Reassurance scan or not?

[HopeintheAir]

I'd be really grateful for some advice on whether or not to book a reassurance scan or not.

I'm currently 16 weeks pregnant and so far have had no worrying symptoms. However it's been quite a journey to get to this point- two early miscarriages last year and a high risk 12 week scan which meant I had to have a cvs.

I've got another 4 weeks until my next scan and I'm not sure I can last that long without some sort of reassurance that everything g is ok but equally, I think it might just placate me for a day and them I'll be back to feeling anxious all the time again.

Any words of wisdom or experience that you can share with me? Many thanks I'm advance!

Morning hope. I had a private sexing scan last week at 17+4 to break up the wait. It was incredible to see the baby again and how much he has grown in 5 weeks!

If you are happy to pay for an extra scan then I say go for it they are brilliant!

I had a scan at 16 weeks because I was desperate to find out the gender! I found that gender scans seemed to range from between £40-60 so perhaps you could treat yourself. It won't be an in depth scan but at least you'll know baby is well. There are sometimes offers on Groupon etc

Personally I only found scans reassuring for a day or so. You're in the funny bit between 12-20 where you think you'll feel more relaxed, but actually you don't because you can't feel any kicks yet and you're not necessarily looking very pregnant.

Tbh, the whole of pregnancy is a worrying time, so do what you need to do, but listen to your own body as well and don't google too much, everything is far more likely to be fine than not.

I had the gender scan at 16 weeks, to be honest it was just to see my baby again and make sure all was ok rather than finding out the sex. It really was reassuring for me as another 4 weeks seemed so long away. I would recommend it for piece of mind.

I had a private scan at 16 weeks and would do it again. I found the gap between 12 and 20 weeks too long.

Thanks everyone. Really appreciate all your views.

Beard - I think I'm like you and will probably only feel reassured for a short time.

Arghh, I wish I didn't feel like this! I breezed through my first pregnancy but now worry about everything.

When did you tell people you were pregnant? I've told family and a few close friends but have been avoiding sharing the news at work but not sure really what I am waiting for! I think last time I told people around 13 weeks.

Maybe a fetal Doppler would help you could listen anytime and you can get them from £20 Tesco
It helped me before I could feel baby move

If you're at all prone to anxious worrying, I would caution strongly AGAINST getting a fetal doppler. Also, they can provide false comfort because the mere existence of audible heartbeat is not alone a gold plated guarantee that all is well- only a trained HCP an know whether it is a good heartbeat for your stage of pregnancy.

As for the scan, if you can afford to do it then by all means go for it. I guess my concern is aligned to what the pp said- how long will it really bring you reassurance- a day, a week? Will you end up stressing between 18-20 weeks anyway until you have your anomaly scan, in which case just save your money and wait. And what about after that 20 week scan where you still have half of the pregnancy to get through? I appreciate that once you get beyond 20 weeks and you start to feel movement, that can help to ease a lot of anxiety, but it can also bring its own set of worries- is the baby moving enough, has it changed position, why is it not kicking as much as yesterday? If you are naturally prone to worrying, then I would maybe suggest that you work on your anxiety rather than excessive monitoring (which at this stage is unlikely to alter the course of anything which is going to happen one way or another).

Why don't you call your midwife and explain how you are feeling, go see them and she could do the doppler for you to ease your mind

Thank you all. I have a midwife appointment quite soon so think I will hold out for the Doppler then. Scan-wise, I'm going to wait a bit longer otherwise I think I will be there every week! I agree with the poster above who says I need to get to grips with my anxiety first and fore most - might try talking to my GP to see if there's anyone who might be able to help.

My midwife wouldn't do the Doppler until 25 weeks apparently due to people becoming unnecessarily worried when they couldn't find a heartbeat, I was so disappointed at my 16 week apt. Had nothing since 12 weeks and another three and a half to wait til my 20 week!

I had a private gender scan at 18 ish weeks and it was the best £40 I've spent. Not just finding out baby's sex but it's a totally different experience from an NHS scan. This was the time when I was most anxious during the pregnancy (although I haven't been anxious generally) and it really put my mind at rest.

In my last pregnancy I had a private 16 week scan and it was great. I found out the sex and the sonographer was also able to tell me that everything looked perfectly normal with the baby (whilst they don't look at specifics, they are obliged to tell you if they see any potential problems). Whilst I was still worried about something being picked up at my 20 week scan, it did put my mind at rest and give me comfort - I had a mmc in the pregnancy beforehand, so had an anxious pregnancy. In my opinion the 16 week scan is one of the better ones to have because you don't have the such a bad fear about whether there will be a heartbeat as you do at 12 weeks and the sonographer is not looking for anomalies as they do at 20 weeks.