[GinaOfAllTrades]

when are we suppose to track them? I can't remember. And do you do it? I never realy kept track with my other pregnancies.

[Lizas_mommy]

I thought the general rule was as long as you feel it once per hour then your baby is fine.

[sfarrow3]

I think its around 28 weeks when you start tracking them. I am unsure of the number though...

[GinaOfAllTrades]

Thanks, I know my dr asked if I was feeling movement, which I am, but I was curious as to when they track it.

[Karlie]

i've never counted kicks. if i suddenly think 'wow, i havent felt the baby today' i'll lay down and wait until i feel something for reassurance but i never actively count. i dont have time for that with a 21month old!

[Wifenmomalwys]

Not sure how many weeks to do it at (for some reason 28 is coming to my mind) but I was always told to count at least 10.

[Vincent'sMommy]

I've heard 28 weeks. The book my hospital gave me has a chart for tracking them that starts at 27 weeks.

[MrsRestivo]

I thought I read 10 every 2 hours. My little princess kicks me all the dang time though, so I haven't really been counting them.

[Wren]

I just looked this up yesterday because I was wondering. I also saw 28 weeks, and to make sure there is at least 10 movements every 2 hours. They said do it once a day when the baby is normally active. I'm not sure I have time to do it. Sometimes she moves like crazy for 15 minutes. Other times I feel nothing for a couple hours.

[ElizabethS]

I'm with some of the others, I don't actively sit there and count. If I haven't felt him awhile, I'll sit or lay down, eat a bite of something sugary, and once he starts kicking then I know he's ok. I don't have that problem though because he kicks me like 10 times in 2 minutes so...lol!

I was told to start counting at 28 weeks. I never counted with my first pregnancy. My dd was always active at night and would slow down during the day. If I didn't feel her during the day I didn't worry that much because I knew her pattern. However, knowing her pattern, I always checked for her kicks while in bed at night. With this pregnancy I feel my DS all day long so I haven't felt the need to count kicks.

[Precious0013]

I'm with most of the other girls on this. I don't really actively count but if I realize I haven't felt anything I try to sit til I can count 10. But what my midwife said was ten movements in a two hour span.

[SarahBethsMommy]

Kick counts can be VERY important. We had a discussion about this recently on the stillbirth forum and it was amazing how many of us talked about wishing we'd done them consistently. Does it work every single time, no, but I can say from experience that I knew something "wasn't right" the night before we found out Bryan Luke had died, but I didn't do kick counts and couldn't be sure of anything at that point. I personally feel like if I HAD been consistently doing the counts and knew his patterns better then I'd know there was a decrease and perhaps he'd still be alive. I'm really not trying to be Debbie Downer or anything... just telling you my personal experience and you can take it for what it is.

As for when... generally as soon as you start recognizing a consistent pattern. For me, I'm doing kick count already because I know that baby moves and kicks when I'm in the shower, when my other kids are napping, and around 9 p.m. at night as I'm getting ready for bed. I know there are MANY other times throughout the day, but I recognize these are consistent patterns so I count then. 28 weeks is a good time to say you're going to consistently do them though.

I have a notebook that I keep as a pregnancy journal. I record my BP, weight and kick counts in there each day. So what I do is just notice, ok, this is my shower, I'm showering and counting. In the 30 minutes I'm in the shower baby kicked this many times and I record that as soon as I'm out of the shower. If it isn't up to 10 already (usually is) then I keep counting as I keep getting ready and record how long it takes to get to ten. I do that three times a day (those times I know baby moves).

This way, if I notice a SIGNIFICANT change over a few days (being it used to take 30 minutes to get to ten and now it takes 2.5 hours) I can call my OB and say, here are my specific kick counts over the last few days.

It really doesn't take long or is it hard. It's nice to see each day that baby is moving and kicking me. And just so no one thinks I've got more time than them...

I'm a mom of 2 kids... one is 3 and has serious special needs and the other is 4, I am a nursing student, a full time outside the home worker, and a wife. Since my son is special needs he has a specific diet, so I bake every other day to accomodate that (special breads and such). I'm not bragging, just saying we can all find time to do the things we want to do.

[rebeccabaltimore and more]

Hi, I'm a May mommy who loves doing kick counts!!! I use a kicktrack kick counter to help, and I love seeing each day how long it takes him to get to 10 movements. I keep it in my pregnancy journal, maybe one day I'll show him!!!

Here's the kicktrack: Baby Kick Counting - Kick Counts - Count Kicks - KickTrak Baby Kick Counter. I bought mine at Babies R Us.

[starrsgirl]

Here's a cool way my nurse explained it. By this point in pregnancy, you should be getting used to when your baby is active. If you feel like something has changed, and he/she is less active at a normal time when he/she is active then you should do the kick counts. My nurse said it sould be 10 kicks in 1 hour though (not 2 hours). And anything counts....doesn't have to be a true kick if you feel the little one shift a little, that counts. And, if you don't feel it, you should drink a lot of water and rest with your feet up and try again.

Also, I have a Droid and you can get some fun apps to count your kicks!

[Daffodil]

My baby has been so active and strong lately it really seems as if there's a little baby under my t-shirt...like no belly, just a newborn baby under a t-shirt LOL. But I know as they get bigger they get less active due to less room but even knowing that, I'll probably freak out in a few weeks or so, so its nice to know what to look for and when to contact the MD.

[Mom-Mom]

Originally Posted by starrsgirl

Here's a cool way my nurse explained it. By this point in pregnancy, you should be getting used to when your baby is active. If you feel like something has changed, and he/she is less active at a normal time when he/she is active then you should do the kick counts. My nurse said it sould be 10 kicks in 1 hour though (not 2 hours). And anything counts....doesn't have to be a true kick if you feel the little one shift a little, that counts. And, if you don't feel it, you should drink a lot of water and rest with your feet up and try again.

Also, I have a Droid and you can get some fun apps to count your kicks!

Really? I have the HTC droid, i am going to try to find an app.

I am w/most everyone else...i recognize babies patterns, so if havent felt something when i should, i pay attention til i feel baby enough.

[Ang1885]

I know he starts moving and kicking when I change positions in bed, after I eat, or when there's loud noises apparently (we went to see Clash of The Titans and he really liked the fight scenes..typical boy). Usually when I start getting scared that he hasn't moved or kicked I can rub my stomach to find where he is and talk to him and he starts kicking and freaking out like yeah, I'm okay! As I get closer to 40 weeks I hope I can still get him to calm my fears.

[zoed]

Wow, this thread is really helpful and supportive.

I just wanted to let you know that for those of you with BlackBerry devices, counting kicks just got a lot easier. Now you can download a pregnancy kick counter app, KickBerry (FREE until Labour Day - Sept 2010).

And if you're getting close to your own Labor Day, check out BirthBerry - a contraction timer app for the BlackBerry.

Wishing you safe deliveries!

[jessanddane]

Thanks everyone! I just downloaded an app for the iphone that tracks the kicks.