Dopplers...Harmful?

[Laurababs]

Im the kind of person who worrys alot, especially since i havnt been feeling any movement from LO yet, ive been using my doppler almost every day since ive got it (about a week and half) not for a long period of time i turn it off when i hear the heartbeat. Ive heard that listening often can annoy/hurt the baby in some way, Does anyone know if this is true?

 

[shesmurf]

MW told me to only use it occationally and not for long periods of time as it's not really understood whether it affects bub or not. I stopped using it when I could feel bump moving so didn't need it for that long. I also find that mine doesn't like it even when MW listens as it has always squirmed and tried to hide. No space for that anymore though - due Sunday so last few appointments has been very easy to get the HB as it's wedged in place! MW thinks it is a big baby with a big bum lol just like its mum!

 

[Anna23]

by any chance is your placenter in the front of your womb? is this your first? your less likely to feel baby early with your first and if you have a placenter in the front you won't feel the kicks as early i think they say first time mums feel baby between 18-20something weeks i wouldn't worry too much hun as for the doppler i'm not sure however my mum (she's a midwife but not practising midrifary atm) said there is no evidence they affect baby it's just they don't like it

 

[JayK2387]

Hey huni,

I didnt feel my LO kick till 22 weeks. Found out though that this was because my placenta is at the front

I used my doppler a few days a week until I was able to feel her kick. I know MW's dont like u using them because they get panicy phone calls when we cant find the hearts hehe.

I dont think there is any evidence that its harmful though hun cause u can buy them in mothercare.

xxx

 

[Laurababs]

Thanks Girls I will try to use it less im sure i'll be fine once i start feeling definite kicks, i think i have felt something. Anna - Im not sure if my placenta is at the front or not it is my first

 

[maldives]

I agree with anna..first time mum doesn't always feel early movements although It's not the case with me...my first I felt movements as early as 15 weeks!! with this one I am now past 19 weeks and still no movements not even flutters! But it turned out my placenta is in front ... so if u did find the heart beat u shouldn't worry coz most probably ur placenta is in front which will delay u feeling movements so no need to worry and it's better to not use dopplers too much if u r worried

 

[Mama 2 Be]

Personally I think MW might use that excuse to scare us into not using them so they don't get crazy phone calls from us worrying about a faint or missing heartbeat.

Everywhere I've read says they are safe to use and I find them very reassuring which is surely got to be better for Mama and Baby than the stress of worry?

For the record my mate didn't feel her first til 22 weeks so nothing to worry about there hon.
God there's no help for any of us - we worry when we can't feel anything and then we worry when they do move that they are moving less than yesturday

 

[Laurababs]

I dont know what i'd do without you ladies

 

[Anna23]

Thanks Girls I will try to use it less im sure i'll be fine once i start feeling definite kicks, i think i have felt something. Anna - Im not sure if my placenta is at the front or not it is my first

it would explain it then as it's your first you don't tend to feel kicks early, when you have your 20 week scan ask where your placenter is laying (i'm intrested now hehe) if it's at the front i'd say you won't feel the kicks as much, when using the doppler do you hear baby moving about? i LOVE it when i hear bubs kickking the doppler

 

[Laurababs]

I hear lots of squishy bumpy noises And also what sounds like waves

 

[Kittykins]

from my experience so far, 'kicks' is absolute rubbish. I've felt squirming, I've felt a horrible creepy-crawly feeling, I've felt something scratching like a mouse trying to get out... but I've not felt anything and thought 'ooooh, that was a kick'! And as for the butterfly flutters, I'm convinced I have maggots. I told the ob that at my appt on Friday and she laughed and said it was a much more accurate description, but most women preferred to think of butterflies!

So - you may actually have felt movement but not known it was that because you're waiting for a kick or something.

As for the doppler, it's fine in moderation. There haven't been any tests done to check the effects of using it three hours a day, but if you limit it to one or two sessions of no more than 15 mins a week, you should be fine. By now, the baby will definitely feel pressure, and that's what it won't like and will try to move away from. Last time I used the doppler, the baby was playing hide-and-seek. It won. I'd catch the hb for 2-3 secs, then it would disappear and I'd find it again an inch away for 2-3 secs before it disappeared again. It took 10 mins before I got a 10-second listen. At that point I gave up. Clearly the baby was getting sick of me prodding it with the probe, so I let it be.

 

[curlygurl]

There hasn't been any research done into the effects of dopplers - or ultrasound scans, on the developing fetus. Basically, they came into common usage before the days of the Randomised Controlled Trial - which is the gold standard of research at the moment. And now, they are so popular that they can't do a proper trial on them because women won't agree to be in the test group.

As a midwife, I'll be honest - I haven't even tried to use my one on myself. I have quite a big belly anyway, and I know I might not find it, and I would be a bit worried if I looked and I couldn't find it. And I am sure the babies aren't that keen on them. There they are, happily swimming about, and all of a sudden they get hit by a barrage of ultrasound waves. It must freak them out a little bit. And once the baby starts moving, that is always going to be your best indicator of how healthy or well they are.

So the short answer is - no one knows if there are any side effects or long term effects on doppler use or what a healthy level is.

 

[Chopsie]

from my experience so far, 'kicks' is absolute rubbish. I've felt squirming, I've felt a horrible creepy-crawly feeling, I've felt something scratching like a mouse trying to get out... but I've not felt anything and thought 'ooooh, that was a kick'! And as for the butterfly flutters, I'm convinced I have maggots. I told the ob that at my appt on Friday and she laughed and said it was a much more accurate description, but most women preferred to think of butterflies!

So - you may actually have felt movement but not known it was that because you're waiting for a kick or something.

As for the doppler, it's fine in moderation. There haven't been any tests done to check the effects of using it three hours a day, but if you limit it to one or two sessions of no more than 15 mins a week, you should be fine. By now, the baby will definitely feel pressure, and that's what it won't like and will try to move away from. Last time I used the doppler, the baby was playing hide-and-seek. It won. I'd catch the hb for 2-3 secs, then it would disappear and I'd find it again an inch away for 2-3 secs before it disappeared again. It took 10 mins before I got a 10-second listen. At that point I gave up. Clearly the baby was getting sick of me prodding it with the probe, so I let it be.

Mine's the same - I only ever get the heartbeat for a few seconds at a time, so I figure he/she doesn't want to be bothered and give up! I only tend to use it once a week too, but now I can feel proper movements, I'll probably use it less and less.

And when you DO feel a definite kick, it's the weirdest feeling - like you're being prodded from the inside, or a little balloon has just burst in your tummy!

 

[Serendipity_]

Yeh I heard it can be dangerous, I don't bother with mine much anymore. I'll only be using it 24/7.

 

[devers86]

I forgot to ask my mw where my placenta is, wish i had now, but, if it was at the front, how come you might not feel kicks till later? Sorry if thats a stupid question ladies, its just i thought you would have been able to feel it more.

I hope they dont cause any harm as when I first got mine I used it everyday but now its about twice a week now that i can feel baba.

 

[Anna23]

I forgot to ask my mw where my placenta is, wish i had now, but, if it was at the front, how come you might not feel kicks till later? Sorry if thats a stupid question ladies, its just i thought you would have been able to feel it more.

I hope they dont cause any harm as when I first got mine I used it everyday but now its about twice a week now that i can feel baba.

if your placenter is in the front it will cussion the kicks from bubs so you won't feel it untill they kick alot harder and you won't feel them as often as say someone like me who's placenter is at the back