Being pregnant for the first time was the most amazing adventure (besides birth and motherhood) that I had set off on my entire life! Feeling and knowing that you carry the miracle of life inside of you was an experience that I have thoroughly enjoyed (despite morning sickness for the first 20 weeks) and look forward to experiencing again in the future.
As a first-time mom, I have learned that although the experience of pregnancy is amazing, worrying about the well-being of our children starts shortly after conception and from what I hear, never ends! It has definitely continued during the first few weeks of Lyla's life. Because I was so excited about becoming pregnant and of course hoped that our baby would be perfect (which she is), I worried about something going wrong early on. To make matters worse, I had early spotting (10 weeks and prior) and worried about miscarrying. It wasn't until I went for an early ultrasound at 10 weeks when I was able to see our little one move and see her heartbeat that I was able to calm the worries a little bit; although, I admit, I had worries here and there for the remainder of the pregnancy, particularly until the 'big' milestones (e.g. feeling baby move and hitting the viable 24-week point). With only having appointments with my midwife once each month in early pregnancy, that meant that I could only hear our baby's heart beat once each month; this was difficult and a bit nerve racking especially before I was able to feel our little one's movements.
I had heard about using dopplers (commonly refered to as doptones in the medical community) to listen to baby's heartbeats at home between OB or midwife appointments to help calm nerves and strengthen the bond between mom and baby. I was intrigued by the idea of listening to my little one's heartbeat whenever I was finding myself worrying a bit or just whenever I felt like hearing what my little one was doing.
A bit about dopplers and their history...
Dopplers are technical medical devices that utilize low-frequency ultrasound sound waves (much lower than those given off during an ultrasound - when you see your baby) to help you hear sounds within the womb (e.g. your baby's heartbeats, movements, placental blood flow, ...). Sounds can be heard using a doppler when the sound waves given off by the doppler bounce off tissues and fluid within the body. Dopplers have been used by medical professionals for routine prenatal care for the past 30+ years. To ensure safety to both mothers and their babies, numerous studies have been carried out, none of which have shown any adverse side effects to mothers or their babies. Although, no adverse side effects have been shown, it is suggested that you talk with your health care professional who is looking after your prenatal care prior to using one. Dopplers are considered a piece of medical equipment and must undergo specific licensing requirements.
Accessing dopplers during pregnancy for personal use
Luckily there are companies like
Dopplers to Diapers out there that rent high-quality medical-grade dopplers to expectant parents. Dopplers to Diapers is owned by two Canadian Moms (Norah & Karla) who wanted to offer doppler rentals to families to allow them to bond with their babies and share the experience with siblings, other family members, and friends. Both Norah and Karla had used dopplers to share the experience with their own families and friends during their pregnancies, thoroughly enjoyed the experience (both the excitement and reassurance), and wanted to share that with other Canadian families.
All doppler rentals provided by Dopplers to Diapers include the following:
- "- Suppression Doppler (SSD) technology - for static-free, crystal clear sound which is the latest technology in fetal doppler equipment.
- - 3-8oz gel/order (depending on length of order time) - Many of the other companies only provide a 60 or 100 ml tube of gel (about 1-2 oz) regardless of how long you rent the unit for. We believe the dopplers operate best using the correct gel and don't feel customers should pay extra for that necessity!
- - No frills or fancy boxes/bags – We ship only what you have ordered and paid for thus not passing on any additional costs to the customer for unnecessary extras.
- - Instruction pamphlet and paperwork - Easy to follow instructions to ensure that you find your baby's heartbeat with ease every time along with all the reminder paperwork and return shipping supplies so you can get your doppler back to us on time and avoid any unnecessary extra charges when you have finished with the unit.
- - Guaranteed fast delivery – We ship within one business day and the doppler arrives to you within 2-3 business days. We guarantee availability or your shipping costs are FREE."
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| A picture of the doppler that I received from the Dopplers to Diapers rental program. |
The following is a list of FALL 2011 pricing options for Dopplers to Diapers doppler rentals:
• Month-to-month fetal doppler rental for $44/month (plus HST)
• prepay for 2 months of fetal doppler rental for $84 (plus HST)
• SPECIAL prepay for 3 months of fetal doppler rental for $99 (plus HST)
• prepay for 4 months of fetal doppler rental for $139 (plus HST)
•prepay for 5 months of fetal doppler rental for $169 (plus HST)
• SPECIAL prepay for 6 months of fetal doppler rental for $189 (plus HST)
If you find another company that rents the same model of doppler for less than Dopplers to Diapers, let them know; they will happily 'price match' any other competitor's rental price.
Dopplers to Diapers also sells gently used dopplers for $470 (plus HST). If after renting your doppler you decide you'd like to keep it, Dopplers to Diapers has a rent to own option; every dollar spent on your rental goes towards the price of the unit.
