Were you able to find babies heart beat with a fetal doppler?

It will cause you more stress when you can’t find it. I am an OB sonographer and worked at a hospital for pregnant women for many years. I can not tell you how many women we had come in almost daily because they couldn’t find the heartbeat on their home doppler and almost every single time the baby was fine.

4 Likes

I’m very leery of at home Doppler. I went into a doctor’s office and the nurse who is TRAINED to use them mistook MY heartbeat for baby’s. If a trained professional can get it wrong, I’d be worried about undue stress expecting mommas can be put under if they don’t find one. It’ll be easier a little later in the pregnancy :heartpulse:

I have one now and I heard baby’s heartbeat between 8 and 9 weeks for the first time at home. It does take practice using it but it calms my nerves after our daughter was stillborn.

1 Like

I had one for my second pregnancy and found the heart beat around 9 weeks (and you can definitely tell the difference between hearing your own heartbeat and your baby’s).

There are a lot of variables. Like where the placenta is. I
Mine was in the front and even well into the pregnancy it was hard to find. Plus I couldn’t feel him as well. I am larger though. I am pretty sure at my 8 week appointment they found the heart beat with the ultra sound.

Only an ultrasound is gonna pick it up at 6 weeks. Doctors find it bt 10 and 12weeks the chances of you finding it before 12 weeks is slim just bc your not trained. It also will depend on the placement of the placenta. If your going to get one make sure it shows the heart beat bc its common to mistake yours with babies

5 Likes

Please don’t use a doppler at home. When a health professional is listening to your baby we can differentiate between what is the placenta, maternal pulse and fetal heart rate. We can hear abnormalities such as ectopic beats. We also know the correct range it should be. There have been cases of miscarriages and still births because a doppler has been used at home for reassurance and the mother has heard what she thought was baby’s hearbeat but it wasn’t or it could have been the fetal heart but not normal. If you are ever worried about baby’s movements or your pregnancy please seek professional medical advice. X

9 Likes

We were not able to hear the heartbeat on the one we have until ~20 weeks with all 3 of my kids. The one I have is older, but I have read that you usually can’t hear it at home until later on in the pregnancy

I had a very small build at 115 lbs and had a handheld Doppler that I bought on Amazon. It worked very well for me 12 weeks plus but my husband was always concerned about my anxiety with it all.

I’ve had 6 pregnancies. 5 live births. None I heard until about 12 weeks. I was super small for the 1st 2. Gained weight for the last 3 obviously. My placenta was in the back for only the first. The other 4, my placenta was in the front. None of the variables matter. You can’t hear the heartbeat until about 12 ish weeks. I also used a doppler for my 5th pregnancy. Placenta being in the front means I cant feel baby move alot. She was also growing on the smaller side so her “lack of movements” had me concerned alot. I had my husband find her heart every time and it was just right.

I was 120lbs and we couldn’t find it till about 12 weeks. We were advised not to get a home doppler because most of them are junk and will scare you more than anything. We were just told if we ever got a bad feeling or worried to stop in at the ER and they could monitor us. We had 3 loses before our son so they were pretty easy going with us

7 Likes

The best results will be about 12 wks or more. I had one with my last baby (#5) for peace of mind after multiple losses. I went into it knowing there was a chance I wouldn’t be able to find it and not to freak out if I couldn’t. I watched videos on how to do it also. I didn’t use it a lot but I used it a lot less once I could feel baby move but if he wasn’t as active as normal and I got worried I would use it and it would ease my mind. I got mine of eBay. (New)

1 Like

Very very unlikely at 6 weeks. We don’t even like to attempt until 8 to 10 weeks, due to the fact that its not best practice to search for it that early, then not find it… and put unnecessary worry in mommy’s heads if that makes sense.

My daughter just found hers at 9 weeks but not consistently. She’s 12 weeks now and gets it every time.

Usually it’s between 10 and 12 weeks depending on where your little munchkin is positioned.

1 Like

It’s even iffy at 12 weeks for many ladies. At home ones, usually 12-15weeks is when you can hear it. The at home machines end up causing more stress than needed.

I have a doppler and up until 12-13 weeks I couldn’t hear anything. Doctor even tried at 8 weeks with their doppler and couldn’t find a heartbeat.

I was able to hear my first at just over 10 weeks. I found my youngest at 9 but couldn’t find it again until about 14.

I heard my son at 10 weeks. I’m 7 weeks now… I wonder the same.

Even in the doctor’s office they can’t rely on Doppler until 9-10 weeks. Using them at home also isn’t recommended.

3 Likes

My Dr never even tried until I was at least 12 weeks.

I heard my daughters at 8w with an at home doppler :heart:

At 6 weeks it’s hit and miss. Give it another few weeks or so. Don’t stress about it and try again. :heart:

At home fetal dopplers don’t read until later. I didn’t hear mine until 30 some weeks. I had a cheap one though.

They’re still below the pelvic bone until 12 weeks. That’s why it’s not very possible.

I did at around 11 wks.

