I am starting to get a bit cross now, what on earth is going on? What should I ask them to do?

[NatalieJaneIsPregnantAgain]

Is there anything they can do?

Since Monday baby has been very quiet during the day, went in for monitoring Monday night, the HB was very fast, then slowed, and then was very fast again, I was on the monitor for an age, the HB eventually slowed down for a while and they let me home with a kick chart (10 movements in 10 hours or ring them).

On Tuesday the baby had done all 10 movements by 4.30am, but was then v. quiet again all day, but because he'd done the 10 movements it was OK.

Yesterday no movements again all day, they asked me to go in for more monitoring last night, everything was fine, let home again, told to contiue kick chart, and if it happens again I'll be put under the consultant to find out what's going on.

Today I've had one movement, so when I ring them I am expecting they'll want me back in, but I can't keep doing this, spending all evening/night in hospital, while I miss my boys going to bed, it's costing me a fortune in taxi's (hospital is in the next town), and I just feel like I am wasting everyone's time, and taking up a much needed bed.

What do I need to ask them to do to double check once and for all that everything is OK, and so can hopefully stop all the monitoring for what is seemingly a lazy baby? OTOH, if there is something wrong, why do they just keep sending me home? And if they do as they say tonight and give me a consultants appt. what will he do?

hpe soemone with help will come along soon for you

What do you want them to do to 'double check once and for all?' There is no check they can perform to put your mind at rest. Is there something else going on in your preg that is making you anxious? is it your first pregnancy? Why are you up at 4.30am counting movements? Most babies do have periods where they are more or less active during the day. You don't say how many weeks you are, but babies do vary in their movements during pregnancy. I don't know what the consultant will do, nothing I suspect but you need to ask your hospital what there policy is.

oh love how worrying for you.
how many weeks are you? i guess if you are v near your due date they could induce if they are concerned

I am asking if there is a 'double check' they can do to be sure there is nothing making him not move in the day, so that we can safely say that when he hasn't moved for 10 hours I don't need to go into hospital.

I have had some other things going on during the pregnancy, but I am not worried about them at the moment.

Third baby.

Up at 4.30am because I have an irritable uterus, which gives me painful contractions all night, so I was awake because of them. I hadn't woke waiting for movements.

I am nearly 33 weeks.

Think that's all the answers to your questions!

Sorry last post was to Reikizen.

It's too early to be talking induction Bel.

yes it is youre right. could the placenta have moved in front of the baby and is cushioning his movements? [stupid emoticon]

I don't think so, he is moving at night, and I can feel him.

I'm not expecting any solid answers from this thread really, just some advice as to what I can ask them to do to try and stop all the in and out of hospital business, or if it is safe to do that.

my understanding is that it is not just about how many kicks you can count but whether the pattern of movement has changed or is causing you concern. I had a lot of worries about movement during my recent pregnancy - baby used to go quiet for days on end but all was fine. I didn't really have a pattern as such because he would be active some days and not at all on other days - often for three days in a row but the hospital were always telling me to come in if I was worried. The heartbeat does speed up and slow down - it slows down if the baby is asleep or quiet and speeds up a lot when it moves around.

Are you just feeling anxious (totally understandable - I was paranoid about it) or do you think there is something wrong? It doesn't sound as if the medical staff had serious concerns - if they were worried about your baby's heart rate they wouldn't send you home. There's no harm in going in one more time if you are worried as then they will put you under the consultant and you will find out if there is a problem.

my placenta is over the front of my bump and baby movements are very dulled compared to my last preg (I am 25 weeks). I have times in the day when he/she is more active (lunchtime, bedtime (10pm) and morning time (6am))...I haven't counted movements at all, would be hard pushed to tell you when the last one was actually and DH has felt baby move once so far.

But regailing you with OUR experiences isn't really going to make you relax as every pregnancy is unique. Get yourself to consultant and insist on another scan, make sure he/she is moving around quite happily and that perhaps you can't feel every movemnet you can see on screen - this may help you relax.....

Sometimes if baby is pointing inwards (arms and legs pointing towards your back) then you feel the movements less.

