my baby. plz only respond if u have positive info. thanks

hiya,
I can;t hepl with any info or advice per se, but just wanted you to know someone had read your post!
I guess it;s one of those things that you just won;t know until she is born, but I would have presumed there are things they could look for during the scans that would indicate any related problems, so if scans have all been fine then that;s a good sign surely?
do the people caring for you know about the drinking?

Sorry, I don't have positive info, but just wanted to offer some sympathy. Have you told your doctor/midwife? Can they give you any reassurance?

ahve spoken to a fetal medicine expert and to my midwife but ive just been told that the amount ive consumed could of done serious damage and i will just have to wait,they put a alert form on my record s tho so when shes been born she will be looked at more closey by some1 more experienced in fas.

I'm so sorry, you must be going through hell. I'm afraid I can't say anything useful, but I am sorry you are going through this (and pleased you only have 7 weeks to go). Not quite the same thing, but I had a bad 20 week scan and told my dd was at high risk of major problems. It is very, very tough going through a pregnancy with that level of anxiety and not able to do anything except wait.

I really hope someone comes along with some useful advice or information soon.

2003 do you have much support around? family/friends etc that you can talk to as well?
I know no-one can predict/change the outcome but it's often easier to get your head round if you have a good support network.

It must be horrible not knowing and these 7 weeks I guess are going to be the longest ever for you
I hope it all turns out ok

do you need help with alcohol? have you managed to cut down or stop? if you are a serial heavy drinker you should not just stop, ask your MW or doctor for advice

unfortunately there is nothing you cna do except wait for your baby';s arrival, and cross your fingers all is well

when you know what the situation is, you can get the right help and support

Hi 2003 I just wanted to say I have read your post and was thinking of you.
Surely it is a good sign that growth is normal and that you have now stopped drinking. Good luck and fingers crossed that everything will be fine.

I hope you and baby will be ok, you COULD have but what are the chances? And you didn't know so please do not beat yourself up and try to keep calm and relax as much as you......let us know how you are getting on?

doesn't FAS show markers on an ultrasound? Is the baby a good size for dates?
What were you drinking? Spirits are probably the worst.

Hi 2003 - I don't have much to add that's really positive for you, but I have a book which goes into quite a bit of detail about the risks of alcohol in pregnancy. Basically, there is no PROVEN safe level of alcohol that you can drink in pregnancy which is why the advice is not to drink at all. Some people, however, say that a moderate amount of alcohol won't do any harm - there is no actual evidence that a small amount of alcohol harms the baby.

The trouble with trying to give more specific advice is that the only studies are observational ones (i.e. they can't run clinical trials, because that would involve asking expectant mums to drink different levels of alcohol and measuring the impact on their babies - who's going to volunteer for that experiment???). This means that the effect of alcohol gets mixed up with other factors that can't be controlled. For example, you might drink a lot because you're stressed, and it might be the stress that affects your baby rather than the alcohol.

This is a rather long-winded way of saying that the blanket DON'T DRINK message hides a lot of uncertainty about the effect of alcohol on a pregnancy. There's every chance that your baby won't be affected at all - it certainly isn't a given.

The symptoms of FAS, by the way, range from facial abnormalities to limb damage and heart defects. It won't be possible to eliminate all of these before the birth, but a scan should have revealed whether it was a good size and had a strong heartbeat, so these are two less things to worry about.

My friend was told by her doctor that he had cared for several alcoholics during their pregnancies (I'm not suggesting you are one, btw) and they had delivered perfectly healthy babies.

Sorry for the long post but I hope there's something in there that might help you. I think that if you've just found out your pregnant with only 7 weeks to go, you'll find plenty of other things to think about which should take your mind off the worry!!

Wishing you all the best and praying that it turns out well for you.

thanks 4 the replys,and no 2 the question of am i still drinking,her measurments are pretty much identicle to my first childs, i was drinking wine,port and wkds, im just so scared that i will not be able to lookafter her,my family are all aware of the situation and i have alot of support.