I am struggling making this decision to have the Natera testing done. DH wants to and we didn't with our first two totally healthy pregnancies and babies. I just am not sure what to do if the risk comes back high! Any feedback or thoughts. I'm now 33, third pregnancy, and this pregnancy was not planned!
Did you all do do this for the generic side or to find out the gender early? I have no desire to know the gender or do I really care about whether it's a boy or girl- just want a totally healthy baby. (So cliche I know- sorry!!!)
@atack For us, we did it for the genetic testing. The gender was a perk and I'm so excited that we already know. Look at it this way... Even if there's a high likelihood of a genetic disorder and even if you were certain you didn't want to terminate, wouldn't you want to be prepared? Wouldn't you want to research as much as possible, so you wouldn't be flying blind when the baby comes? While babies who have Down Syndrome go on to lead full lives, trisomy 13 and 18 aren't very compatible with life. If the baby survives, the likelihood of it living to age 1 is very small. Living past age one is even more rare. For us, we just wanted to be informed. We wanted to know so we could make educated decisions on what our next steps would be.
@vvitchhazel thank you for your response- that's a good point! I am more looking at the stress it will cause me with a false positive!!! Just not something we've dealt with in the previous 2 pregnancies! Being 33 makes me more apt to be nervous
@atack We sat down with a genetic counselor for an hour and she explained that it has a 99% accuracy rate. I Googled false positives before we got our MaterniT21 results and everything I found was outdated. The NIPTs like MaterniT21, Harmony, Panorama, etc have higher accuracy rates than the combination of the NT scan and the blood test that goes along with that. If the test does come back positive, your next option would be more invasive testing like CVS and amnio. Also, remember that NIPTs are not considered diagnostic... They just show the risks.
@atack the anatomy scan at around 20 weeks should also pick up the trisomies. If you feel that you'd continue the pregnancy regardless and just want time to prepare if the baby will have special needs, it's not like you will have no warning.
@vvitchhazel DH is sold on the best, most accurate test, so we will be going through with it. I will just be a nervous wreck praying all is healthy and fine while we wait. He is very upset that I am even pregnant - he will love the baby, but he is so concerned that we are playing with fate since we have two perfectly happy and healthy kiddos (boy and girl). I was on the pill and I missed a few in February. Took a pregnancy test before my March period and it was negative, I got what I thought was my period in March a few days later - sooo relieved. Then my April period never showed. I was 100% certain/convinced I lucked out with missing a few pills and not getting pregnant, so I was in shock when I took another test in April and it was positive. Like what the! It was not on purpose and totally an accident. Only other thing I can think of is my pills in March were expired as I went through my drawer of pills (the company kept sending me new packages) and when I was pregnant/nursing last time years ago, I stockpiled them - never realizing crap they could expire. I have no clue which pack I was using in March (as it was tossed) and it very well could have been expired - he's really hurt about that thinking I did it on purpose, which was not the case at all. It stinks because I totally wanted a third, but I figured I'd get him on board next year when our youngest heads to kindergarten and would be done daycare costs. Now, it was just poor timing and a total accident. I feel at fault for everything and I am just praying this baby is totally healthy because I don't think I can live with some other answer other than that
Now, I know we are blessed and I am so fortunate to be on this side than other sides that you can be on with infertility, so I am not wishing this pregnancy away, but it just wasn't what we planned for, life throws you curve balls and sometimes it's scary!
vvitchhazel DH is sold on the best, most accurate test, so we will be going through with it. I will just be a nervous wreck praying all is healthy and fine while we wait. He is very upset that I am even pregnant - he will love the baby, but he is so concerned that we are playing with fate since we have two perfectly happy and healthy kiddos (boy and girl). I was on the pill and I missed a few in February. Took a pregnancy test before my March period and it was negative, I got what I thought was my period in March a few days later - sooo relieved. Then my April period never showed. I was 100% certain/convinced I lucked out with missing a few pills and not getting pregnant, so I was in shock when I took another test in April and it was positive. Like what the! It was not on purpose and totally an accident. Only other thing I can think of is my pills in March were expired as I went through my drawer of pills (the company kept sending me new packages) and when I was pregnant/nursing last time years ago, I stockpiled them - never realizing crap they could expire. I have no clue which pack I was using in March (as it was tossed) and it very well could have been expired - he's really hurt about that thinking I did it on purpose, which was not the case at all. It stinks because I totally wanted a third, but I figured I'd get him on board next year when our youngest heads to kindergarten and would be done daycare costs. Now, it was just poor timing and a total accident. I feel at fault for everything and I am just praying this baby is totally healthy because I don't think I can live with some other answer other than that
Now, I know we are blessed and I am so fortunate to be on this side than other sides that you can be on with infertility, so I am not wishing this pregnancy away, but it just wasn't what we planned for, life throws you curve balls and sometimes it's scary!
that's really fucked up that he says something like that to you. where is the trust? i know it's hard to not feel like everything is "your fault" but it takes two people to make babies. should you perhaps have taken some emergency contraception after missing some pills but not abstaining? if you really didn't want a third right now, i guess. hind sight is always 20-20.
i hope your H gets his head out of his ass and starts supporting you instead of deciding you would make unilateral reproductive decisions without consulting him.