Sorry, didn't mean to sound nasty, I apologise if I did! I was simply meaning was this the only worry you have or are other thing manifesting themselves in concern for the baby (IYSWIM). There are some serious reasons for reduced fetal movements, but as far as I know no conclusive tests can be carried out. May there be a link to the irritable uterus, and subsequent contractions? Is there a chance you don't feel movement while the contractions are going on? If you really felt worried (and you are the expert on your pregnancy remember) you could maybe argue the case for a scan? Might that help do you think?

I'm not too anxious TBH, I have a doppler so can check for the HB whenever I want, I am sure he is OK, which is why I want to stop having to go to the hospital. But at the same time as saying that, I am not a MW, or a nurse or whatever, if there is something causing him to be suddenly stop moving for long periods of time, then obviously I want to know about it!

I am going to have to go, (parent's evening).

Hello, sorry to hear you are so worried

It's a long looonnngg time since I had my babies but I was always told many babies are quieter in the daytime and busier at night. Because they're being rocked in the daytime and not at night when you sit/lie down.

I hope that may be a wee bit reassuring but I honestly would hate to put you off having any medical checks.

I have high risk pregnancies (unexplained second trimester losses) and the advice I've been given is that any change in the baby's normal level of activity is significant - i.e. if baby is usually active between 6-8pm & then isn't I go in form monitoring regardless of how many movements they've had before then. When I was pregnant with my son I was monitored 2-3 times a week from 32 weeks (he was delivered at 38) & also also had a doppler at home.

If there is concern about your baby's well being I would be asking for growth scans as poor/lagging growth is a risk factor for still birth, for a doppler scan of the placenta to ensure that the blood flow is healthy and amniotic fluid measurent since low fuid levels can be associated with a placenta that is not functioning as well as it should be.

If you are sure he is ok then he probably is, not moving for long periods of time (at least your not feeling any movements) can be perfectly normal. You sound a bit like I felt. Just relax and go with your instincts.

NatalieJane, you need to be under consultant care. The pre-eclampsia and doubtful fetal movements need proper monitoring. You should have been under consultant care from the beginning because of past PE.

10 movements in 10 hours is just a guide - you can not have it or, as in my experience, you can have 10 movements and the baby still die.

Going back and forth to the hospital is just one of the difficult things about a high risk pregnancy.

The consultant will probably want to do a few specific tests, maybe regular scans for growth if there is a specific concern, probably increased monitoring towards the end of pregnancy.

At least once you are under consultant care, you will have appointments in office hours (usually) and advance warning of when you need to go, so you can make better transport arrangements.
The advantage of going under consultant care and getting all this properly looked at

Sorry, my sentence should have read: "You can not have 10 movements and the baby be fine, or as in my experience...."

Sorry to have run out on everyone's advice, had lost track of time, and suddenly realised we were running a bit behind.

MrsG, the MW did offer me cons. led care from the beginning but because of issues with getting to appt./child care I asked if we could leave it, on the basis that if anything happened and there was a problem later in the pregnancy, then I would switch to cons. led care then. At the time it seemed a great idea, but now I'm not so sure!

I have rang the hospital, explained everything, MW said to have dinner give it an hour of sitting in front of telly with hands on belly and really concentrate to see if he starts moving, if he does, then great, if he doesn't then I'll be back in tonight. So fingers crossed he gets a wriggle on!

Finally got some answers, or at least we're on the way to having some.

I waited nearly two hours after dinner, still no movements, so I rang and they wanted me in. Got there about 10.30 (already an hour after my bed time!) my pulse was racing, which in turn led to the babies HB being too fast again, they think it might have been my pulse that caused his HB to be too fast on Monday as well, I have protein +, my temp. was quite high apparently. They have taken bloods for all sorts, sent my wee off for further tests, they want me back in tonight if no movements again, and regardless of that back in tomorrow afternoon for another trace and to go through the results of everything to see if they can work out why my pulse was so fast. They said re. the protein they are thinking infection rather than PE because although my BP was slightly higher than it was on Wednesday, it's still far from being 'high'. Got home just after 1am, felt like a teenager again, without the good night out part...

