What’s ‘normal’ for baby movements.

[Bubnbutton]

Hi all,

New to this
When should I start officially recording my baby movements?
It’s my first child and although movements are very reassuring some days it’s having a party and others hardly anything.
I appreciate there are no set amounts of movements to feel and to find what’s normal for my baby but hard to study... does it get easier to recognise further down the line? I’m 24 weeks. When do you start worrying? I don’t want to ring the hospital every time we have a day when nothings happening? Thanks

Hi OP, there's not really a 'normal', more a 'normal for you' if that makes sense. It's about learning about your baby and your body.

Official guidelines state that women should start to feel movement by 24 weeks then should see a pattern start to form from 28 weeks. 24-28 weeks is a weird time as baby is still teeny so the slightest change in position can make a big difference to how much you can feel and there's no set pattern yet. It's normal to have quieter days at this stage

Having said that, trust your gut. If something doesn't feel right then please call your MAU for advice.

Movements are so changeable at your stage. I only kept an eye on the pattern from 28 weeks as advised by the midwife.

Definitely second the comment above it's really about what you feel is right my baby has no pattern whatsoever and I am 34 weeks pregnant but it's when I feel hes been moving okay sometimes he has quite days but midwife said they should atleast be moving every hour once you are around after 30 weeks so maybe ask your midwife about it x

28 weeks! Perfect - thanks both so much, another 4 weeks until I do need to start worrying!

Once an hour?! Wow!! Even at night?
It really likes 3am at the moment!

Can’t wait till it does, that should give me even more reassurance all is ok! Thank you x

But that's after 28-30 weeks and dont worry they will move ALOT when they get to this stage

Yes, fab! Can’t wait!!
I will relax for a few more weeks.
Thank you 🙏

I'm 23 weeks and I'm using the count the kicks app just to keep a vague track of it. I'm consciously choosing not to panic about quieter days (often weekends because I'm moving about more) but it is reassuring to see that there have been at least some every day.

Yes - I’m following the kicks count fb page and brought a wrist band but because I don’t feel movements are ‘regular’ yet I’m putting off using it because I think it will stress me out even more.
I’m going to start wearing it 28 weeks onwards in the hope I can follow it a bit easier then.

I had a stern word with myself that I wouldn't worry until 28 weeks onwards!! It has helped me chill - e.g. Saturday was only 4 but today has been 9 periods of movements today (I'm not tracking individual kicks, just periods of movement). So long as I am feeling something I'm happy. I will worry about it more later on :)

Hey, my baby had absolutely no pattern whatsoever it was so disconcerting. I worried about movements (or lack of ) after her first kick.

The "count the kicks" stuff is out dated now so several midwives have told me. They just want regular movement (of any kind - swish rolls, kicks, jabs etc).

You don't need to start paying attention really til 28 weeks. But after that trust your gut. I went in with reduced movements about 6 times and eventually ended up having weekly monitoring in the CTG machine my last 4 weeks.

My healthy 13 day old daughter is snoozing in my arms currently.

@NishaaS123 you were told by your midwife that you should feel them once an hour I don't think that's right??

Yes - I’m happy I’m not going to worry or think about it until 28 weeks now. Thank you!

Whenever I feel anything it’s great, apart from 3am when it wakes me up hehe but like I say, gives me so much more reassurance no matter how big or small.

Thank you all!

On another note, can I ask about lying on your back?
I know sleeping on your back isn’t recommended and thankfully I sleep on my side anyway but when I’m awake and lying in bed watching tv for example I’m conscious I’m on my back too much, is that bad? Should I be sitting up instead?

@Bellsx because my baby doesnt have a pattern she said after 30 weeks I should atleast be feeling him move every hour if he hasnt moved for around 2-3 hours then I should go and get him checked but he definitely moves every hour so I guess it's all okay

@NishaaS123 wow that seems like a lot! I'm 32 weeks on Thursday and my baby also doesn't really have a pattern and when mentioned to my midwife she said as long as your getting 10 movements a day that's fine, seems like a lot of conflicting advice out there! I've been up to my MAU a few times now due to not being happy with his movements but every time he has been fine and he certainly doesn't move every hour of every day so is that now something I should be worried about?

@Bellsx oh wow really? That is conflicting that's what she told me but I guess as I said before its what's right for you because every baby is different but as long you feel right with it I suggest you follow your midwifes advice and hes been doing well so far so it must be that's fine for you xx dont stress about it I have heard alot of different advice about movements trust me I used to stress so much aswell specially when they dont have a pattern lol one of my friends said her midwife said she should feel the baby move 10 times in 1 hour atleast!? I used to freak about a lot before but I think I have started to trust my body because my baby is quite active if he doesnt move for like 2 hours I get concerned but your baby might have there own movements and it doesnt move every hour so dont stress xx

@NishaaS123 I just find it stressful to hear that different midwives say different things when pregnancy is already a worry from beginning to end so hearing conflicting advice doesn't really help. I thought I might start to relax a bit more once I started to feel him move but no it's just another thing that plays on your mind if anything changes especially when you read so many different things about patterns/what you should be feeling and at how many weeks/how many movements you should be feeling but I guess at the end of the day you know your baby and as long as you are happy then that's what's important.

@Bellsx I totally understand I used to freak out alot specially after feeling the baby lol because then you always worry when is he moving night is worst for me because I dont remember when he moved last and I start to panic but just trust yourself and speak to your midwife plus after 28 weeks they will start moving more trust me on that so you wont worry as much xx

It’s definitely got to be what’s normal for your baby. I’m currently 37 weeks but have been in to me monitored 3 times for reduced movements and once for increased movements. My baby only moved at 3 points during the day. So around 9am for about 5 minutes. Then nothing at all until 2.30/3pm for about 10/15 minutes (if I don’t feel anything by 3.30 I call the midwives) then again about 10pm for a good 20 minuets half an hour. If it moves in the night they don’t wake me so that’s all the movement I get. The pattern is good so I know when to expect movements. At 28 weeks I was always trying to get baby to move by having a cold drink and lying in my left. Occasionally it worked but most the time
It didn’t. I’ve got used to it now and don’t panic so much.

At 24 weeks there were a few times of day where I was more likely to have more movements than others. Some days the movements were much gentler. If I had a day where she was particularly quiet I had a glass of water and something to eat and it usually set her off.

Since 28 weeks I have a reasonable pattern but my behaviours can change this - if I'm more active she can be less active. If I'm quieter and lying down more she's more active. Some days her movements are gentler than others.

I've not really counted kicks/movements and tried to trust my instincts so not to stress myself out. Saturday night /Sunday I had reduced movements. I woke up at 3am knowing she wasn't moving as much as normal without knowing how much she usually moved at that point. I did the lie down and food a couple of times and got some movement but it still didn't feel right so I went in. All was OK and she started kicking the monitor as soon as it was put on. She stayed quiet for the rest of the day but is back to her wriggly self now.

Before this weekend I was slightly worried I was being too relaxed about monitoring movements /kicks but I just knew it wasn't her normal behaviour. It was a weird feeling, I couldn't focus or settle until they went back to normal again.

Just to say, it IS ok to contact your midwife before 28 weeks if worried, and you should. My midwife told me to go in and get checked at 19 weeks (!), which surprised me, because I had a significant change in movement. I thought it was too early but she insisted I get checked. Midwife advice has always been to call if worried and don’t worry about being a nuisance. Just adding this as I’d hate for someone to not seeking help because they weren’t 28 weeks yet, when they should have been seen.