Met: September 2005Married: October 2008 DS: 09/2014
@atack I'm so so sorry you're in this situation, but please please please don't blame yourself! Accidents happen and you shouldn't feel guilty. I understand that your husband is struggling with his emotions, but it's unfair to take it out on you by directing the blame on your shoulders. He'll love this LO unconditionally and it sounds like he's a great dad, so he'll likely come around soon.
@vvitchhazel he is a great dad and the stress we've been under as a family this year has been rough. I know others are in worst situations, but it's been a rough year for us in general and adding another baby certainly doesn't help the stress level. @anewadventure He has since agreed and realized it wasn't "on purpose" and I wasn't out to trick him. I do feel like it all is happening for a reason - and will get through it.
I got my MaterniT21 results back today and everything looked normal I'm feeling a bit more relieved. Just wanted to share timing on how long it took: I got the blood draw last Wednesday afternoon (5/17) and my doctor's office received the results this morning (5/24), and the ob was able to review before the nurse called me. So overall less than 7 days total.
Me: 36 | DH 35, Married 2007
TTC #1 June 2015 April 2016 - AMH, FSH, Progesterone normal June 2016 - HSG clear *TW* BFP - Aug16, demise confirmed Sep16, incomplete m/c, D&C Nov16 BFP 3/27/17, edd 12/7/17 DS - 12/9/17 TTC #2 December 2018 BFP 2/22/19, edd 11/4/19 DD - 11/1/19 My Chart
Had the blood draw Monday and am eagerly waiting for results! Thanks to everyone for sharing their results timelines, it makes me feel like maybe it won't be 2 full weeks. I did the test for genetic reasons, with the gender just being a bonus and something I wasn't even totally sure I'd want to know. Now that the test is happening though, I'm SO excited to find out the gender!
@atack, hang in there. It is definitely not your "fault" that you're pregnant, and like other said, it takes 2 to make a baby! Pregnancy is so tricky, because having a baby is certainly a shared experience and responsibility, but as women it's hard to not feel like we are the ones fully responsible for the situation, pregnancy outcome, labor experience. We're the ones who are responsible for what we eat and drink every day, how much exercise we get, how much we prepare for labor. It's easy to put a lot more weight on ourselves, but it's definitely a joint venture! So glad to hear your husband is coming around, and I hope the stress this year has brought your family dissipates quickly!
Just had blood drawn so the waiting game starts! I got the verify by progenity test, did anyone else get this one. It's the same concept as harmony etc, but I haven't seen anyone else post this test specifically. Just curious
Just had my Harmony blood draw yesterday and my insurance only covers NIPT or NT. Not both! The doctor said that NIPT is broad enough. My NIPT is covered since I am AMA, so they may do the NT scan if a patient is more predisposed to genetic issues.
I think this is the first thread that I've read through all of the posts! very helpful! I think I've decided to do the NIPT and my doctor is ordering the blood test and scan for Friday. Wish me luck!
Did anyone get the Quest Qnatal NIPT? I had never heard of it before but I got my blood drawn for it on Sunday. Definitely taking a gamble on the billing front since I am not AMA or high risk, but it was important to me for peace of mind. I did not put a lot of effort into finding out how much it costs and what is covered by our insurance, so needless to say I never got any concrete information. H is going to be grumpy if we get a huge bill
As far as finding out the gender, my thoughts are the same as many of you. I am so excited to hear what we're having but that's just an added bonus - more than anything I just want reassurance that whatever is in here is healthy!
Just got my Harmony results after 8 days! Normal results- I'm shaking from the excitement!! I'll share the sex on the sex thread after I tell my husband in a couple of hours.
@vvitchhazel how many days did it take for them to receive your sample? I called today to see what insurance would cover because I never got the email and they said they don't even have my sample yet. It was done on Monday and I can't say that I had a lot of faith in the lab tech so I'm a little worried.
