Counting Baby Movements After a Stillbirth or Loss
If your baby is moving less than usual, contact your maternity unit now and do not wait until the next day. In a pregnancy after a stillbirth or loss, no source we read asks you to count baby movements differently or to start earlier. The RCOG and Tommy's advise being aware of your baby's movements, Tommy's and Sands say to contact your maternity unit or team straight away if they change, and ACOG finds too little data for specific kick count advice. What changes is the care around you.
Written by the Bumpi Kicks team at Speed AI Labs LLP. Last updated . General information, not reviewed by a clinician, and not medical advice. How we write and check these pages.
If your baby is moving less, contact your maternity unit now
Call your midwife or maternity unit immediately if your baby is moving less than usual, you cannot feel movement, or the usual pattern changes. Tell them about your previous loss. Do not wait until the next day.
If you cannot reach them, or you are worried about your own health, call your local emergency number.
What the sources say
The movement advice stays the same
The RCOG's 2026 guideline finds insufficient evidence to recommend counting to a set number and says women should be advised to be aware of their baby's individual pattern of movements. ACOG's 2020 stillbirth consensus says there are insufficient data to make specific recommendations on kick counts after an unexplained stillbirth, and describes awareness of movement patterns as good practice.
Watching closely is common
The RCOG's 2026 guideline reports that women said they were more aware of their baby's behaviour in a pregnancy after a stillbirth, and particularly vigilant in watching its movements. In a 2021 UK study of 112 women pregnant after a stillbirth or neonatal death, anxiety scores were highest at the first check, at about 15 weeks, and lower by 6 weeks after the birth.
Your history matters when you report a change
The RCOG says staff should ask about stillbirth risk factors when you report reduced movements, and a previous stillbirth is one of them. After 28 weeks, a scan should be part of the first checks if you have risk factors, unless you had one in the past 2 weeks.
More scans or appointments
Tommy's says you can ask for more scans or appointments than you are offered, including around difficult dates such as the time your baby died. Australia's care standard says a clinician may recommend more appointments or ultrasounds, and Australia's stillbirth research centre says growth scans are often offered every 4 weeks from about 24 weeks.
Testing from 32 weeks in the US
For a previous stillbirth at or after 32 weeks, ACOG recommends antenatal testing once or twice a week from 32 weeks, or from 1 to 2 weeks before the week of the earlier loss. It notes a cost: rates of delivery for abnormal or unclear test results were 16.3% at or before 39 weeks, and 1% before 36 weeks.
Planning the birth
ACOG says to plan the birth at 39 weeks unless other conditions apply, and that severe anxiety may warrant a birth at 37 or 38 weeks if you understand and accept the higher risks to the newborn. Tommy's says you should be offered induction by 39 weeks, and that earlier induction may be recommended for some people.
Support for you
Tommy's suggests asking about counselling or a specialist mental health midwife and runs Rainbow Clinics for families pregnant again after a stillbirth. Sands has an online community and a helpline on 0808 164 3332, and Australia's care standard says psychosocial support should be offered.
What each source says for a pregnancy after loss
| Source | Baby movements | Extra care |
|---|---|---|
| RCOG, 2026 | Be aware of your baby's own pattern and report reduced movements; too little evidence to recommend counting to a set number | A previous stillbirth is a risk factor when you report reduced movements, which can lead to a scan |
| ACOG, 2020 | Insufficient data for specific kick count advice; awareness of movements is good practice | After a loss at or after 32 weeks: testing once or twice a week from 32 weeks, or 1 to 2 weeks before the earlier loss; birth planned at 39 weeks |
| Tommy's | Contact the maternity unit immediately if your baby moves less or stops moving | A care plan, consultant-led care, extra scans you can ask for, induction offered by 39 weeks |
| Sands | Ring your maternity team straight away if movements change or slow | Care planned around your history; an online community and helpline |
| Australia: care standard and stillbirth research centre | Trust your instincts and contact your team straight away if movements feel different | More appointments or ultrasounds; growth scans often every 4 weeks from about 24 weeks; a request for reassurance can be a reason for a further scan |
Common questions
Should I count kicks in a pregnancy after stillbirth?
Follow the method your midwife or doctor gives you. The RCOG finds too little evidence to recommend counting to a set number and advises being aware of your baby's own pattern, and ACOG finds too little data for specific kick count advice and says best practice seems to involve awareness of movement patterns. If movements are less than usual, call your maternity unit now.