U won’t find it with a Doppler til 12+ weeks…

And also I have a Doppler I’m selling if interested

you will just find your own artery

I heard my baby’s heartbeat at 8 weeks

I wouldnt do it trust your doctors equipment more then something you buy on Amazon

I had one but the ones u buy over the counter per say, u can’t hear the heart beat until about after 21weeks

I heard at 10 weeks with a handheld Doppler. You have to search around for awhile though.

I’m on my third and heard mine at 8 weeks

It’s about when the heart develops. Each development is different

You probably won’t be able to. When I was very far along sometimes my doc would have a hard time finding it. It’s just hard to know what position the baby is in, plus you’re also able to hear all of your own pulses in that area which you can confuse for your babies heartbeat.

With my anterior placenta and baby towards the back of my spine I couldn’t feel kicks or hear a heartbeat for a very long time. It was disappointing and at times worrisome but he was totally okay so if you can’t, don’t worry. it can take time. I felt kicks with my first very early and with him it was 22, 23 plus weeks before I felt anything at all.

I picked up mine at 10wks and a big girl :slightly_smiling_face: I never used mine after that until around 20wks just to show my nieces and then later in pregnancy as we had a few scares due to reduced movement.

I’ve never been able to pick up my sons heartbeat on our doppler and Im 39 weeks :grimacing::grimacing:

1 Like

Wait until about 12-14 weeks and don’t panic if you don’t hear it because the ones online are not professional machines. I have severe anxiety and I would take a break and try again after an hour if I couldn’t find it. The main point is don’t panic if you can’t find it

Don’t bother, didn’t work at 35 weeks. All you hear is your own body.

6 weeks would be far too early to find it on a doppler you’d need an ultrasound

1 Like

too early, its sometimes too hard to even do an ultrasound at this stage and sometimes an internal ultrasound is needed. as others have said you will only stress yourself out trying to find it now and not finding anything.

3 Likes

6 weeks is definitely far too early. Sometimes these at home dopplers can pick up your own heartbeat, rather than your babies. I would personally wait until closer to the second trimester… I loved my doppler tho!

1 Like

I’m 7 weeks pregnant too with my second and I couldn’t get a obgyn appointment until third of June. A mth away😧 I’m anxious to know everything is okay and have wondered the same

They are not recommended as you can pick up your heart beat or your womb xx

I wouldn’t try until twelve weeks at least and even then I have to tell you it can be very hard to find yourself while the baby is still small. Having used it on the ambulance we always have to warn moms that if we don’t find it that way right away it doesn’t necessarily mean something’s wrong it could be too early or just not good enough conditions. So if it’s going to make you panic I wouldn’t do it.

1 Like

The midwives don’t even usually try until 13 weeks because they dont want you to stress unnecessarily if you cant hear it… you’re setting yourself up for failure.

2 Likes

Midwife here! 6 weeks is much too early and often a fetal heart wouldn’t even be present on scan at this stage but I did manage to find my baby’s heartbeat just after 10 weeks and started feeling very light movements just after 11 weeks!

I am a midwife and I highly discourage the use of at home dopplers. We don’t even usually check for a heart rate until 16+ weeks and even then it can be very difficult. In all honesty, having an at home doppler will provide further anxiety for you, especially if you cant find the heart rate. I suggest waiting until your appointments with your doctor or midwife or your ultrasounds.

11 Likes

At 6wks my doctor had to use a transvaginal ultrasound to pick up the heartbeat cause the normal ultrasound wouldn’t have been able to. Dopplers are not recommended and shouldnt be relied on to hear babies heartbeat

I had to get a ultrasound done to see how far I was and at the time i was 6 weeks and 1 day, and its amazing how small the baby is, but the doc said we can check for a heartbeat but sometimes you cant hear it at 6 weeks yet, but I was able to hear it, so it might be possible you can hear the baby’s heartbeat but I’m not sure with the at home ones, i have never tried one

I wasn’t able to find either of my babies heartbeats at home with my fetal Doppler until about 11 wks.

I was 9 weeks when my midwife tried and heard it then. She only tried for me due to me miss carrying the pregnancy before hand and she knew I was anxious to try. If you go ahead and try don’t feel disheartened just give it time :blush:

Don’t. Don’t worry yourself, your first appointment with the OB should ease your mind. At 6 weeks you’re not going to hear anything.

Save your money, its way to early

You won’t find it at 6 weeks & will only cause yourself so much stress. I had to get a doppler as I was in hospital more than I was out for a very worrying pregnancy. I wasn’t able to locate a heartbeat before 12/14 weeks. And every time I Couldn’t I panicked. You will hear it when it is audible, but not this early. Also small babies can be in one spot one week & you won’t find them there a few days later & you freak again. Be careful about relying on dopplers :blush:

1 Like

Leave it to the professionals

Doctors have hard time with doppler at 6 weeks. Most use internal ultrasound that early to see heart beat

I used a regular stethoscope

Its way to early and it is mot recommended to use a home dopplerb if you are not a trained professional.

1 Like

Some hospitals can pick up a heartbeat at 7 weeks 3 days with a doppler

10 weeks before you can hear with external Doppler in my experience

I was unable to hear a heartbeat on a home doppler before 14 weeks with both of mine. I would wait.

