Specialist's Opinion

Yesterday was my 12 week dating scan that my partner and I both had looked forward to so much, fully expecting everything to be alright and rejoicing so very much at the thought of seeing our Beanie for the first time. I blogged about the bad news we received in yesterday's post, and we've now been to the Friarage hospital in Northallerton to see the specialist we were so urgently referred to.

Last night, I managed to drift off peacefully with thougths of the lovely support, healing and prayers that are being sent up on behalf of Beanie, and I felt quite hopeful as we set off for the hospital this morning. I wanted to feel my grandmothers with me, so I wore a bracelet from them each for ancestral support. The antique silver bracelet is an heirloom from my maternal grandmother and the Sami leather and beadwork bracelet was made by my paternal grandmother.

The scan images were a lot clearer on the hospital monitor and we were able to get a clear view of our beautiful Beanie. Apart from the fluid, the fetus looks absolutely perfect, and the heart looks strong and healthy as far as the specialist doctor was able to tell.

Unfortunately, the nuchal swelling looked even worse today and measured well over 7 mm. There was also discernable swelling around Beanie's abdomen.

But all I saw was a beautiful, and healthy-looking baby... and I'm guessing that is why I pulled the Star card as my card of the day (a friend also pulled the Star for Beanie this morning). Even when the doctor told us that there is a 60% risk of chromosone damage with this type of cystic hygroma, and that even if it turns out to be chromosonally normal, chances are there is some other severe abnormality connected with the hygroma, I kept thinking Beanie is alright.

The next step on this journey is to have a Chorionic villus sampling (CVS), scheduled to take place on Christmas Eve. Normally, I would get the test results back in two days, but now I'm having to wait until the following Wednesday.

If the CVS comes back negative for chromosonal abnormality, we wait until the week 16 scan when the specialist will be able to check the fetus for other possible abnormalities that aren't covered by the CVS. By then we should know enough to make a decision whether to terminate or continue the pregnancy. I will trust my own inner guidance above that of the doctors when making the final decision though. In my experience, they are quite often wrong.

A big heartfelt THANK YOU to all of you who are praying for us and sending healing to Beanie. Your loving support means more than you'll ever know!