If you already know you’re having twins, anticipating when you’ll feel them kick and move around may be fraught with both anticipation and a decent dose of anxiety. Will you notice their acrobatics sooner than you would if you were carrying one? And what does their movement feel like? Can you tell if something’s wrong?
There’s a big range in what’s normal for fetal movement with twins, but one thing you can be sure of: Because you’re having two, you’ll be seeing your health care practitioner more often, offering extra reassurance that everything’s going fine with your future soccer players. Here’s what you need to know about fetal movement and baby kicks when you're pregnant with twins.
When will you feel your babies kick when you're pregnant with twins?
Most first-time moms of twins don’t feel fetal movement, or quickening, until 18 to 20 weeks — about the same average for singletons. That said, if this is your second or later pregnancy, you’re more likely to feel the flutterings faster.
Where you fall in that range depends on your size and build, and on the positioning of your placenta(s). If you’re slender, you might feel your babies earlier, simply because you’ve got less padding on your belly “muffling” the movements. Placental position plays a role, too: An anterior (front-facing) placenta can “block” you from feeling flutters and, later, even kicks for weeks longer than other moms.
How is fetal movement different with twins vs. singletons?
A major difference between how movement is felt in twin versus singleton pregnancies is how early you feel fetal movement, how much of it you feel and quickly your twins run out of room. With two, you’ll progress more quickly from being able to detect each separate kick, punch or elbow jab to feeling a sort of rolling, pressing sensation in your abdomen as the babies move around in a tighter space.
More About Twins
When you're pregnant with twins, that change in fetal movement is more likely to happen late in the second trimester, whereas singleton moms may not get to that point until the third trimester.
You might also feel your babies moving at the same time but in two different areas of your belly if you're pregnant with twins.
Will I be able to feel my twin babies kick and move separately?
Some twin moms might be able to tell which of their twins is delivering the kicks or other movement, particularly earlier in the second trimester (when there’s still some room to spare) and also if the babies are settled on different sides. Baby A may like to hang out on your right side, with Baby B on the left, for example, or one twin might be up top and the other down lower.
But plenty of twin moms are never able to tell if it’s Baby A or Baby B, simply because the babies are positioned close together, making distinguishing among four arms and four legs more difficult.
How do I count kicks with twins?
Counting your baby’s kicks and movements is a good tool for any mom-to-be to try to gauge how much your babies are moving. The way it’s done is the same for twins as it is for singletons. Follow these steps:
Twice a day, once in the morning and again in the evening, note the time and start counting any movement you feel (kicks, flutters, swishes and rolls) and try to keep track separately of each baby if you can tell them apart.
Stop when you reach 10 per baby, and note the time again.
If it took more than an hour to feel 10 movements, have a snack or go for a walk, then lie down and relax and count again.
If two hours go by without 10 movements, call your practitioner.
But remember that with twins — especially since their movement gets more restricted more quickly than with single babies — what’s just as important as kick-counting is generally paying attention to your babies’ patterns. Are they usually active right after you eat, or when you’re putting your feet up to rest? If they deviate from that pattern, alert your health care provider.
What if I can’t feel my twins moving?
Your babies will have periods of movement and periods of rest, or even sleep, throughout your pregnancy. So if their movements slow down a bit, don’t immediately worry. After a few weeks of a lot of kicking and rolling, it may just be that your duo has grown to the point where they have less room for their usual acrobatics.
If there truly is a marked decrease or lack of activity in one twin, contact your OB/GYN or midwife. Your practitioner will look for a few things, including low levels of amniotic fluid and discordant growth, where one twin is growing faster than the other.
Discordant growth itself is actually common with multiples and doesn’t always signal a problem unless there’s a significant difference in size between twins. That can be caused by a problem with the umbilical cord or the placenta (which would mean baby isn’t getting nutrients she needs) or twin-to-twin transfusion syndrome (TTTS, an extremely rare condition in identical twins when one twin is getting more blood supply than the other).
Bottom line: If at any time you suspect or feel less movement from one of your babies and you’re concerned, check in with your practitioner. An ultrasound or other tests should help put your mind at ease.
How do I know if something’s wrong?
There are several ways your health care provider will make sure your babies are fine, even if you’re having trouble feeling them move (or aren’t feeling as much as you did earlier in your pregnancy). Because you’re pregnant with twins, you’ll have more frequent visits, at which your doctor may use an ultrasound to check growth and assess health.
Your practitioner may also schedule a nonstress test, where you’ll wear a fetal monitor while relaxing in a chair. This test is a simple, noninvasive way to assess how your babies are doing that can put your mind at rest.
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