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Pregnancy & children
Ending a pregnancy for fetal abnormality
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The baby and the diagnosis :
Feelings about the pregnancy
Early scans and blood tests
Diagnostic tests - amnio and CVS
The 18-20 week scan and further tests
Understanding the baby's diagnosis
Deciding to end the pregnancy :
Looking for information and support
Ending the pregnancy for the baby's sake
Ending the pregnancy for family & personal reasons
Finding out how the pregnancy will end
The impact of the decision
Ending the pregnancy :
Signing the consent form
Ending the pregnancy surgically
Ending the pregnancy by induction
Going through labour and birth
Deciding whether to see, hold and name the baby
Photographs and other mementoes of the baby
Treatment, care and communication
Losing the baby :
Leaving hospital and going home
Deciding whether to have a post-mortem
Saying goodbye to the baby - sevices & funerals
Coping with bereavement - women's experiences
Coping with bereavement - men's experiences
The effects of ending a pregnancy :
Counselling and other kinds of support
Support groups
Deciding whether to have another baby
Men's ideas about their role in ending a pregnancy
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Ending a pregnancy for fetal abnormality
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Pregnancy & children
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Ending a pregnancy for fetal abnormality
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5-7 years since pregnancy ended
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Interview 37
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Thinks that it has helped his wife that he was there to listen and talk to her.
Father of 2 children (1st and 3rd pregnancies, see also EAP36). 2nd pregnancy: 20-week scan detected anomalies. Sent for specialist scan, baby diagnosed with holoprosencephaly. Amniocentesis. Pregnancy ended by induction at 21 weeks. Genetic counselling. 4th pregnancy: 12-week scan anomalies detected - baby diagnosed with anencephaly. Pregnancy ended surgically at 13 weeks, his wife had gynaecological complications after the termination. Expecting another baby at time of interview.
Pregnancy & children
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Ending a pregnancy for fetal abnormality
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1-2 years since pregnancy ended
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Interview 35
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He tried to support his wife in all kinds of ways and realised the most difficult thing was keeping up a brave face.
Father of 1 child. 2nd pregnancy: wife felt unwell throughout pregnancy. Nuchal scan at 12-weeks arranged privately, advised to have CVS - no problems detected. 20-week scan found baby had heart problems. Specialist cardiac scan confirmed baby had multiple problems in heart, stomach and spleen. Pregnancy ended by feticide and induction at 22 weeks. Post mortem confirmed multiple abnormalities. He is undecided about whether he wants another baby.
Pregnancy & children
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Ending a pregnancy for fetal abnormality
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3-4 years since pregnancy ended
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Interview 32
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Describes how his physical relationship with his wife was affected by worrying about the risk of conceiving another baby with abnormalities.
His wife's 3rd pregnancy: 20-week scan detected anomalies - baby's kidneys and stomach couldn't be seen. Specialist scan revealed baby had multiple abnormalities; parents agreed to amniocentesis which confirmed baby's problems were not inherited. Pregnancy ended at 22 weeks by induction. Since termination he and his wife (EAP07) have had another baby.
Pregnancy & children
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Ending a pregnancy for fetal abnormality
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5-7 years since pregnancy ended
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Interview 10
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She looks back on all the things that have happened to her and feels that she is more appreciative of her children.
Her 2nd pregnancy: 20-week scan indicated serious abnormalities. Amniocentesis and scans identified Patau's syndrome. Pregnancy was ended by induction (no feticide at her request) at 24 weeks. Since then she has had another baby.
Pregnancy & children
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Ending a pregnancy for fetal abnormality
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3-4 years since pregnancy ended
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Interview 31
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He feels that men should be strong and describes how he helped his wife in practical ways.
Mother's 1st pregnancy (father's 4th - he has 3 children from previous marriage). IVF pregnancy, some bleeding, 8-week dating scan at IVF clinic. 12-week scan no problems found. 20-week scan detected choroid plexus cysts (soft markers for Edwards' syndrome). Specialist cardiac scan indicated heart defects- sent for amniocentesis. Pregnancy ended at 22 weeks by feticide and induction. They have had another baby since termination.
Pregnancy & children
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Ending a pregnancy for fetal abnormality
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3-4 years since pregnancy ended
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Interview 19
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Feels that his role was to help his wife recover properly by making sure she had enough time and space to herself.
His wife's 2nd pregnancy: 20-week scan detected neural tube defect. Specialist scan confirmed encephalocoele. Pregnancy ended at 23 weeks by feticide and induction. Post mortem identified Walker-Warburg syndrome - a genetic abnormality. 3rd pregnancy: nuchal scan revealed baby had anomalies, and by 19 weeks scan showed hydrocephalus. Pregnancy ended at 20 weeks by induction. Walker-Warburg syndrome identified at post mortem. Both parents (see EAP05) carriers of recessive gene. 4th child born in 2004.
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