NERVOUS...

I go to my high risk physician tomorrow for a growth ultrasound & amnio. I knew they were going to do the growth ultrasound to decide whether or not to deliver due to lack of growth. Well, they want do the amnio to check for lung maturity. I said if she needs to be delivered anyway, why does it matter. They say that they need to know, if she'll require more "skilled care" & it's better to be prepared & plan ahead than to be caught off guard @ the time of delivery. I really do appreciate that they are taking every precaution to ensure that we are both healthy. I am just nervous. To make it even more stressful, my appt is in the late afternoon. So, I may not know the results until Wed morning. Glad I have this board to voice my concerns.. Thanks for listening : )  

If they are worried about lung maturity, then ask them to give you the steroid shots to help mature her lungs.  You get two shots 24 hours apart.  That way if they have to deliver early, then you've taken this precaution.  You have the right to refuse the amnio.  I know when I was 37 weeks with my first son, the doctor thought about doing an amnio.  Then he said it wasn't worth the extra risk of putting me into labor right then.  Ask them to have the NICU team on stand-by in case the baby has breathing issues.  Good luck.  I know how scary it can be when you have complications during a pregnancy.

I don't have any advice, but I wanted to say I hope that everything goes good and you get some good news tomorrow. I will definitely be sure to say an extra prayer for you, the baby and your family! May God watch over you all right now and protect you!

~Hugs

When I was pregnant with my 1st one, after my bog ultrasound the doctor called me at work to tell me they thought the baby had down syndrome due to a thickening of the nuclear fold in the neck and one of its arms were shorter than the other. He basically told me I could have a medical abortion (I was about 26 weeks along) or have an amnio or do nothing. I opted for the amnio to be prepared...while at the amnio he tells us that I shouldn't have worried so much that i "had a greater risk of miscarriage during the amnio than having the baby turn out positive for downs". I thought my husband was going to jump over the gurney and strangle him..all the torment of waiting....so just food for thought!!

My unborn son has Echogenic Bowel, first thing they threw at me was that its genetic markers for Cystic and Downs and if I wanted I could terminate. I was 20wks at the time. I said HELL NO!!! he then proceeds to tell me that they will do blood test etc to see exactly what was going on. ALL the test came back perfect and he was still pushing the amnio to see if he has downs. I dont care if he does or not. he will be loved and cared for regardless what the outcome was. HE THEN proceeds to tell me that basically since i was being a baby about the amnio being done, then he wanted me to deliver 2.5hrs away to be on the caution side. I dont have an issue with that one. As for the amnio, you can choose what you want done or not done. I was told that if your baby is practicing breathing while US is being performed, then little to no help will be needed after he/she is born with breathing. Now that is  what I was told. YOU as a mom, will know what is best for you and your family.
I figure that since I am seeing a periontologist 1 time a month and my ob every other week, and continous ultrasounds, the amnio wasnt needed to be done. The nurse broke it down for me after I asked her why they were pushing the amnio, just in case he does have downs or other genetic issue then they would give me the option of termination. I looked at her and she looked at me, and she goes YES there are still selfish people out there and please take no offense, we, as a protocol, have to offer up this procedure. Im like ok,but dont ask me again. she was like nope we wont.
Good luck, im sure everything will turn out good.

Thank you guys so much for your support & stories. I asked about steroids, when I was admitted 2 wks ago. I got 2 steroid injections before they took the twins @ 31 wks. MY high risk doctor says that steroids are not indicated after 34 wks. It has not shown any benefit once you get to that point. I having been going twice a week for biophysical ultrasounds. Baby Kinsley has been doing a great job practicing breathing, moving, & her cord flow is good. Her amniotic fluid is still low & she is just very small. The hospital where my doctors are, where I work, and where I hope to deliver does not have a NICU. The hospital where my my high risk doctor is located does, but it's about 45 minutes away & is considered out of network by my insurance company (by the way there is no NICU "in network"). Don't get me wrong, no amount of money is worth risking the health of our baby, but it would be great to be able to deliver @ our hospital.  I'm not really worried about miscarriage because I am 37 wks, but any procedure has it's risks. I'm definitely going to voice my concerns tomorrow & discuss our options, after the ultrasound & before the amnio. Thanks Again : )

If you are 37weeks, then tell them to just induce you at your hospital. If she needs to go to NICU your insurance WILL cover it. Kinda like seeing a specialist, you have to be referred in order for it to be covered for out of network...
good luck

You would think that's how it would work, but it doesn't, not with ours anyway. When I had the twins, I was admitted to "my hospital" @ 31 wks. Then, transferred emergently to another hospital that had a high risk prenatal unit & NICU. Even though I went by ambulance & was delivered emergently, it is still out of net-work. It's not that it's "not covered", but instead of paying $100 co-pay @ the "in-network facility", it only pays 60% of everything. It doesn't sound like that much of a difference, but both babies were in the NICU for 6wks & I was there 1 wk. The bill was almost a million dollars. 40% of a million dollars is more than we could pay for. There is an annual out of pocket maximum, but it's still pretty high. The crappiest part is that there is no High Risk Physician or NICU "in-network" !!! Insurance/money wouldn't even have crossed my mind except that we had a horrible experience last time.

Check with your insurance company to see if you can appeal for in-network coverage for the out of network NICU if need be.  Especially since there are none in-network.  I had to do that for both of Gabriel's NICU admissions.  It took several months after the fact for them to approve it, but it was so worth the fight.

does your state have what we call here , title 19. which is basically welfare insurance and they cover EVERYTHING especially when there is another insurance involved. Something to think about. I sign up for it when im pregnant so that way if there is an issue, I wont have alot out of pocket expenses. Something to look into. As soon as baby is born they automatically go on it. Sorry for being nosey..