Orders can be placed online or by telephone and more details can be found
HERE.
To find out more about Dopplers to Diapers' doppler rental program, you can visit their
FAQ page.
Review
When I had arranged for a 3-month review of a doppler rental unit from Dopplers to Diapers, I was excited to try it out but curbed my excitement since I figured it would be awhile before I received it. To my surprise, Dopplers to Diapers ships extremely quick with Canada Post's Expedited Service and I received my doppler rental unit within 2 days! Needless to say, when I received the package in the mail, I couldn't open it fast enough. At that point (16 weeks pregnant), I had only only heard it's heartbeat twice (once with a doppler and once at a 14-week ultrasound) and I was eager to hear it again.
Upon opening the package, I found the doppler, information on Dopplers to Diapers, instructions on how to use the doppler, a large package of doppler gel (needed to transmit the sounds from within the womb), a battery for the unit, and a return envelope. I had never used a doppler previously and thought it might be a bit overwhelming. I had heard stories about women not being able to find their baby's heartbeat thus causing more worry in the beginning. But, since I had previously been in nursing and was used to listening for bodily sounds, including heartbeats, I was fairly confident that I would be able to do it. Also, considering I was already 16 weeks pregnant and about 95% of fetal heartbeats can be heard by 14 weeks (sometimes as early as 10 weeks), I was a bit more assured. Once connecting the parts of the doppler and installing the battery [the correct way the second time I installed it - :)], I laid back, put a bit of doppler gel on the doppler probe and proceeded to locate my baby's heartbeat. I was pleasantly surprised to find my baby's heartbeat within a few seconds - it was amazing!
After using the unit a few times, I discovered that not only could you use the doppler to listen to your baby's heartbeat, but also to it's movements and hiccups (very neat)! I found that using the doppler was a great way to discover where my baby was (it's position), and what it was doing. I definitely think it helped me to develop a bond with baby prior to feeling it's first movements (about 18 weeks) and first {definite} kicks (about 19 weeks). Another joy of using the doppler was that it allowed me to see and feel my baby's kicks from the outside. I realized that my baby was either not found of the doppler or enjoyed playing with it because it liked to kick it away. The first time I felt and saw that, it was incredible. It was amazing to think that something so small contained so much power!
At the beginning of my experience, I found that I used the doppler once every couple of days, or whenever I found myself a bit concerned about baby's well-being. As weeks passed and I began to feel baby move, I used it a little bit less since the movements reassured me that baby was okay. However, I still continued to use the doppler occasionally (basically until I felt the movements consistently) to see baby's movements from the outside and listen to it's activities.
From my experience, I would definitely consider renting a doppler for future pregnancies. The overall experience was great and I think it helped to lower my anxiety a little bit. Since heartbeats sometimes cannot be heard until 14 weeks, I wouldn't rent a doppler before that point since it could cause even more worry; if you haven't used a doppler before or even if you have (doctors or midwifes can have difficulties), baby's heartbeat isn't always easily or quickly located at the 14-week mark. Also, because I like knowing numbers (from my nursing background), I would probably rent a unit that displayed the number of heartbeats per minute. Prior to receiving the doppler, I was under the impression that all units had this. Although the feature would be nice for some people it could cause worries for other since the read out isn't perfect and baby's can have fluctuations in their heartbeats per minute. I found myself counting the baby's heartbeats per minute (not an easy task), just out of curiosity. I wouldn't suggest a doppler with a heartbeat display for everyone.
In the end, I am happy to know that companies like Dopplers to Diapers exist. I like that they make their service easy, particularly by including all that is needed with the rental (I wouldn't want to have to run around to find batteries or doppler gel), and by including a pre-paid mailing envelope to return the rental unit once your rental period is over. Although, I didn't use the doppler as much as I hear some people do (daily), I was happy that the battery lasted the complete rental time and I didn't run out of doppler gel (I still have a few tubes left). Finally, I appreciated the friendly personalized service that Dopplers to Diapers provided and I would recommend them to any expectant mom who is interested in hearing their little one's heartbeat (and/or movements) at home.
Are you expecting? Are you interested in hearing your little one's heartbeat and bonding with him or her in the comfort of your own home?
Dopplers to Diapers would like to offer the first 50 readers who rent a doppler from Dopplers to Diapers, 10% off their order. All you have to do is let them know that you heard about their service on 'Everything Up Close'.
Interested in following Dopplers to Diapers on Twitter? Find them
@dopplertodiaper
**Disclaimer** To complete this review, Dopplers to Diapers sent me a doppler rental unit to test out for 3 months free-of-charge in order to conduct a first-hand review of the product and Dopplers to Diapers service. Receiving this item did not in anyway alter the information which I discussed in this article; this review is 100% my own opinion. I did not receive any other type of compensation for this review.
