midwives - how soon with the doppler can you hear 2 heartbeats if its twins??

[Lucilla]

i have a strong feeling i am having twins, and i want to know as soon as possible if i am! :

thanks!

[DoomaYula]

I have twins and while I was pregnant with them, the midwife never picked up 2 hb. The only way to confirm twins is with an u/s.

[pamamidwife]

I agree with Erika - you can find a heartbeat and then look in another area and find the same baby's heartbeat with a different rate. Baby's have variability in their heartbeat just like ours.

[Lucilla]

thanks for the responses - i will consider getting an early ultrasound (hopefully the only one i will need in this pregnancy) i guess to see if it's twins. based on my symptoms along with the fact that twins strongly run in my family, i'm positive i am having twins.

[RebeccaWells]

Crazy thought, but Im throwing it out there anyways. Could you possibly confirm twins with two dopplers, lets say if getting an ultrasound was logistically or financially a problem?

Also, this is off topic a bit, but the OP mentioned not wanted an ultrasound and Im assuming its due to the uncertainty of thier safety, but I could be wrong. Anyways, what is the real deal with dopplers? I have heard that they actually emit more waves and are worse then an ultrasound. Is that true?

Thanks!
Rebecca

[Jane]

Dopplers use ultrasound technology. Using dopplers to avoid an ultrasound is not really logical.

I've used a doppler on known twins and it was really no different from using a doppler on a signal pregnancy - it didn't sound different, and I've have never gone looking on the left for another heartbeat after hearing it on the right. And both babies were in the same rate of heartbeats. The only difference was that she was measuring 24 weeks at 18.5 weeks. That's nearly a 6 week difference - pretty apparent that some thing was going on with dates or twins or something at that point.

Lots of second time mothers think they are having twins - because the pregnancy signs show up so much sooner, and they "show" sooner. It's a common wish/fear of second pregnancies. Do you want twins?

[Free Thinker]

I have no idea how he did it, but one OB starts w/ getting the doppler right on Baby A, so much so that you can hear a 'flap' then moves it away until you can hear both hearts at the same time. It's wierd and I cannot explain how he does it, but he does! At each appt. I have 2 nurses each get a doppler and find baby A then baby B and try to get their HR to be aprox 10 beats different. Sometimes they can, other times they stay close and they just turn up the volume to make sure they are on different babies.

BTW, I knew by 12 weeks for sure, even before my US. I went in and asked for an US b/c I was sure it was twins. I was HUGE, like uterus to my belly button huge, and my other pregnancies had not been like that at all. Baby #1 was found immediately under my belly button, so they agreed to sent me over for an US, and it comfirmed I had twins. I don't think there is a need to find out prior to 12 weeks, so just wait and see Good Luck!

Oh, and I"m just lurking here, but since I'm PG w/ twins I thought I'd answer, hope that's okay. I am NOT a birth professional!

[Lucilla]

Originally Posted by Apricot

Lots of second time mothers think they are having twins - because the pregnancy signs show up so much sooner, and they "show" sooner. It's a common wish/fear of second pregnancies. Do you want twins?

either way, i will be happy. it's not that i wish for twins, but i do think that i am having them.

Originally Posted by Free Thinker

I have no idea how he did it, but one OB starts w/ getting the doppler right on Baby A, so much so that you can hear a 'flap' then moves it away until you can hear both hearts at the same time. It's wierd and I cannot explain how he does it, but he does! At each appt. I have 2 nurses each get a doppler and find baby A then baby B and try to get their HR to be aprox 10 beats different. Sometimes they can, other times they stay close and they just turn up the volume to make sure they are on different babies.

BTW, I knew by 12 weeks for sure, even before my US. I went in and asked for an US b/c I was sure it was twins. I was HUGE, like uterus to my belly button huge, and my other pregnancies had not been like that at all. Baby #1 was found immediately under my belly button, so they agreed to sent me over for an US, and it comfirmed I had twins. I don't think there is a need to find out prior to 12 weeks, so just wait and see Good Luck!

Oh, and I"m just lurking here, but since I'm PG w/ twins I thought I'd answer, hope that's okay. I am NOT a birth professional!

thanks for your response! i am big too, plus all of my strong symptoms. we'll see i guess! i will probably get just one ultrasound soon to find out for sure.

[Human_Being]

It is not standard practice to be able to detect twins with a doppler- you do nit "usually" get two distinct heartbeats in twins, and the doppler is not a very reliable way to detect that. There are man trefered sounds wiht doopplers, and well, its just not how its done. Hands, a fetoscope, ultrasound are more reliable.