Baby's movements, the sign you should never wait on

Your baby's movements are one of the clearest ways they tell you they are well. You will usually start to feel them somewhere between 16 and 24 weeks, often later with a first pregnancy. As the weeks go on, you will come to know your own baby's pattern: when they are usually busy, when they tend to rest, and what their kicks, rolls and wriggles feel like to you. That personal pattern is the thing that matters, not a fixed number of kicks.

The single most important message is this: if you think your baby is moving less than usual, or their movements have changed, contact your maternity unit straight away. Do not wait until tomorrow, do not wait for your next appointment, and do not try to wait it out at home. This is true at any time of day or night. Most of the time everything is fine and you will be reassured quickly, but a change in movements can occasionally be the first sign that a baby needs help, and being seen promptly is what makes the difference.

Let us clear up some myths, because they cause real harm. Babies do not 'run out of room' and slow down at the end, healthy babies keep moving right up to and during labour. A cold drink, a sugary snack or lying on your side may make you notice movements more, but if you have already noticed they are reduced, do not use these as a test to reassure yourself and delay calling. And a home doppler that picks up a heartbeat is not reassurance about movements, a heartbeat now does not tell you how your baby is doing over the next hours. If movements are reduced, be checked properly.

If you have already been in once with reduced movements and it happens again, come back, even if last time was fine. Repeated episodes are taken seriously, and you should never feel you have used up your turn. Every episode is assessed on its own.

This guidance applies equally whatever your skin tone or background, but it is worth naming that Black and Asian women in the UK face higher rates of stillbirth, and that delays in being listened to are part of that picture. So please be firm: if your baby's movements have changed, say clearly, 'I am worried about my baby's movements and I would like to be seen.' You are entitled to that, every single time. This is placeholder content pending review by our midwife, Dumebi, the clinical message, however, is settled and unlikely to change.