Can someone please explain in simple terms how to 'count the kicks'???

[allchik]

Hi all, I'm currently 28 weeks so really want to start consciously monitoring my babies movements so that I will hopefully be aware of any changes.
Have looked on lots of websites and downloaded a few apps but find it all a bit confusing to be honest.
Some places say to monitor from 9-5, I just dont think that would work for me, I don't notice the baby move at work really (secondary school teacher/quite a noisy active job)....can you monitor movements over an hour in the evening instead? If so what should I be looking for?
Tend to 'wake with the baby moving' from about 4.30am onward and then as said before dont feel much from 9am (unless just not noticing)
Would really appreciate any tips/advice, thank you :)

My MW told me they don't tend to count the kicks any more as it led to over anxiety. Instead she said you get to know your baby's normal patterns and when it deviates from that then they want to know. Am 39+4 and there is a definite sleep/waking pattern and has been for last 10 weeks. Can almost set my watch to it!!

i asked my midwife as i am busy i dont tend to spend all day thinking about little man kicking. she said if i think i havnt felt him in a while to lie down/relax count for two hours and in them two hours there should be 10 kicks or more. it has been working for me so far.

I know baby has long very active wriggle periods in the late morning, evening and at bedtime. If I stretch out my stomach or massage sticky out bits he'll also get active for a few minutes while he repositions himself. If I didn't feel movements at around those times in a day I'd call someone.
Just when you feel a lot of movement look at the time of day or what your doing and a pattern should emerge for you to follow.

Ok, personally I got really really concerned with monitoring movement and I agree the advice is contradictory at best. For example one website I read said 10 movements an hour, while one (very rude and stupid) midwife said 10 movements in 24 hours.
Basically what I found best for me was having an awareness of how much my baby tends to move without actually counting. For example I usually found at around 28 weeks (I'm currently 39 weeks) that she was particularly active between 10am and noon, then quieter in the afternoon, then busier in the evening. Unless I felt that there was less that usual, I wouldn't really count on a daily basis.
Often when I felt I was having a quiet day, I would sit and count and realise that actually I had got up to 20 movements (this is why the '10 moves in 24 hours' seemed like bollocks to me) in 2 hours- but because the movements were small or just 'moves' rather than full kicks, I hadn't really noticed before.
So basically I would urge you to have an awareness of how much your baby moves without actually obsessing about counting. If you do want to have a count, pick a time when baby is usually active and sit still.
I just think ignore any and all advice you read online (including 'Count The Kicks' which is confusing and littered with grammatical errors). Trust your instincts and get to know your baby's routine.
And obviously if you are ever concerned, go straight in to get monitored. Be aware that babies do have quieter days- this is the time I particularly paid attention.

Info here from NCT matches terilou's midwife's advice - 10 kicks in 2 hours lying down www.nct.org.uk/pregnancy/your-babys-movements-womb

OP, I also work all day (at 30 weeks) and don't usually feel kidlet moving while I am working. But when I sit still then I am more aware of him moving. I had a bit of a weird moment last night when I woke up and thought I'd not felt him for a while, but then he booted me in the liver, and I went back to sleep.

I was told to do the kick counts if you think kidlet is not moving as you are used to feeling. Have a glass of water, lie down and do a count. Otherwise, as others have said, just monitor usual patterns.

Thankyou all so much,ur advice seems much more sensible x x x

I've been asking about this and looking it up and I'm still confused

some say 10 EPISODES of movements every day (and advise against counting individual kicks, this includes my consultant)

Others say 10 individual kicks in an hour but you should check in 2 separate hours during the day. This doesn't work for me because I don't have 2 times in the day when I have an hour free to really concentrate on this

just to complicate things, today my MW said to make sure that you do not count hickups