https://boards.hellobee.com/ Pregnancy, Baby and Parenting blog, by Hellobee en Mon, 13 Apr 2026 13:32:59 +0000 https://boards.hellobee.com/topic/tell-me-about-your-experience-with-internal-fetal-monitoring#post-2028892 Sat, 17 Jan 2015 21:57:11 +0000 fairy 2028892@https://boards.hellobee.com/ <p>@ShootingStar: ahhh okay, I didn't realize they were different, I just remembered "internal monitor". thank you :) </p> https://boards.hellobee.com/topic/tell-me-about-your-experience-with-internal-fetal-monitoring#post-2028794 Sat, 17 Jan 2015 20:07:43 +0000 ShootingStar 2028794@https://boards.hellobee.com/ <p>@fairy: That's a monitor on your uterus, not the baby's head. I had one of those as well. They're used to measure contraction strength. The internal monitor the OP is asking about goes on the baby's head and measures their heart rate. </p> https://boards.hellobee.com/topic/tell-me-about-your-experience-with-internal-fetal-monitoring#post-2028775 Sat, 17 Jan 2015 19:44:05 +0000 Phillybaby2013 2028775@https://boards.hellobee.com/ <p>Thanks to everyone for your feedback. I'm still unsure about it but I guess I'll see what happens when we get to that point. If it meant I could continue to labor and keep better eye on baby than going right for c-section or something than it'd probably be worth it. </p> https://boards.hellobee.com/topic/tell-me-about-your-experience-with-internal-fetal-monitoring#post-2028208 Fri, 16 Jan 2015 23:14:04 +0000 fairy 2028208@https://boards.hellobee.com/ <p>I was induced and stopped dilating at 7cm so they wanted to use the internal monitor to measure contractions to make sure the external monitor was picking them up properly. I already had the epidural at that point so I don't remember feeling anything for it and I wasn't moving from the bed. There was no mark on her head from it either. </p> https://boards.hellobee.com/topic/tell-me-about-your-experience-with-internal-fetal-monitoring#post-2028177 Fri, 16 Jan 2015 22:22:52 +0000 jmarionsmith 2028177@https://boards.hellobee.com/ <p>with both my lo's we couldn't keep the belt monitor thing in a position to measure their heartbeats. also with both, i have no memory of it hurting at all.</p> <p>with ds (my oldest), when they broke my water there was meconium in it, so as soon as he was born the doctor ripped the monitor of his head, so that they could make sure he didn't inhale the meconium, and it took the skin off. it looked awful. it was very tender for him and we had to put an antibiotic on it for 2 weeks. it was soooo sad! </p> <p>because of my experience with ds, when the delivery doctor for dd (not the same doctor as with ds) started talking about an internal monitor i flipped out! i told her what happened with ds and she assured me she would be very careful removing it and apparently she was because there wasn't the slightest mark on dd's head from it! </p> <p>here is a picture of the scab a few days after he was born </p> [attach=2453/15/niaxe4.600x400.IMG_4096.jpg] https://boards.hellobee.com/topic/tell-me-about-your-experience-with-internal-fetal-monitoring#post-2028011 Fri, 16 Jan 2015 20:23:28 +0000 sarac 2028011@https://boards.hellobee.com/ <p>I had that at the end of my long and crummy induction. I was already so epidural-d up that I couldn't move, so it didn't cause any additional heart ache. It didn't leave a scar. </p> https://boards.hellobee.com/topic/tell-me-about-your-experience-with-internal-fetal-monitoring#post-2027999 Fri, 16 Jan 2015 20:15:37 +0000 ShootingStar 2027999@https://boards.hellobee.com/ <p>I had an induction, and as previously mentioned, when you're on pitocin they need to constantly monitor the baby. We had a really tough time getting a constant read on the baby when I was moving, and after a while they wanted to do an internal monitor on him. I was really against it, so I told them I would lay in bed and not move. I did that for a long time and ultimately they just couldn't get a good enough read on him and I finally let them do it.</p> <p>I had already had the epidural at that point (figured since I couldn't move anyways) and I didn't feel the placement at all. I did feel really bad at the small scab on his head that stuck around for a while. </p> https://boards.hellobee.com/topic/tell-me-about-your-experience-with-internal-fetal-monitoring#post-2027971 Fri, 16 Jan 2015 19:50:28 +0000 Greentea 2027971@https://boards.hellobee.com/ <p>The monitor that goes around your belly kept slipping off and they would lose baby's heartbeat. The doc and two residents would appear. So, they did internal fetal monitoring. It was just a little suction cup on baby's head. It was no big deal. In my case it helped me relax because they could better monitor her! It was only toward the very end of my labor right before delivery when I was relaxing in bed, so it was nbd. </p> https://boards.hellobee.com/topic/tell-me-about-your-experience-with-internal-fetal-monitoring#post-2027966 Fri, 16 Jan 2015 19:39:44 +0000 artsyfartsy 2027966@https://boards.hellobee.com/ <p>It took two tries to put the IFM in and it was hell. Hell hell hell. Sorry to be blunt but I cried and screamed in pain. DH cried watching it happen. He said I looked at him and said "please tell them to stop" although I don't remember that specifically. I was only 2cm but I wnated to use a birthing ball because laying in the bed made my contractions worse. I was induced so they had to have constant readings and the external monitors weren't working well when I was up. They got it the second time and the baby's heart rate dropped and they quickly rolled me on my side and put me on oxygen and scared the crap out of me. It all