Many mothers believe that a sign of fetal activity is when the baby begins to push in the stomach. But this myth is worth dispelling, since it begins to move from the second month of life. As long as there is enough space around the baby and amniotic fluid, it can become active, and mom will not notice this. This is because the child is still very small, and he does not touch his placenta with his movements.
First trimester
So, on the calendar the first months of pregnancy. They are very important, because it is during this period that the probability of fetal development in the future is determined. The size of the baby is comparable to a walnut, it is so small. But already now he has determined the arms and legs with which he actively moves. Despite the fact that many are wondering when a child begins to jostle in his stomach, it’s worth it to be patient and wait until he grows a little more.
At a period of 8-9 weeks, the fetus actively develops nerve endings, muscle bundles. Since this phase is quite long, in the first trimester the movements are chaotic, convulsive, uncoordinated. However, they will be improved throughout the intrauterine development of the baby. By the 11th week, the cerebellum and both hemispheres of the brain form in the fetus. During the first screening ultrasound examination (for a period of 16 weeks), the mother and specialist can notice how the child sucks a finger or waves a pen. His movements become more coordinated and active.
Due to the fact that there is still enough space inside the placenta and the size of the fetus reaches only 55 mm, and the diameter of the chest is 20 mm (gestation period is 11 weeks), the mother does not feel the movement of a small embryo. From these figures it is clear how small the baby is, and that you have to wait a little longer for the time when the baby begins to push around in the stomach. Some mothers claim that they begin to feel the baby already at the end of the first trimester of pregnancy. However, experienced gynecologists argue that this period is still very small. And, rather, the whole point is the woman’s suspiciousness.
Second trimester
For a woman who bears a baby for the first time, the expectation of when the baby begins to push in the stomach is the most exciting. For the doctor, this is also a sign of the normal course of pregnancy and the development of the fetus. Starting from the second trimester, this moment will be given special attention. At about 16-20 weeks, depending on whether the first is a pregnancy or already the second or more, a woman may feel an unusual movement inside the uterus. What does it look like, from what week does the baby push in the stomach? At this place, reviews of mothers are very different.
The first movements are like air bubbles or a light soft touch, tickling, which is felt from the inside. For a period of 17-18 weeks of pregnancy, most women may not even attach any importance to this, thinking about gas formation in the intestines. But if you listen to your feelings, stop, if at that time the woman was busy with something, then the movements can resume. Since the baby is pushed in the very bottom of the abdomen, pleasant touches are felt by mom in this area of the body. These movements are still rare, as there is still enough space for the baby inside the placenta. The longer the gestation period, the more actively the child will move, and his tremors will be felt not only in the lower abdomen, but also on the sides, above.
By the 20th week, the number of fetal movements per day varies from 200 to 250. A woman may note that the baby's activity depends on the time of day. So in the daytime, especially if the mother is often in motion, the child is less mobile. Doctors commented on the fact that while walking, his mother “cradles” him, and he sleeps more than he is awake. However, it is worth the mother lie down or fall asleep, the child is pushing more actively in the stomach, you can say, wakes up.
It is noticed that at 25-26 weeks of its development, the baby sleeps for about 16-20 hours, and the rest of the time is awake. Over time, mom can easily determine what her baby is doing now, as well as his reaction to the situation around.
How not to mix it up?
In order to distinguish true movements from other manifestations of the activity of the female body, it is recommended to observe them for several days. It is advisable to monitor your diet and prevent gas formation in the intestines. It is possible that while this is not a child at all pushing in the stomach, but digestive problems, a feeling of gas inside can be a sign of flatulence.
In order to determine the nature of the movements, you need to listen to your feelings. Many women who have first encountered a pregnancy often wonder how to understand that the baby is pushing in the stomach. Touching the baby at the beginning is light, barely perceptible, they are repeated in the lower abdomen. This is because the size of the fetus is still very small, and for him there is enough space inside the womb to move. It can be actively turned over, and then the movements can be felt in the navel or on the side.
Many people compare the feeling of a baby pushing in the stomach with the touch of a soft paw of a kitten. It is indecisive, to catch it, you may have to freeze or stop for a moment. Be that as it may, from day to day the movements will become more distinct. Sometimes they can cause discomfort, as the growing uterus will exert pressure on adjacent internal organs.
Stirring Intensity
The longer the gestation period, the more intense the mother feels the movements of her baby. Nature and activity may indicate deviations. For example, if a child is pushing hard in his stomach, then for one reason he may be short of oxygen. In this case, it is recommended to change the pregnant woman’s daily routine and include more walks in the fresh air, air the room before going to bed, and leave the window ajar while resting. If the gynecologist has detected signs of hypoxia during admission, special treatment may be prescribed. In an extreme case, doctors recommend hospitalization in a hospital, where droppers are usually placed to improve uteroplacental circulation.
