To ask if you'd be happy with this medical advice? (Pregnancy related)

[Nobhobs]

I have an anterior placenta, I didn't feel any flutters but from 24 weeks I start feeling baby and I had big kicks frequently all of a sudden. In the next five weeks I had two episodes of reduced movements, both times I went in for monitoring and as soon as I got their baby would kick me and I'd be ok.

I'm now 29 weeks and I haven't felt my baby in a week, well, 6 days. Each and every one of these days I've gone in for monitoring on the ward and the CTGs have been fine, shown a good heart rate with regular increases which they say would be movements. I've been told to keep going in daily until I can feel him again, which I'm going to do. They referred me for a scan earlier this week to check and the sonographer said she could see him kicking and the fluid and blood flow was great. I did ask her to check baby wasn't tangled in the cord as someone on here had that happen in a similar situation but she said that they don't check the cord as babies move so frequently it's invalid. She did point out the baby is in extended breech.

The midwives and my consultant aren't worried, they've advised he's moved into an awkward position or back behind the placenta. I just can't seem to find much advice online from people who's anterior placentas stopped being a problem and then started again in the third trimester. It took so long to feel the baby kick but after more than a month of such strong kicks, even visible from my stomach to go back to absolutely nothing just isn't sitting right with me. I'm so anxious I'm going to lose this baby and I don't know if I need to push for more to be done or if they are literally doing all they can.

If you're honestly not happy I would keep pushing but I'd say that it's possible baby has moved into a position that means it's harder to feel now.

I had an anterior placenta last times started feeling movement around 20 weeks and it was strong etc by 24 weeks nothing much and it stayed that way for my whole pregnancy. He went head down fairly early and my placenta was right across the front so he was basically kicking into it directly. I had lots of monitoring and scans which showed lots of movement. In one scan the sonographer was really surprised I couldn't feel the movements they were seeing on the screen.

I was in very regularly for monitoring to put my mind at rest and then at 38 weeks my consultant decided on induction because of reduced movements and also baby stop growing on one of the lines.

I think baby was born with cord wrapped round his neck

I do think you will have to keep going in.

I’m not medical so can’t say if there is any more to do but while baby is inside you I guess they can’t really do much more than confirm heartbeat and movements with CTG which they seem happy to do.

I won’t go into my story again (I did have a healthy baby) but sometimes things do go wrong but you can’t do anything from the outside apart from what you can.

They are literally doing all they can. They've done a scan and you're going in daily until movements improve.

Only other option would be to deliver now. Which isn't medically indicated at 29 weeks when all the cTGs and scans are showing everything is ok.

By all means ask about an earlier than usual induction/section once You get to term if you're still worried.

Fingers crossed the movements pick up, it must be really worrying for you. But a combination of an anterior placenta and extended breech could definitely account for it,

I had this with my first DD placenta was taking all the impact and I couldn’t feel anything apart from a brief window in the middle - I got sick of going to assessment for checks I did discover that a few skittles would sometimes produce and extra strong kick and I could feel it but prob not good to hype baby up on sugar - I also had a rubbish 3D scab as bang was hiding behind placenta only managed to get 1 pic of her peeking out from what looks like a bubble cloud - the lack of movement for me was end of 2nd trimester and went all the way to end and she was born healthy kicking and screaming - if you are worried keep going back.

Thank you all. I will keep going back daily, that's what the midwives have advised. I just keep getting told that I need to trust my gut and I'm so convinced somethings wrong but I guess that's just the anxiety of not feeling him for so long. Wish I was further along it just feels like there's so much time left for something to go wrong.

I had an anterior placenta with my ‘rainbow’ baby and it was very worrying at an already stressful and anxious time, plus she was breech. If you’re going in daily there’s not much else they can do for now, you should get more movement as baby grows - albeit probably not many sharp kicks but more rolling and shifting.
Try to get time during the day separate from your CTG appt to lie down and have a sugary drink or skittles, then at night time have icy water handy.
I do know how worrying and exhausting it is though

Thanks Mumberjack I'm just finding it so worrying due to how big the kicks I was getting before were. Just last week you could see feet/elbows poking out and see my stomach shake when he kicked so to go from that to nothing is terrifying. Just desperate to get to the end now. X

I, too, think all you can do is keep going in.

