I had my anatomy ultrasound yesterday. It was basically first thing in the morning, so we decided to take Nora with us to the appointment instead of dropping her off at daycare first. We thought she would get a kick out of an opportunity to actually see the baby in Mommy’s belly.
Things went well. The baby cooperated, and the ultrasound tech commented repeatedly how “this baby is so good,” and how it easily gave her everything she needed. She even gave us a little treat—she switched to the 4D ultrasound to give us a (somewhat creepy, but also cool) glimpse of the little one’s face.
We also got some good profile shots, and the baby was really showing off his/her hands and feet—with 10 visible fingers and 10 visible toes.
After the ultrasound, I also had my routine appointment. I got weighed. I think I’ve gained about 5-6 lbs. so far. Blood pressure check—110/68, or something of the sort. Then my doctor saw me, and it was super quick. She asked if I had any questions, felt around my belly, and then listened to the baby’s heartbeat via doppler. She said, “Sounds healthy.” She told me that the ultrasound tech had told her that preliminarily, everything looked good, but that she (my doctor) would be receiving a full report in a day or so.
We went on our merry way, texting pics to our families. I happily showed off my photos to curious coworkers. It was fun—a good day.
Today, I was in between meetings at work—had less than five minutes to spare—when I ran back to my desk to get a file that I needed. I saw that I had a missed call from my doctor’s office. I was immediately a little worried about it, because I couldn’t figure out a good reason for why they would be calling me so soon after my appointment. I listened to the voicemail, and sure enough, it was a nurse. So now I was even a little more worried. I had only a couple of minutes before I needed to be running a meeting (not just sitting in), but it was already late afternoon and I didn’t want to miss the opportunity to talk to someone, so I called. Thankfully, I reached the nurse right away.
The nurse told me that in the final ultrasound report, the tech had noted that my baby appeared to have episodes of bradycardia—an abnormally low heart rate. She said that I am being referred to a pediatric cardiologist at the hospital, and that I need to go for a fetal echocardiogram. And although it can sometimes take some time to get into the cardiologist for an appointment, she had already called on my behalf and they happened to have an open appointment for tomorrow morning.
Of course, I started freaking out a little bit. I asked questions about what does this mean? Were there structural abnormalities?
I told her I was scared.
She said to not freak out. She said that it could very well mean nothing, and that my doctor had not observed any problems with the baby’s heart rate when she listened to it via doppler (but hey, to be fair, she only listened for a few seconds—maybe a half minute at most). She also said that the tech had made no note of structural abnormalities with the heart.
I tried to stay away from Google, and I’ve been pretty good, but I at least searched “fetal echocardiogram,” because I wasn’t at all sure what to expect tomorrow. Apparently it’s just another ultrasound, but it’s more sophisticated. It can take more detailed pictures of the heart. And, well, that’s when I really started to get scared. Because evidently it can detect abnormalities that a regular ultrasound cannot. Before, I was feeling reassured about the fact that the tech had not seen anything structurally wrong—the nurse said it was a potential problem with the rhythm. And while that is certainly not comforting, I was still thinking that this had to be something relatively minor… right? But now, I’m not so sure. I don’t know what to think. My mind is racing.
I’m scared that there is something wrong with our baby.
Unlike many other conditions or problems, I don’t know anyone who has had this. I don’t know anyone who was sent for a fetal echocardiogram. And I certainly don’t know anyone who was sent for a fetal echocardiogram only to find out that nothing was wrong.
So I also have a real fear of the unknown.
I have always had a really healthy appreciation for all of the things that have to go right in order to end up with a healthy baby. I know what a miracle it is. I know. Now, all I can do is hope and pray that indeed this baby is healthy, and that we will indeed be blessed again.
I want you to be okay, baby. Please be okay.
27 Responses to 18 Weeks: A Scare
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About
I'm Heather. I'm 33 and have been married to Michael for seven years. Together, we have two beautiful little girls we love more than anything, and a miniature dachshund who drives us crazy. I'm a full-time working mom who has very little time for my own "stuff" these days, like home improvement, cooking/baking, cake decorating, and photography. Despite the team not making the playoffs since 1999, I'm STILL a Buffalo Bills fan, which I think speaks to my loyalty AND sense of humor. I can't wait to pick up the pace with travel again some day... you know, when we're done being ruled by tiny fists. Welcome to my blog.
Saying a prayer for you and your baby, Heather.
I don’t pray often but when I do I pray hard, you and your lovely family will be in my prayers until your baby is born.
Heather you and your family are in my prayers! Please keep us posted how everything goes..
Your in my thoughts and prayers that all will be well. Good luck tomorrow.
Hi Heather.
You may want to contact Megan from InThisWonderfulLife, http://www.inthiswonderfullife.com/. She and her husband have had multiple fetal echocardiograms, one for their son, who they unfortunately ended up losing shorty after birth, and one for their twins. I am not trying to scare you, but you mentioned not knowing anyone who has had one done, and Megan is the only one that I can think of who may be able to shed some light.
