Pregnancy Guide – Week 23
Who’s kicking me??
Sometime this month you will probably begin to feel your baby moving around, as it grows faster than you do. While some experience what feels like soccer practice taking place inside of their wombs, others only feel the slight fluttering of motion. If this is your first pregnancy, you are probably still wondering if the movement was the baby or maybe just gas. Fetal movement is something that is very difficult to explain and discuss with someone that has never experienced it for themself (so try not to get frustrated with your husband if he doesn’t seem to get it). If this is not your first pregnancy you were likely to realize it was the baby much earlier, maybe 14 weeks into the pregnancy or you may have noticed the quickening at 7 weeks. The most important thing to remember is that once it really is the baby moving, you will know. It is a very distinct sensation. 
Many women will try to get someone around them to share in the sensation to moderate success. In some cases, the baby has just stopped moving all together, in others the other person simply doesn’t know what they are trying to feel. And then there will be the ones that touch and feel without invitation. This is something that happens to almost all pregnant woman. Sometimes it is strangers in the grocery store and sometimes it is Aunt Gertrude. Keep in mind that you did not give up your personal space once you became pregnant and you have every right to pull away and ask people to keep their hands to themselves. For some this is the time when you have your first “mama bear” protective instinct, and you may “growl” at someone. But do not feel bad, you are not on display and other’s need to understand this. Conversely, you will no doubt want your partner to be experiencing the fetal movement as often as possible. However, it is not a guaranteed shared moment. In the three pregnancies I had, my husband never once was able to truly feel the baby moving. Don’t fret, it doesn’t have any negative connotations, it simply is what it is.
Word of the Week
Quickening – noun – (of a fetus in the womb) to begin to manifest signs of life. (www.dictionary.com)
