8th September – 13 weeks + 4
Somehow, we managed to get through the remainder of our holiday and enjoy it. I think having my son with us helped – we had to keep a lid on emotions for his sake. Not having access to the internet was a blessing too as my anxieties soon started to rise when I got home and asked Mr Google what he knew about Edwards Syndrome and the risks of chromasomal disorders at the age of 44.
Monday was the day of our CVS testing at Kings College Hospital. Before the dreaded needle we had a very lengthy (and very thorough) scan. I couldn’t get excited about this one, however. The baby looked so perfect to me – it was hard to consider that he/she might have something fundamentally wrong. As time went on, I began to relax a little. So far, they hadn’t found anything to worry about. The nuchal thickness was 1.6 – pretty normal, the heart was functioning, the blood flow to the kidneys was good, all measurements were ‘within normal range’, etc etc. Then, another Dr was called into the room and there was mention of an ‘extra’ toe! After persuading ‘the wriggler’ to remain still for a nano second, they found the feet. I held my breath whilst they counted the toes. There was definitely an extra toe on the left foot – I saw if for myself. All of a sudden I felt crushed again. Some reassurance was given about polydactyly (extra digits) being pretty common, but I knew from my obsessive conversations with Mr Google that extra digits were common signs of a Chromasomal abnormality. I was also preoccupied with the nasal bone, which hadn’t been seen clearly on this occasion.
Anyway, we went to wait (for what seemed like an age) for the dreaded CVS – a procedure which involves taking a sample of placental tissue via a (very long) needle through the abdomen. The Doctor who was undertaking the ‘needling’ was a nice Spanish chap called Jesus! I found that strangely reassuring. I couldn’t watch the stabbing on the screen, and kept my eyes tightly shut throughout. Nevertheless, I’m pretty sure they used a javelin to remove the tiniest amount of placenta. Ouch!! Now began the long wait…..
Although the whole thing was an ordeal in one way, the staff at Kings made it as good an experience as it could possibly have been – without exception. I have to thank them for that.
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