Whoosh, Whoosh, Whoosh (Jumper Medical Angelsound Fetal Doppler)

Member Name: sandemp

Product:	Jumper Medical Angelsound Fetal Doppler
Date:	25/11/09 (263 review reads)
Rating:

Advantages: Bond with unborn baby

Disadvantages: Not to be relied on, can be hard to find heartbeat

When I was 14 weeks pregnant I started bleeding and this lasted for 2 weeks. Although I had an emergency scan when the bleeding started I didn't receive very much reassurance in the following two weeks and was in a constant state of panic. All it would have taken to reassure me was to listen to the baby's heartbeat, but for some reason my local maternity unit were unwilling to do this. So when I spotted the Angelsounds Doppler on Amazon for a very reasonable £15.99 (+delivery) I couldn't help myself, I just had to buy it.

==The Unit==


The Doppler came supplied with a set of headphones, 9v battery, very basic instructions and a lead to attach it to a recording device. Although it is available in several colours, I had chosen the pink and white version which looks exactly as shown in the product picture. Size-wise it fits neatly in my hand and I find it easy enough to manoeuvre over my rapidly growing belly. As I said the enclosed instruction leaflet is very basic and is very obviously badly translated from a foreign language. It is, however, understandable and I found it fairly easy to set the machine up for first use. One little omission was that it wasn't pointed out that the battery was wrapped in cellophane and this needed to be removed before the unit would work, but all that took was a little common sense.

==Listening To Baby==

Although this unit is supposed to be able to pick up baby's heartbeat from 12 weeks, I didn't receive it until I was nearly 16 weeks gone so I can't comment on how well it works before this point. Almost as soon as I received the unit I wanted to try it out and so I attached the battery and headphones, switched it on and then tried to find the baby and his heartbeat. The first time I tried I didn't use any gel or oil and couldn't hear a thing, but then I used some water based lubricant and although I couldn't find the heartbeat, I could definitely hear the baby moving and after spending a little time re-positioning the Doppler I could hear the "whoosh whoosh" of the placenta. I not only found this reassuring, but it was also a wonderful bonding process. I wouldn't say that the headphones were the best though, they are very much the cheapest of the cheap as far as sound quality goes and don't fit over my ears very well, but as I only use the unit for a couple of minutes at a time I've not really bothered changing them.

I'm now 21 weeks and the baby is a little thumper so I no longer use this for reassurance, but I still use it every couple of days or so simply because it is so lovely to listen to the baby squirming and kicking around inside me. With practise I can find the baby very quickly, but I am still having trouble finding the actual heartbeat. I have found it a couple of times, and when I do it sounds like galloping horses, but normally I can only hear the baby moving and the placenta whooshing, and these are wonderful to hear. It's also a lovely way for my partner to bond with the baby, it's not like he can feel every kick, but with this he can hear the kicks, especially as Thumper doesn't appreciate anything pressing on my belly (not even a waistband) and will kick at the unit.

==Medical Bits==

Although this works in the same way as the Doppler my midwife uses it is nowhere nearly as powerful and I've had no medical training and so can't interpret anything that I hear. Therefore this is not a device that should in any way replace seeing a medical professional if at all concerned about your baby. I had already seen medical personnel when I had worries about my baby and they had checked that everything was fine and given me advice on if and when I should return to see them. So this is more a way for both parents (and siblings) to bond with the unborn baby. It would also be very easy to panic if you can't hear the baby, remember I've only heard the actual heartbeat a couple of times. So don't panic if you can't hear anything first try.


==Final Words==

Personally I'm really glad I bought this, listening to the baby is just such a wonderful experience and can be so relaxing especially after a stressful day. It is not, however, something that I would rely on to tell me that my baby is alright, and if I have any worries I will still call my midwife or doctor. I can understand the medical profession's concern over the use of these dopplers at home as some people might panic unnecessarily, or be reassured when there actually is a problem. But I see no harm in using it as a way of involving everyone in bonding with the unborn baby. And in my case it did ease my mind when used in conjunction with seeing the professionals.

Summary: Listen to baby in the womb but not a replacement for medical professionals