As far as the breech position - not likely an issue at this time. Most babies do not assume a permanent cephalic (head down) position until about 36 weeks.

I have the same and the movements come and go depending on which way he turns. Even on a day to day basis, I could have 2 or 3 days with loads of kicks, then 2 or 3 days with none.
They did check his cord but I think only because I'm further along and he was still breech, they wanted to make sure that it was possible for him to turn. He finally turned this week.
If you're worried just keep going back in, that's what we're told to do and what we're supposed to do no matter how many times we end up going in

Can you pay to be seen by a private consultant? I had issues which the NHS did not take seriously and was seen at MUMS in Solihull. The scan the consultant did there was absolutely amazing. It lasted an hour and he checked for absolutely everything, finding an issue which the NHS had missed. It is worth it if you can afford it. He took my worries very seriously and it was well worth the money.

It's such a scary time. Keep going in, that's very important so that you can make sure everything is ok. It doesn't matter if you go every day from now until the baby is born, it only matters that you keep checking the baby is ok.

I had movements much more than you and despite that they disappeared a couple of times when quite late (32 weeks I think was the last one) when DS turned around to face the back and used the placenta as a pillow. He went breech and transverse a few times as I had a lot of water, so I spent a fair amount of time lying backwards on the weights bench (only do it with your DH there to lift you back up!) to move him (google moving a breech baby). It would get him shifted into a new position, so even though you aren't trying to resolve a breech issue it could be worth a try to get the baby moved into a position where you can feel it. Sweet snacks and calmly lying down with your hands pressed into your stomach are great ways to feel the baby.

The issue was my baby was different but I can massively excess fluid which no one could find a reason for. The private scan found a small hole the size of a pinprick in the baby’s disgestive tract which was causing it. This was discovered by watching the baby swallow fluid and tracking it on the scan so a careful 30 minutes of watching it. There would just not be time for this generally in an NHS scan. It meant that my baby could be taken to special care when he was born with them knowing what the issue was rather than fannying around at a later date when it could be more critical. I’m sure your baby is fine but it might be worth getting that extra reassurance.

I also had an anterior placenta. I barely felt him move throughout my whole pregnancy. I went to be monitored twice, both times they assured me he was fine. There was, as with you, a few periods of feeling huge kicks. The kicks were always there, it was just his position and my anterior placenta preventing me from feeling them. He's 2½ now and never stops moving.

Sounds like the hospital is doing everything possible for you. There isn't anything to do but monitor, and deliver early if they think there's an issue. It doesn't sound as if they have any concerns though, so perhaps your baby is making plenty of movements but you just don't feel them as often as you would with a non-anterior placenta.

I had an anterior placenta and this happened a few times, laying on my left side, eating a few sweets or drinking ice cold water or orange juice would be enough to get him shifting and I'd feel him again, as he got bigger I had no trouble feeling him and he's a very very wriggly baby now.

Keep going in and request regular growth scans to make sure cord blood flow is good and that he is growing well.

There isn’t much else they can do if CTG and scans are normal.

I do realise how anxious it can make you, I had an anterior placenta with DD and she was induced at 38 weeks due to reduced movements. I’m 38 weeks with DC2 and have been in 5 times and have a posterior placenta but do realise it’s likely a lot down to my anxiety.

It’s worth noting that your placenta does move during pregnancy. So it might have been lower earlier on in the pregnancy and now has moved up to cushion more kicks.

