Doppler advice please?

[PerpetualStudent]

Im 9+3 weeks pregnant and thinking about getting a doppler - a featal heartrate monitor, as Im feeling V anxious about pregnancy, partly due to a previous MC

What has been people's experience with these? Are they worth it? From when did they start picking up a heartrate?

I have a retroverted uterus (fun fact learnt from an early scan!) would this make it harder to hear the heartbeat?

Basically, Im torn between getting one for reassurance, & thinking if it's too early to hear anything or they are unreliable I'll end up feeling more anxious than when I started!

Thanks in advance for any thoughts/advice...

For me I wouldn't as I feel it would make me more anxious and I would constantly be checking but if u feel it would reassure you then get one they couldn't hear my babies heartbeat till 18 weeks I have a tilted uterus so not sure if makes a difference

Do NOT buy one. The NHS and Count the Kicks both strongly advise against them. Even if you do actually pick up babies heartbeat and not placental blood flow, you are not trained to interpret them, so are highly unlikely to realise if there is a problem. The false reassurance they offer could result in you not seeking help when needed and sadly people have lost their babies because of the false reassurance they were given by them.

www.countthekicks.org.uk/mums/your-babys-movements/why-shouldnt-i-use-a-home-doppler/

Count the kicks are highly respected.

Don't buy one!

Movements are a much better indication, you will get to know your baby and their pattern of movements.

You might well be able to find the heartbeat. Or you might be listening to your own. Or to the swoosh of the placental blood flow. Or you might listen to it but not realise that it is too fast or too slow. You don't have the knowledge to assess your baby's wellbeing based on heartbeat. But because you are carrying your baby you will develop the knowledge to assess movements so for you, that is what counts. And if movements give you any cause for concern then a midwife can use the heartbeat to assess things.

Just to second the views of the posters above - Don't buy one.
It is actively unsafe to rely on a doppler. You have to wait until you can feel movements and then monitor those. If you notice a change in the pattern of movement then you need to go and be checked properly by a professional. Even if you are picking up the correct heartbeat - which is a big if - all a doppler tells you is that your baby has a heartbeat at the time when you are listening to it. If your placenta was failing or there was another problem causing reduced movement then the presence of a heart beat (again assuming it was the right one) might reassure you when in fact you have a serious problem. Its really hard waiting in the early weeks before you can feel movements but unfortunately that's just the way it is - a doppler is definitely not the solution.
You would be much better to spend some money on an additional private scan to reassure you, say between your 12 and 20 week NHS scans.

I have the sonoline doppler I am nearly 12 weeks and I suffered a previous mmc so my anxiety was worse than usual.

I KNOW there are lots of reasons to not get a doppler but I did a lot of online research and watched videos to differentiate the sounds to make sure I was picking up the correct heart beat.
I too have a tilted uterus and I picked up a very strong heartbeat yesterday, but I have used it twice before and found nothing. I wouldn't solely rely on the doppler though. I have had 4 scans already 3 private and 1 nhs because I am so bloody paranoid, so I am taking the doppler with a pinch of salt as I knew I was going to get a scan very soon and a professional would be able to give me better advice.
There MUST be a reason why so many people advise against getting one, but for me personally I loved hearing the heartbeat last night.