Should I start paying attention to movements earlier this time?
None of the sources we read says to start earlier or to count differently after a loss. What they change is your care: more scans or appointments, your history taken into account when you report a change, and support for anxiety.
I check my baby's movements all the time. Is that normal?
The RCOG reports that women pregnant after a stillbirth said they watched movements especially closely, and a UK study found anxiety scores were highest at its first check, at about 15 weeks, and fell as the pregnancy went on. Tommy's and Sands suggest talking to your midwife or doctor about support. If you are worried about your baby's movements, call your maternity unit.
Can I ask for extra scans or checks?
Yes. Tommy's says you can ask for more scans or appointments than you are offered, including around difficult dates, and Australia's care standard lists a request for reassurance after a previous loss among the reasons a further scan may be considered. Australia's stillbirth research centre notes that some parents want more checks and others fewer, and that neither choice is wrong.
Will my previous loss be taken into account if I report reduced movements?
It should be. The RCOG says staff should ask about stillbirth risk factors, including a previous stillbirth, and that a scan should be part of the first checks after 28 weeks when there are risk factors. Tell them about your loss when you call.
Where can I find support?
In the UK, Sands runs an online community and a helpline on 0808 164 3332, and Tommy's runs Rainbow Clinics for families pregnant again after a stillbirth. Tommy's also suggests asking your GP, midwife or consultant about counselling.
Sources
These are the sources behind the statements on this page. We opened each one and checked it on the date shown.
- Whitworth M, Fisher M, Heazell A, Royal College of Obstetricians and Gynaecologists. Reduced Fetal Movements, Green-top Guideline No. 57, second edition. BJOG 2026;133(8):e70-e92, first published 27 April 2026 (section 7)
The RCOG's 2026 guideline says there is insufficient evidence to recommend formal counting of fetal movements using specified numbers, and that women should know their baby's own pattern.
Limits: Graded A for counting and C for the pattern. It notes that the most widely used alarm limit was developed in women at high risk counting in hospital, so may not apply to a general population. The same section says women who experience reduced movements should be seen by their maternity service. The 2011 edition's step for women who were unsure (lie on the left side, focus for 2 hours, and call if fewer than 10 discrete movements) does not appear in the 2026 text.
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- American College of Obstetricians and Gynecologists and Society for Maternal-Fetal Medicine, Obstetric Care Consensus No. 10, Management of Stillbirth, March 2020, reaffirmed 2025
ACOG's 2020 stillbirth consensus says there are insufficient data to make specific recommendations on kick counts for women with a previous unexplained stillbirth.
Limits: It describes encouraging awareness of the baby's movement patterns, and taking complaints of reduced movement seriously, as good practice. Read from the full text in the journal.
Checked . Read directly from the source.
- Whitworth M, Fisher M, Heazell A, Royal College of Obstetricians and Gynaecologists. Reduced Fetal Movements, Green-top Guideline No. 57, second edition. BJOG 2026;133(8):e70-e92, first published 27 April 2026 (section 5)
The RCOG's 2026 guideline reports that women said they were more aware of their baby's behaviour in a pregnancy after a stillbirth, and particularly vigilant in watching its movements.
Limits: Evidence level 2+. The same section lists maternal anxiety among the factors that increase how much a woman notices movements. The guideline gives no separate movement advice for women after a stillbirth: a previous stillbirth counts as a risk factor when reduced movements are reported.
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- Thomas S, Stephens L, Mills TA, Hughes C, Kerby A, Smith DM, Heazell AEP. Measures of anxiety, depression and stress in the antenatal and perinatal period following a stillbirth or neonatal death: a multicentre cohort study. BMC Pregnancy and Childbirth 2021;21:818
In a 2021 UK study of 112 women pregnant after a stillbirth or neonatal death, anxiety scores were highest at about 15 weeks and fell by 6 weeks after the birth.
Limits: Read from the abstract. Three sites in North-West England. The abstract does not discuss monitoring of fetal movements.
Checked . Read directly from the source.
