Pattern of kicks / movement

[Teddybear33]

Hi

At what stage should I start to feel a pattern of movements / kicks? Am 23+3 and the only time I feel definite movement is at night when I go to bed, other than that it's much more sporadic.... It also seems sparkling water wakes the baby up.

I should add that at my 21 week scan the placenta was at the back so not blocking and my GP checked in on the baby on Monday and felt a kick, heartbeat was good too.

I can never remember exactly what the official guidance is on this, but just on my own experience: I'm 30 weeks and it is only in the last week or so that I've really found the kicks a bit more regular. At 23 weeks I was like you, tending to find that there was a bit of an evening disco most nights but outside that little pattern and I could still go for periods without feeling very much at all. I think at that stage the baby can still be relatively freely floating about and can move to direct its kicks into your back where you're unlikely to feel them.

At 30 weeks I still couldn't set my watch by a pattern of movement (generally morning and evening flurries and a few bursts during the day) but there is at least something going on pretty frequently now - I think at this stage it is much harder for them to be kicking in a way you can't feel it, so if movement is happening you tend to know about it.

Thanks Plateofcrumbs x

Exactly as Plateofcrumbs said. Even now at 30 weeks there is no pattern... just few harder kicks during a day and some small movement that feels like shuffling more than kicking...

ohhh and she stops whenever I point out what she's been up to =)

My MW was very clear with me (I have anxiety following losses) that feeling nothing till 22-23 weeks was OK (as it turned out I felt them 16 weeks or so) and patterns will only emerge about 28 weeks (if that).

She is a bit put out that kick-counting advice never says when to start: just freaks out women who are counting too early! Not to mention hemhem BABYCENTRE FORUMS competative 'my baby kicks most' threads on some less reputable sites.

I was told by mw and consultant that it takes until approx. 27/28 weeks for a pattern. I was in a pattern at 21-23 weeks and then it changed overnight- still movement but no pattern hence me asking the question. At the moment the important thing is that there is movement.

Definitely no patter here but only 23+5. I think I'll worry more when there is a pattern - I'll just be looking for deviations! Though the worry might ease after the 20 week scan...nope.

I'm 27 wks and have felt a fair amount of movement since about 22 wks maybe. We can see him moving too now. Not sure if he has a pattern as such but I have noticed that he moves more after I've eaten and doesn't move much at night and seems to 'wake up' when I do (long may that continue!). When I'm particularly busy and on my feet a lot he's pretty quiet as well. I do get a bit stressed if I haven't felt him for a while but every day I feel something.

My pregnancy app says 28 weeks. I'm 25 and there's no pattern here yet in terms of time, but activity does pick up if I eat something sweet, drink something cold or have a big poo/wee (I think the baby is making the most of the extra space that appears!).

My baby (36+3) has always varied: she has active days where I get kicked to bits and wish she would stop jumping around so much(!) and what I term 'sleepy days' where she still moves, but a lot less/less violently. If I'm tired or unwell, she tends to move less, and apparently this is normal. She's most active when I'm sitting or lying and least when I'm active - ie at the gym/etc.

Yes I was told third trimester.

Hmm, my midwife gave me the wrong impression then. I have just been for my 25 week appointment. She asked if I felt movement, and I said I did, but that it was sporadic - between 1-3 times a day for maybe 2 minutes at a time. She said "so it's just flutters then?", and I said, no, it's proper movements that you can feel from the outside and even sometimes see. She seemed surprised, although not concerned, and said that in time I should feel the baby moving most of the time, but that "they do rest sometimes". This thread has made me feel a bit better.

allduffedup sounds very confusing advice... they do sleep! :)

I recommend "Your Pregnancy Week By Week" by prof Lesley Regan, she has an excellent bit of reflection by a HCP (her)who accidentally scared a woman- about the anxiety careless words from a HCP about 'normal' movement during the 2nd trimester can create. It's very reassuring.
It's a best seller so libraries should carry it (it's a £20 hardback tome otherwise!).

Antenatal classes told us not to count until week 28 and ring midwife if less than 10 movements in a twelve hour timeframe. This is in ireland though, the guidelines in UK might differ.

QAZCX in the UK it's the same time frame but without the number in 12 hrs (the logic being if you usually feel him/her move 25 times when all's OK, 10 would be a massively alarming drop and you maybe should have called earlier, if you usually feel them 11 times when all's OK, 10 wouldn't be significant). They worded it to me as 'a big drop - like half'.

Having said all this, at 23 weeks I'm getting antsy because mine isn't kicking as usual! Still moving though, just no 'clusters'. :)

Thanks ladies. I'm away at the moment on holiday and feeling lots of movement. My husband felt the kicking fir the first time this morning which was wonderful as baby gave me a few real hard kicks...he's not really been certain of what he's feeling but there was no doubt today :-)

On a separate note one of the waitresses here told me the reason baby responds so much to fizzy water (or fizzy drinks if that's your thing) is that the bubbles are like little bombs and scare the baby.....has anyone else heard this?? If this is true I feel awful as have used fizzy water as a way to get baby moving if it's seemed a bit quiet :-/

Teddy no, they don't get scared. The guts are very noisy at the best of times, they respond to the cold and movement, instinctively.

Phew! I thought I'd been terrorising my unborn child!