Questions & Answers

With my previous two pregnancies my OB was able to find it by like 8/9 weeks. I've never used a home Doppler though, so I'm not sure when you'll find it if that's what you're using.

I tried finding it a couple of times at 8 and 9 weeks with no luck, but finally found it at the 10-week mark. I'm about average weight for my height, and have a retroverted uterus.

I should note that even after I found the hb on the doppler at 10 weeks, the next day I couldn't find it again. I think for most people/body types, it's pretty inconsistent at this stage.

It took me forever to find it with my home doppler because I'm impatient and fat lol. I think I was around 15 weeks. It was the coolest thing ever though when I did find it.

I found it at 9 weeks with a home Doppler. Didn't try it before then.

I actually found it with this pregnancy at 9 weeks. With my previous pregnancy I found it around 9-10 weeks. I didn't try earlier so I don't know if I would have found it earlier. That early on, the baby is way down there and tiny! It sometimes takes some patience and time to find it before 11-12 weeks. Just be prepared if you try early that you may not find it even if the baby is happy and healthy. Instead of reassuring yourself you could stress yourself out more.

I would say that for this pregnancy I started finding the heartbeat without a problem/quickly around 10 weeks. If you want to avoid extra stress if you can't find it, I would wait until you are closer to 12 weeks.

Just remember, if you try now, the baby is very far down. So far that you need to put the wand right at your pubic hair line, press hard, and angle the wand down into your pelvis. Good luck!

I started looking for the HB at 35dpo (that's when the valves are functioning, to make the tones ur searching for). I found it around 38dpo or 7 1/2wks. With my daughter I found it at 8 1/2 wks (same day my doppler arrived) but idk that I wouldn't have found it earlier as I didn't have the doppler at that point. With my son, 16yrs ago, I didn't have a doppler and my OB didn't check til 10wks, but he found it immediately and very loud n clear. A lot of things affect if u hear the HB or not, so if u choose to search for it, don't get too upset/worried if u can't find it. It's just tiny that early on.
Good luck! =))

A doppler? I bought a doppler during my first pregnancy and tried with it at 13 weeks and found her heartbeat quickly with ease. My doctor found her hb with the doppler by 11 weeks but when she tried the first time at 9 weeks it was too early. So I'd say to be at least 12 weeks before you try with a doppler :)