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CONGRATULATIONS, RutiV!!!!! Talk about being blessed!!! Your doctor may get to have you as his first "older" mom who delivers a healthy baby!!. I understand how concerned you are, though, as I just gave birth (six months ago) to my fifth (healthy) child at age 47 (without treatments)!! Besides, I have a feeling what your doctor told you has a twist to it. That is, pregnancy, when you're older, isn't common for various reasons. Lots of women don't want to start over, or they've already gone through menopause, or they're infertile. In addition, do you know the health of the mothers prior to pregnancy? Did any of them smoke? Drink? Use drugs and/or medication that may have been harmful to the baby? These things can factor in at any age, but combined with a smaller proportion of pregnant older moms to begin with (who may have had other "high risk" factors aside from age) may have been the reason they didn't have healthy babies. Of course, there are some risks a__sociated with age, but that, too, isn't a guarantee, and I HATE the way most doctors present it like it is. You don't know how many grown people I've personally spoken with who told me THEY were babies from mothers who were well into their forties. Let me (hopefully) rea__sure you with more. In the beginning of my pregnancy, I went to the OB/GYN unit where I had my previous four children (ages 17-24) from my first marriage. Aside from some technological and other medical changes since I had those children, when I was pregnant with them years ago, the doctor's would've never treated me like a medical freak, which is what I felt like this time with that OB/GYN unit. My husband went with me for my first visit, and we had the LIVING DAYLIGHTS scared right out of us, because of the age-related statistics the doctors told us (to cover their b___ts, I later learned, due to malpractice suits). While I did get gestational diabetes in my third trimester, I didn't have any other problems. For me, though, even the GD was more of an inconvenience than anything. All in all, I felt SOOOOO good being pregnant, and the baby always appeared to be healthy!! Anyway...the original OB/GYN unit...because I had such an unpleasant experience with them, and because my husband worked with a bunch of guys whose wives also had rotten experiences with them, I switched my prenatal care provider (a VERY smart move). I had tests, such as a v____al ultrasound (to confirm I was actually pregnant and a baby was developing), CVS testing, and non-stress tests (because of the GD). So, to answer your inquiry...yes, you CAN have a very healthy baby. One of the best things about this discussion board was all the help I got, especially when I was first pregnant and scared to death because of the statistics the doctors gave us. All the ladies that responded to my posts were quite knowledgeable and supportive, and helped me through the dark hours...even at a point when my husband and I wondered if we should follow through with the pregnancy (if you knew us, you'd know it's something we don't believe in, but we were THAT scared because of what the original OB/GYN unit had told us - and if you ask me, encouraged us, in a roundabout way, to do). I also counseled with a reverend, and I can't begin to tell you how EXTREMELY helpful he was, too. Having faith (albeit, shaky at times) in God helped us keep our sanity. Anyway, so many women on this board, as well as the midwives where I transferred my prenatal care to, were very rea__suring and said that if you're healthy enough to get pregnant, you and the baby should do fine. Which reminds me...what you hear out of a doctor's mouth, and what you hear out of a midwife's mouth, can be two different things. I couldn't help but notice (and even chuckle) that when I went for my checkups, the doctors would sometimes give me information which would raise concerns (for instance, the doctors had to inform me of specific childbirth risks a__sociated with GD - things, I might add, that NEVER happened). However, no sooner would the doctor walk out of the room, and the midwife come in, and would have such a laid-back att_tude about the whole situation. It was like night and day. So, if you find yourself being a bundle of nerves because of the doctor being too informative (to the degree you're under a huge amount of stress, as both me and my husband were in the beginning of my pregnancy), you may want to consider having a midwife deliver your baby and/or switching providers. In any event, enjoy your pregnancy...you'll miss your belly later on and the special way you feel inside. Savor every moment, as it goes by much too quicky. You may also want to keep a written journal, as well as photo album of the different stages of your pregnancy. You may not get this chance again (or you might - only God knows), so relax and enjoy it!! Best of luck and God's TOTAL blessings!!!
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