When to go to hospital regarding movement?

[PerrieWonkle]

I had my 20 week scan two weeks ago and hadn't felt any movement at this point, they told me to try not to worry but to come in at 22 weeks if I still haven't felt anything. I'm 22 weeks today and haven't felt anything, not even anything I think could be baby. I've been a nervous wreck all week and I'm convinced they won't find a heartbeat. What time can I go into the hospital? Ive been awake since 6 desperate to go in and hopefully get some peace of mind. I don't want to look insane turning up this early but I really can't relax.

You won't look insane, go now.

Go now I promise you won't look insane x

Yeah definitely just go now x

Yes, absolutely go now.

I called them, they wouldn't let me come into the ward, said it was unnecessary this early on but they'll try and organise a community midwife to come see me for "peace of mind"

I'm following the advice my consultant gave me, my consultant has literally written in my notes to go in at 22 weeks to the ward and get checked. So annoying how they don't take you seriously until you're pretty much at the end of the pregnancy, atleast in my hospital. My baby is important too.

It's not so much that they don't take you seriously as a) it's not that uncommon not to have felt anything yet or only to feel baby very irregularly at this stage anyway b) there's absolutely nothing they could do. The only thing you can do for a baby that is distressed in utero is deliver. So reassurance is all there is and that's presumably all the consultant told you to come in for.

@CountessVonBoobs If the consultant says I need to go in, they shouldn't be able to stop me. There is something they can do, check the heartbeat, like the consultant has written in my notes they need to do at 22 weeks.

Well, and checking the heartbeat is reasurance. They've made a triage call that they can't really afford the resources to do that at the moment. Which isn't unreasonable. It can be done in the community with a Doppler.

Sadly at 22 weeks it’s really common not to feel any movement. They don’t usually have you in for monitoring before 28 weeks but will check the heartbeat. Your midwife will also be able to check the heartbeat for you so could you call her instead?

If not call back and say it’s in your notes from the consultant and see what they say. I think tho the community midwife will be able to just as much as the ward. All they’ll do is use the Doppler to check at this stage

Can you call your midwife? They will be able to check for heartbeat.

I don’t recall feeling movements in my first pregnancy until 23-24 weeks. I don’t think it’s uncommon, and as PP said there is nothing they could do if there was something wrong. It’s also not like you’ve stopped feeling movements. Your baby was fine at 20 weeks and will be fine now!

If reassurance is what you need, why not book a private scan?

Because why should I pay for a private scan? I'm not the one who asked to go in and get checked, I wasn't worried at my 20 week scan when I said I'd not felt anything yet as I thought that was the norm. I only started to worry a week after whilst waiting to get to this point because the consultant had said it will need to be checked. I didn't ask for reassurance but now I've spent two weeks waiting for today and getting a bit anxious about it I don't believe I should be fobbed off or left out of pocket.

I'm aware everything will probably fine but my mum has recurrent late miscarriage and the consultant wouldn't have recommended I go in for no reason.

If a community midwife comes out then fine, but I don't believe they should be able to go against my consultants advice! Again, I didn't ask for this I was told I had to have it.

Did you explain all this to them?

Call your own midwife too.

They're not going against your consultant's wishes, but as the people on the ground doing the triage they get to prioritise. Consultants aren't gods and it's perfectly sensible for midwives to triage a reassurance visit to hospital to be done in the community instead.

If you want reassurance on your terms a private scan is the way to go. Otherwise you'll have to wait until the NHS has the time to get to you.

But if it specifically says in the ops notes from the consultant that she should be seen in the ward at 22 weeks I can understand her frustration and feelings that they are ignoring her...

I think the problem here is the consultant giving the wrong advice where to get checked at 22 weeks. If he had said contact your midwife then you would have done that. Like PP have said, there wouldn't be much they could do at 22 weeks. It's not worth the extra stress fighting this. Just contact your midwife and see if you can get checked with a Doppler.

