Prenatal Testing, Yes or No?
Okay so i’d like some opinions. Currently I’m almost 7 weeks. So maybe this is a little early, but I’m having a really hard time, on deciding whether or not to get prenatal testing done. The father wants me to , but I’m having second thoughts. Here’s why, What if they are wrong, and I ruin the next couple months wondering, grieving, and not happy about being pregnant. Shouldn’t it be a wonderful time. When my mom was pregnant with one of my little sisters, they said that she was going to have spinal bifida(sp?) and a chromosomal disease where all the organs are on opposite sides and she wouldn’t live past 3 months. My mom thought that she was going to loose her child, after giving birth. She had a really hard time during pregnancy because of this, depression, pre term labor, and so on. So why should I put myself through that. What are the pro’s of finding out now, what can I do differently if I find out something is wrong now. I’m still going to have the baby. So should I worry now, or be happy and see what happens when the time comes. Are there any tests in which they may find something that they can help prevent? Just some opinions of people who have and haven’t got testing done. Thanks!
As far as I know I have no birth defects in my family history and neither does the father. The only thing that might put my baby at more risk is the fact that I have type 1 diabetes. It was uncontrolled for the first 4 weeks until I found out I was pregnant. Now things aren’t exactly perfect but so much closer to perfect than they were before. I’m really doing a good job keeping my sugars under control.
Tagged with: prenatal • Testing
Filed under: Prenatal Depression
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I opted to not get one because i didn’t want to have the worry just like you, because the test is not always right. I love my baby girl and she’s not even born yet.
Be happy and see what happens. If you are planning to have the baby regardless of the results, why worry yourself?
It depends on so many factors it will be tough for people to give you answers. Your age, family histories, exactly what testing they’re offering you and how invasive it’s going to get are all factors.
I have had different testing done with all 4 of my pregnancies because of each individual scenario with regard to age and prior experience. Some people are truly happier operating on an ‘ignorance is bliss’ sort of plane, I can’t, but it works for some.
we had the screen for down syndrome, edwards and all that and the blood test came back with me having an elevated chance of having a baby with down syndrome as my numbers were higher than my age related risk… we freaked a little UNTIL we met with a genetic counselor who broke down all the numbers for us… turns out it would be a .5 percent chance (that’s right a 5th of a chance) that I’d have a baby with down syndrome.. talk about your worrying! When we finally heard the tiny fraction of a number we were much happier. I say if you think it’s going to weigh on you then by all means do not do it.
I didn’t do it just b/c of that….I knew no matter what I would love and care for my child and deal with it when the time came
…..if anything were to happen. I don’t think its necessary and they say the test are not accurate. If your talking about getting an amniocentesis done that can cause miscarriage in early pregnancy… so I never took that chance…But this is something you need to decided it hard but you are the mother of the child so you do what you think is best!:)
good luck and congrats!!!
I suggest rather than having the “anything that can go wrong will” attitude, you just enjoy your pregnancy. I highly recommend calling a midwife instead of going to a doctor. She will give you the safest and best possible birth experience. She will calm all of your fears and become almost like a best friend as well. After one visit you’ll understand. I don’t think all of that testing is necessary and your mind will be put at ease
Prenatal testing is very important…and yes it can be very hard because you might have no clue what the diagnose is gonne be on your child. But think about it if you have it done at least you’ll know whats going on, and if something that can be cured and be handled then there sholdn’t be any worries…. but getting a bad news can be very deppresing buy if you really think about it its better to know ahead of time than when its to late and you can’t do nothing about it… There is always treatment and knowing is always best. Getting it will help with your pregnancy and can make your proccess feel better!!!! Hopefully you can take a decision on getting it one cause there very good for you and your babies health!!! and Congrats on the baby!
I have had a CVS done.
