home dopplers - anyone have experience

[MizZan]

hi - I'm nearly 17 weeks pregnant and just had an amnio yesterday (I'm 38). feel ok so far but am completely paranoid that I'll have a miscarriage as a result of the procedure. for whatever reason, I feel far more nervous about this than about receiving the test results. I miscarried in Jan. (for other reasons) so am probably extra hyped up about it all because of that.

was thinking of buying/renting a fetal doppler to hopefully give myself a little more peace of mind. there seem to be a lot of websites offering them. just wondered if anyone has used these, and if you can recommend (or not recommend) a site or brand of doppler that is good. thanks!

[singleteenagemum]

Hi MZ,

I have a doppler at home, but i'm afraid i don't know the make or anything. my mum works in a hospital and they were willing to lend me one. They do put your mind at rest and it;s great to hear the heartbeat, but it;s hard not to get paranoid. They're probably not worth the money to buy or rent, you'll be starting to feel it move soon and that always help to put your mind at ease.

Hope it helps

[horseshoe]

I used mybump.co.uk

Odered it at 11:30 on Monday and it arrived 8am tuesday.

I paid 24.99 subscribtion a month but if I rent for 7 months I automatically get to keep it!

[edodgy]

hi i got one from ebay for £65 and its briliant only get one if your not going to panic if you cant hear anything sometimes as they are quite hit and miss especially at yours (and my) stage of pregnancy when the baby has loads of room to escape from the probe!

[sweetheart]

A couple of ladies on the Due in Dec thread here
have them - they have been raving about how brilliant they are. Thinks they used mybump.co.uk too

I'm I want to hire one but my dh won't let me!!!!!

[Redhelen]

Hello

I purchased a brand new doppler on ebay (a baby watcher from the dopplerman) - after a miscarriage last year I felt I needed the reassurance. It cost £70 with postage, I'm carfully looking after it and intend to sell it in September once the baby comes, so should work out an almost free loan! It certainly does give reassurance - works from week 12, my son loves listening to the baby too. Take care Helenx

[mears]

A word of caution about dopplers - they can cause anxiety too if you do not pick up the heartbeat because of baby's position or stage of pregnancy. I also have concerns about how often babies are exposed to ultrasound waves at home? Is it a good thing to invade a baby's space too often?

[dramaqueen72]

I'm one of the dec mums to be who has one, also from mybump.com. and its IS reassuring and lovely to have. this is my fourth so i knew what i was looking for, but the site and instructions that come the doppler are fab at helping you out. my midwife was also concerned that i wouldnt find it and would panic (having had two missed or silent m/c in the past) but i have only not found it once, and a few hours later found it again fine. the doppler turns itself off after five minutes (you could turn it back on if you really needed too) but i found that was more than enough time. i usually 'tune in' once every other day, for a moment or so, to reassure me after aches or 'down' days. i dont intend keeping it long, just til the movements get regular. i am 13wks now btw.
I think you should go and look at mybump.com, even if you end up not getting one or not one from them, as they have advice and 'sound' examples you can read and hear. hth!

[MizZan]

thank you everyone, this is a help. I was also thinking I'd just rent one for a month or so, till I can feel the movements more regularly. Mears, I appreciate your point about not doing this constantly, but I think for the next month (God willing) I have to put my own peace of mind first as long as there is no proven risk to the baby.

I've had some bad experiences buying off ebay uk in the past so probably wouldn't go that route, but will try mybump. don't think I would get too paranoid if I can't hear the heartbeat once or twice, though dramaqueen I'd probably do what you did and try again a few hours later.

[Bonkerz]

will second

THIS WEB SITE FOR RENTING

DQ recommended it to me and im really happy with my doppler. I am due in December and am 13 weeks now, have had my doppler for almost 2 weeks and have found it well worth the money. The web site is great and very informative and Delivery is next day!

Dh and I have said we will just rent for 2 months while baby is too small to feel moving but i think i will keep it! Have also let ds and dsd listen in to the bean and they loved it!

Have just used mine again and it helps me relax. I only use it for 5 minutes every few days or when i feel anxious.

[MizZan]

ok, have ordered one to rent - thanks ladies!

bonkerz, if I use it every time I feel anxious, the thing's never going to be turned off...hopefully I can employ some self-control here

[bubbles2904]

they have them to buy in toys r us for around £30, but i must add when i mentioned getting one to my mw she advised against it as a lot of people panic when they can't find the heartbeat. as long as you understand that they don't always find one then i say buy one, this one comes with headphones and a cd so you can put it on disc hth

[goldenoldie]

I love mine, have been using it since 11 weeks. Expensive tho - bought new from Doppler Mike from e-bay at about £75. It gives you the heartrate as well as just the sounds.

