What happens at 16 week midwife appointment?

[French2020]

I’m 17 weeks and due to have my second midwife appointment on Monday. What is this for? More blood, urine tests? My app hasn’t been updated and I have had no other info. Thanks

Urine and blood pressure. Not exciting in slightest.

Lol thanks. Thought as much.

I had urine & bp as well. Got to listen to the heartbeat with Doppler but I know they don't do this everywhere. She gave me my next appointment with her, appointment for GTT as I'm high risk & told me to book my whooping cough vaccine for after 20 weeks.

Bloods and urine tests and BP. I also had whooping cough vaccine at this point. We listened to baby’s heartbeat for the first time too.

I had mine today. It said that I'd meet my named midwife, but it was a cover team... they took my blood pressure and did a urine sample.

They said they no longer listen to the heartbeat at 16 weeks as it's hard to find, but that as there was a student midwife, they'd give it a go if I wanted. They tried - couldn't find it, and couldn't refer me for a scan as they're not supposed to do it anymore.

I'm now booked in again for 24 weeks, when I think they do listen to the heartbeat.

Mine listened to the heartbeat and found it straight away, allowing me to take a recording for my husband! Thanks can’t imagine how stressed I would have been had they not found it.

@thebookworm1 That hasn't made me feel any calmer about it 😂

I'm trying to resist a private scan, but I am worried.

I would talk about your feelings as pregnancy progress, talk about movements and what to expect and talk about bonding with your baby, talking to your bump, baby brain development and getting your partner and any other children to join in talking and touching your bump. I might use the opportunity to chat about feeding and what your thoughts and feelings are. I would check you had got your screening results if you were on paper notes and letters and make sure you had your next scan appointment. If you were a negative blood group my area does fetal blood typing so I would offer you that test. I would talk about vaccines offered on pregnancy like the whooping cough and if you've not had the covid jab offer information about that. If it wasn't me that did your booking I would make sure you'd been sorted with your card for your free prescriptions and dental care and I would also make sure everything that should happen for your plan of care (depending on your risk factors eg consultant led etc) had happened and all referrals gone through.

The 16 week is sometimes thought of as one where not much happens because typically there isn't anything clinical as no need for heartbeat, blood pressure (unless specific factors) or urine but actually it is an important time to ensure plan of care in place and for giving information.

@TakeYourFinalPosition I’m so sorry! Let me tell you more to make you feel better.
At the 16 week apt they found the heartbeat straight away. At 20 weeks, I panicked after baby didn’t move for a day and went in. The midwife couldn’t find the heartbeat for what were the longest 5 minutes of my life and I truly thought I’d list the baby. In the end she found it for 2 seconds and had to call a second midwife in for opinion 😂
At 21 weeks I had my scan and all was fine. Baby kicking as we speak.

So please do not worry- my experience was the exception not the rule. And even several weeks on they sometimes can’t find it. I just formulated badly that I am grateful they found the heartbeat because I know from experience my nerves can’t hack the opposite scenario 😀

I had mine last week, very uneventful I was only there 5 minutes. Wee in pot, hand over, sit down, get notes out, check urine, take blood pressure and record in notes, ask how I am, any movements yet etc. that was it.

They don't take heartbeat anymore at 16 weeks in my area which I was a bit sad about.

My midwife warned me she had to say they might not find it but asked me to get my phone ready to record for my husband. She was really experienced and clearly confident in her ability to find heartbeats and probably unimpressed the nhs has changed her lifetime of habits 😂 but the one I had at 20 weeks made me nervous and was much younger. I guess the policy is not to listen now and I can see why as I was a right ness when they couldn’t find it at 20 weeks.

Hi!

Take a look at the following link. It gives you a breakdown of all of your NHS antenatal appointments and what you can expect from each one

www.nhs.uk/pregnancy/your-pregnancy-care/your-antenatal-appointments/

Urine, blood pressure and depending on trust/midwife possibly heartbeat

I had mine over the phone this week. Asked me how I was. Asked me if things were okay at home. And that was it 😒

I just had mine- albeit 3 weeks late as I had to change midwife as mine had been ignoring my calls for 2 months... new midwife just spoke to me about how I was doing and went over my last blood test results, told me if my iron level was okay, took my blood pressure, urine sample and then I got to hear my babies heartbeat!!!!💙

Ive just had my 16 week appointment.
They checked my urine and blood pressure. Asked about my general health where I got to discuss having HG and the amount of weight id lost. They also checked in on how I was feeljng with regards to mental health too.
They made me a physio referral as well.
They also used the doppler to listen to the heartbeat which they found straight away. That was really reassuring for me.
It was about 30mins in total and DH came with me.

I got blood, urine, blood pressure, and then Doppler on tummy to hear heartbeat

Update, went today. Listened to baby’s heartbeat which was found straightaway so that was good. But a bit of sugar was found in my urine so had a blood test to test for gestational diabetes. Midwife said she should have known this but I was like never asked if any direct relatives had it, only diabetes. Also she had no combined screening results. Just feel the experience is not great