Feels Like Baby Kicking but Im Not Pregnant

Start flutters, pint-size punches and itty fragmentary baby kicks have to be some of the near incredible sensations that come with pregnancy. However, it tin exist a petty alarming (and downright terrifying) when phantom kicks occur from inside when yous are not pregnant (or, at to the lowest degree, y'all didn't remember you are).

Countless mums experience phantom kicks – the distinctive awareness that a baby is boot from within – long subsequently they've given nascence. Simply why? Could they be pregnant without realising information technology? Or is something else going on?

What are phantom kicks?

Phantom kicks are the awareness of a baby kicking in your womb when you're non actually pregnant.

There are a few reasons why you could be feeling phantom kicks subsequently having a baby. If y'all accept given nascence in the by few months, and then it may simply be the sensation of your uterus contracting, which is often mistaken for baby kicks.

"Because the uterus can take several months to render to its previous country a mother may experience the sensation of kicks for long periods post-obit pregnancy," Dr Nick Petrovic, Head of Clinic at the Mind Contour Psychology Dispensary explains.

Some other theory is that the stretching of your belly and uterus during pregnancy ramps up the growth of nerve receptors. It could be that these receptors call up they're notwithstanding feeling movement – the same manner that someone who's has lost a limb still feels phantom limb pain.

Or information technology could just be that every bit mums, we're really attuned to what'south happening in our bellies. During pregnancy we became hyper-aware of every movement in our wombs, and now we sense every little niggle. So gas movement or pain that we probably would have commonly ignore or not even felt before carrying a baby is now something nosotros notice.

How long do phantom kicks concluding?

These foreign sensations tin can continue long later you've given birth, sometimes even years. An Australian study into phantom kicks found that almost 40 percent of women experienced the awareness for an average of almost 7 years subsequently their starting time pregnancy. 1 woman continued to have phantom kicks for 28 years.

Once more, the reason comes downward to your uterus. During pregnancy, women get enlightened of different twitches and movements in and effectually the uterus. These movements accept always been there, but that we never took notice of them earlier.

"A woman tends to pay very shut attention to these sensations during pregnancy. This habit can follow on into postpartum experiences," Dr Petrovic says.

The feelings inside your uterus play a pretty important role in your mind (after all, these kicks are quite memorable). For many mums, these kicks tin can affect the likelihood of muscle memory and nerve retentivity long after the baby is built-in.

In that location's also another theory – proprioception. It'southward the body'southward awareness or perception of its own movement and position. For instance, information technology'due south why we're able to walk without needing to really think about it. Researchers think that is why our fretfulness are still registering babe kicks, fifty-fifty though we're not pregnant anymore.

Is there whatever reason to worry about phantom kicks?

While feeling random phantom kicks for years after giving birth is normal, the Australian study says it may have implications for a adult female's postpartum mental health.

For instance, the phantom kick sensation could be related to pseudocyesis – a fake pregnancy. A woman has all the signs and symptoms of pregnancy – kicks, fatigue, nausea even swollen breasts, only is not actually significant. Withal, this condition is pretty rare.

What are other causes of phantom kicks?

Chrissy Teigen has revealed she withal experienced movements inside her belly, later suffering a miscarriage. She fifty-fifty uploaded a video showing her belly moving in a similar way to when a infant kicks, maxim, "I truly experience kicks in my abdomen, merely information technology's not phantom. I have surgery for endometriosis tomorrow … merely the catamenia feeling this calendar month is exactly like baby kicks. sigh."

look at this 😩 I'll pretend information technology's him proverb hi – information technology never stops. movie.twitter.com/5FKSE3g8cG

— chrissy teigen (@chrissyteigen) February 3, 2021

So, there you go – while some of the superpowers that we develop during pregnancy (like a heightened sense of smell and actress shiny hair) disappear once bub is out, our hyper-sensitive uterus tin remain with the states for years and years to come.

Read next …

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Feels Like Baby Kicking but Im Not Pregnant

Source: https://mumsgrapevine.com.au/2017/09/phantom-kicks/

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