How many early reassurance scans did you have ?

[Tblock]

Hey guys,

Me and partner had our early reassurance scan a few weeks back when she was roughly 8.2 weeks pregnant. Got the heartbeat and saw the movement which was fantastic. We are getting married abroad in a few weeks, so won’t be able to have the NHS free one until after, in which she will be roughly 13.5 weeks by then. We just booked in to get another early reassurance scan just before we go away, which she will be roughly 10.5 weeks by then. I hope we are not going to nuts with these early reassurance scans haha will be the last private one until the NHS ones. Did anyone else book a couple ?

@jazzibelle , it’s seriously not an anxiety thing whatsoever. My partner is extremely calm, as am I. We are just literally finding comfort by booking 2 early scans before our 12 week NHS one. It’s a mixture of reassurance and excitement I think. We both feel by booking another scan just before we go away, gives us that extra comfort of it progressing well. It’s certainly no obsession, far from it. I think some people find it more worrying. Me and my partner find it more exciting. £45 is money well spent in my eyes for that comfort of knowing it’s progressing well, just my opinion

@FourPlasticRings & @hellymum21 that's good to hear thanks!

Just do whatever you want, OP.
I had 1 in a previous pregnancy that picked up MMC. The clinic were great and I was referred to NHS. Even when you have an NHS scan that picks up a MMC, you have to wait 2 weeks and have another scan to make sure there's been no growth. For me, medical management didn't work for another 2 weeks. That was 4 weeks of carrying a failed pregnancy so after finding out at 7 I didn't miscarry til 11 which was so hard. To get to 12 and have to wait until 16 would have been so much harder. Also when you're TTC (especially when you're getting older like me!) every month and all time is precious so I felt much better finding out earlier and being able to move on quicker. I know that's a negative way to look at it but that's how I feel.
I've had another one this time and was tempted for 1 more before the 12 week scan but I haven't booked it.

@Tblock I didn't mean to imply you were obsessing, apologies if that was your takeaway.

Pregnancy is an anxious time, I'm certainly feeling anxiety over anything else right now. But if private scans make you, or me, or anyone else happy then I say go for it.

@Parkandride thanks for sharing the miscarriage odds reassurer! I've been trying to find something that gives the odds not just based on general statistics but also age as well. This, along with DB digital weeks progressing is definitely helping me feel less anxious.

@Tblock completely agree with you. Book the scans, go for as many as you like because why the hell not.

I'm on my 7th pregnancy now. I lost all the rest. I have a scan Thursday and it really helps me manage my expectations. This time I know there should be a heartbeat on Thursday. If I had to wait it would be so uncomfortable.

My first pregnancy I didn't have any reassurance scans and ended up seriously ill in the hospital. If they had caught it sooner I would of been in the hospital in safe hands before I had misscarried. So even if there is a bad outcome, there is ALWAYS good that comes out of reassurance scans in my opinion.

Congratulations your little bundle and wedding and have a lovely holiday xx

I'm sure I've read this before. Something added about wanting the extra check before announcing at the wedding.

Is your wedding abroad still going ahead?

I had 2 scans in the first trimester with both mine. These were NHS scans though as I was bleeding.

Personally I think private scans are a waste of money. If you need a scan you can have one on the NHS.

@Twizbe, NHS they don’t scan you until about 12 weeks. We already enquired about getting us in earlier before the wedding, but they said it’s to early, hence the reasoning for the early reassurance scans. I personally don’t think it’s a waste of money. £45 is hardly earth shattering money to get that reassurance slightly earlier and have that comfort if need, again just my opinion. Yes, wedding still going ahead touch wood. Thanks for asking.

[quote Tblock]@Twizbe, NHS they don’t scan you until about 12 weeks. We already enquired about getting us in earlier before the wedding, but they said it’s to early, hence the reasoning for the early reassurance scans. I personally don’t think it’s a waste of money. £45 is hardly earth shattering money to get that reassurance slightly earlier and have that comfort if need, again just my opinion. Yes, wedding still going ahead touch wood. Thanks for asking.[/quote]
They do if you NEED the scan. Like I said I was bleeding so had a reason to have a scan.

£90 is a lot of money for some people ... but if you want to that's fine, it's your money.

Personally I don't trust those private scan places. I've read some real horror stories about them

Of course that’s different if you had issues. My partner is not bleeding thankfully Or hasn’t got any signs as of yet. Like I said, we had our 8.2 week scan and saw the heartbeat, was a great feeling. We are just getting another scan before we go abroad and that will be our last private one. It’s for peace of mind and for comfort that it’s progressing well, so £45 to me is nothing for that reassurance and I’m paying so all good hahaha :)

£45 is money well spent in my eyes for that comfort of knowing it’s progressing well, just my opinion

What if it isn’t progressing well? Or the private scan picks up something that needs further investigation?

One downside to a high level of monitoring is you’re more likely to pick up incidentals, which are usually nothing, but once they are seen there’s an obligation to investigate. Like why you don’t get full body scans, the vast majority of people would have “something” that warrants investigation, 99% of which is just normal for them.

