Ask Our Experts: Baby Movement

During pregnancy, when can I expect to feel my baby’s movement? What is normal and what is not?

Chief Consultant Nutritionist Ms. Hong Ya Chee says:

Early in your pregnancy, you may just feel a few flutters every now and then. But as your baby grows, usually by the end of the second trimester, the kicks should grow stronger and more frequent and you’ll be able to feel your baby’s kicks, jabs, and elbows.

Here is a guide to your baby’s possible movements:

Week 12: Your baby should start to move, but you probably won’t be able to feel anything, because the baby is still so small.

Week between 16 and 25: Some pregnant women will start to feel tiny butterfly-like flutters. The feeling might just be gas, or it might be the baby moving. In Week 20, by this point in your baby’s development, you may start to really feel your baby’s first movements, called “quickening.” If this is your first pregnancy, you may not feel your baby move until closer to 25 weeks. By the second pregnancy, some women start to feel movements as early as 13 weeks.

Week 28: Your baby is moving often now. Some of the kicks and jabs may take your breath away.

Week 32: You may feel fewer kicks and jabs after the 32nd week as your baby gets bigger and has less room to move around in the uterus.

Week 36: Your uterus is getting crowded as the baby grows, and movements should slow down a bit.

If you are counting, it helps to chart your baby’s kicks so that you can keep track of your baby’s normal patterns of movement. To count movements, pick a time when your baby is usually most active (often, this is right after you’ve eaten a meal). Get into a comfortable position either sitting down in a comfortable chair or lying on your side.

According to American College of Obstetricians and Gynecologists pregnant mothers should feel at least 10 movements within a two-hour period. If you don’t feel your baby move 10 times by the end of two hours, try again later in the day. If you still don’t feel at least 10 movements within another two-hour period, or the movements have slowed significantly, please seek the advice from your doctor.