Fetal movements: how to count, tests, sensations

Pregnancy is an important and exciting period in the life of any woman. There is nothing long-awaited and pleasant than the first movements of the fetus. Every future mother wants to know in advance what feelings she will feel at the same time. On what week of pregnancy should you wait for the first movements of the fetus? How to calculate them correctly and what is it for? Answers to such questions can be found in the article below.

Sensations of a pregnant woman during the first movements of the fetus

What does a pregnant woman feel when the first movements of the fetus occur? Sensations in most cases resemble weak internal tremors. At early gestation they are very weak. During this period, it is difficult to feel the stirring, especially to the woman who is waiting for the first-born. Sometimes they just resemble the light rolling inside the abdomen.

For the first time to feel how the fetus moves, a woman can during the nineteenth to twenty- first week of pregnancy. It is impossible to give an unambiguous description of the feeling that the future mother is experiencing. After all, some pregnant women are reminded of a floating fish, fluttering a butterfly or rolling the waves. Others say that this is similar to sensations as with increased peristalsis of the intestine. In any case, this happens painlessly and does not cause discomfort to the future mother.

In women who are pregnant for the second or third time, the walls of the uterus are more sensitive than those of the primiparous. Therefore, they can feel the movements of the fetus already at the time of 15 weeks.

The nature of the wiggling of the fetus in the first trimester of pregnancy

During the first trimester of pregnancy, the embryo is actively growing. It is surrounded by fetal membranes, amniotic fluid and muscular walls of the uterus. If about the eighth week to do an ultrasound, you can see the movements of the limbs of the fetus. This is explained by the sufficient maturity of his nervous system. Such perturbations of the embryo can be characterized as senseless and chaotic. A pregnant woman can not feel them, because they are extremely weak due to the small size of the fetus.

How the fetus moves in the second trimester of pregnancy

During the second trimester the fetus grows, its limbs outwardly acquire similarity with the hands and feet of an adult. At the gestation period of 14-15 weeks, the movements of the crumb become more active and intense. It can freely move in the amniotic fluid, pushing away from the walls of the uterus. However, the future mother can not feel such perturbations due to the fact that the fetus is still too small.

When the eighteenth week comes, the crumb reaches already such dimensions that a woman is able to feel his movements for the first time. The timing of fetal movement may vary depending on whether the expectant mother expects the first-born, or is a repeated pregnancy.

During this period, the fetus does not take any particular place inside the mother, so the tremors can be felt in various parts of the abdomen. The Kid finds to itself different employment: knocks legs and handles, holds on an umbilical cord, twists a head. The tremors acquire greater intensity when the fruit is turned over. In this case, you can see how the belly of the future mother changes its shape. A question that worries the pregnant woman after she felt the first stirring of the fetus: "How to count them correctly and whether it is necessary to do this?" Targeted fixation of the movements of the baby to do during the second trimester is not worth it. You should just enjoy these pleasant moments.

Features of the movements of the fetus in the third trimester of pregnancy

At the beginning of the third trimester the fruit intensively turns over and assumes such poses, in which it is comfortable. When the thirty-thirty-second week of pregnancy comes, it occupies a position in which it will be before delivery. Most often the crumb is placed upside down. This position is correct. The fetal movement in the head presentation is most pronounced in the upper part of the abdomen of the pregnant woman. If a crumb is placed with the buttocks or legs down, its movements are best seen in that part of the abdomen, which is located near the inguinal region.

At the approach of the moment of childbirth, a woman will increasingly feel the perturbations and tremors in the places where the limbs of the fetus are located. Sometimes it can be painful.

Shortly before the onset of childbirth, the crumb ceases to actively move, because it is already large, and it simply does not have enough room for strong shocks.

Wiggling the fruit: how to count?

Starting around the twenty-eighth week of pregnancy, a gynecologist can recommend a future mother to count the fetal movements on a daily basis using a special technique. This will determine whether the infant's motor activity is normal.

Each pregnant woman has an exchange card in which a special table is placed. The fetus should be fixed every day. This will help to make a complete picture of the motor activity of the crumbs and, thanks to such observations, assess its general state and well-being.

To correctly fill the table, you need to understand what is meant by one move. This is not every single push, but a complex of movements in general. That is, if the fruit kicked the mom once, then turned over and started moving again, it should be noted as one stirring. We must take responsibility for maintaining the table responsibly. After all, when it is correctly filled, the doctor will be able to determine both the emotional and physical state of the baby.

To date, there are a number of techniques for calculating fetal movements. The most famous of them are described below.

The Pearson method

The most popular test. Fetal movements in this case should be considered starting at nine o'clock in the morning. After the crumb will move for the tenth time, you need to mark this time in a special table. Until the end of the day, you can forget about further calculations. The next morning the procedure is repeated. Counted to ten - noted in the table the appropriate time.

This study does not involve recording each movement, the number of movements or the time of shocks. If the pregnant woman has felt ten movements, it means that the fetus is all right, and you do not have to worry. Pearson's method assumes that the required number of movements must be completed before nine in the evening.

The Cardiff Method

This study is also based on the principle of "count to ten." However, when using this technique, the individual characteristics of the baby are taken into account, because some crumbs are awake at night, and rest during the day. The Cardiff method does not bind the pregnant woman to a specific time for the start of counting shocks. The future mother should herself note in a special table, when the fetus for the first time in a day moved, and make sure that during the next twelve hours, not less than 10 manifestations of motor activity were performed. The time of the tenth stir must be fixed.

The Sadowski method

How does this test work? Fetal movements should then be counted after each meal. Within two hours after this, the fruit should be pushed at least four times. Such a number of perturbations will mean that there is no reason for worry or worry.

Why do you need to listen to perturbations?

One of the most dangerous conditions for the fetus is hypoxia. This state of oxygen starvation occurs when the normal flow of blood to the placenta is disrupted. A consequence of this can be various dysfunctions of the nervous or cardiovascular system of the baby. A prolonged lack of oxygen can adversely affect the mental and physical development of the fetus. In order to protect the crumb from hypoxia, the expectant mother needs to monitor the intensity and frequency of perturbations daily, starting around the twenty-eighth week of pregnancy.

During the third trimester, the woman already knows the approximate nature of her baby's motor activity. Any changes in his behavior are easy for her to notice. If the pregnant woman for several hours did not feel the usual perturbations, you need to try the following: to walk on the stairs up-down or just actively move, and then lie down and relax. Usually after such actions the fruit makes itself felt. If the expectant mother still does not feel the movements of the baby, she should immediately go to her doctor or even call an ambulance. Observation of regular movements of the fetus can prevent many unwanted consequences for both mother and baby.

Conclusion

Throughout the pregnancy, a woman should eat properly, take walks in the fresh air, be observed by an obstetrician-gynecologist and follow all his recommendations. This is especially true for observations of the baby's motor activity. What sensations can be experienced at the first jerks of crumbs? When to start fixing the wiggling of the fetus? How to calculate them correctly? The answers to these and other questions are given in the article.

Pregnancy is a special, magical and tremulous period in a woman's life. Respond to the baby on the manifestation of his activity, affectionately talk with him, iron your tummy and enjoy these moments. After all, now you are a world for the baby!