@Marley629 We had our blood drawn at around noon on Monday the 15th and I got the email that they received our samples at 6:10 pm on Thursday the 18th. 20 minutes later they sent the email about insurance coverage. Hopefully you'll get some news tonight!
Ugh @vvitchhazel I got the email from counsyl. The lab tech put it through as family prep screen instead of the informed pregnancy screen. I already did the family prep screen prior to doing IVF & I know my doc ordered the latter. I feel like this is going to require more than 1 phone call to fix
I am speechless. *TW* After losing a boy last May and a girl in December, I never thought I was going to get the "good" phone call. But I just did. My results came back normal and we are having a baby girl! For the first time in a year, I feel like I can breathe.
Me: 38 l DH: 41 Gavin - 8/27/10 *TW* Gabriel - 2nd tri loss 5/17/16 Trisomy 18 & 21 Hope - 2nd tri loss 12/7/16 complications from pneumonia
Congratulations @thatlauragirl!! I can only imagine the relief you must feel!
I had my NIPT blood draw last Monday (5/22) and am waiting on results. I'll get them by email and have been obsessively checking at work today! I felt pretty ambivalent about finding out the gender in the past and did the test for the genetic screening purposes, but now that I'm close to knowing I'm dying to find out!
@vvitchhazel I'm taking the MaterniT21 also. Was it 8 calender days, or 8 business days? I'm having my blood draw tomorrow, and Sequenom should have it Thursday.
Had my blood draw yesterday! Turns out my doctor does the Counsyl brand. So the clock is on!
I've decided to get the results, but not get the sex results right away. The analysis should be done anywhere between next Tuesday/Wednesday/Thursday. I've got my NT exam on Thursday. I don't want to know the sex before the NT exam. But provided that goes well, I'm going to have my doctor write the results down in an envelope so we can do something special with it. Not a full gender reveal party - perhaps just simple and cute between my husband and I - like go get cookies from a bakery and tell them to use blue confetti in the box if it's a boy and pink if it's a girl. Or just open it home together. Or go to our favorite restaurant and tell them to bring us vanilla ice cream for a girl or chocolate ice cream if it's a boy.
** December BMB Siggy Challenge - Animals in Pools **
Me: 31+ H: 32 TTC Since 11/2015 #1 - MMC 6.5 weeks (2/16); #2 - MC due to cystic hygroma at 20 weeks (10/16); #3 CP (2/17); #4 - Due 12.16.17
@Tennis11785 All of those ideas sound cute! I thought about taking the results to a baby boutique and have them pick out a pair of boy or girl jammies and wrapping it up so DH and I could open it together, but I just couldn't wait. When the genetic counselor called, I put the phone on speaker immediately. Had to know!
@Tennis11785 I think we are going to do the same thing, with getting the results on an envelope and then finding out together. I want to share the surprise with him. I like the cookie idea! I want to do something that will make a fun video as I think that is how we will tell our friends.... instead of doing a big gender reveal party. We want to have that fun moment every time we tell people!
Whoops... edited to also say that I had the blood draw for the Verifi test today! Should know next week or so!
@Tennis11785 I took the Counsyl Informed Pregnancy Screen and wanted to know our results (except gender) as soon as I got the email. If you get to check your Counsyl test results online and want the gender as a surprise don't download/open the report file until after your reveal. The website's good about keeping them behind what's essentially a spoiler warning, even if you view the trisomy results, but the PDF has it all on the same page. ... This is how I accidentally peeked at ours. (Oops.)
@Tennis11785 that sounds fun! I don't work Friday so if I get the results while DH is at work I want to do something cute/fun for him when he gets home. He's a grand gestures guy so it will be nice to do something for him for once.
Re: Harmony Test/Early Gender Detection Experiences
Did you all do do this for the generic side or to find out the gender early? I have no desire to know the gender or do I really care about whether it's a boy or girl- just want a totally healthy baby. (So cliche I know- sorry!!!)
Now, I know we are blessed and I am so fortunate to be on this side than other sides that you can be on with infertility, so I am not wishing this pregnancy away, but it just wasn't what we planned for, life throws you curve balls and sometimes it's scary!
i know it's hard to not feel like everything is "your fault" but it takes two people to make babies. should you perhaps have taken some emergency contraception after missing some pills but not abstaining? if you really didn't want a third right now, i guess. hind sight is always 20-20.
i hope your H gets his head out of his ass and starts supporting you instead of deciding you would make unilateral reproductive decisions without consulting him.
Met: September 2005 Married: October 2008 DS: 09/2014
Just wanted to share timing on how long it took: I got the blood draw last Wednesday afternoon (5/17) and my doctor's office received the results this morning (5/24), and the ob was able to review before the nurse called me. So overall less than 7 days total.
