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Heading into your first 8wks ultrasound? This is everything you can expect from the ultrasound itself to the prenatal appointment that follows!
Reaching the point of having your 8wks ultrasound appointment is a milestone in your pregnancy. It’s the first time you see your teeny baby bean on the big screen! It can be exciting, it can be nerve wracking, and plenty of emotions in between.
If you’re not sure what to expect for this appointment, we will be going over everything you need to know so you are completely prepared for what’s to come.
This post is all about your 8wks ultrasound!
Before diving in, I want to just take a moment to share that this is my personal experience as well as what I’ve read as a common experience for this prenatal appointment. It might differ depending on risk factors, location, your doctor’s practice, etc. Either way there is likely some overlap, but it might be different for you. Hopefully this still provides a bit of clarity of some aspects you can expect.
What can I expect at an 8 week ultrasound?
The appointment was broken up into two parts, so basically two appointments back to back. First up was the ultrasound itself. Then this is followed by an actual prenatal appointment with your doctor. The 8wks ultrasound, and all ultrasounds typically, happen first before you meet with your doctor, so all results can be discussed.
Most often, the ultrasound tech will not really discuss all that much with you during that part of the appointment besides a general looks good kind of thing, at least that’s how it was in my experience and what I usually hear from other women’s experiences. Their job is to get the right pictures, and the doctor’s job is to discuss it with you. You might get a few bits and pieces of info from the tech though, and of course can always ask questions.
For the 8wks ultrasound, both me and my husband were called back. At my doctor’s practice, you were allowed to bring one guest with you.
We went to the ultrasound room, which was a small room with the ultrasound machine, the reclining chair for me to lay on, and another chair for your guest to sit on. At the front of the room is a monitor so you can see what’s going on in the ultrasound.
For the 8wks ultrasound, it is transvaginal ultrasound, meaning the ultrasound probe is inserted and not used on your belly. Baby is much too small at that point to see with the stomach ultrasound.
While not the most comfortable thing in the world, it really isn’t all that bad at all. It’s lubricated and more awkward than anything else.
Once we were brought back, I undressed from the waist down and was given the paper gown to place on top of myself. I got in the chair, and placed my feet in the stirrups, like a typical chair you use at an OB’s office.
Then we got going!
It was relatively quick. First she got all the pictures and measurements that she needed. For this portion she had the monitor off, I’m not sure if that’s normal. She clicked around with her machine and measured various things.
Once she was done with this, she turned on the monitor and we could see the baby up on the screen. At this point we didn’t know if baby was a boy or girl. Baby is just a tiny little thing, around the size of a raspberry.
We could make out the head and body, they were about the same size each! And we could see little arms, legs, and even tinier fingers.
I asked if the baby would move, and she said it depends. Our baby gave us a small head nod right when I asked, but other than that didn’t move.
Can you detect heartbeat at 8 weeks?
Yes! You van via a transvaginal ultrasound. You cannot hear the heartbeat with a doppler at that early though.
We got to see the heart beating, which was really clear up on the monitor. I didn’t realize it would be so obvious that that’s what it was! But it was there flickering away. She let us know that it beats fast at this age – some people use the heartbeat to predict gender, but that’s not a reliable indicator.
She printed out a few pictures, then told me it was time to clean up! I got a paper towel or two to wipe off the lubrication, then got dressed. She handed us the pictures, then we went back to the waiting room to wait for the next appointment with my OB.
Can you tell gender at 8 week ultrasound?
You cannot tell the gender at the 8 wks ultrasound, baby is much too small to see details of any kind. You can’t tell the gender via ultrasound until further along in the pregnancy, however blood tests allow you to find out starting at 10 weeks through the NIPT test.
What happens at a 8 week prenatal appointment?
Once I was called back for the second time, it was time for the 8 week prenatal appointment. My husband was allowed to come back as well, but since I didn’t really know what was going to happen, I didn’t have him come. I should have had him come back! I just didn’t know.
First they had me pee in a cup.
Then the nurse came in and asked a few basic questions about symptoms and took my blood pressure. Next, I waited for the doctor.
The doctor came in and we went over that everything looked good with our ultrasound! Yay! She was also able to give me my estimated due date based on my last period and the ultrasound.
She went over some very basic things with me, like what foods to avoid, the general schedule of upcoming appointments throughout my pregnancy, and a few other things. Once that was done, I could ask any questions I had.
I had been dealing with pretty bad nausea from my first positive pregnancy test, which I had already called in about before my 8 week prenatal appointment. What the originally recommended hadn’t been working, so my doctor prescribed me something new to try.
Of course the conversations that happen at the first prenatal appointment are going to vary depending on your risk factors, how your ultrasound looks, the questions you have, your doctor’s practice, etc.
After our chat, a new nurse came in to take some blood.
Pro tip – if you tend to feel faint when getting your blood drawn, ask to get it drawn while laying down. It’s a night and day difference for me!
How many prenatal visits total during pregnancy?
It may vary, but this is what my experience was and what I hear to be the common experience.
First appointment is at 8 weeks. From 8-24 weeks you’ll go every 4 weeks. These prenatal appointments vary somewhat, some you get blood taken, some it’s just a low key check in. For all you likely will check in with the baby via the doppler, not an ultrasound.
After 24 weeks you start going every 2 weeks, and at 36 weeks it will switch to every week.
It may be more frequent depending on your risk factors. I had to increase my frequency after being diagnosed with gestational diabetes. Instead of more prenatal appointments with my OB, I maintained the same frequency with her and went weekly in addition to those to a high risk doctor. Once I was diagnosed I was going back and forth to these appointments constantly!
What weeks do you get ultrasounds during pregnancy?
If you have a healthy pregnancy, then you will have ultrasounds at week 8, week 20 for your anatomy scan, and week 36.
If you are high risk then it may vary.
After being diagnosed with GD, I had weekly appointments with my high risk doctor (starting at around 30 weeks), where I had an ultrasound every single appointment. It was a lot of appointments, but also nice to check in and see my baby weekly!
When should you start prenatal visits?
They typically start at 8 weeks, but if you find out you’re pregnant after that 8 week mark, that’s okay. Just call and make one for as soon as you can!
I hope that gives you a clear idea of what to expect for your 8wks ultrasound and the prenatal appointment that follows. Wishing you an easy and healthy pregnancy!
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