Michelle - posted on 08/30/2012 ( 19 moms have responded )
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So I feel terrible admitting this, but when I got pregnant in July 2011 I never quit drinking or smoking cigarettes completely. I think from the time I found out I was pregnant to about 4 or 5 months or so I probably had about 5 or 6 nights of heavy drinking. I had a CVS test done when I was about 4 months pregnant and everything was fine. The doctor said no down syndrome, or any other genetic disorders were detected. I also had ultrasounds throughout my pregnancy and told my doctor about my excessive drinking and smoking. The doctor didn’t seemed worried and kept assuring me everything would probably be fine, and each time they watched the baby’s movement and looked at body parts and said everything was fine. To my discouragement one doctor told me even if the brain and head looked completely normal on an ultrasound there is still a 50% chance of the baby could have mental problems.
After 24 weeks I completely quit smoking and hadn’t had one drink. The rest of my pregnancy went fine and no problems appeared. In May I gave birth to a baby girl and went past my due date by about 9 or 10 days. She was born at almost 9 pounds and had normal Apgar scores. However she is now 4 months old and I can’t help but think something might not be right about her. Her facial features seem very normal and the doctors have told me her development is great for her age and right on track. She is extremely strong and shows interest in many things.
However, I’ve been breastfeeding her now since she was born and she suffers from colic. At first she would cry and scream all day, she would be extremely fussy and nothing would sooth her. At about 3 months she got a little better but still she would scream and cry for no reason at all and when she screams she really lets it out. She could be lying down completely fine then one minute later she will just start screaming. She also is very hyper and super active, she doesn’t sleep much and is hard to get to bed. I’m wondering if my daughter had fetal alcohol syndrome would delivery doctors or her pediatrician know right away when she was born or is this something they wouldn’t pick up until later? Is this sort of screaming or behavior normal? My friend was actually the one who pointed the screaming out to me saying babies who suffer from fetal alcohol syndrome have loud piercing screams that come out of nowhere. Please give me your feedback, I feel so terrible and unsettled about this. If anyone has been through this or has advice on what to do next or how to check for this please let me know. I want to tell myself because my CVS test came out completely normal everything is fine and will be fine, but that may not be the case.
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