Baby Week 17 - Movement, VBAC Update and Downs Syndrome Testing
July 29, 2008
17 week fetus
Apparently I have a lot to talk about this week, so I’ve mashed it all into one post. First, movement! I’m certain I’m now feeling movement, which is much earlier than the last time around. It’s not very regular yet, and sort of feels like that drop in your stomach when you hit a hill in a roller coaster or a steep road. I’m expecting the “kicks” to feel more like kicks in the upcoming weeks.
A VBAC update. I’ve decided to have another c-section. Ironically, it was Abby’s comment in my original post that helped me figure out what I really wanted to do. I think subconsciously I was already leaning towards c-section, but I wanted to make sure that I had carefully considered my options. Abby said that she thought with her second child she would opt for a VBAC, as she had a short-ish labor (5 hours) but a rather lengthy and painful recovery. I was the exact opposite. I had a long and miserable labor, but my recovery was quick and relatively painless. This helped me to realize that I’m much more comfortable doing that again than I am with an unpredictable labor. Those of you who know me know that I am not a spontaneous person. I like my life to be orderly and planned. In fact, I’ve already started making arrangements for my maternity leave even though it’s still over 4 months away. The idea of having everything planned before the next baby arrives is appealing and comforting to me. The thought of surgery is not overly concerning, and if my recovery is like the last one, then I should be feeling pretty good in a week or so after the event. I haven’t had a chance to discuss this with my doctors yet. My next appointment is August 21st, so hopefully they’ll be able to give me some more details at that point.
Speaking of my doctor’s appointment, I completed the “optional” additional testing my doctor’s office offers for downs syndrome and other various birth defects. The test is simply a vial of blood drawn. We did this with Xander during the last pregnancy. I stressed about it a little the last time, and started down the “what if” path. Luckily, Zach pulled me back to reality, and we decided not to even discuss other options until we had more information. Xander was of course perfect, so we never had to have discussions about “what if our child has a birth defect?” In my mind, this test was not optional for us. Regardless of the results, I want to know as much about my child as soon as possible. Even if the baby has downs syndrome, it’s something that I want to be prepared for - research, read books, talk to people and most importantly, prepare my family ahead of time. I don’t know how I would react to those faces that would initially be excited for us, and then look at us with pity. I want everyone to be happy about his baby’s arrival, and I don’t want any surprise that could have been prevented to detract from that happiness. I suppose that parents have reasons for choosing not to know - similar to those who chose to wait to find out the gender until the baby is born. I am just having a hard time figuring out why parents would make the decision not to know…
I hadn’t ever heard the term “VBAC” (pronounced ‘v’ back) before I got pregnant this time around. Apparently if you have a c-section in your first pregnancy, you are sometimes have the option of having a “Vaginal Birth After Cesarean.” I happen to fall into this category. So now I get to decide, do I want to try another regular delivery, or would I prefer to go straight to a scheduled c-section? For those of you who don’t recall, my first delivery experience was quite lengthy and painful and ultimately ended in an emergency c-section. For those of you interested in the gruesome details, you can check out Xander’s first post 