Getting harder to find heart beat with doppler

hordol · October 2013

I started using my doppler around 12.5 weeks or so and once I figured out where to look, I had no trouble finding the heartbeat and could usually pick it up pretty strongly. Lately though, I feel like it's getting harder and harder to find the heart beat and when I do find it, I can only hear it for about 2-5 seconds and then something shifts and it goes away. I know the baby's position and affect being able to hear it, but this has been happening every single time I've tried since about Monday, and I try about twice a day.

Has this happened to anyone else? You would think the farther along I get, the easier it would be but it was easier for me at 12.5 than it is now at 14.5.

GeorgiaWife12 · October 2013

It's happened to me as well. Baby is very active and moving all over the place and your uterus is also moving up (slowly) so baby has a little more room in there. Don't worry about it!! It will get easier again as baby grows and runs out of room to run away from you!

hordol · October 2013

Thanks.

That does make me feel better and makes a lot of sense! I have been feeling some "growing pains" lately so maybe baby just needs some time to catch up.

thomas930 · October 2013

When I was pregnant with my DS he had a habit of "running away" from the doppler at my appointments. My midwife would try at the beginning of the appointment and pick it up for about 2 seconds and then he would move and it would be difficult to find it again so she would try right before the appointment ended and he would run again...but we usually could get a good enough reading to know that he was still ok.

It may just be a mixture of the baby moving and your uterus growing and not knowing exactly where baby is right now.

porterlove525 · October 2013

My baby loves to avoid the Doppler my OB already forewarned me that I have a mischievous and active baby in there

Some days I can actually hear the HB for a minute, but most of the time only for a few seconds. If it shows up strong and good for a second I'll take it.

krazy6262 · October 2013

My last appt at my dr was at 16w and it was the first time she was using the Doppler. After what seemed like about 5 minutes, she couldn't find the heartbeat and since it was my first time I was getting a little panicky. To put my mind at ease, she went and got a small ultrasound machine to show me that baby was fine and it seemed like it was dancing, it was moving its arms and legs and that's why we couldn't find the hb. I wouldn't be too worried if you can't hear it every time you it.

DemoDoll · October 2013

If it makes you feel better, it took my doctor 5 minutes to find DD2's heartbeat yesterday at 16 weeks. She said she was super Active and moving all over the place. I wouldn't worry. It will get easier when the baby is bigger and has less room. They are still so little and taking advantage of all the room they have.

jgreig83 · October 2013

I just went to the midwife yesterday and had a chance to hear the heartbeat. The baby is really wiggly and has lots of room right now and she said that they like to hide under your pelvic bone. Just be patient and move the wand around a lot.