Like most parents we were excited to enter the 2nd trimester. We announced to everyone on Facebook that we were adding to our family and the excitement began.
At 20 weeks we had our ultrasound. We were both very nervous and excited to see our little for the first time in 14 weeks! It was wonderful to see how much change had happened,the little blob from the first ultrasound was now looking like a real baby! We also found out that the baby is a girl! While we waited to see the doctor after the ultrasound we talked about what her name would be and how we were so sure it was a boy.
We were not expecting any complications so you can imagine the shock when we were told there may be something wrong. They had seen a spot on her heart, an echogenic intracardiac focus. The doctor was sure it was nothing to worry about and ordered a genetic blood test for "peace of mind".
A few days later I got a call from the doctor. I knew it wasn't good because with her no news is always good news. We were told we be referred to a high risk specialist for further ultrasounds because our daughter has Turners Syndrome.
If you have find yourself in high risk OB office you find the office full of rules, restrictions and other women with "complications". The staff is sensitive and friendly, but the rooms feel so sad. Seeing the high risk OB is the scariest thing I have ever done in my life. In the week that went by between the test results and our meeting, every possible situauton went through my mind. It was reassuring to hear that our daughter looked healthy. It was not reassuring to hear that it is impossible to tell how this will affect her until after she is born. All we have now is hope.
No parent wants to hear that there may be something wrong with their perfect little baby. If I had sat down to write this entry at the time we found out, I can assure that it would be much more emotional. The fact is, at 32 weeks, we have accepted the situation God has given us. She is our daughter no matter what happens once she's born. We love her and are preparing for her like all parents do for their babies.
The doctors can't tell us if she has Turners or not because we denied further testing on our unborn child. They will test her at birth and we will begin to prepare for any complications after that. I am lucky that I have already found a support group and find comfort in the things the mothers there talk about. It is amazing to me that only 1% of girls with this abnormality are ever live birthed and many of them do not survive the first trimester.
As far as anyone can tell, they are not expecting any complications at birth and she appears to be healthy. Our daughter is truly a miracle. I wrote about our expierence because I found comfort in hearing the stories of other families going this. I hope that I can bring that same comfort to a mother expierencing that overwhelming emotion that I felt the day we were diagnosed and the emotion I continue to feel.
