How to Take My Pulse With a Stethoscope

Use a medical-grade stethoscope for taking your pulse

Whether you're trying to check your heart rate during or following exercise, wondering what your resting pulse rate is or just having trouble feeling your pulse in your wrist or neck, using a stethoscope makes it easy. The important thing is to use a high-quality stethoscope intended for medical use. Cheap stethoscopes sold for home use are often of such poor quality that you can't hear anything. You can often find a medical-quality stethoscope for about the same price that will work well for taking your pulse.

Things You'll Need

• Stopwatch or wristwatch with second hand

Instructions

1. Put the stethoscope ear pieces in your ears. They should fit firmly, but comfortably, in the center of your ear. You should also be able to hear any movement of the stethoscope, such as it brushing against your clothes. If you can't hear well, adjust the ear pieces.

2. Place the diaphragm, or largest side of the round end of the stethoscope, against the skin on your left breast.

3. Listen for your heartbeat. Adjust the diaphragm up or down, putting more or less pressure on it until you can hear your heartbeat clearly.

4. Start the stopwatch, or wait for the second hand on the watch to reach 12.

5. Count the heartbeats you hear through the stethoscope for 15 full seconds.

6. Multiply the number of heartbeats you counted by four. The total is your pulse in beats per minute.

Tips & Warnings

• Hold the stethoscope directly against your skin so that other movements, such as your shirt rubbing against your skin, don't interfere with hearing your heartbeat.

• Don't put the stethoscope near anything loud or speak or yell into it while the earpieces are in your ears to avoid hearing damage.