However, it is worth considering that not always strong shocks are a cause for concern. It is possible that your baby has simply grown up so much that it has little space, and each of his movements (especially if his mother is very sensitive) is perceived with discomfort. By the end of the second trimester, the child is strongly pushed in the stomach when his mother walks a lot and gets very tired. It is worth taking breaks during a long walk, putting on comfortable shoes, wearing a bandage and special underwear to ease the load on your legs.
Around the 24th week, the number of shocks and movements per hour can be about 10-15. The interval between them reaches up to 3 hours. By this period of pregnancy, the baby is already actively beginning to study the space around him, fingering the umbilical cord, rubs his eyes, can cover his face with his hands when he hears sharp and unpleasant loud sounds.
At this stage, not all the movements of the baby mom can feel in full. Doctors recommend wary if the interval between movements is more than 12 hours. In this case, it is worth trying to stir up the baby, and if attempts are unsuccessful, then consult a doctor.
First and second pregnancy: the beginning of the movements
If a woman is expected to be replenished in the family for the first time, then the question often arises of how to understand that it is the baby in the abdomen that is pushing, how many months of pregnancy can you begin to expect their clear sensation? Doctors and experienced mothers can safely say that, firstly, the threshold of sensitivity and configuration of the figure for everyone is different, and secondly, it all depends on what kind of pregnancy and what is the interval between them.
In practice, it was noticed that if a woman expects a first-born, then she will feel the clear movements of the baby no earlier than 5-5.5 months of gestation. For multiparous, moreover, if the interval between the children is about a year, then it is possible that already at 4.5 months (or 17-18 weeks) it will be possible to determine the movements of the child.
In both cases, every woman is interested when the child pushes in the stomach for the first time. These feelings make the second trimester a pleasure. Moreover, all the unpleasant symptoms of the first trimester are already behind. Starting from the 24th week of pregnancy, many women use a prenatal bandage, which reduces the load on the spine and does not feel the severity of the growing tummy.
Do not worry if the movements are not felt like everyone else. Doctors believe that before 20 weeks the baby's movements are reflexive and may be irregular. Starting from the 24th week of pregnancy, when the spinal cord and brain of the baby are sufficiently formed, the movements become more constant, conscious. Until the end of the second trimester, it is considered normal if the mother feels that the child is pushing little in the stomach. Perhaps there is enough space for him, and therefore some movements move unnoticed. By the end of the second trimester, fetal growth is 30-34 cm.
Multiple pregnancy
With multiple pregnancy, the onset of movement can also be felt in the interval between 17 and 20 weeks. However, their nature is somewhat different. The thing is that inside the maternal womb for one baby there may be more space than for the second. Or it is worth paying attention to the nature of the attachment of the placenta. If it is located in front, then most likely the woman will feel active stirring.
An interesting fact is that even experienced mothers, when bearing a multiple pregnancy, ask the question, what time does the baby start pushing in the stomach? Doctors usually say that the difference between a singleton pregnancy and twins is usually 1-2 weeks. It is also necessary to pay attention to how the baby is located inside. For example, if he is with his back to his stomach, then the movements will be less intense.
On the Internet you can find a lot of questions about how the mother feels the activity of one child during the day, but the second is sitting very quietly and barely moves. To calm down, you can go for an ultrasound and do dopplerography. These studies will show how things are with the uterine-placental blood flow, does the baby who is less active experience oxygen deprivation.
Your doctor may also recommend a CTG. In the absence of any signs of hypoxia or developmental delay, you should not worry. Moms of twins or triplets note that after birth, children behave the same as during fetal development. Those who were more active will continue to be the most mobile and restless.
Since labor activity in multiple pregnancy occurs earlier, the activity of babies by week 34-35 will be less intense than before. This is due to the fact that there is very little space left for the babies inside the womb. As a rule, childbirth can begin in a couple of weeks, so you need to respond in time to any sensations that cause discomfort. This also includes an insufficient number of baby movements.
Stirring intensity measurement
At 28 weeks of gestation, the observing gynecologist may recommend the expectant mother to monitor the intensity of fetal movements (in medical terminology, the Pearson test). This is done for one purpose: to determine the presence or absence of oxygen starvation in the baby. The time interval from 9-00 a.m. to 21-00 p.m. is taken as a measurement. It is very important to correctly capture the data. As a rule, the doctor issues a special table where marks are made, it can also be found on the Internet. Any movements, even light touches, including coups, tremors, are taken into account. The countdown starts from the indicated time - as soon as the pregnant woman felt the first activity. Then, after counting ten movements, she makes a mark about the end of the measurement.
Sufficient activity is indicated by a time interval of 20 minutes between movements. If it stretches for up to an hour, it is recommended to eat something, for example, sweet, but not heavy food. With the regular appearance of movements, it can be considered that the intensity of fetal movements is normal and most likely it is not as active as other children. For large time intervals, it is recommended to consult a doctor for advice. Cardiotocography (CTG) may need to be done to determine fetal heart rate and rule out hypoxia.
