Hello all! I left updating for a few weeks because overall nothing much of note has happened. I continue to eat well, sleep fairly well – particularly now that the middle-of-night peeing seems to have ceased, and generally feel normal. I do get tired more frequently, particularly in the afternoon times, and I still can’t stay up much past 11pm nowadays, but other than that – I think it’d be safe to say I got off lightly!
I seem to have developed a mild eczema problem (this is what the doctor claims it is, but I am still doubtful) and whether this is related to the pregnancy I’m uncertain. The pain I mentioned a few posts earlier in my left buttock does not look to be leaving me any time soon – and I was told by the doctor that, “you will find you’ll get all sorts of aches and pains during pregnancy”. So, after getting creams for a condition I don’t think I have, (AND PAYING THROUGH THE NOSE FOR IT – the stupid doctor did NOT tell me I was exempt and I ended up paying), and being told that the prominent, isolated pain in my arse was ‘aches and pains from pregnancy’, I have concluded only one thing: The doctors in my surgery are stupid.
Speaking of stupid doctors, she also told me that the best thing to do about the pain was to ‘take some paracetamol if it gets bad’, and ‘make another appointment’ so that they can ‘take a proper look at what’s happening’. Because, clearly since she was running late on her schedule, it made more sense for me to keep to the imaginary limit of ‘one ailment per person’ rule. Sodding twat. I wonder what I pay my National Insurance money for.
Anyhow – back to the main topic of the post today; I had my 12 week dating scan! It was a combined dating and Nuchal scan, which is the scan they do to check for Downs Syndrome. What was really pleasantly surprising is that I’ve heard only 7% of women will be offered the Nuchal scan for free, by default. A lot of hospitals do not offer it as standard, and you would usually have to pay in the region of £150-£200 for one. St Helier’s, however appear to have automatically sent me an appointment after my GP requested the first booking-in appointment with the midwife. So, needless to say I feel quite lucky and privileged.
The scan itself was quite exciting and surreal. I went into the room half expecting them not to find anything inside, and it’s hard to describe that first moment when the scan picked up a moving person. In my imagination, I would hopefully see a small, tadpole-shaped blob and maybe a twitch or two – but I got so much more than that! The baby I saw on the screen looked totally human, you could clearly see its head, hands, legs, even fingers. When it turned, which it did with vigour, it turned like you and I would turn when in bed. It was a truly amazing moment, watching our baby in full action and I can’t think of much else since.
The Nuchal scan and test came out as normal and they found my risk of a Downs baby was very low and nothing to worry about, so that was a relief, even though we were not particularly worried about that at this stage.
Now I have a scan booked for 20 weeks, which happens to be exactly one week from my birthday! I’d say being able to find out the gender of our baby is definitely one of the best birthday presents ever. We also are able now, to start planning the nursery as we know it is a single baby and not twins, which was a possibility as they run in his family! What’s really endearing is that for all the worry and joking about ‘getting two for the price of one’, secretly I think Mr. M is a teeny bit disappointed it’s not twins! X) Can’t wait to find out in July so that I can start saying ‘he’ or ‘she’ instead of ‘it’!
[Edit: 24/05/11]: So I wrote the above a few days ago, but only got around to posting it now – and I have to retract what I said about getting off lightly. :T
The pain in my left buttock is rapidly getting worse, to the point where I feel it even when walking and sitting. To top it off, I must have been positioned funny whilst sitting at work yesterday because last night I developed a really bad pain in the bottom of my spine near my RIGHT buttock, and now I can’t sit anywhere without causing myself untold amounts of pain and discomfort. It feels the same as if I had fallen on my arse and bruised it and hurts even when I sneeze. To think it’s only 3 months in, and already I’m like a cripple… Oh dear me.
Congratulations on your successful nuchal scan , we hav an incredibly stressful time when we were going through it. Stay strong! Much love
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