Advanced Maternal Age Discussion August

gadzooks_3

We didn't use this too much last month, but I thought I would give it one more go before abandoning it. 

Rants, raves, questions welcome.  Has you doc/midwife talked about your age lately?

Getting to know you: what is the best and worst of pregnancy and parenthood after 35 for you?

purplefan1

My doc doesnt seem concerned at all about my age. (37). He actually said he thought if I wanted to we could "easily get in one more after this one."

I dont have anything to compare to since Ive only know pregnancy and parenting at an AMA (first born was when I was 34) but I know in life in general Im tired as hell. But as a pro, I am far more confident and self assured than any other spot in my life. Im thankful that this is the point in time for myself that I had a family. I think any younger and I would have had a lot of regrets.

I do know that I want to live a healthy and active life moving forward so I can watch my kids grow and hopefully be an active grandparent should they choose to have families of their own. If mine wait until my age to have babies I will be a grandparent in my 70s so I had better be a fit and sassy grandma!

perfectoops

I’m totally going to jinx myself for saying this, but this pregnancy has been my easiest so far.  My previous two were in my late 20s, and ’m 35 for this one.  I’ve been more active, for sure.  Going to the gym 3x/week and walks daily.  I’m sure that has been the reason for the easier pregnancy.

My dr. never really mentions my age at all.  I really don’t think it’s a concern for her, which is great.  Any concerns we’ve had are more focused on the fibroid that I have this time.  We’re going to do another u/s at 28 wks when I do my glucose testing, just to check it’s size and make sure it hasn’t grown.  It was right underneath my anterior placenta, so just taking a peek at it to check it out. 

Best:  feeling more confident in what’s to come.

Worst:  imagining fitting a baby into our already crazy busy lifestyle with two sports crazy kids. 

runningfortwo81

My doctor only mentioned it the first time I went in (I'm 37) and it was just in the context of letting me know I could do genetic testing at 10 weeks if I wanted. And that was the end of that.

I don't have anything to compare to since I'm a first timer but I have genuinely had an easy pregnancy so far (knock on wood). Comparatively, my 21 year old cousin is also pregnant and while is isn't going badly for her she has been super tired and had some dizziness, so who knows? I've been active the whole time which I think truly helps. 

I will say that I am happy that I feel like I'm personally at the right place for this to happen. I am in a happy marriage (got married 3 years ago), we own our house and have plenty of space for a baby, we are financially stable and have good healthcare, and his mom is at a place of being able to help which wouldn't have been possible a couple of years ago (she was full-time caregiver for his Dad who had ALS until he passed away). I am sad that she won't get to know her grandfather and that now my mom is having some health issues that wouldn't have been as much of an issue if I had been younger...but this is the right time for us.

gadzooks_3

My first pregnancy I was 37 and they kept calling me geriatric (geriatric primigravida), it drove me nuts.  This time I get the occasional "because of your age" but it seems being older the second time isn't as big a deal.  I am feeling lots of aches and pains this time and less energy. That might be the chasing toddler part. @purplefan1 I also think about wanting to be fit and age well for my kids.

Like you all I like how confident and calm I am at this age.  You really know yourself in your 30s and 40s.  I feel up to the challenge of raising kids. 

I do miss the energy of my 20s or even early 30s. I know my ability to function on minimal sleep has gone down. That's the trade off to me.  

I also do think the older grandparents is something that is hard. 

emeraldcity1214

Rants, raves, questions welcome.  Has you doc/midwife talked about your age lately? I haven’t been in here because I completely forgot that I am AMA. 🤦🏻‍♀️ No one has mentioned my age yet. 

Getting to know you: what is the best and worst of pregnancy and parenthood after 35 for you? I have only been 35 for 1.5 months so I really don’t have much that could contribute to my age. I am more tired but that could just be from chasing the other 3 littles around. 

SunnySkiesToday

My doc. regarding my age:
The only mention of my age was at my first OB visit. It really hasn't been brought up since then. My doc seems pretty confident about my pregnancy and that there doesn't seem to be much risk. 

As for pregnancy after 35:
Although my husband and I tried conceiving in our early 30's, there is a part of me that feels it was good that it happened now and not when we first started trying. I'm 36 now, pregnant with our first child. Had we been pregnant 3-4 years ago when we first started trying, it would have changed a lot of things for us. We are in a really good spot in our lives right now and the timing just happened to work out supremely well. 

I may be 'older,' but I don't feel it. I just hope, however, that I can still say that as our child grows up!

I'm not a particularly active adult and really haven't been much a fitness buff except for a short 2 year stint in my mid- to late-20's, but I've always been a healthy weight. That said, though, there has been a LOT of confusion for me about exercise during pregnancy and also about eating fresh fruits and vegetables, which has made me feel less healthy. (Not to mention my biggest symptom with this pregnancy seems to be exhaustion.) I still feel like I have conflicting information on the things I am concerned about, too. As a result,  I worry that my baby hasn't received the best start that I otherwise would have liked to have given him/her.

emeraldcity1214

Welcome @SunnySkiesToday! I’m glad your pregnancy has been going well. I think the general rule of thumb for fish is to make sure it is cooked and not to eat much of the high Mercury kind. Also, exercise is fine, your just suppose to keep your HR below a certain number. I highly recommend swimming at this stage of pregnancy. It is low impact and just feels good to be weightless for a bit.