John and I are blessed to have another little one in the family. I am now 14 weeks pregnant with another baby girl. Along with this great news is also a huge prayer request. Our precious little one has Down Syndrome (DS). I know that many of you will have lots of questions, so we have created this blog to help everyone understand what has been going on and everything that has led up to now.
We had been trying to conceive since last September. I then got pregnant and soon miscarried after 6 weeks in January. Then finally in April we got the best news (via 2 lines on a pregnancy stick). We had decided to keep things quiet about the baby until I was 3 months and had a lower risk for miscarriage.
I had my first prenatal visit at 9 weeks and no heart beat was found with the normal doplar, so I was given an early ultrasound (which the picture above was taken at). Through that ultrasound we were advised to go to OHSU to get a second opinion as they saw extra fluid in the nuchal sac behind the neck which is indicative of chromosomal abnormalities and/or congenital heart problems.
The OHSU ultrasound was not as we hoped. Not only was the nuchal sac enlarged but the baby also has fluid in her lungs and under her skin. The doctor was very concerned for the baby's health and she said it seems as if the baby is undergoing heart failure because of all these signs at such an early stage. She believed the baby to have even a more serious birth defect than DS (ie Trisomy 13 or 18). Also that I am very likely to have a miscarriage at any time during the pregnancy and there is no chance that the baby would survive more than a year if I went to full term. So immediately she offered to terminate the baby. Of course, we declined and would never have come to that conclusion. We then asked to take further diagnostic testing to see exactly what type of birth defect she has. They called us with results in 2 days and told us that she has Down Syndrome, but nothing more severe. Praise God!
Although her birth defects aren't as severe as we had thought, the baby is still at risk. I may still miscarry or have a still birth. She might be having heart failure. But we have hope and are looking into a third opinion (one with a more pro-life view and approach). So we have decided to transfer care to St. Vincent's hospital. I am scheduled for another ultrasound on July 6th and we are praying that her health has improved. After that they will do an echocardiogram on the baby's heart to see how serious her condition is.
All this to say, we covet all your prayers. Please pray for the baby's health and that she comes to full term. Also that she would be high functioning once born and has a good quality of life. Please also pray for our family, peace and strength. We know without a doubt that God is in full control and has given us this precious baby. And we trust that He has her in His hands. Thank you all for taking the time to read this and for all your support.
Blessings, Gizelle