turned out fine after they got it the second time and I was a happy mama on the birthing ball instead of the bed, but that was hands down the worst part of labor to me. And I had a c section. </p> <p>I'm sorry. I know that's not what you want to hear but I just want to be honest. </p> https://boards.hellobee.com/topic/tell-me-about-your-experience-with-internal-fetal-monitoring#post-2027962 Fri, 16 Jan 2015 19:32:08 +0000 Mrs. Toad 2027962@https://boards.hellobee.com/ <p>They broke my water to put the IFM in. I felt no pain (was barely having contractions at this point due to the start of my induction). I was able to move around my room near the monitor. When I needed to go to the restroom, they just unhooked the cord from the machine and draped it on my IV pole. I was only confined to the bed when I had the epidural. </p> https://boards.hellobee.com/topic/tell-me-about-your-experience-with-internal-fetal-monitoring#post-2027958 Fri, 16 Jan 2015 19:27:56 +0000 Mrs. Blue 2027958@https://boards.hellobee.com/ <p>@Phillybaby2013: God &amp; baby willing, I'll be having a trial of labor after ceserean in the next week and a half, so I can't say yet what the IFM is like but I plan on okaying it. My OB said they really prefer that for VBACs as soon as your water breaks or they break it because they can get an earlier and more accurate idea if anything major--i.e. a uterine rupture--is happening. Good luck and I hope we both get our VBACs! </p> https://boards.hellobee.com/topic/tell-me-about-your-experience-with-internal-fetal-monitoring#post-2027945 Fri, 16 Jan 2015 19:16:48 +0000 spaniellove 2027945@https://boards.hellobee.com/ <p>@Corduroy: I couldn't feel it either...I didn't really understand what they were talking about until they took it out. And by move I meant roll around, not walk around! </p> https://boards.hellobee.com/topic/tell-me-about-your-experience-with-internal-fetal-monitoring#post-2027941 Fri, 16 Jan 2015 19:13:12 +0000 Corduroy 2027941@https://boards.hellobee.com/ <p>@pinkb: I didn't have an epidural and I don't remember feeling the midwife set up the monitor. </p> https://boards.hellobee.com/topic/tell-me-about-your-experience-with-internal-fetal-monitoring#post-2027940 Fri, 16 Jan 2015 19:13:03 +0000 Lilbear 2027940@https://boards.hellobee.com/ <p>I had an epidural and the IFM hurt way more than actually pushing my 9lb baby out. My husband says that the IFM was one of the worst parts for him to witness, because I was in so much pain while it was being put in. I was stuck at 9.5 for a few hours, and within 5 minutes of putting it in, it fell out and it was time for me to push anyway, so they never replaced it. There wasn't any marks on my LO's head either. </p> https://boards.hellobee.com/topic/tell-me-about-your-experience-with-internal-fetal-monitoring#post-2027937 Fri, 16 Jan 2015 19:11:34 +0000 Corduroy 2027937@https://boards.hellobee.com/ <p>Initially the hospital said they wouldn't let me have an IFM for movement because it malfunctioned frequently. After hours of wearing the regular monitor they added or switched to the internal monitor when LOs heart rate dropped. I still couldn't move around since they put me on an IV for fluids. </p> <p>LO had two scabs on her head for about two months. One was from the internal monitor and the other was from the midwife shoving LO back in to release my water. I don't know which scab was which but they weren't a big deal. </p> https://boards.hellobee.com/topic/tell-me-about-your-experience-with-internal-fetal-monitoring#post-2027905 Fri, 16 Jan 2015 18:17:31 +0000 spaniellove 2027905@https://boards.hellobee.com/ <p>Towards the end they felt like they weren't accurately measuring my contractions. I was having issues with my cervix not dilating (stuck at 8 for hours and they needed to decide between letting me keep trying to deliver vaginally or have a c-section) and at some point LO's heart rate started dropping. I was able to move with my epidural and had a peanut ball, but they actually removed the internal monitor for me to push so I was totally on my own to figure out when I was having contractions. The wire didn't affect LO's head at all. </p> https://boards.hellobee.com/topic/tell-me-about-your-experience-with-internal-fetal-monitoring#post-2027894 Fri, 16 Jan 2015 18:02:19 +0000 pinkb 2027894@https://boards.hellobee.com/ <p>They were having a hard time keeping LO on the monitor with the external one and then I had some issues with my BP and they had to have her on the monitor so they put one in. She was showing some signs of distress. I had an epi so didnt feel anything and couldnt move anyway (I dont think you can even if you dont have an epi if they need to use it). They just told me they were going to put a little wire/ monitor in/on her head to keep her stats. She did have a little scab there for quite awhile but other than that I would have never known. </p> https://boards.hellobee.com/topic/tell-me-about-your-experience-with-internal-fetal-monitoring#post-2027870 Fri, 16 Jan 2015 17:35:00 +0000 Phillybaby2013 2027870@https://boards.hellobee.com/ <p>I'm 33w4d with baby #2 and planning on a VBAC if all goes well. At my last Dr's appt we went over my birth plan and my OB brought up IFM as a possibility for me. I hadn't really thought about it before but I'm kind of freaked about the idea of it. I want to be mobile during labor and remember what a hard time they had keeping LO1 on the monitor and that was being in bed the whole time. </p> <p>So if you had IFM what was your experience? Why did they decide to use it? Did it hurt or affect the baby's head at all? Was it a hinderance or help with mobility? </p>