I say yes to screenings because I wanted to know what was going on and what I’m dealing with. Yes, you can have some time of agony, but there is no reason to experience what your mother did. If you have a screening (such as nuchal translucency) performed and the results come back poor, you can have a CVS or an amnio. The results of these exams are 99% accurate. My perinatologist is not young and has never seen a false positive outcome. Every pregnancy that was carried to term resulted in a baby with the diagnosed condition. A lot has changed since your mother was having children. An amnio will detect spina bifida, a CVS will not. Both will detect chromosomal abnormalities.
For me, I needed the peace of mind. Yes, the few weeks (not months) waiting for the test and the results were awful, but I know now that my son is healthy chromosomally. With the CVS, I was able to be tested earlier (at 13 weeks) than an amnio, and that made a big difference. It would have been hard to wait another 3 weeks for an amnio at 16 weeks.
Pros: You can buy the extra and special things that you will need to deal with a special needs baby. You can come to terms with reality before you meet your baby, so you will be more prepared to handle their condition. You can choose to terminate the pregnancy if you wish.
Cons: The time between the screening and the testing does suck. And some women don’t get the tests done because of the risks of miscarriage involved. For these women, they do have to wait until birth to have their answer.
I personally opted to take the tests. Most of which were just blood tests/ultrasounds. I did not get the amnio because I wasn’t at risk and didn’t feel the risk was worth it. Now the reason I chose to even though most things they could find they can’t correct is because IF they find that there may be a health issue there are classes they offer and places that can help you cope and prepare. It was hard waiting a couple of days for the results so I’m sure that finding something is wrong and dealing with the remainder of the pregnancy is far worse. It honestly is a personal choice and there is no right or wrong decision. If you don’t want to have the tests done then don’t. To be honest those tests can’t tell you everything and you can still have unexpected complications or be told something is wrong only to find out it was an error. Do what feels right for you. Good luck to you.
Let me just state upfront that I am completely biased. I have known several people who had TERRIBLE experiences with amnio’s and so I myself will never have one. I know women who had an amnio that triggered a miscarriage. I know another where the amnio triggered early labor and the baby was born with breathing conditions as a result. And I know yet another woman who had an amnio where the entry point ended up getting infected and as you know, taking any meds while preg is always dangerous. And finally, my aunt had an amnio tell her my cousin was going to be a downs baby only to find when she delivered the child that she had a perfectly healthy baby girl. My personal opinion is that the risks of amnions outweigh the benefits and don’t provide any usedul info especially if you know you’re already going to keep the baby.
As far as other kinds of testing I don’t know as much about those. I’ve been reading “The Thinking Woman’s Guide to a Better Birth” by Henci Goer during my pregnancy and I really like it. It’s an easy read and talks objectively about the pros and cons of a lot of the medical technology out there. I think, based on your question, it’d be right up your alley (and a lot less biased than me).
Ok let me just tell you….I’m going through this now. When you say “prenatal testing” that’s vague. Some prenatal testing is necessary. Some prenatal testing is optional and some is recommended (depending on age) but still “optional”.
I am on my fourth and last pregnancy =). This is the first pregnancy I’ve had that I’m considered “high risk” because I’m over 35 (barely…am 36). I chose to get what’s called a quad screen or triple screen. It’s a blood test where they test for spina bifida, down syndrome, trisomy 18 and trisomy 13. My baby tested positive for down syndrome. It is only a screen though. It flags you if your baby is at a higher risk of having these chomosonal defects. I personally will be keeping my baby no matter what BUT I want to know. I need to prepare myself for things if possible. My doctor sent me for a level 3 ultrasound and she measures perfectly normal but it still doesn’t mean she doesn’t have down syndrome. The only test to determine 100% if she does or doesn’t have any of those defects (plus a lot more) is an amnio. I chose not to get an amnio. It is what it is and if she has it then she has it. She’s still perfect.
Now the advice…. If you want to know without a doubt then skip it all and get an amnio. Do not bother with the stress of screenings. It’s very stressful! If I had it to do over again I wouldn’t have. I now have 18 weeks left to stress.
Good luck!