Hello cherry!

My results came back as 1:65. After I put the phone down I just sat there and sobbed for about 5 minutes. But for me it wasn't "oh my god I might have a baby with down's", I was just worried about my baby being poorly and what he/she might have to suffer. I knew straight away that I wanted that baby no matter what and that, to me, it wouldn't matter whether it had down's, a missing leg or was completely perfect.

I sat down and talked things through with DH that night and we figured out that there was still only a one and a half percent chance of down's and, for us, it wasn't worth the one percent risk of miscarriage to have the amnio. Admittedly DH initially said he thought I should have it done but once we had worked out the risks we both agreed not to go through with it.

When the lady called me I made an appointment for us to go and have a chat with her. She was absolutely lovely and didn't try to pursuade us one way or another. She simply sat there and told us all about what down's is, how they calculate the risk and what the options were for us. Despite us already having made our decision it was nice to talk to someone about it all.

For me the decision was easy - I knew straight away what I wanted and I am grateful that I didn't have to keep chewing it over.

We have since had our 20wk scan and although there is no real way to tell, the sonographer told us there were none of the common indicators.

But for you the risk is higher and I completely understand why you are feeling so torn. You have to do what you feel is right for you, your family and your situation. If you haven't been offered any counselling then I would definitely recommend you ask for some, as talking things through with someone who is not emotionally involved could help you to make things clear in your mind and to weigh up the pro's and cons of each option.

Don't let yourself be pressured into something you don't feel is right, don't let anyone judge you by whatever you decide and just go with your gut instinct.

And if you need someone to chat to just send me a message any time.

Good luck sweetie xxxx

I think if you're not sure then the first thing you must do is figure out whether or not you feel you would terminate if you knew for sure the baby had downs. If the answer is yes, then have the amnio because otherwise you'll not only go crazy with worry, but you'll be completely ill prepared if you give birth to a Downs baby.

If you would NOT terminate if the baby has downs, then assess the risk of MC with the risk that the stress of not knowing for sure would cause you. If you truly think that knowing would make you feel better and prepare you if the baby DOES have downs, then have the amnio.

Unfortunately if you can't decide either way on how you feel then you'll just have to take a gamble and hope for the best.

From my experience, my friend just gave birth to a downs baby and her risk was 1:560. And on the other hand, my cousin gave birth to a healthy baby and her risk was 1:7. Neither one of them had an amnio.

It can go either way.

Make the decision that is right for you, but whichever way you go, try not to let yourself get terribly stressed.

Hi I was in the same situation as you 9 weeks ago my risk is 1 in 28 and im 33yrs old and my head was a mess for a few weeks I almost had a breakdown with the stress, all I can say is do what feels right for you and your hubby it is a very personal decision but once you have made your mind up it will be amazing how much the weight lifts of your shoulders wishing you all the best and sending loads of big

It's actually a 1% risk of miscarriage for amino. Sorry to hear about this, when we had our scan we was told baby would have high risk and we were going to have the amino test, cos sometimes its best to know. But it came back to low. But it's how you feelx

Hi,

I'm the friend Vyktoriah mentioned in her post who had the 1 in 560 risk and a hell of a shock when Logan was born and diagnosed with Down's. Despite my age (I'm 41) I was not offered an amnio and my 20 week scan came back normal. No heart problems were detected, nor any other issues (maybe the reason that the screening was "normal"). No screening test will ever give a definitive answer, if you must know for sure, get the amnio done. It would have been my personal choice to not have an amnio anyway and I would not have terminated had I known. I am awaiting detailed genetic test results from Logan's blood. Down's has been confirmed, but what type is yet to be revealed. It can be hereditary in a small percentage of cases.

My husband and I intend to have another child as soon as possible and will have screening tests again (for what it's worth!) but no amnio or termination even if the risk comes back very high. As I now already have one Down's child, my risk is automatically a minimum of 1 in 100 anyway but I want the nuchal fold test done at the very least to give some indication of potential heart problems. I'm disappointed that I had a false negative last time as I had no time to prepare for the possibility that Logan could be affected by Down's.

After the initial shock of Logan's diagnosis, we came to terms with the fact that we couldn't change anything and Logan is who he is. We will always love him, accept any challenges and face any problems as they arise. We have a future full of health tests and worry ahead, but we also have a future full of love and hope for our little boy who we know will develop at his own pace and maybe reach his personal milestones a little later than other children.

In reply to another post in this thread, the severity of Down's cannot be assessed antenatally and I won't know until Logan gets older how affected he is or when he will walk, talk, crawl, read or speak.

If anybody is interested, here is a link to the leaflet the Down's Syndrome Association have written for people who carry on with their pregnancy after Down's Syndrome has been confirmed, it may also provide some answers to those people who are trying to weigh up their options before an amnio or CVS:
http://www.downs-syndrome.org.uk/ima..._pregnancy.pdf

Above all, I'm keeping my fingers crossed for you that you have a healthy baby.

With my first pregnancy, there was a 1:50 chance of my son being born with Down's. However, my doctor told me that there is a few things that can cause those results to be inaccurate. I don't remember what they are now, but perhaps you can talk to your doctor first and see if any of them apply to you??

In the end, I chose not to have the amnio. I did have the doctor try to pressure me into it though.

Thank you everyone for your replies which truly are very helpful. We have decided we must have the amnio. I have been constantly upset since getting the news finding it hard to eat and sleep. I dont think it would be possible to go through the rest of the pregnancy in such a state of stress. I just keep thinking how terrifed I would be. I am already very high risk of obstetric cholestasis as I had this in my last pregnancy. To have another thing to constantly worry about just feels like too much to cope with.

I feel we are in such a terrible place and no matter what choice we make it will bring further worry/fear/sadness. Hopefully that worry will be all over if the amnio goes without problems and the results are what we want to hear. Otherwise we will just have to cross that bridge etc...

Thanks again, I really appreciate hearing your stories and supportive words.

Getting results like that can be so stressful! I hope everything turns out okay in the end..... and remember the odds are still in your favour! Of 13 babies who receive that result 12 of them will be completely normal! So the cup is definilty over half full at this point.

Good luck for the amnio... and the results xxx

I have had 4 amnios, and the 1% risk of miscarriage is out of date although still keeps being quoted. With my last pregnancy they used a needle with a special tip on it so it showed up really well on the ultrasound.
I had the amnios as I needed to know the result, not for termination but so I could educate/prepare myself and my family. Could never have got through 9 months wondering.