Very scared over my risk of downs sydrome

Fiona - posted on 04/24/2012 ( 154 moms have responded )

This is a very touchy subject for me to talk about as its still fairly raw and I'm very emotional over what has just happened... I'm 15 weeks and 3 days pregnant with my 4th baby. I'm 32. At week 14 weeks and 2 days i was offered the screening test for my risk of Downs Syndrome. well on monday of this week (15 weeks 1 day) i was shocked to hear that my doctor wanted me to come in and see him urgently. The thing i was fearing the most was told to me.... that i had a high risk of my baby having Down's, and that as i was now 15 weeks pregnant, i needed to go to Melbourne to have an Amniocentesis ASAP. I'm so scared as i have been told my risk is 1 in 78. That as i was told is that of a 36 year old! Is it right for me to feel cheated by nature? My reproductive system is working 4 years ahead of its time! Not only that - I fell pregnant with this baby in the midst of waiting for a LLETZ procedure (removal of precancerous cells from cervix), (i found i was 3 weeks pregnant the day after the procedure) and was placed on high miscarriage risk by my doctor until week 12... my pregnancy was pretty much considered a miracle as i should by rights have miscarried due to the bleeding i experienced for weeks afterwards and the fact that they had lazered a huge chunk out of the head of my cervix.... Anyway, I do feel cheated by nature. Why is it that at 32 i have the same risks for Down's in my pregnancy as a 36 year old?? has anyone else experienced this? The Royal Women's Hospital are being absolutely fantastic! They're ringing me to give me counselling every day until i get there... Have tolfd me that my risk is actually 2% of my child having Down's. I am still horrifically scared though... I dont understand what is going on with my body (as in why now) and my doctors cant give me an answer! My wish is that my baby is healthy and has nothing wrong (as any other woman) but i couldnt deal with a baby having Down's as i have one already who has a Global Developmental Delay of 12-18 months... He's 6 and even now hard to deal with.... VERY hard. So i couldnt go ahead with the pregnancy if it had Down's. I dont beleive that my baby deserves that kind of life, nor my family. What hurts the most is i have 2 boys, 1 girl now, and i am hoping for a girl to make my darling girl happy with a sister..... I dont have a sister myself as my mother miscarried my only chance at a sister at 6 weeks due to being RH Negative blood type, and at the time there was no technolgy to change the baby's blood type, until she became pregnant with me... So i want my daughter to have a sister like i never had. I'm sorry to ramble, but my head is spinning like crazy. There is no chance to have another child if this one has Down's, as my cervix (having had 2 abortions, 3 natural births, 2 miscarriages and now LLETZ) wouldnt hold a child if i terminate this one.

My question is - has anyone my age had the same result in a screening as me? and how has it turned out? i have 5 days til i go for my Amniocentesis and it's getting at me!