Fingers crossed we'll have some definate answers by the end of tomorrow.

how are things today? hope baby has been moving. The movements are very important only you know what is normal for you. The ten kicks in 10 hours is not really reccomended anymore as it could miss lots of compromised babies. eg it may be normal for somebody to have 50 movements in 10 hours so so 10 in 10 hours could mean a problem with baby. also the nature of the movemetns are importants are they weak or strong.

I was back in again last night, everything was OK this time, only I tested at home for protein in my wee just before leaving for the hospital last night, got a deffo protein +, then after a bottle of water they tested NAD, and they can't take my test into consideration, swelling is worse than ever, but BP is fine so not worried re. PE.

Two lots of the bloods were back and clear, but another lot was still not back, they have changed this afternoon's trace to Monday because by then they should have all the results back from everything and so will hopefully have something to go off.

I asked if I could start the kick chart at lunch time instead of when I wake up, (that makes the 10 hours stretch to at least midnight in my book, and in which case I'd have only been in once this week instead of 4 times, because he'd done his 10 movements by midnight) So hopefully we won't be back at the hospital now until Monday.

I am still at a loss as to why they haven't scanned him/the placenta, but I guess they know what they're doing (and alllllll my years of med school don't add up to much )

Hmmm very strange that they haven't scanned you or the placenta yet.

I had pe and ds was the most scanned baby ever. I was admitted in and out of hospital like a yo-yo and the scan was always the first thing they did.

Although they say your bp isn't high, just be careful. My bp wasn't regarded as hypertension until the end but it was high for me and ds stopped growing right as a result.

Hi NJ (remember me? )

I had a PE with DS1 and Pre Eclampsea and alot of protine all through my pg and still do now.

If there is constant protine ask for a kidney scan, when i was pg with DS2 i had one and it showed all his movements were being aimed at my right kidney causing it to temporarily stop working hence the protine form an overworked left kideny and i couldn't feel the kicks either so i was worred all the time.

I hope everything is ok. x

Trixie, yes have heard that PE doesn't always present as high BP, in a way with DS2 I was the same, I'd had all the symptoms for weeks, but it was only when my BP shot up that they did anything.

Hiya Charlee, me ol' mucker (am now going to hi-jack my own thread.....) how are you and the boys? I can kind of remember the kidney problems you had with your DS2.

I haven't been back in over the weekend, Saturday I had no movements, but did my doppler and was happy with the HB, he did finally give a little kick when we got into bed (at 2 am after hours of should I go, should I stay conversations with DH!) and then yesterday he was moving around a bit when we woke up, not quite the 10 movements but decided I'd take it as 10! He did give one little kick last night and I did the doppler again, HB was fine, so I left it.

It just seems such a waste of time going in, even when they have found the HB to be too fast, they don't do anything except wait for it to slow back down, and until the results come back from everything, they're going to be no better off, and that's only if the reults show anything.

I don't know if it is anything to do with it, but the swelling is getting worse by the day, even the soles of my feet are swollen now, inside my nose is all swollen, my tongue, my legs/ankles/feet, I am sure there is a ankle bone in there somewhere but I can't even feel it any more, my hands and arms look all round and chubby (am actually quite enjoying that bit, I have very skinny spindly hands/wrists, so it's nice to them a bit plumper!)

Roll on this evening, should know something by then!

Hi,

I've had a read through and can obviously see that your pregnancy is not "straightforward" so my comment may not be of use but I have a lazy baby on certain days too. I find that she goes quiet when i've become a little stressed or anxious. We first had this scare at 17 weeks and i was sent to hospital for not having her move for 3 days (she'd been moving for over a week) and was checked - she was fine. I subsequently had these days too and i linked it to me becomming stressed (argument with DP, bad day at work etc). I could get stressed and she'd go silent for anywhere up to 3 days. In the end i became used to it - im now 39 weeks. My BP has luckily been fine as has her HB so they've not sent me back into be monitored but i just thought i'd mention it incase if helped at all (obviously you've been under constant stress and worry)......