Does anyone use a Doppler?

[Gillian1980]

Hi.
I was thinking about getting myself a Doppler as you can get them for under £20 on eBay and it seems like a nice thing.
Does anyone have one and have you enjoyed listening to your baby's heartbeat on it?
Thanks :)

Please please please don't get one!

Too many times I have heard or seen horror stories where parents have been using a Doppler and allowed it to reassure them all is ok with baby. In fact they were hearing mums heartbeat, the placenta or the heartbeat of a baby in distress that they were unable to recognise being untrained.

Many preventable stillbirths are due to a Doppler falsely reassuring parents. Remember a heartbeat does not mean everything is ok and that is all you will detect. S

orry rant over now. It drives me mad and I want to see them made illegal to be sold to the public. Imagine other medical equipment being sold so easily, why is a Doppler any different?

I would agree and say don't get one. A friend lent us theirs and we had no idea what we were doing and then I got panicky, it's just not worth it. You will get to know ur own body and midwives are always on call should you have any concerns. My midwife has also said I can record heartbeat when I see her which we have done a couple of times. Hope this helps

I've got one and use it a couple of times a week and think it's great my husband loves it as its a way for him to get involved as he can not make my midwife appointments

I agree and say don't get one, for the reasons that Lezprechaun states. Have a look at the Count the Kicks campaign, they explain why they don't recommend them:
www.countthekicks.org.uk/mums/your-babys-movements/why-shouldnt-i-use-a-home-doppler/

Thanks for the replies and the link to the article.

Just to clarify, I wouldn't be getting one as a means of reassurance at all. I wouldn't hesitate to seek medical advice if I had any concerns and listening on a Doppler is certainly no substitute!

It would merely be for novelties sake in my case, I quite like the thought of trying to have a listen.

I can appreciate though why it could be viewed negatively if people are using them to monitor baby's health or well being when not qualified to do so.

I've got one and it's great, there are plenty of online tips to help when using it. If I thought that something might be wrong I wouldn't be using the doppler to put my mind at rest.
The dcs like being able to listen too.

I had one. Initially it eased my anxiety and was great.

Then I read an article which I know not if was right or wrongly declaring risks from using them or over using such as hearing problems, speech delay, and some behavioural problems... And spent the rest of my pregnancy terrified I had harmed my baby.

Il never use one again, my child seems fine but the worry wasn't worth it.

You soon feel the baby moving and it's irrelevant anyhow.

I can understand the wanting to listen, but remember we really don't know how much dopplers, scans etc. affect a fetus and like a previous poster said an increase in certain health conditions has been linked to their use, although nothing solid as yet. NICE don't even recomened midwives use them anymore as their is no evidence for them and it tell us nothing really.