Comments on: Kick This: Another Pointless Device for the Paranoid Parent

By: Catherine

Catherine — Tue, 14 Jul 2009 19:09:58 +0000

I have to respectfully disagree with your conclusion that kick counts are unnecessary in low risk pregnancies. I had a normal (low risk) pregnancy and my son was stillborn at 35 weeks. There is nothing worse than the knowledge that but for a little “scary information” I may have been able to save his life.

Let’s stop acting like we’re fragile flowers who can only handle the butterflies and rainbows version of pregnancy and childbirth. Let’s truly empower women and share with them that one in 160 births will be a stillbirth…and most are due to unexplained causes. I’d prefer information, thank you…even if it’s scary…or wrapped up in a silly electronic gadget.

By: Jamie Ervin

Jamie Ervin — Tue, 07 Jul 2009 19:07:40 +0000

Anytime I was worried that the baby wasn’t moving much, I’d drink something sweet (like orange juice) and lay down for 30 minutes… it never failed that the little one would wake up and move like a crazy bean.

If you’re really paranoid, you can do your own “kick count” by making tally marks while laying down.

By: Shotgun Mary

Shotgun Mary — Tue, 07 Jul 2009 04:49:28 +0000

I wonder what OBs think of things like this. My midwife had me doing kick counts every day from 26 weeks on. My backup OB told me that kick counts were pointless. I stuck with the MW’s advice.

I’m getting fed up with all of these devices that make women think there is even more to worry about than there really is. Its kind of like the Duracell commercial when the lady doesn’t see her kid right away, assumes he’s been abducted by child molesting aliens and then relies on her Duracell batteries to power her child locating device.

By: Crimson Wife

Crimson Wife — Fri, 03 Jul 2009 20:25:28 +0000

I’ve always been told to do kick counts, but have just used a stopwatch and a scrap piece of paper.

I would have to disagree with the assertion that going to see one’s OB/midwife if the baby has decreased movement is unnecessary. I have a friend whose baby needed an emergency c-section because there was a previously undetected problem with the placenta. The way she found out about it was that she noticed decreased movement and saw her doctor. Had she ignored her symptoms, it’s likely her baby would have died in utero. The pregnancy had been considered low-risk up until that point.

By: Sharon

Sharon — Fri, 03 Jul 2009 14:35:11 +0000

I find it odd that scare tactics like this are acceptable and permitted to sell a kick counter but REAL health issues like diabetes, infectious diseases, and other health complications are not permitted to be mentioned when promoting things like breastfeeding and natural birthing. This double standard has been around for a long time and regulates our opinions and thoughts on these issues.

If I had not had so much fear when I was pregnant I do not thing either of my pregnancies would have been so problematic. Sometimes it feels like the average person is at war with commerce.

By: TO Doula

TO Doula — Fri, 03 Jul 2009 14:33:59 +0000

Wow. But then I see dads who want to track contractions on excel spreadsheets.

Have you seen the $125 device that will tell you what your baby’s cry means?

(And don’t get me started on home dopplers!)

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Fri, 03 Jul 2009 13:54:31 +0000

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By: TheFeministBreeder

TheFeministBreeder — Fri, 03 Jul 2009 13:51:06 +0000

Yeah, that thing is stupid.