During this pregnancy, we’ve made some decisions that are probably considered alternative. Alternative can sometimes be a nice word for ‘crazy,’ ‘weird,’ and ‘strange.’ Although I like to think that our alternative decisions are well reasoned, researched, and at least semi-educated, I’m okay with seeming a little weird.

Our alternative decision du jour? Skipping some ultrasounds.

Yup, there's a baby in there.

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One goal for this pregnancy was to avoid unnecessary medical intervention. In many instances, sonograms could be considered unnecessary. There’s no recommended number of ultrasounds for routine care, but the American Pregnancy Association says the following: “Ultrasounds are only necessary if there is a medical concern. For women with an uncomplicated pregnancy, an ultrasound is not a necessary part of prenatal care.”

According to the Food and Drug Administration, ultrasounds cause physical changes to occur in the body. They note, “laboratory studies have shown that diagnostic levels of ultrasound can produce physical effects in tissue, such as mechanical vibrations and rise in temperature,” in addition to causing the development of small pockets of gas in bodily fluids or tissues, called cavitation. To be fair, ultrasounds have been used for 20+ years, and have an excellent safety record. So, in certain instances, ultrasounds are a great tool. Side note: commercial places that offer ultrasounds for the sole purpose of producing keepsake videos, and ultrasound monitors for home use are definitely frowned upon by all medical organizations. Remember, the technology wasn’t designed for generating scrapbook photos.

Initially, we discussed skipping all ultrasounds. My OBGYN office has its own reputation for being alternative, so they weren’t shocked by our decision. We did spend a lot of time talking things over with the staff, and ultimately decided to skip the early ultrasound, have an anatomy scan at 18 weeks, and then forego all other scans unless there was a serious medical concern that couldn’t be addressed by other means.

Here’s why we skipped the early ultrasound at eight weeks, even though my doctor offered it, and its cost would have been covered entirely by insurance:

  • One reason to have an early ultrasound is to pinpoint a due date. I was temping, charting, and using OPKs. I knew the day I’d conceived within a twenty-four hour window – there wasn’t any question about my due date.
  • Another reason to have early ultrasound is to rule out multiples. I wasn’t undergoing fertility treatment, and multiples aren’t hereditary in our families.
  • Some people have early ultrasounds due to early pregnancy complications, like bleeding and cramping. I wasn’t experiencing any of these side effects, so it wasn’t a concern.
  • Early ultrasounds may cause false alarms or reveal complications that don’t have solutions. Anxiety is a part of my daily life, and one way for me to minimize it is to assume that everything is going to be okay – I felt great and had no troubling symptoms, so I think it was a rational assumption. False alarms or situations without solutions would go a long way towards driving me crazy, so personally, it was just better not to know.
  • Medical evidence suggests that giving every pregnant woman an ultrasound, compared to selective use of ultrasound based on clinician recommendation, does not reduce fetal disease or death. Basically, the study said that if you don’t have obvious risk factors, there’s no medical benefit to having an ultrasound.
  • And finally, we skipped this ultrasound because everything we read concluded with pretty much the same idea: the long-term effects of fetal ultrasound exposure are unknown. There was no obvious medical benefit to have the early scan, so why risk it?

I don’t regret our decision to skip the early ultrasound – it was the right choice for us, and our situation. We did agree to an anatomy scan at 18 weeks – I’m not sure we had great information on the benefits, but our practitioner shared some anecdotal stories about the advantages, and we decided to have it done.

I’m not going to lie – seeing the living thing that’s taken up residence inside my uterus was pretty much the coolest thing ever. Mr. Tricycle was especially enthralled – the seat at the end of the table wasn’t good enough for him – he had to stand up and lean over the ultrasound tech’s shoulder for the best possible view.

Yup, there's a baby in there!

Although the anatomy scan was awesome, I’m resigned to the fact that it was the last time we’ll “see” our baby until birth. The scan didn’t detect any complications, so with fingers crossed, we won’t have any reason to have another.

Anyone else making decisions that are slightly on the “alternative” side of things?