- Whitworth M, Fisher M, Heazell A, Royal College of Obstetricians and Gynaecologists. Reduced Fetal Movements, Green-top Guideline No. 57, second edition. BJOG 2026;133(8):e70-e92, first published 27 April 2026 (section 8.1)
The RCOG's 2026 guideline says staff should ask about stillbirth risk factors, how long movements have been reduced and whether they stopped.
Limits: Graded C. Its table of risk factors includes smoking, a previous small baby or stillbirth, diabetes, high blood pressure and repeat presentations.
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- Whitworth M, Fisher M, Heazell A, Royal College of Obstetricians and Gynaecologists. Reduced Fetal Movements, Green-top Guideline No. 57, second edition. BJOG 2026;133(8):e70-e92, first published 27 April 2026 (section 8.4)
The RCOG's 2026 guideline says that, unless a scan was done in the past 2 weeks, a scan should be among the first checks after 28+0 weeks if reduced movement persists despite a normal CTG or there are risk factors.
Limits: Graded B. The recommendation adds the condition that no scan was done in the previous 2 weeks. The scan measures the baby's size, the fluid around the baby and umbilical artery blood flow. A scan for every woman with reduced movements is not recommended, the guideline says, citing the AFFIRM trial.
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- Tommy's, Pregnant after a stillbirth or late term loss, last reviewed 15 May 2025
Tommy's says that in a pregnancy after stillbirth you should contact your maternity unit immediately if your baby is moving less than usual or has stopped moving, and can ask for extra scans.
Limits: It describes a care plan made early, consultant-led care, extra scans or monitoring around difficult dates such as the time your baby died, induction offered by 39 weeks and earlier for some, Tommy's Rainbow Clinics, and asking about counselling or a specialist mental health midwife. The movement advice appears in its list of tips from other parents. Read in a browser, because the page refuses scripts.
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- Australian Commission on Safety and Quality in Health Care, Stillbirth Clinical Care Standard, November 2022 (quality statements 4 and 10)
Australia's Stillbirth Clinical Care Standard says care in a pregnancy after a perinatal loss should consider what caused the loss and give access to clinical expertise and psychosocial support.
Limits: It says a clinician may recommend more appointments, extra ultrasounds or other tests because the risk of another loss is higher, that worry is common, and quality statement 4 lists reassurance for a woman with a previous perinatal loss who requests further ultrasounds among the indications that may justify one, to be considered individually. Quality statement 10 does not mention fetal movements; awareness of movements is covered for all women elsewhere in the standard.
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- Centre of Research Excellence in Stillbirth, Care Around Loss: Pregnancy care with your maternity care team, no date shown
Australia's Stillbirth Centre of Research Excellence says extra growth scans may be offered in a pregnancy after loss, often every 4 weeks from about 24 weeks.
Limits: It says some parents want more checks around the week their previous baby died and others want fewer, and that neither choice is wrong; and that if a baby's movements feel different, to trust your instincts and contact your team straight away.
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- American College of Obstetricians and Gynecologists and Society for Maternal-Fetal Medicine, Obstetric Care Consensus No. 10, Management of Stillbirth, March 2020, reaffirmed 2025
For a previous stillbirth at or after 32 weeks, ACOG's consensus recommends antenatal testing once or twice weekly from 32 weeks, or from 1 to 2 weeks before the earlier loss.
Limits: Before 32 weeks it says timing may be individualised. It notes costs: rates of delivery for abnormal or equivocal testing were 16.3% at or before 39 weeks and 1% before 36 weeks. It says to plan the birth at 39+0 weeks unless other conditions apply, and that severe anxiety may warrant early-term birth (37+0 to 38+6 weeks) for women who are informed of and accept the neonatal risks, and that the recurrence risk is about 2.5 times that after a live birth.
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- Sands (stillbirth and neonatal death charity), Pregnancy after loss, no date shown
Sands says that in a pregnancy after loss, if you think your baby's movements have changed or slowed, ring your maternity team straight away and do not wait until the next day.
Limits: It says to expect heightened anxiety, that your team should know your history and plan your care around it, and points to its online community and helpline (0808 164 3332). It names no specific extra scans.
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- NHS, Your baby's movements, page last reviewed 8 July 2024
The NHS says to call your midwife or maternity unit immediately if your baby moves less than usual, you cannot feel movement, or the usual pattern changes, and not to wait until the next day.
Limits: NHS advice is written for the UK. Advice elsewhere differs, and your own midwife or doctor comes first.
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