pregnant and over 35 tribe - Page 6

[samstress]

Originally Posted by WhiteHorse

I have no funny stories either - but am annoyed that at this age I cannot hide pregnancy even at 11 wks...

you and me both.

[sagewinna]

I swear the bloating this time around makes
me look pregnant all ready, at 8 weeks! Maybe it's a combo of split abs, fourth baby and age?!

[kawa kamuri]

My belly is more ridiculous than ever. I'm 9w and crazy poochy. I kinda figured it's due to having become pregnant less than a year after having my 5th baby. I don't know, I'm just going with it.

And hello! I'm not "over 35" nor will I be by June but I am 35 which I think puts me firmly in the old goat category. My DP is 34. This is our 7th collective baby - his 3rd and my 6th.

[BHappy]

hi mamas! please add me...

i'm so happy to find this thread.

a little about me: i'm nauseous almost all the time, 10 weeks pregnant tomorrow with fabulous #4. i am a waldorf school teacher, just started at a new school this fall, with a new class of 20 first grade children .

i will be 43 at the birth, dh will be 46/47 (his birthday is right at the due date ). we have 16 y-o twin boys and a 10 y-o daughter. my due date is 6/6/11. just had my first midwife appointment last week, and was blessed to hear that little heart beating, chug chugging like a train. dd was there as well. what a precious miracle happening inside of us all!!!

looking forward to meeting you all and chatting here.

[ArcticRose]

Misty, 38 next week, Jeff, 36

Expecting #2 7/11/11

Really wasn't planning on doing this again, so I'm a little shell shocked right now.

Am I completely insane "at my age" to not plan on doing all the tests? I'm planning on having an US at 20 weeks to see how things are progressing (and find out if it's a boy or a girl.. but I have pretty strong boy vibes already) But I want the rest to be as natural and non-intervention as possible.

I really want to have a vbac, preferably at home.

Am I nuts?

[kgreenemama]

Count me in!

Krista 38, DH Tony 45, our son, Jude 2.5, Expecting Gemma, our daughter, on April 4, 2011.

Wish I'd found this thread sooner. My quad screen last month put me at high (really high) risk of our baby having Down Syndrome. Amnio showed all-clear, but it was quite an ordeal, emotionally. On the up-side we have verified evidence of two X chromosomes. It feels fun to know the sex, and we pinned down her name.

Looking forward to going through this with all of you WISE moms!

[tracymom1]

Originally Posted by ArcticRose

Misty, 38 next week, Jeff, 36

Expecting #2 7/11/11

Really wasn't planning on doing this again, so I'm a little shell shocked right now.

Am I completely insane "at my age" to not plan on doing all the tests? I'm planning on having an US at 20 weeks to see how things are progressing (and find out if it's a boy or a girl.. but I have pretty strong boy vibes already) But I want the rest to be as natural and non-intervention as possible.

I really want to have a vbac, preferably at home.

Am I nuts?

No!! You are not nuts!! I had my VBAC at home and it was wonderful. I am doing absolutely no testing other than the 20 week ultrasound and that is just to check the placenta ( I have had previa issues in the past). I seek my care from a CNM who works out of her house and is pretty radical by conventional medicine standards. I don't think it would even occur to her to bring up any more invasive testing.

I actually find that the older I get, the less interested I become in "finding out" things about my babe-in-utero.

[Mamatoabunch]

Originally Posted by ArcticRose

Misty, 38 next week, Jeff, 36

Expecting #2 7/11/11

Really wasn't planning on doing this again, so I'm a little shell shocked right now.

Am I completely insane "at my age" to not plan on doing all the tests? I'm planning on having an US at 20 weeks to see how things are progressing (and find out if it's a boy or a girl.. but I have pretty strong boy vibes already) But I want the rest to be as natural and non-intervention as possible.

I really want to have a vbac, preferably at home.

Am I nuts?

No. I am not having any testing or even an U/S, I haven't w/ my last 8 either. This will be our 9th HBAC.

[ArcticRose]

Thanks for the reassurances Ladies!

I am still in the early, freaking out stage. I'm sure I'll feel more confidant about my decisions as things progress.

I didn't have any testing or US's with my first, and have debated having the US with this one.. but DD was born early due to a really rare birth defect (she had an Acardic Twin) The chances of that happening again are basically zero, but I don't think I could handle finding out so much so fast while in labor again.

I was also treated rather shabbily by hospital staff because I had "no prenatal care." Which wasn't true. I had a great midwife, who I had seen a few times for check-ups and I took great care of myself. There was absolutely no indication that anything was amiss, so I didn't feel any need to see a Dr.

I guess the 20 week US this time around is pretty much just for my own reassurance. 38 isn't that old... right?

[Caryliz]

Originally Posted by ArcticRose

I guess the 20 week US this time around is pretty much just for my own reassurance. 38 isn't that old... right?

Absolutely not!

I was 38 when DS1 (my first) was born, will be 44 when DS2 arrives. And I certainly don't feel old. I think an awful lot has to do with state of mind.

[Mamatoabunch]

Why would 38 be old?! You conceived, that doesn't make any old in my book!

[Max'sMama]

Joining in too!

I am 35 and will be 35 at birth.
Dh is 37, will be 38 by the time this babe is due.