Appreciate the responses but it takes 5 minutes just to use a Doppler and check the heartbeat. That's all the consultant said they'd need to do! If it says in my notes that it needs to be done then in my mind it needs to be done, imagine how I'd feel just leaving it and then anything went wrong and I've gone against what it said in my notes. Unlikely but definitely not a risk I'm willing to take. No matter how early (despite being more than halfway through this pregnancy) this is my child and I'm only following the medical advice I was given!

I am trying to get hold of my midwife.

Yes pp is right. The consultant was wrong to mention the ward when it is clear they will not be able to do any more than the community hospital can do

Why the need for being in hospital though? That's exactly what the community midwife will do, check heartbeat with doppler and it will take extra pressure off of the ward.
As far as I'm aware, before 24 weeks any problems and you see your midwife, after 24 weeks and you can call triage. I assume it's because of viability being at 24 weeks and before that there's unfortunately nothing they can do.

I had a high risk pregnancy due to pre-eclampsia in the family.
The only time I went into the day unit per 24 weeks was to be checked was when I had some bleeding. I had reduced movement on top, but a pps have said, your midwife should be checking this for you pre 24 weeks. I'm sure everything is fine OP, I didn't feel real movement until 23 weeks.
Give your midwife a call, if you can't get hold of her directly then call the community midwife number and they will send another midwife out to you.

Another here who didn't feel movement until around 22 weeks- if the placenta is anterior it is harder to feel movements.
I'm sure the community midwife would be happy to listen to babies heartbeat though.

Yes you are right it does not take long to check a heart rate with a doppler, but before you come in someone will need to go and fund your hospital notes, you will need to be admitted as an attender in the system, then be seen by a midwife, it may be that the ward is busy and each midwife is currently undertaking 1 - 1 labour care (the same care you will want and should receive when you give birth), so either you may have a long wait. Then once you have gone home one of the staff will have to clean the assessment room used and strip and remake the bed.
You community midwife is perfectly capable of doing this, your consultant should not have said the ward, and at 22w with the best will in the world there is not much they can do either way other than reassure you, this does not mean you or your baby are not important it is just fact.
Good luck, I hope all is well when you see your community midwife and you have a lively baby in a few months time.

Trust your instinct and get checked out. TBH I didn't feel any movement till 25 weeks, but everyone's different.

Hi OP, sorry to hear your going through this. I’ve personally never heard of such advice being given by a Consultant. However I’m 19 weeks and saw my mw on Tuesday who said that if I experience reduced movements I am to go straight to hospital and get checked out (also found that strange!) I am on baby4 though and a real wriggler - I’m not sure what they can do for either of us other than reassurance?!?!
Did you see that baby moving on your previous scans? Do you have an anterior placenta? That would be a reason to not feel the movements (if you have, it should say in your notes if not already been told)
I think possibly the reason my mw gave me this advice was because she is only part time and there is no one working now until Saturday (basically locally we only have a mw Tuesdays and Saturdays it seems so going to the hospital is the only thing available - and we can only get hold of the mw in emergency’s on a Saturday - aka gone into labour)
My hospital is a minimum of an hour away off peak - and that doesn’t include getting stuck behind tractors and cyclists! I really don’t fancy going there unless I absolutely have to, and from what I can tell they are fairly dismissive so would rather wait and get checked by my mw anyway tbh!
I think if this is your first pregnancy it is normal to have not felt your baby yet, some do, some don’t, everyone is different! However that doesn’t help with your current situation. I would contact your mw and explain what your notes say, if you don’t get any joy perhaps Try the hospital again? Or do you have contact details for the consultant?
In the mean time try to take it easy, relax and do something that will take your mind off it (easier said than done I know) xxx

That's very frustrating and I can see why you're worried but it's common to not feel much at the point. I didn't really feel much till 23 weeks with my first and maybe 22 weeks with second.

Hope the midwife can see you and you can hear the heartbeat. It's such a worrying time, we all felt that way so don't feel bad