The 2nd Opinion

Just another loop on this crazy rollercoaster ride! We went in for the follow-up sono today. (Nick, mom and me) The doctor was surprisingly optimistic. The heartbeat was steady and strong and she/he was in a much better position than the day before! Praise God! The doctor still doesn’t like the looks of the placenta, but he was much more positive and upbeat today. With such a hopeful visit I sat there not wanting to ask the question, “How do our chances look today?” luckily Nick asked. Today we got a 50/50 shot! How relative everything is! If we had been told 50/50 a couple of days ago, we would have been devastated! Now, it doesn’t sound so bad!

My OB sent us to consult with another perinatologist for a 2nd opinion and he gave us a business card to make an appointment with a fetal cardiologist. With a phone call from my OB, we had an appointment with the 2nd opinion that afternoon. At this appointment we received a heart echocardiogram. This is where they look really closely at the heart from any and every angle possible. On an up-note, the baby was in a much better position and we found out that our little one is in fact, a girl! She will be called Anna Grace, or as her Nana affectionately calls her already, Anna Banana.

The appointment seemed to be going well. Spirits were high and there was much laughter in the room as the sonogram tech wrote cute sayings on the pictures she printed like, “think pink” and “peek-a-boo”... unfortunately, another fleeting moment.

The 2nd opinion doctor came in and was relooking at the heart trying to find the last view he needed. Once he was done, the news fell on us like a black blanket. He could only find one valve of the heart. This type of heart defect paired with a thickened placenta and IUGR, is typical for Down’s Syndrome, Triploidy, Tetraploidy and other serious horrific chromosomal abnormalities you don’t want your doctor to ever say. Nick asked “what is our best case scenario to hope for?” The doctor stated that if there is not a chromosomal abnormality that this is all linked to, then we will be looking at some type of syndrome. The doctor asked if we got the FISH Test done, but we weren’t sure what that was. Apparently, it is another test that can be performed through the amnio. The results only take 3 days instead of 10 but it only gives the results of 4 chromosomal abnormalities. The Dr. put in a call to see if we could get those results ASAP. He also kept pressing the issue of only being able to abort the baby through the next few weeks so he wanted to rush as much information as possible. Abortion is not an option with Nick and I, but we definitely aren’t going to deny getting information as soon as possible.

The 2nd opinion dr. wants to see us again tomorrow. He also called a fetal cardiologist and got us an appointment tomorrow. (The little miracle that happened today, was that I had called the fetal cardiologist’s office from the business card my OB gave me and the soonest I could get appointment was Nov. 6th because he was going out of town. The 2nd opinion dr. ended up calling the same fetal cariologist who was going out of town and he set us up for the next day! The Cardiologist is coming back into town just to see us, our appointment is even after-hours. Isn’t that incredible?! That was my little miracle today.)

Tonight I can barely even think straight, I can’t even believe that this is happening. Nick, who is remaining upbeat and as positive as he can be, keeps reminding me that we don’t know anything for sure and we won’t until we get the results of the amnio or FISH test. Please pray. We need more miracles!

Love to all,
The Balabanski’s