[LexyB]

As a midwife I would say before you get one that you are exposing the baby to the same unltasound waves that are used in scanning and I find it odd that a lot of poeple are concerned about the possible damage that scans may do to babies developing brains but are then happy to expose the baby daily to the same at home !
Also agree that may cause anxiety if you do have trouble locating the heartbeat - at 16 / 17 weeks the womb is relatively large to the size of the baby and they can hide easily.
The best indicator that everything is OK is the baby's movements although if this is your first you will feel it in the next couple of weeks.

[Bonkerz]

I had 7 scan with my ds and nothing was wrong with him! The way i understand it is that the dangers of scanning to an unborn baby are not proven just like alot of things in the health area. After 2 mc in the last year i have found my doppler to be not only a great reassurance but almost a necessity. I dont see a midwife in my area till 16 weeks and although the epu have been great to me and have scanned me 3 times i know i could not cope with losing this baby and not knowing about it for what would have been 4 weeks. I am a neurotic pregnant lady but i have good reason to be. I dont think its fair that you can make me feel like i am endangering my baby, Surely to have a mother that is calm and relaxed is better for my baby and also for my DH, DS and DSD. Sorry but it annoys me that midwifes think i should sit back and let things happen, the care in my area is bad and this is the only way i can relax. Ok rant over and im sorry if i have said too much.

[goldenoldie]

Lexy - my midwife and my obestrician told me using the doppler was completely safe - even on a daily basis. But that's the problem with midwives - everyone you see will tell you a different story. However, obestricians tend to be a bit more consistent - so I'll keep using mine.

PS. I've never failed to find both heartbeats from 11 weeks on.

[Nemo1977]

hi all
i havent bought a doppler as i cant afford it to be honest and would also be too neurotic with one. However my lovely mw is and has been using doppler from 12wks and has told me i can go in every 2 wks for hb to be checked as I have had 3mcs in past. surely if mw is willing to do this every 2 wks or more often if i want it then it cant be causing any problems?

[AngelCakeUmm]

Goldenoldie - I also brought mine from dopplermike of ebay and its fantastic i highly recommend him if anyone is wanting one of these. You can pick up the heart beat and it also has an LCD screen so you can see the heart rate.

[basketcase]

I bought a doppler from ebay - brand new for about £70 I think (memory going). I was warned off by loads of people about pannicking if I couldn?t find the heartbeat, exposure to waves etc. and very nearly didn?t get one. However, it was the best buy of my pregnancy (DD2) and wish I had one with DD1. Very rarely did I not get a heartbeat within a minute - from early on. If I didn?t, ok I was a little nervous but would try again after a short while and invariably pick it up again. I used mine at least daily - if not twice. It was a lovely way to start the day - for DD1, Dh and I to all listen in and say good morning to the baby. Again, after stressful days or when feeling a bit low, it was great in the evenings to listen in and hear that strong regular little beat.
It has now been passed on to my sister who finds it such a comfort as she is pregnant after a m/c.

[kbaby]

I hired one from baby beats from 12 wks preg. It wasnt however until I visited my midwife and she listened to the heart beat that i discovered I had actually been listening to the artery in my groin for 2 weeks after that hiccup I found them really good to use and even video'd it so I can always watch and listen to her heartbeat in the futuer and reminise.

[goldenoldie]

kbaby - easy to do! But the LED makes it a bit easier as you know that if what you are hearing is not registering between 120 - 160 on the screen, it's not baby's h/b.

[LeahE]

I hired one from mybump because I was paranoid after a previous m/c. I oly used it once a week if that but it was great to know that I had it there to check if I was worried. There's a very looooong time between appointments in the early stages!

[MizZan]

Hi all - just wanted to let you know I got the doppler in the post this morning and tried it out, and found the heartbeat first thing! So exciting! hopefully I was not just listening to my groin artery LOL - but I used it to listen to my own heartbeat too just to make sure I wasn't getting confused, and it was much slower than the baby's, so I think I had it right.

Phew.

[dyzzidi]

After reading this I have ordered a doppler from Babybeats. I will use it sparingly but am concerned after a missed m/c. I believe the ultrasound risk is less than my worry/anxiety risk.

I will let you know how I get on it should be here tomorrow.

[dyzzidi]

Got my Doppler yesterday and found baby's heartbeat!! It did take me a good 10 minutes though which i put down to the large fibroid I have and the baby maybe hiding behind it.

It certainly put my mind at ease and I found Babybeats very quick with delivery and instructions great.

I think maybe people would panic if they can't find the heartbeat straight away I just stayed relaxed and eventually found it. it was more than twice as fast as mine so i think i was listening to the right one!

[MizZan]

hi Dyzzidi, it's a great feeling, isn't it? it has been a big relief for me, though I'm now starting to feel the baby move occasionally too, so probably will only keep using it till the post-amnio miscarriage risk has passed.