Around week 20, many people usually feel the first movements here and there, every now and then. At first, you may not be sure what it was that you felt, could it be my baby? Many describe the first movements as flounder or a tweak. Something obscure that reappears when you least expect it. But over time and as the child grows, it becomes clearer and happens more frequently. Then you might even feel confident that what you felt a few weeks ago was in fact a movement from your baby.
So far, there are no guidelines for how often you should feel movements. If you have the placenta placed in the front wall, it is also completely normal if it takes a few more weeks before you feel the first kicks. When the placenta is placed in the front of the uterus, it lies like a protected pillow between your skin and your baby and therefore dampens the feeling of the movements. The placement of the placenta is looked at during the routine ultrasound checks during weeks 18-20. Sometimes this may explain why you may have difficulty feeling movements. But when the pregnancy changes, the placenta usually moves to the uterus and you will then feel the kicks more clearly.
Sources:
- Akselsson A, Lindgren H, Georgsson S, Pettersson K, Steineck G, Skokic V, Rådestad I. Mindfetalness to increase women's awareness of fetal movements and pregnancy outcomes: a cluster-randomised controlled trial including 39 865 women. BJOG. 2020 Jun;127(7):829-837. doi: 10.1111/1471-0528.16104. Epub 2020 Feb 8. PMID: 31971325.
- Kaplan, A. (red.) (2009). Lärobok för barnmorskor. (3., omarb. uppl.) Lund: Studentlitteratur.
- Myles, M.F., Marshall, J.E. & Raynor, M.D. (red.) (2014). Myles textbook for midwives. (16th edition). Edinburgh: Elsevier.