Anyone used a fetal monitor?

[cb2012]

Hi all,

I am 15 weeks pregnant and after loosing a baby at 19 weeks in April am completely neurotic.

As I can't feel movement yet I feel like I would only be happy if I could visit my midwife every day so she could listen to the baby's heart beat. As this is not possible I was thinking of buying a home fetal monitor but have read mixed reviews and just wondered if anyone had used one?

[n_z__s]

I bought one when I was pregnant with my son as I didn't feel movements very often (My placenta was at the front cushioning the kicks). I found it very reassuring to come home from work and be able to have a listen in to him if I hadn't felt him all day. It can be worrying tho when you are searching around for the heartbeat and can't find it straight away so I wouldn't recommend you get one if you think you will get very distressed. Otherwise I thought mine was fab but I know like you say there are a lot of mixed reviews. Good luck. I hope everything works out well for you x

[redjnr]

i am 9 weeks pregnant and have been able to pick up my baby's heartbeat from 8 weeks..i bought my doppler in my 4th pregnancy and this is my 6th now and i find it a great reassurance when in early stages of pregnancy before the 12 week scan or like you before you can feel baby kicking..they are not expensive to buy off the internet and although there are mixed views on people having their own dopplers, i believe the good points outweigh any negatives.

[rmh2012]

A friend had to pack her monitor away. Her baby's position meant that she could rarely hear the heartbeat, and it created far more stress in her case.

R x

[KatieKrinklebum]

They seem like a bit of a gimmick to me from everything I've read on various sites. Every pregnant woman has these same worries, I think it's just part and parcel of being pregnant. Every time I've been for a scan I've fealt an incredible yearning to have another one straight away. And my husband and everyone keeps asking how's the baby and I just have to say "Ok...I think - well, I'm ok, so I guess she is too!". Just because you've lost one dosn't mean you'll lose the next, I didn't. And you lost it early on which, sadly, is quite common. You're a whole month ahead now - but you're still a little bit early on yet to be feeling any movements, especially if it's your first, although it does vary quite a bit from one woman to another. Once you do start feeling movements you'll love it. They can stop moving for quite long periods though, so be ready for that. I heard you can sometimes wake them up with a chilled drink, but that didn't work for me.

[cb2012 in reply to KatieKrinklebum]

I actually have 2 healthy children so know what movement feels like and know the general worries with pregnancy but think you read my message wrong as I was 19 weeks when I lost my baby which is not so common and hence my increased anxiety this time.

[rmh2012 in reply to cb2012]

Agree totally. I lost a baby at 16 weeks, and although I was still worried about the anomoly scan, I pretty much thought I was past the danger period for losing the baby. And mine was a missed miscarriage, so I'd been traipsing along as though nothing was wrong for weeks before I started spotting.

As a consequence, I found it really difficult to relax or even allow myself to believe that the pregnancy would go ahead until I could feel the baby moving on a regular basis. I cried with relief every time I had a scan or heard the baby's heartbeat, but within days, I'd be questioning whether everything was ok.

I still wish I could turn back the clock and enjoy that first half of my pregnancy, but honestly, I'm not sure what I could have thought or done to change things.

Still, I do think focusing on the things within your control and trying to breathe deeply through the rest of the worries will help slightly at keeping things in perspective.

And remember, we're designed (from a survival of the species perspective) to be over protective of this baby we've never met. All good in most circumstances, but when you've lost a baby it really starts to work against you.

So be very kind to yourself while you're experiencing this level of worry, breathe deeply, and do your best to move on with your day.

It's hard - I just don't know what better advice to give you.

R x

[cb2012]

Thanks for helpful comments.

[KatieKrinklebum]

Yes, you're quite right, I've just read again, and I did get it the wrong way round the first time. Must be my dyslexia. I hope I didn't upset you. Do keep us posted on how things go. I'm sure everything will be fine and you will soon have a third healthy child.

[Kayz2012]

I've done a pregnatcy test and it came back negative but now 2 months late on my period I've had some bloods taken and get my results back on Monday coud their be a possibility of me being pregnant