DFRS, maternal stress alone puts a growing fetus at risk for lifelong health problems, before you even throw alcohol and nicotine into the mix, good god. Shake that friend of your up a little, willya?
These are stressful times. It appears my wife's pregnancy is an extremely rare and complicated sort: two identical triplets that come from one egg and share a placenta and an amniotic sac, and one fraternal triplet from its own separate egg and sperm, with its own placenta and amnion. The problem is the identical ones. If they don't have a membrane separating them, their cords have about a 50% chance of becoming entangled, killing them both, and as a result aborting the third triplet prematurely and fatally as well. Meaning, we electively terminate at least one, if not two, is we want any live births out of this at all. Two ultrasound technicians have seen a membrane. Two have not.
I was let off rotation for two hours to accompany my wife to her 5th ultrasound exam, done by an MD himself. I practically cried for joy when I spotted a thin wisp of what just might be membrane. Never did I imagine I would ever want a membrane so badly. My kingdom for a membrane.
The doc conceded he did see evidence for a membrane. But he was referring my wife to the Children's Hospital of Philly (CHOP), which he called the best Obstetrics department in the world. He said this was warranted because of the unusual natural multiple birth anyway, but assured us they'd settle the membrane matter pretty quick. We have 5 more weeks to decide about any elective terminations.