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yay!!!! an answer to prayer!! Congrats and from now on ENJOY!!!! What a blessing, so happy for you!!!!!

Congrats lis ann !!!!!!! So ver happy for you. All you have to do now is to take good care of yourself ... eat healthy and wait for the little one to arrived. Keep us posted .. God Bless : ) :) :)

yay!. congrats all went well.

So happy for you that your results came back perfect! Now rest up and take care of that baby without worries!! Melly xo

Hello, I'm feeling so much better today after prayers of thanks, nourishment, and sleep. What a difference 24 hours makes... to think about the worry, fretting, and tears of anxiety just 1 day ago. Now, my mind can focus again on the enjoyment of everyday things. We went to an Easter egg hunt this morning, had lunch at Pizza Hut, and my daughter and son got to pick a new toy at the hobby shop- (celebration of the great news; meanwhile-they were too young to understand what was happening) Well, as mentioned, I thought I'd give the details from Friday, now that my mind has slowed down enough to think clearly. I called the doctor's office at 9:00 a.m. just to ask about "finding out." Would they call me, should I call later, etc. The nurse told me that the lab where the fluid was sent is in CA. We live in PA and so that meant a cross-country Fed-Ex shipment. The sample arrived on Thursday. She told me that it was unlikely that my results would be in because of the lack of time my fluid had been there to test. More waiting? Would the whole weekend go by? Then, she told me if she didn't get a fax from the lab by 1:00 p.m. (our time), that she would call the lab and check on preliminary results. My Mom had been with me the whole day, telling me to shower, dress the kids, etc. (rather then lay around and mope) So, we actually took the kids for lunch. I must say, it was good to get out of the house. We returned home close to 2:00 and there was a message on the machine from the nurse. My hands shook and I was breathing so heavily! We put the kids on the couch for some cartoons and my Mom and I went upstairs to call... Minutes later, I was talking to the nurse and her first words were, "The baby is healthy- everything is OK!" I bawled instantly- and the weight of 7 days of thinking-the-worst was partially lifted. She explained that the preliminary tests showed a normal match and split of chromosome 18, 21, x, and y. Thinking it was all too good to be true- I asked her if by next week, when the final conclusive results come back, if this could change and the findings could be a DS diagnosis. (why am I so negative?!) She a__sured me that things were fine. We talked for another minute or so. Then, she asked me if I'd like to know if it was a girl or boy... I thanked her for the offer, but, declined for now. I wanted every ounce of my joy to be focused on health instead of gender. I have an appointment on Monday, and chances are, I will find out. With my other two, I never found out (declined knowing at ultrasound visits). It was such a great surprise to wait until delivery for the big reveal! I've had my big moment so to speak. Yes, the delivery will be a wonderful miracle but, God gave me all I could have asked for... I'll post again- letting you know more as time goes on. Thanks for all of the joyful congratulations and "yays!"

Hi lis ann - so happy to hear that everything is fine ... do keep me posted your success is so positively encouraging. Take care. :)

Having read the above messages, I feel as though there is hope in sight. I am 38 and will be 18 weeks along. This is my first pregnancy and I am beyond elated! "Because of my age" (so tired of hearing this!) I had both the 1st & 2nd trimester screens. After an enormous amount of anxiety, the screen results were fantastic, so I gave myself some breathing room and was very relaxed for my 2nd trimester screen. I then got the call. My results came back positive with 1:257. My dr. explained that I was 13 points off from registering a negative result. I was frantic! My husband immediately jumped in saying "wait, this means less than a 1/2 % chance that something is wrong." My dr was not so positive telling me that the possibilty of having a diagnostic issue (i.e. "the stomach could be growing on the wrong side") and said the next step would be a genetic ultrasound. If the genetic u/s is still showing problems, they will then perform amniocentisis. I did make the appt. and I can't be seen until the 21st -- I'll be 3 days shy of 20 weeks! n I'm frantic thinking, did I come all this way now to find that there is a serious problem with what I thought was a healthy baby? My husband thinks I have completely gone off the deep end given the statistics (this really hasn't been an easy pregnancy as I bled alot during the 1st trimester and was placed on bed rest for 2.5 months; at 3 mos "mysterious" lumps were found in my b___st and I was sent in for a b___st ultrasound , thankfully nothing). Now in my 4th month I was really just beginning to relax finally and enjoy this pregnancy. And now I'm back to panic-mode. I can barely eat or sleep. I never really thought 38 was too old to have a child. Thanks to all of you who have so candidly shared your experiences and I truly have gotten a glimmer of hope that maybe, just maybe, 1:257 isn't anything but a number and not a major problem. I feel so blessed to be pregnant "at my age." Has anyone had genetic ultrasound screening or know anything else about the subject first-hand? Again, thanks to all of you for sharing. Congrats Lis Ann!!!!