Rare movements can be caused by inadequate activity of the pregnant woman, so doctors strongly recommend more often to take walks in the fresh air. Adequate intake of oxygen in the blood contributes to the normal development of the fetus.
It may seem that if the child is constantly pushing in the stomach, then this is good. However, this is not quite true. Excessive activity can also indicate a lack of oxygen or the discomfort that the child experiences when the mother is in the same position. Also, during sleep on the back, the baby can begin to actively push. This is due to the fact that the stomach exerts pressure on the inferior vena cava, which runs along the entire spine. If you sleep on your back, then it overlaps and blood circulation is disturbed. Hence, the child may develop hypoxia, which affects the nature of the movements.
How to make your baby move
During a visit to a planned cardiotocography or ultrasound, the doctor may ask the mother to make the fetus move. This is done to change the position and study the position of the baby or determine the cause of rare movements. If the baby reacts to the actions of the mother, then do not worry. It is possible that a small phlegmatic or melancholic grows inside. It is known that about the character of the baby can tell his behavior inside the womb. That is why the child pushes in the stomach with the intensity that is characteristic of his future manners.
In order to feel the tremors, just eat candy. Carbohydrates immediately enter the bloodstream and stimulate fetal activity. This is noticed not only by experienced doctors, but also by a large number of women. Another popular way is to go to bed, as many mothers notice that the baby in the stomach pushes hard at night, and in the afternoon, on the contrary, sleeps more. Perhaps the secret here lies in the fact that in the daytime a woman leads an active lifestyle, works, and is distracted from observing her baby. When it comes to rest, the lack of movement that cradles, on the contrary, stimulates the activity of the fetus.
Light touches and stroking your tummy can also provoke reciprocal tremors of the baby from the inside. The child feels any touch, reacts to the soft and gentle voice of his mother. On the contrary, when it is very noisy around or someone nearby swears, speaks in raised tones, the baby may become silent and stop pushing. Therefore, talking with a child in a calm tone is very important, he gets used to the mother's voice, can respond to her questions with light, and sometimes even quite noticeable movements.
Third trimester
The most interesting and difficult time begins with the onset of the last pregnancy cycle. The third trimester is a period when the stomach becomes larger every week. There is less and less space for free movement of the fetus, and now the woman feels almost every movement and push of her with all her insides. The height of the baby is approximately 35 cm. If at this stage the mother feels that her baby is pushing in the very lower abdomen, then most likely he is located on the priest, doctors call this "pelvic presentation." The likelihood that he will roll over and lay his head down is still quite large.
Pregnancy is also developing intensively, and every week the baby goes through an important stage on the way to his birth. During the third trimester, a woman, as a rule, already knows why the baby is pushing in the lower abdomen or in another part of the uterus. This indicates his current position. Doctors recommend standing on all fours as much as possible several times a day.This allows you to unload the spine, and the baby at this time gets more space for comfortable movement. It is believed that if before that he was lying head up, then in this position it will be easier for him to roll over.
According to medical practice and the observations of women, the number of movements in the third trimester becomes much larger, about 600 episodes per day. Not always the activity of the child indicates that he feels discomfort inside the mother’s womb. Experts say that at a time when a woman feels tremors, the child learns the world around him. He can touch the umbilical cord, compress and unclench his fists, suck his finger. During a planned ultrasound, you can personally observe the tremors of the baby, and if possible, record on video.
When to see a doctor
As the third trimester completes the stage of pregnancy, childbirth can begin suddenly, a visit to the gynecologist becomes more frequent. He monitors the state of health of the mother and child, listens to the heartbeat, takes control measurements, gives recommendations and advises the mother to listen to her feelings. Any uncomfortable condition should make you wary and seek medical advice.
A gynecologist observing a pregnancy recommends that a woman be observed and monitored during the day when the baby is pushed in the stomach. The terms regarding when the first movements begin are somewhat blurry and largely depend on the individual characteristics of the woman. However, there are criteria in which the absence of signs of the first stirring after the 24th week indicates an alarm. Other symptoms may be present, such as a cessation of growth of the abdomen, pulling pains or brownish discharge. That is, everything that directly indicates the presence of pathology and a threat to further gestation.
The norm for the number of movements of the baby in the third trimester (this applies to the period starting from the 32nd week of pregnancy) is about 15 episodes per hour. By this time, the woman can already determine the periods of sleep and wakefulness of the baby. The reason for concern is the lack of movement during the day, if previously they were regular and active. In this case, do not wait for a planned visit to the doctor and go for a consultation as soon as possible. The last option is to seek emergency help.
Toward the end of the gestation period, after the 37th week, the baby's movements become not so intense, and at the time of delivery can even become extremely rare. Perhaps the woman will cease to feel them at all. However, even during labor, the child, moving along the birth canal, remains active. Thus, he helps himself more likely to be born. Doctors measure the number and intensity of contractions using CTG. It allows not only to monitor what kind of heartbeat the child has, but also what is his activity. This measurement is very important, because in time it can indicate signs of hypoxia and a decrease in the activity of labor.