I hope that you get the answers you are looking and hoping for tomorrow. Good luck to you and Michael.
You and your family will definitely be in my thoughts and prayers! Best of luck tomorrow!
Heather – I was contemplating leaving a comment. I’m 34 weeks pregnant with twins and at our anatomy scan we were told right then and there that we needed to see a specialist and have echos done on both boys. I totally know how you are feeling bc we were also scared and freaking out. I would strongly suggest you stay off google until you go and know more but like you said the echo itself is just another ultrasound but a lot longer and you’ll have no clue what you’re looking at. I’m not going to go into detail about our situation but try not to totally freak out. It really can be nothing. I do know people who have gone for echos with results of everything being fine. Good luck tomorrow. Please keep us readers posted. Fingers crossed for you!!
Also, we go for echos monthly now and the boys will go yearly when they are here so if you have any questions, feel free to email me.
Try not to be scared. We were referred to a pediatric cardiologist with my second daughter at 20 weeks. They determined she had coarctation of the aorta, which is narrowing of the aorta. We went through many fetal echos, which were umcomfortable as I couldn’t lie on my back for long periods. She was hospitalized in the ccicu after birth for that and other reasons. They were going to operate on her to widen it, but at the last moment they decided to see how she would do on her own. She was let out of the hospital at 2 weeks
we had to f/u with ped cardio doctor every three months in which they performed echocardiograms on her. At one year it had completely opened up and she is a happy healthy 34 month old. Don’t worry too much it may be nothing. I’ll pray for you and your little one.
This is what one of our twins has. They will decide if he needs surgery when he is born. The other twin has a double outlet right ventricle. But even with a heart defect, it’s one surgery and done and he will live a normal life. A lot of things can be fixed these days.
I’m going to go against the grain and again suggest you stay off the Internet but more specifically stay away from blogs. If you’re going to torture yourself at least just read medical sites that relate to your situation.
Heather, I know how scared you are right now because we had a scare with my daughter as well during her 20 week ultrasound. Her’s was not related to her heart, but it did involve multiple in depth ultrasounds at both the maternal fetal medicine specialists and at the Children’s hospital. She’s okay now, but I know how stressful is it to not know if everything is okay and if your baby is healthy or not. I’ll be thinking about you tomorrow and saying lots of prayers for your little one. I hope you find that everything is okay and the rest of your pregnancy is very uneventful.
Keeping you and your baby in my thoughts and prayers.
You and your family are in my prayers. Good Luck tomorrow.
Heather,
I’m a NICU nurse and although this certainly isn’t normal following up with it is a good idea. I work in a hospital with almost 100 babies at a time that are sick or premature. I was also going to suggest reading Megan’s blog(although I wouldn’t read to much at this time because tomorrow’s ultrasound may be nothing and her blog might worry you more). Thinking of you and your little one.
Hi Heather, I am so sorry for your scare, I can only imagine what you are going through. My mum is a cardiologist and insisted we go for a heart echo with Abigail. For what it’s worth she thinks everyone should have one as regular ultrasounds are not sensitive enough in this regard. An echo is like a detailed ultrasound focused on the heart, looking at the chambers etc. They should be able to explain what they are seeing to you.
It is an amazing thing to see actually. I will speak to my mum and ask her what the heartbeat issues you describe might be and email you tonight. She is at the very top of her profession and has worked with tiny babies so will be able to shed more light. Thinking of you… Vanessa
You are all in my prayers today. Hopefully you can get some answers today.
Hope all goes well in the scan. At least you don’t have to wait long, the waiting can be worse than the diagnosis. I agree with previous posters, stay off Dr Google and other blogs if you can, until you have an answer.
I have a friend whose baby had a heart defect. Doctors said it would require open heart surgery soon after birth. By the grace of God, it healed itself. It was a miracle. I will pray for you and your little one. Everything will be ok
Oh how scary! I’ll be praying everything is ok. You are only a week behind me, but this is my first. I loved following along with your first pregnancy and I love that I get to follow along at almost the same time with this one!
It’s better to err on the side of caution, and that’s probably what your doctors are doing. Try to stay calm. Even if there is something “wrong,” it’s amazing what can be done these days. My nephew had open heart surgery at just a few months old. It was hard, and it was scary. But he is a normal, healthy 5 year old boy who has the most energy of any kid I’ve ever seen. Just try not to get ahead of yourself.
Hi Heather. I will be praying for you and your little wee baby today. I hope everything goes ok.
Definitely sending lots of prayers for you and your little one!
Praying for good news today. I’ll be thinking about you.
Heather, I hope that all goes ok at the scan today. We’re here to lend a cyber shoulder if you need :)
Sorry to hear about the scare! Hang in there! Hope it’s good news today.
Prayers and strength for you today, Heather. Hope all goes well.
Just a quick (and hopefully reassuring) note to say that we had to do a fetal echo with our son, and everything turned out fine. It can, and does happen! Keep good thoughts!