Hi Kristin, I was scheduled to have the genetic u/s done before I even had the quad screen, but being as the results of the quad screen came back with a high chance of my baby having Trisomy 18 we had the amnio done. I did have the level II u/s which is just more comprehensive and checks more thoroughly. I think that you will be fine. 1:257 looks great to me, I came back at 1:47 for T18 and my little girl is fine, she is 9 weeks old today :) They like to make us nuts with all their tests and numbers. If you really are afraid and choose to have the amnio done, it's really not bad, but the waiting on the results seem like an eternity. Good luck to you, I'm sure that your little baby will be fine. Let us know how you make out :)

I pray my results turn out as good as all of yours did. I have an OB appt on the 20th. I think I'll have the quad done then. I have the level 2 ultrasound on the 28th. I'm nervous, although I know my chances are good for having a normal child, even at 38. Reading your stories has made me much more positive and lessened my anxiety. I'll let you know how things go....

I had a 1 in 40 risk when pregnant at age 40 and ended up with a beautiful little girl without Downs. I had the screen to please the doctor but wish I didn't because I worried my whole pregnancy. I did learn a lot about Downs though because I wanted to be prepared. There are some very wonderful people with Downs but chances are in your favor (59 out of 60) that you WONT have a Downs baby. It is only a screen. An affectionate nature seems to go along with Downs and I know of a family who adopted a Downs child after they had one of their own. They are so precious!

Hello ladies, I had a routine appointment last Monday, April 10th. Naturally, most of the time was spent discussing the comprehensive results of my amnio test. The results from "Genzyme" (lab in CA) indicated no chromosomal abnormalities. There was no evidence to support any abnormal splitting or pairing of the chromosomes. I still feel so blessed and thankful! In talking with the mid-wife, she "educated" me a bit more on false positive quad screen results. First, she said the quad screen has a 60% accuracy rate- where that number came from... I didn't think to ask. Then, she asked me if I ever had an abnormal PAP test. Yes, I had one- years ago. She compared the quad screen to the PAP test, stating that, "It is a screening. Nothing more. Just because you get an abnormal PAP test does not mean you have cervical cancer, but, it does indicate a need for additional attention/ testing. It's the same for the quad screen. It does not mean the baby is absoultely, positively going to have DS or other complications, but, it gives you an opportunity to conduct further testing." Never thought of it quite like that... By that time, another mid-wife joined in the conversation and both asked me if I'd like to know the baby's gender. Just as I was on the brink of saying, "OK," I declined again. I have my 20 week ultrasound scheduled for Thursday. Maybe I'll try to decipher the "indoor" or "outdoor" plumbing with my own untrained/ unskilled eyes. Take care for now all of you wonderful hope-to-be Mommies, will-be Mommies, and Mommies!

I know how you feel - I had "funny" screening results with both of my kids and I am happy to say that they were both born totally healthy! I was 35 and 38. I also had other markers at the level 2 ultrasounds that further indicated higher risk of DS. With my son, I was a basket case, crying for the remainder of the pregnancy. People thought I had lost my mind. My first words when he was born were "Does he have Down Syndrome?" Pretty sound when I think about it. I should have been happy but I was scared to death. (even though I had a brother-in-law with DS who was an absolute joy to be around) I wish I hadn't been so stressed out, because, in the end, none of all the crazy results (hole in the heart too) - panned out. He is fine, with a healthy heart too! My daughter was a repeat, but with an echogenic bowel instead of the heart thing. That too turned out to be nothing at all!! SO relax and try hard not to stress out - I know it's impossible, but in the end, your baby will probably be born completely fine! 1 in 60 sounds worse than only 2 out of 120 or 4 out of 240 - and that's what the odds really are. Good luck and send positive thoughts to your baby if you can!

To all of the wonderful ladies who check for updates and new posts regularly... We welcomed a healthy baby boy to our family on September 15, 2006. I am in awe of him... as the emotions I felt throughout the pregnancy still surface when I cradle him in my arms. I just took a few minutes to reread the kind words sent to me by all of you... I can't thank you enough for your support during such a tense and fearful time in my life. God bless all of you and hugs to your loved ones. :o)

Congrats!!! I do remember all of this..... Way to Go!

Congratulations lis ann! What a wonderful end / beginning to your family's story. xx

lis ann, CONGRATULATIONS! This story gives so many hope!! You must be soooo happy!! All the best with your little one!!