I'm 37+3 now and was having exactly the same issues as you, back to back and extended breech baby, no movements at all after being battered for weeks !, I went in lots of times with reduced movements that the monitor shows good heart rates etc and also movements but I still couldn't feel them. I had a scan earlier this week and baby has moved head down and behind the placenta as mine is also anterior so they advised baby has just moved behind again which is why no movements felt. She's starting to move a lot more again now and I'm feeling confident with her but the midwives just said come up everyday and even twice a day before if I felt something was wrong. It's tough because you just don't know whats happening inside

Had the same with an anterior placenta. Got better at 34+ weeks when she got so big her bum was more or less lodged under my ribs... still couldn’t feel kicks but definitely her bum bobbing up and down

I've got an anterior placenta. I definitely had a period when baby was kicking more intensely which has now reduced to less intense rolling motions. Presumably when baby was smaller he or she had more space to get a good kick in and now it doesn't. I think that I would be happy with what they're doing - checking daily and don't see what more they could do.

If you could see the movement/kicks on the screen but couldn't feel them then try not to worry as this is proof he is moving and kicking you but just not in a place you can feel it especially if he is breech! if they are monitoring you daily there is not much else they can do anyway x

Thank you all so much for the reassurance. It's good to hear of people who had similar situations, that's what I was struggling to find online as it was more people complaining they still hadn't felt kicks with an anterior placenta, not people who had and had then had them stop for so long. I will keep going in daily (despite feeling like a crazy person whenever I walk in and pretty much every midwife knows me by name) and hoping for the best. Just can't wait to have him here safely.

Is baby still growing at their normal rate? Have they checked fluid also?
Also have they checked you for infection like strep b?
With my ds his growth had slowed. I also was told I had step b.. But still just told me to keep coming back of I wasn't feeling movements. I paid privately due to anxiety from previous miscarriages. Eventually about 4 weeks after my first episode of reduced movements she said the fluid was on the low side of normal and the decision was made to induce at exactly 37 weeks.. Ds was born with cord round his neck... He did spend a week in nicu due to low birth weight, pneumathorax and he needed a blood transfusion was also on antibiotics from birth as they suspected infection but they never really got a cause of any of it.. All I can say is he is now a healthy happy 14 month old and looking at him now you would never know he had any issues..
Just keep going in for the monitoring every day..
Hope it is just placenta and you can feel him move again soon

I had the same issue with DS (anterior and breeches. He was an active little so and so for weeks and then I suddenly went down to feeling him maybe one to twice a day.
Every time I went in for monitoring, and every time he was fine - they picked up movements as well as a strong heartbeat on the CTG, I just couldn’t feel him at all.
When I got to 34 weeks they ended up admitting me for monitoring, so we were on the CTG up to 4 times a day. I was in for almost 2 weeks and eventually the consultant decided enough was enough and I brought forward my C-section to 37 weeks. Had to have the steroids to make sure the baby was ok, but he felt the stress of not feeling him at that point was considerable (first baby after 4 miscarriages and 6 rounds of IVF) and it would be best for everyone if DS made his appearance a little earlier than planned. In the end they seemed to think that DS has just got himself in a funny position, and was a big baby too which didn’t help.
I did get to go home for a bit Inbetween the admission and birth, but still has to go in everyday for monitoring, and was warned each time to have my bag with me as they would have done an emergency section at the slightest sign of anything being wrong.
Hope all goes well for you - I would say try and relax but I know that’s impossible.

I had this with my second. She had an anterior placenta and I barely felt her at all the whole pregnancy. I was devastated as it was my last baby and I loved feeling every movement with my first!

Go in as suggested every day. Make a fuss if that's what you need to feel better. It's horrible the anxiety!

They’re doing everything by the book tbh, there’s not much else they can do and I’m unsure what you want. You could always pay for a private scan and ask the sonographer to check cord if you’re super concerned but if consultants, midwives and sonographers you have already seen aren’t concerned then chances are, all is fine.

Just keep going in. Eventually your baby will be too big to hide.

I was very similar to you OP.
It was awful, and I went in every single time. By the time I was about 32 weeks I had 3 weekly appointments for monitoring and regular scans, but I still went up on the days in between when I didn't feel her.
I have absolutely no regrets as I'm currently sitting feeding my beautiful baby x