April 2016 - AMH, FSH, Progesterone normal
June 2016 - HSG clear
*TW* BFP - Aug16, demise confirmed Sep16, incomplete m/c, D&C Nov16
BFP 3/27/17, edd 12/7/17
DS - 12/9/17
TTC #2 December 2018
BFP 2/22/19, edd 11/4/19
DD - 11/1/19
My Chart
@atack, hang in there. It is definitely not your "fault" that you're pregnant, and like other said, it takes 2 to make a baby!
DX Diminished Ovarian Reserve, Factor V Leiden Mutation, Secondary Infertility
MFI (SA #1Count 11mill, Motility: 18%, Morphology: 1%)
AMH .328 | FSH 13.2
Just had my Harmony blood draw yesterday and my insurance only covers NIPT or NT. Not both! The doctor said that NIPT is broad enough. My NIPT is covered since I am AMA, so they may do the NT scan if a patient is more predisposed to genetic issues.
As far as finding out the gender, my thoughts are the same as many of you. I am so excited to hear what we're having but that's just an added bonus - more than anything I just want reassurance that whatever is in here is healthy!
Recap: MaterniT21 took 8 days. Counsyl carrier screening took 10 days.
DX Diminished Ovarian Reserve, Factor V Leiden Mutation, Secondary Infertility
MFI (SA #1Count 11mill, Motility: 18%, Morphology: 1%)
AMH .328 | FSH 13.2
DX Diminished Ovarian Reserve, Factor V Leiden Mutation, Secondary Infertility
MFI (SA #1Count 11mill, Motility: 18%, Morphology: 1%)
AMH .328 | FSH 13.2
DX Diminished Ovarian Reserve, Factor V Leiden Mutation, Secondary Infertility
MFI (SA #1Count 11mill, Motility: 18%, Morphology: 1%)
AMH .328 | FSH 13.2
April 2016 - AMH, FSH, Progesterone normal
June 2016 - HSG clear
*TW* BFP - Aug16, demise confirmed Sep16, incomplete m/c, D&C Nov16
BFP 3/27/17, edd 12/7/17
DS - 12/9/17
TTC #2 December 2018
BFP 2/22/19, edd 11/4/19
DD - 11/1/19
My Chart
DX Diminished Ovarian Reserve, Factor V Leiden Mutation, Secondary Infertility
MFI (SA #1Count 11mill, Motility: 18%, Morphology: 1%)
AMH .328 | FSH 13.2
April 2016 - AMH, FSH, Progesterone normal
June 2016 - HSG clear
*TW* BFP - Aug16, demise confirmed Sep16, incomplete m/c, D&C Nov16
BFP 3/27/17, edd 12/7/17
DS - 12/9/17
TTC #2 December 2018
BFP 2/22/19, edd 11/4/19
DD - 11/1/19
My Chart
Gavin - 8/27/10
*TW*
Gabriel - 2nd tri loss 5/17/16 Trisomy 18 & 21
Hope - 2nd tri loss 12/7/16 complications from pneumonia
I had my NIPT blood draw last Monday (5/22) and am waiting on results. I'll get them by email and have been obsessively checking at work today! I felt pretty ambivalent about finding out the gender in the past and did the test for the genetic screening purposes, but now that I'm close to knowing I'm dying to find out!
I've decided to get the results, but not get the sex results right away. The analysis should be done anywhere between next Tuesday/Wednesday/Thursday. I've got my NT exam on Thursday. I don't want to know the sex before the NT exam. But provided that goes well, I'm going to have my doctor write the results down in an envelope so we can do something special with it. Not a full gender reveal party - perhaps just simple and cute between my husband and I - like go get cookies from a bakery and tell them to use blue confetti in the box if it's a boy and pink if it's a girl. Or just open it home together. Or go to our favorite restaurant and tell them to bring us vanilla ice cream for a girl or chocolate ice cream if it's a boy.
** December BMB Siggy Challenge - Animals in Pools **
Me: 31+ H: 32
TTC Since 11/2015
#1 - MMC 6.5 weeks (2/16); #2 - MC due to cystic hygroma at 20 weeks (10/16); #3 CP (2/17); #4 - Due 12.16.17
Whoops... edited to also say that I had the blood draw for the Verifi test today! Should know next week or so!
** December BMB Siggy Challenge - Animals in Pools **
Me: 31+ H: 32
TTC Since 11/2015
#1 - MMC 6.5 weeks (2/16); #2 - MC due to cystic hygroma at 20 weeks (10/16); #3 CP (2/17); #4 - Due 12.16.17