Midwife struggled to find clear heartbeat at 24 weeks

[BumblebeeG97]

Hi all,

I have just had my 24 week midwife appointment and the midwife struggled for a good 5 minutes to find the heartbeat which was very nerve wracking. We could easily hear the placenta swooshing but she said they normally listen for more of a clicking sound to indicate the heartbeat. She did end up noting down a heartbeat of 140 (she checked against my pulse which was much slower) but she never clarified if that was from the placenta swooshing or if she did find a clear heartbeat. I have felt a couple of kicks since the appointment which is reassuring but the appointment itself has made me a bit worried as I have wondered if baby's kicking has been a bit less frequent/strong over the past couple of days.

Anyone else ever had this and all turned out fine? My placenta is at the back/top for reference so wouldn't be blocking baby from the Doppler.

Did you mention reduced foetal movement to your MW.

If you're concerned go to Triage.

Go in for change of movement anyway - they should put you on the monitor.

I did have this at my 12 week and it obviously panicked me massively. The sonographers aren't exactly comforting either. All was fine with me but it will probably be worth going in for peace of mind. The fact that you can feel kicks means it's all probably fine, just in an awkward position I expect

It can be hard to find depending on the babys position, or also if you are on the larger side or the placenta is at the front.
But let her know about the reduced kicks and keep an eye on it.
Make sure you're hydrated as dehydration can reduce movements too.

I would call in for reduced movement and they’ll do all the checks it’s just not worth the stress and that’s what they are there for!

2 different issues here

1 is the movements. While you are still only 24 weeks and it's not uncommon for changes to movements at this stage, it's still worth calling the assessment unit for some advice. They normally say to monitor from 28 weeks but may get you in to check everything anyway even though you're only 24 weeks.

2 is the doppler. Totally normal and the exact reason why at home dopplers are not recommended. Even trained professionals doing this day in day out can struggle sometimes for many different reasons. My midwife had difficulty finding my little ones heart beat at the same gestation.
140 is right on where it should be.

I had this exact situation at my 24 week appt.
I called the maternity assessment unit afterwards just to say I
was a bit worried and they were so lovely, said come on in and they’d look on the monitor.

I'm sure everything is fine OP, the heartbeat can be hard to find on a doppler even by midwives BUT please still call triage/maternity assessment, even if they can help provide reassurance. Always call them if you're concerned about anything and never feel like a bother x

I think ifyou're still feeling movement, that's a good thing. But if you're concerned about reduced movement, going in is not a bad thing.

One thing I will say is that they often struggled with finding DD's heartbeat, more so the more pregnant I got - pretty much every appointment. And when I was in the hospital supposedly being induced (she wasn't budging - because, as you'll see below, she couldn't really), I spent a LOT of time on the monitoring machines as they regularly couldn't find the heartbeat properly. As it turned out, she'd got herself quite tangled in the cord which didn't impact her actual heartbeat (until she actually started trying to come out) but they think is probably why she was so difficult to hear. So I do think it's worth checking for your own peace of mind too.

I was always in for reduced movements for my boys, they were always glad I went in so don’t hesitate around that.
As for a MW not being able to find the heartbeat for 5 mins and then eventually doing so, I don’t know. While I was waiting for my C section (so 39 weeks) they couldn’t find DD’s heartbeat for 10 mins. She’d moved breach just that morning so they were looking in the wrong place (how I don’t know, as they searched all over!). Just pickles sometimes.
Good luck!

Seven years ago now but I remember a trainee midwife struggling for five minutes to find a heartbeat and in the end the more experienced midwife leaned over, said "I heard a heartbeat at least three times there" to me and found it very quickly. I would just go in for monitoring to put your mind at rest.

Thanks all for your advice and reassurance. She did ask me if I felt any pattern to the baby's movement but tbh it changes daily. Sometimes I have days where I feel a lot of kicking and sometimes baby has quieter days. She didn't seem concerned and said before 28 weeks they would just get me in to listen on the Doppler if I felt any obvious changes to baby's movement. As they had a listen on the Doppler today I don't think they would do anything further even if I did call back and reiterate the movement. I have just had a couple of jabs from baby as I am typing this so think perhaps the difficulty finding a clear heartbeat made me overthink recent movement. I'll monitor for the rest of today and if I'm still feeling worried tomorrow morning I'll give them a call.

Thanks again for all of your replies, really reassuring that it's normal for them to not always find a clear heartbeat!

The Doppler is quite stressful, in the end I refused and just went for a private scan every few weeks

The midwife sounds incompetent. She should have put your mind at rest.

When I was about 35 weeks pregnant (with huge baby who was visibly moving under the skin) I had an appointment with the consultant. She had five student doctors in the room and asked all of them to find the heartbeat. They all tried for a while and failed to find anything. I knew in one sense that everything was OK, because I could see the kicking under the skin, but it was still alarming. Eventually the consultant came over, tilted the angle very slightly with a flourish, and the heartbeat was clear as day. Not hearing it when the placenta is whooshing away (which surely it wouldn't be if the fetus didn't have a heartbeat) suggests lack of skill, not a problem with the pregnancy.

This happened me a few times around 20+ weeks - it was my second pregnancy and was a lot more relaxed so didn’t worry so much! It all turned out fine

it was a consultant (as I was consultant led that time )who was doing the Doppler and before she started it she warned that they can’t always easily find the heartbeat for another few weeks

i did used to lie awake thinking about it at night and googling 🙃🙃 anyway it was all fine

I wouldnt ‘wait’ with reduced movements

Waiting can be the difference between all is well and things going bad

I thought I'd give a final update as I always appreciate a rounded off thread when I read other entries on Mumsnet!

Baby kicked a lot last night and this morning which was really reassuring. I still called my local midwife unit this morning based on all of your advice and they were really lovely about the situation. They said everything sounded ok to them but best to come in and have a listen on the Doppler for my own peace of mind. The midwife found the heartbeat nice and clear straight away and we could even hear/feel baby kicking at the Doppler as she was measuring the heart rate. Baby has continued kicking away so I think had just turned into an awkward position the last few days.

She mentioned that at 24 weeks baby might not have a pattern yet so it can be normal for them to have quieter days. But even though we know it's normal that I should always call in on those days as they are happy to have a listen in to reassure me and make sure all is well.

Thanks again to everyone who took the time to give me some reassurance and advice :)