Counting baby kicks: when to start, how, and when to call

Somewhere in the second half of pregnancy, your belly takes on a life of its own. First a bubbling you put down to digestion. Then a nudge you can't explain away. And a few weeks later someone at a check-up asks: "Is the baby moving well?" This article explains what's behind that question, how to count baby movements without driving yourself mad, and how to tell when it's better to pick up the phone.

When you'll first feel your baby

Most people feel the first movements between 18 and 22 weeks. With a first baby it's often later than with later ones, because you don't yet know what you're looking for. If your placenta sits at the front wall of the uterus, it cushions the movements as well, and it can take until 24 weeks.

At the start it doesn't feel like kicking. More like bubbles, flutters or a little fish turning over. Only from about 24 to 26 weeks do those turn into nudges you can also feel from the outside. From 28 weeks, most babies have a pattern: there are times of day when a lot is going on, and hours when your baby sleeps.

That pattern is exactly the point. Not the number. No two babies move the same amount, and your baby won't move the same amount every day either. What counts is the comparison with what's usual for your baby. And the only person who knows that is you.

Why count at all

Baby movements are the one signal you can check yourself at home. Heart tones need a doctor, an ultrasound needs a machine. But whether your baby is moving, you can feel from the sofa.

Clearly less movement than usual can be a sign that your baby isn't being well supplied. In most cases there's nothing behind it: your baby was asleep, you were busy and weren't paying attention, the position was awkward. But in the rare cases where something is wrong, time matters. That's why hospitals have a simple rule: if you feel less than usual, come in and have it checked. Better ten times for nothing than once too late.

Counting is a tool for that. It doesn't replace your gut feeling, it makes it measurable.

The method: ten movements

The most widely used method is called "counting to ten". You don't count how often your baby kicks in an hour, you count how long it takes to reach ten movements.

Here's how it works:

1. Pick a time when your baby is usually active. For many, that's in the evening, after a meal or when you lie down.
2. Lie on your left side or sit comfortably. At rest you feel more than while walking around.
3. Count every movement you feel: kicks, nudges, rolls, pushes. Everything counts, except hiccups, which are a rhythm rather than a movement.
4. Note how long it took you to get to ten.

Usually ten movements are there within two hours, and mostly much faster. But the number that matters for you is your own: if your baby normally takes twenty minutes and today it takes an hour and a half, that's the change that counts, even though an hour and a half is still "within two hours".

That's why it's worth writing down a few sessions. After five or six, you'll know your usual figure and won't have to guess. Lunabia has a kick counter for this: tap for each movement, the session ends at ten, and after a few sessions the app shows you how long you normally need.

When it's best to count

Not constantly. Counting all day long will drive you mad, and you'll end up feeling less because your attention is worn out. One session a day is enough, at the time your baby is usually awake.

A few things help when your baby seems quiet:

• Eat something or drink a glass of cold water. Many babies respond to that.
• Lie down, ideally on your left side. When you stand and walk, your movements rock your baby to sleep, and you feel less.
• Talk to your baby or give your belly a gentle nudge.
• Wait quietly for twenty to thirty minutes. A baby's sleep cycle lasts about that long.

If you still feel clearly less than usual after that, this is the moment where counting stops and the phone starts.

What's normal and what isn't

A daily rhythm is normal. Many babies are most active in the evening and at night, because they respond to your stillness, and quieter during the day when you're out and about. It's also normal for the movements to feel different towards the end of pregnancy: fewer kicks, more pushing and turning, because there's hardly any room left.

What isn't normal is the movements becoming fewer. The line "babies get quieter just before birth" is stubbornly persistent, and it's wrong. The movements change in character, but not in frequency. A baby that moves clearly less than usual needs to be checked, no matter which week you're in.

Also not normal: a sudden, violent, unfamiliar burst of activity that then goes quiet. It's rare, but it's a reason to call.

When to call

Call your hospital or your midwife if any of these apply:

• You feel clearly less than usual, even after eating, drinking and half an hour of rest on your side.
• You don't reach ten movements in two hours, even though your baby is normally much faster.
• You have a feeling that something isn't right, even if you can't put it into numbers.

A few things you shouldn't do: don't wait until tomorrow because you have an appointment anyway. Don't go looking for the heartbeat with a home doppler, because a heartbeat you find says nothing about whether your baby is well, and one you don't find will only make you panic. Don't do another round of counting if the first one was already unusual.

At the hospital they'll do a CTG, recording heart tones and contractions over half an hour, usually with an ultrasound as well. In the vast majority of cases everything is fine and you'll drive home again. Nobody there will look at you sideways for calling. That's the reason delivery rooms are staffed around the clock.