After baby is born, many mothers experience phantom kicks – what feels like a baby kicking in their belly, even if baby is no longer in there.
So is it normal to feel as if you’ve got a whole new baby kicking away inside you? Yes, it’s completely normal and it’s actually very common for women to experience this in the postpartum period, for days, months or years.
Common Reasons For Phantom Kicks
- After birth, it can take some time for all your body parts to move back to their original position as your uterus shrinks back to normal size.
- You may experience more gas or indigestion after birth.
- Having spent nine months with a baby inside, you may start to notice perfectly normal feelings and movements in your stomach that you never even noticed before.
- Some theories also include that phantom kicks can be caused by nerve memory, similar to a phantom limb.
Susannah is a Birth Doula qualified through Childbirth International. She's also studying to be a Postpartum Doula and Breastfeeding Counsellor. Susannah is the mother of two children and has also lost two pregnancies to miscarriage.
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I am currently experiencing these phantom kicks and let me tell you i was so freaked out by it i wrote about it on my blog to see if i was the only mother experiencing this. at first i was creeped out because i know i am not pregant and no one told me that I would experience this after having my baby. Glad to see am not the only one.