Just on the NHS scan the combined test and nuchal measurement at the back of the neck can't be done/isn't accurate after 13+6 therefore if the baby is measuring bigger than your current dates which happens a lot you may find you are ineligible for the test

@Twizbe

It really depends on where you get them done??? I get mine done at a private maternity clinic and the sonographer and nurses actually also work at the hospital where I'll give birth so actually yes they are qualified to identify a problem. We receive a report and the system and scans are accessible by my hospital

@bluebluezoo why have such a negative mindset ? You might as well say what if the 12 week scan picks up something wrong, or what if the 20 week scan picks up something. There’s no guarantee with anything is there ? Hopefully with the heartbeat we saw at 8.2 weeks, the likelihood of something going wrong is slim, but obviously you deal with it if it comes to it, which hopefully it won’t. I don’t see how having that mindset helps ? If that’s the mindset of certain people then probably early reassurance scans and not for you and that’s fine. I’m a positive person and have a mindset of things are going to be good. If things do end up being complicated, you deal with it.

In my last pregnancy, I had a minimum of one per fortnight from around six weeks. On occasions as my pregnancy progressed, and my anxiety spiralled, I sometimes had five or six a week. All were on the NHS though.

Just with the NHS - it's impossible to get reassurance scans at the moment - I've lost several previous pregnancies and am a patient at a recurrent miscarriage clinic and was told they are not being done unless you have bleeding. I'm having twins. One has been much smaller than the other the whole pregnancy (I'm 19 weeks). Because I previously found out that a baby had no heartbeat at the 12 week scan and with partners not being allowed at scans I've had additional private scans to check on them and also to allow DH to be there

You do what you need to to. It's no ones business how many you need to feel less anxious or stressed especially with midwife contact largely being over the phone as well due to covid it feels like there is very little face to face contact happening to be able to discuss concerns

@ivfbeenbusy, sorry already answered a previous poster. My original post was in error. She will be roughly 12.4 weeks by time we get time, so we will be within the time line

Time we get home from abroad *

[quote jazzibelle]@Parkandride thanks for sharing the miscarriage odds reassurer! I've been trying to find something that gives the odds not just based on general statistics but also age as well. This, along with DB digital weeks progressing is definitely helping me feel less anxious.[/quote]
No problem! I'll have got it from someone on here originally and just think it's a handy tool

@olderthanyouthink @FourPlasticRings @hellymum21 thanks. It's was awful. It was with ultrasound direct. I should have done a review on trust pilot really but I was a bit raw in the aftermath. I might do one because I don't think enough women do speak up when they miscarrying and are treated poorly.
Op I'm not sure why you even posted. You seem very dismissive of anybody's experiences which doesn't chime with what you want. The statistics about miscarriage after seeing a hb are never going to be accurate because so many women don't have a scan before 12 weeks. We saw a perfectly healthy heartbeat at 8 weeks which them stopped at 10-11 weeks.

I am 20 weeks pregnant today
I don't agree that it's impossible to get reassurance scans on the NHS at the moment, I had 3 before my 12 week scan - I couldn't fault the care I received at all! Then my 20 week scan yesterday
I've had 2 private scans as well, because we can afford it & my partner really wanted to be involed as he wasn't allowed to any NHS scans.
People who say it's "feeding anxiety" can be all high & mighty about it, but I have felt very reassured by the scans - that's why they're called reassurance scans.
No point in waiting for the next routine NHS scan if you have a genuine concern, or not paying for the private scans if you want them/can afford them.
You do you.

Just one to rule out ectopic pregnancy because I had bad pains.

First pregnancy, NHS ones and then one at 26 weeks with my DM to show her the baby.

This pregnancy. One at 8 weeks to check pregnancy was in the right place. I have PCOS, was told a high likelihood of eptopic and wasn't willing to wait and potentially lose a tube to my only intermittently working ovary. NHS one at 13.6.

I'll book another private one at some point, maybe about 18 weeks, DH won't be attending the NHS ones and he'd quite like to see the baby. So not "reassurance" as such.

I am so sorry for the posters who have experienced loss and then the anxiety about further pregnancies.

@Cookies47 exactly our reasoning. We can afford it and it just keeps us reassured the pregnancy progressing well, hence the term reassurance scan. It’s helped us both and can’t wait for our other one just before we go away

So I was in a similar position - we were getting married when I would be just 12 weeks pregnant. After two previous losses I was in completely two minds whether to book a scan a couple of days before we went away or not. We had already had a good scan at 6+5 and the pros and cons were balanced.

In the end I went for it because my anxiety was through the roof with not knowing if all was still ok or not. I was fully prepared to accept bad news and booked the scan with enough time to allow me to go to hospital if necessary before we went away. My main driver was with my previous loss I had a sudden huge and serious blood loss which resulted in blood transfusions and me being very poorly indeed. If something was wrong - I wanted an opportunity to know incase my body reacted badly whilst we were away.

As it was, everything was fine and the relief it provided meant I was able to enjoy our wedding day rather than being consumed by anxiety (didn’t stop me being a wreck before my 12 week scan still though).

Obviously though my circumstances were to do with anxiety - if you’re not anxious already I’m not sure what an additional scan might add. Totally personal choice though!