Age Is Just A Number...or is it?

     So, the doctors have a label for my type of pregnancy, Advanced Maternal Pregnancy, or as my nursing-school sister, Andrea, likes to call it~ Geriatric Pregnancy!  I prefer my doctor's term over my sister's!  When I hear Geriatric, I'm thinking like 80 or something.  Yes, I'm the oldest of my three sisters, but I am NOT Geriatric.  I got this lovely term because I became pregnant after the age of 35.  GASP!  To be honest, I'm just barely over 35, so no over-the-hill jokes please.  I don't think my hormonal imbalance can take it!
     Ryan and I knew we wanted another child but after we I became pregnant, I started to get scared.  Not the normal scared like a first time mom.  I'd already done this three times before, I'm practically a pro and could probably deliver my own child!  I wasn't scared of my baby growing up in this insane world.  Well, I am worried about that, but this was something different.  My age was definitely playing a role in what was going on in my head.

January 2012

     Sounds silly right?!?  I know that people are getting married at an older age and having children later in life.  However, that doesn't change the fact that when a woman turns 35, something happens.  I'm more prone to complications during my pregnancy and delivery, like high blood pressure and diabetes.  I'm more likely to have a child with a birth defect, especially Down Syndrome.  And the worst fear, I'm more likely to have a miscarriage!  All of these facts started to weigh on my mind.
     Just like with Lily, I'm getting nervous (you can read about that here).  I honestly don't think that any of these fears were there with my first two pregnancies.  Back then (sounds so long ago) I was in my 20's, in better shape, maybe a little naive, and thoroughly enjoyed every minute of my pregnancies.  With Lily and this time, I'm enjoying the pregnancies, but I 'm nervous and definitely more tired.  It could be due to the fact that I'm 10 years older and definitely out of shape!
     The worry about PKU is there.  This baby has a 25% chance of having PKU, a 50% chance of being a carrier, and a 25% chance of having neither.  Originally I secretly hoped that this baby would have PKU.  I was thinking that it would be easier for Lily to have a sibling with similar food issues.  However, I immediately felt guilty for thinking this.  I know that I would never wish PKU on anyone.  I know that we are teaching Lily that PKU isn't that big of a deal, just something we work through each day.  I know that Lily will be just fine if she's our only PKUer!

February 2012

     I've elected to not have any of the screenings done during my pregnancy.  My doctor offers screening during each trimester.  The screenings test for chromosomal abnormalities.  They also have a high false positive rate (experienced this with my first baby).  No matter what, we will love our little one!