Question about buying a doppler

Just sent you an email, cp8o. You can remove that post with your information in it. :)

No problem. I do think that if you are already worried about the pregnancy then it can cause a bit more stress. I really feel for you. Being stressed out during pregnancy (or anytime really) is no good. How do you feel about your doctor? Does he or she put your mind at rest? Have you thought about hiring a doula (or even chatting to one) to help you work through the stresses that you're feeling? There is also a really wonderful Hypnobirthing course that you can do in Dubai through a lady called Jasmine Strutt. She is wonderful and Hypnobirthig really focuses on fear release and can help calm a worried mind. Also, there are counsellors at Lifeworks Dubai (http://www.counsellingdubai.com/) who focus on pregnancy and postnatal issues and stresses. They work with people regardless of income. Something like that might be helpful too. I'll try to think of other resources that might be useful. In my opinion it is great for mamas to be able to work through any worries that you might be having before the birth and baby arrives just so that you are strong and fresh when those new challenges come. I know that I had to. I had PTSD from my last birth and have very much spent this pregnancy working through that so that my mind is strong and ready for my upcoming birth and new baby. Hugs to you, mama.

Hi cp80. We avoid dopplers and ultrasounds all together. There is a bit of information out there that suggests some dangers, especially with too much doppler use. I'll put it here. Take what you like and leave what you don't. :) "Ordinary scans use pulses of ultrasound which last only a fraction of a second, with the interval between waves being used by the machine to interpret the echo that returns. In contrast, doppler techniques, which are used in specialised scans, fetal monitors and hand-held fetal stethescopes ('sonicaids') feature continuous waves, giving much higher levels of exposure than 'pulsed' ultrasound. Many women do not realise that the small machines used to listen to their baby's heartbeat are actually using doppler ultrasound, albeit with low dose parameters." http://www.motherandchildhealth.com/Prenatal/sarah/ultrasound.html According to Henci Goer's Obstetric Myths Vs Research Realities, 1 minute of doppler = 30 minutes of u/s. Large exposure to u/s has been linked to cell changes and IUGR. Here is a link with more information: http://gentlebirth.org/archives/preScreen.html#Avoiding There are many countries that give very few ultrasounds (less than 3 in normal pregnancies) and use a fetoscope (a non-electronic stethascope) instead of a doppler during pregnancy or use the doppler very infrequently or hardly at all until labour. I just feel that there just isn't enough long term information out there on continued doppler and U/S use for my personal comfort. If you want to hear the heartbeat have you thought about buying a fetoscope instead? Aside from any potential dangers you are listening to the actual heartbeat rather than a mechanical version of it. They would also be much cheaper. There are also many stories about mothers not relying on their intuition on the baby's health and instead listening the the doppler to become reassured and then have poor fetal outcomes. For example, a mother notices decreased fetal movement, becomes worried, checks baby's heartbeat on doppler, hears heartbeat, becomes reassured and a few days later baby is no longer with her because baby was actually in danger in the first instance. Does that make sense? Here's an example: http://www.medpagetoday.com/OBGYN/Pregnancy/16834 Here are a few other links that might be helpful in making your decision: http://www.midwiferytoday.com/articles/ultrasoundwagner.asp http://www.aims.org.uk/Journal/Vol10No2/ressum98.htm#2 http://www.midwiferytoday.com/articles/ultrasound.asp (in particular look at the evaluating the risks section) I know that a lot of the information looks specifically at ultrasound so keep in mind that a doppler is stronger than an ultrasound as it used constant waves where the ultrasound uses pulsed waves. I hope that helps some. Just curious, are there reasons why you're worried about the bubs that you would want to check him or her daily? xx