I would just wait!! Cause if you didn’t hear it immediately, you could cause yourself stress if your baby was alive and ok. (I know I would be pretty worried and in the dr office pronto if that happened lol)

1 Like

Its almost always more difficult to hear heart tones that early. I would save yourself the worry and stress and wait if you can. But if you can’t, see if your Dr or midwife can request an sonogram. That might put out at ease :blush:

I rented a fetal Doppler at 10 weeks. I was 115 pounds. I enjoyed hearing my baby. I kept the Doppler until my baby’s kicks were felt

1st baby at 6weeks 2nd baby no :see_no_evil:

No but I heard the heartbeat at 8 weeks

That’s usually too early to hear via Doppler. Sometimes the OB has a hard time finding it even at 12 weeks via Doppler

1 Like

I believe we weren’t able to pick up the heartbeat on an at home doppler either pregnancy until between 9 and 10 weeks.

Wouldn’t recommend. You’ll just drive yourself insane and cause unnecessary anxiety if you can’t find their heartbeat with it.

6 Likes

These aren’t recommended at all for safety reasons as sometimes people use them for re-assurance for reduced movements to see if there is a heart beat. Where in fact Midwives aren’t just listening to the heart beat they are listening for depth and rhythm etc so just to advise not to use them on this basis. Always go straight to your maternity triage or unit if any doubt whatsoever. But if just using to hear the heartbeat for yours or families sake that’s fine. Don’t want to sound patronizing or a Karen either :see_no_evil: just maybe for anyone on this post that didn’t know, it could save a babies life. Xx

i wouldn’t order one it’ll drive you abs insane and make you more nervous - my doctor always checked the heartbeat at my first appts at 7/8 weeks and we were able to hear it

I used one and couldn’t find our rainbow baby’s until 16 weeks. It’s so much weaker than the doctors office but once you hear it, you will be overjoyed :heart:

10-11 weeks I was able to find both of my babies heartbeats

6 weeks is too early, some brands claim they can pick up the heartbeat from around 8/9 weeks and some from 12/16 but many advise to use in your third trimester from around 28 weeks…mainly due to so you don’t cause yourself unnecessary stress from either 1) not being able to pick it up or 2) hearing extra strange sounds that can go on inside there from baby or your own body

No. I also recommend not relying on a home doppler. Everytime i used mine and couldnt find the heartbeat i freaked out. They arent as advanced as the one at the docs office

1 Like

I used a fetal doppler every night with my baby. We heard his heart beat at 8 weeks.

At home dopplers are not as clear as the ones used by the OB office and typically cannot pick up anything until about 12-16 weeks for most people, so I definitely wouldn’t anticipate hearing anything sooner than that at home but they will usually look for baby’s heartbeat with the Doppler or Ultrasound at the office around 10-12 weeks, sometimes sooner with ultrasound. Hope that helps!

I found my daughters before 12 weeks and the doctor did as well. I was about 9 weeks.

I would definitely order one. However, we didn’t start hearing our baby until roughly 9-10 weeks from our home doppler.

1 Like

I found mine at home around 12 weeks.

I used one. I couldn’t find baby myself until 14 weeks. It’s much weaker than a doctor office machine.

1 Like

I could but not till I was like 9-10 weeks

Not until about 16 weeks

I feel like this would just create more anxiety for you if you couldn’t find it yourself which is not worth it in my opinion.

I would totally advise against getting theses especially if you are not trained in using them as you can often think you have found the heartbeat but it’s not it’s the placenta this also shouldn’t be used for reassurance as just because you can hear a heartbeat doesn’t mean everything is OK

Also its hard for a trained professional to find a heartbeat using a doppler before 12 weeks so the likelihood of you actually finding the heartbeat yourself is slim

Not 6 weeks but 9w and on (: Also, once you find the baby you know the difference between its heartbeat and the other sounds.

I tried and tried but didnt get it. Kept finding my own, but couldn’t hear that rapid pitter patter until 10 weeks. That was with my 4th child. You need to put it right at your pubic bone.

I was about 14 weeks when I first found a heartbeat with my doppler. It took me about 20 minutes of very slowly moving the wand around. The further along I got, the easier it was to find. I loved my doppler. It put my mind at ease several times when I didn’t feel much movement.

I wasn’t able to hear it at ten weeks w mine and I have a very small build.

You’ll make yourself crazy if you can’t find it. Even drs and techs have trouble sometimes.

1 Like

Please don’t use a Doppler.
Trust the professionals.
If you’re ever I doubt they are only a phone call away

They do not recommend trying before that time for many reasons. It’s worth getting but I wouldn’t try to use it before 12 weeks

id leave that to the midwives they are experienced at using these and 6wks is a bit early as usually hospitals do this internally x

I’m tiny 100lbs. My doctor couldn’t find a heartbeat till 10 weeks

They say you just hear your one not the babies
…as we aren’t experts you won’t know what you are listening too…

I had one and it was great to have. I listened everyday until I found it. Then I listened all the time.

I’m 17 weeks and still haven’t heard mine x