I went to my OB visit yesterday hoping to get paperwork for my ultrasound. I'm 19 weeks tomorrow and could already know the sex of baby. Unfortunately it didn't work out so well. Because I'm 35 years old my pregnancy is now categorized as 'high risk.' I'm not too concerned about that. I'm really healthy and what will be will be. However, being high risk has certain perks...one of which is a level two ultrasound which I'm told is a better quality ultrasound. Yay for that. However, it also means going to a specialist so they can administer it and tell me all about how much more my risks are of having a complicated or problematic birth/baby. So now I have to wait for my office to identify a specialist which takes my insurance (probably clear in Orlando...a good hour and ton of tolls away), get the authorization from the insurance for the visit, and have the specialist call me to set up the appointment. If I don't hear from them within a week I'm to call my doctor back. So now that I could know my babies sex, I'm stuck waiting on insurance junk and hoping that they will call within a week...and who knows what their schedule might be... So we are stuck for a couple more weeks not knowing if this little baby is a he or a she.
I have mixed feelings about some of the tests that are offered. Some of the tests available screen for possibilities, not actual diseases. So one could potentially test positive on the Down's Syndrome screening but not actually have a baby with Down's Syndrome. I've known quite a few women to agonize over the results of these tests, only to find out at birth that they have a healthy baby. The physicians also offer an amniocentesis. While the risks and discomfort of this test are low, there are still risks and discomfort. It strikes me as a very invasive procedure (they insert a needle into the amniotic sac and extract some of the amniotic fluid to test. I'm thinking I'll go ahead with the lab tests like the Down's screening and pass on the amnio. In our case, the diagnosis of a genetic disorder would not affect our decision to keep the baby, so why put myself at an increased risk.
On a more positive side, I'm am finally feeling little bumps and flutters that tell my there really is a little baby in there. There's nothing like feeling the baby moving. It makes it all seem so much more real and I'm starting to feel the excitement that I always think I should feel when I'm going to have a baby. Yay for that.
I have mixed feelings about some of the tests that are offered. Some of the tests available screen for possibilities, not actual diseases. So one could potentially test positive on the Down's Syndrome screening but not actually have a baby with Down's Syndrome. I've known quite a few women to agonize over the results of these tests, only to find out at birth that they have a healthy baby. The physicians also offer an amniocentesis. While the risks and discomfort of this test are low, there are still risks and discomfort. It strikes me as a very invasive procedure (they insert a needle into the amniotic sac and extract some of the amniotic fluid to test. I'm thinking I'll go ahead with the lab tests like the Down's screening and pass on the amnio. In our case, the diagnosis of a genetic disorder would not affect our decision to keep the baby, so why put myself at an increased risk.
On a more positive side, I'm am finally feeling little bumps and flutters that tell my there really is a little baby in there. There's nothing like feeling the baby moving. It makes it all seem so much more real and I'm starting to feel the excitement that I always think I should feel when I'm going to have a baby. Yay for that.