A visit with the Cardiologist....

"From a professional standpoint I have to say no.  I strongly advise you to consider surrogacy."  Exactly what I expected, yet in a way the appointment has left me with hope.

The Dr told me that the course of action that he would see should I wind up pregnant would be Heparin shots (which are highly unpredictable), a High Risk OBGYN and a c-section.  He explained that the baby would be cared for he wasn't worried in the least, but that my risks would be high.  Should the unpredictable Heparin leave my blood to thin I am running the risks for clots.  A c-section would run risks of infection going straight to my heart. 

He also said that YES a pregnancy is possible and a safe pregnancy was even possible but the risks were very high.  I then told him about the pilot studies showing that low doses of coumadin decreased risks for both mother and child significantly.  He said he had read them and it looked promising but here in America aside from research institutions that there weren't any doctors with the balls to try it.  He completely earned my respect at that moment.

He went on to advise that I don't take the decision lightly and asked more about what G and I have already done.  I told him about our journey so far, meeting with a local OBGYN and scheduling an appointment with Duke.  He wants to be kept informed and asked that I call the office after we decide and meet with Duke.  He seemed very curious and definitely interested in monitoring me throughout the pregnancy if we choose to go through with it. I told him that the purpose with all the appointments to access the risks, and to find a support team.

So we continue on to the next step of our journey going to Duke to meet with the Perinatal/Maternal-Fetal Specialist.