It's our 4th baby and final babe.

I am finding this to be a tad bit more difficult than my other pre-35 pregnancies. I will have no tests done other than finger prick and urine checks.

I love not knowing the sex, but admit that since this is our last I do have a small desire to find out. Though we won't. Planning our 3rd homebirth with this baby and can't wait. I will be 10 weeks in 2 days, which seems crazy.

[skfragilistic]

Hi! I am Karyn and I am 36 and expecting my second--EDD 7/02/11.

My boyfriend is almost 30 and my daughter will be 10 this month. Yep...we're a family that believes in diversity in ages.

[snguyen]

Originally Posted by samstress

snguyen - thanks so much for giving our little thread some much needed bumps. i've been horribly neglectful.

how's the midwife search going? found someone yet? hope so.

Not a problem! It seems we have netted ourselves a few more old crones to join us. Welcome!

I found a midwife who I think will be a very nice fit. Heard the heartbeat at 16 weeks the last time I saw her. Sweet relief after last winter's miscarriage.

[Buddhamom]

We are only doing the US as well. No needle pricks

[greenmama66]

Add me! I am 44 and just found out I am pregnant with my 6th. A bit nervous and DH's first. Due July 12th 2011.

Had an amnio last time (cause my homebirth midwife talked me into it) and this time will have the nuchal test and genetic ultrasound- after the amnio at age 38 I said I would never do that again.

[DaniTall]

danitall 38, 48, 3/17/11,

I've only lurked on mothering.commune, but I could really use some pregnant mama community right now!  This is my second pregnancy--I have an 8 year old girl from a previous marriage.  Everything went really well with that pregnancy and birth, and everything has gone really well with this one until now. 

I made the mistake of getting the quad screen--gave into my husband's desire to do it, thinking, oh, it'll just confirm that everything's alright.  Well, I came out at a higher risk for down's (1 in 58 chance), and they sent me to do the genetic ultrasound.  I had that yesterday and they largely ruled out down's syndrome (to the extent they can without the amnio, which we've declined)--now my odds are 1 in 1046, which is pretty good.  However, the perinatal specialist then asked why the hormonal levels came out the way they did in the blood test, and is saying that he wants to see me every 4 weeks to monitor the growth of the baby.  He says that there may be a problem with the placenta and that he would induce at 39 weeks!  He says the baby may not be getting the nutrition he needs, there's a higher risk of preeclampsia and a higher risk of being a stillborn.  I'm kind of in shock that suddenly I'm in the category of "high risk" pregnancy! 

I've been seeing a CNM because I'm on Medicaid and can't afford a homebirth.  My first was born in a hospital with a CNM and it was a beautiful birth--I completed most of my labor at home and was completely dialated by the time I got to the hospital.  It didn't matter to me by that point where I was and had a great natural childbirth.  She was 2 weeks early and I do have a vague memory of the nurse midwife saying that the placenta was no longer looked very healthy, which was probably why she came early.  But it didn't seem like a big deal at the time.  Now I'm afraid of the cascade of interventions that could ensue now.  I certainly want what's best for the health of my baby, but I would like to know if there are other options here.  I'm going to contact my acupuncturist friend and see what she says, and maybe she can provide treatments to address the issue if there actually is something to worry about.  Maybe she has some tricks up her sleeve that would help me induce more naturally before 39 weeks. It just seems like it may be self-serving on the part of the specialist to offer the genetic ultrasound and then say I need follow-up care.  I'm just so angry with myself for going against my gut and getting the quad screen test.

Anyone have any experience with this or have any suggestions?

[LeeshaB]

Oh, PLEASE ADD ME too!

I'm 45, and am pretty shocked to find myself expecting in 7/11 (guess I'm gonna have a little slurpee! LOL).  It's SO HARD to find any info (other than scary statistics) for pregnancy at my age, I'm thrilled to find others at least close to my age!

My midwife has been all kinds of unsupportive with this (she actually seems annoyed that I managed to get pregnant...she told me to give up trying when I was 43, and I did!), so I've had to go over her head to the OB (whom I adore!).  My bloodwork numbers all look fabulous, so the only thing left to do is gestate and shop for diapers -- things have changed a lot since DS#1, who is 10, and DS#2 who is 7.

Been married to my DH (who is also 45) for 22+ years, we have a nice little farm in Connecticut where we grow as much of our own foods as we can, and we lead a pretty clean life.  Let's here it for fertile old people! LOL

Looking forward to chatting with others here!

--Leesha B.

[roslyn]

I'm 46 and due in May, I know what you mean about the lack of information. I've been blogging about this pregnancy because I want to contribute to the information available. I was told four years ago that I couldn't get pregnant again. Surprise! In many ways it's fun and exciting, but terrifying as heck too. 

[greenmama66]

Glad to meet you Leesha B and Roslyn. The midwives I've spoken to here have all been super supportive so we are going to meet 3-4 different one's and decide. 

I'm keeping this from several unsupportive family members who think I'm too old etc; I don't want negativity projected at me during this time and my mother and SIL were so downright nasty about me even mentioning I wanted to have a baby with my new husband that I'm not prepared to tell them until after the birth! Older daughter's have agreed it's best as well because I need support not criticism.