As starting a family was something I have wanted for as long as I could remember, there was no waiting to find out if my dream had come true as soon as we started trying. It was a Sunday morning the day my cycle should have began and I didn’t wait a moment to open up the home pregnancy test (Watson’s own brand) and have a go. When a faint second line came up we couldn’t believe our eyes. I was straight on the phone to AmCare and had an appointment for that afternoon. One more home test before we left and there it was again, that faint pink line.
The service at AmCare was fantastic. I was greeted at the desk by the translator, my weight, blood pressure and temperature were taken and then my blood work was done. It would be a few hours before any results so we headed home and got a bite to eat. It was an exciting afternoon with a mix of excitement and disbelief. Whilst out for lunch we had a phone call from our translator, she said the levels were quite low and I needed to come in for another blood test in two days. I got off the phone feeling deflated and a bit confused. Were we really pregnant? Was there something wrong? Needless to say the rest of lunch was quite quiet. I had to call her back and ask, “Am I actually pregnant?” She said yes, the hormone levels were just quite low.
Not exactly the, “Congratulations! You’re pregnant!” you see in the movies.
We went home and with a little bit of research we found the hormone she was talking about was HCG, my levels on that first test were less than 200. If when I went back two days later it had increased by at least double we could be sure of the pregnancy.
Two days later I was back on my own for more blood work. Again service was good and I was in and out very quickly, straight back home to wait for a phone call. My HCG levels had increased to 713; we were definitely pregnant! But again it was no big deal to the translator; she was just reporting a number. Next step would be to come in for an ultrasound in two weeks.
That first appointment was paid for out of our pockets: 755 rmb (£81/$123). And the second was the same. Bear in mind that we had paid 1510 rmb for two 10 minute appointments.
Our pregnancy journey had begun!
-Mrs T
Turners Abroad 
So excited for you both!!! You are Pregnant!!!! Congratulations!!!!
Thanks Bev! It is only starting to feel real now at 19 eeeks. Most days i still dont believe there is a baby in there!! Hope you are well and thanks for reading!
Congratulations — this is such an exciting time! Even though my youngest one will already turn 8 next week and we will not have any more kids, I still get all sentimental when I think about my pregnancies (well, sentimentally minus the morning sickness, *lol*). These are precious months, :-).
So will you have to pay all of this out of your own pocket?
Take care and enjoy your pregnancy, :-).
So long,
Corinna