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31 Weeks, the countdown has begun. The last stretch of the pregnancy. Your baby may not be moving around as much as she/he will be running out of space in the uterus, but your baby still has plenty of growing to do and you can expect him/her to gain at least two pounds/ 900 grams before birth.
By Mummy
Your baby
Your baby weighs approximately 3.5 pounds and measures around 18 inches from head to toe.
The baby's digestive system is getting ready to process milk. The rest of his/her organs are continuing to mature throughout this period and he/she is now passing water from her bladder. Your baby is putting their developing lungs to the test by inhaling and exhaling amniotic fluid more and more frequently in preparation for the day when they will breathe air.
The brain connections that control sensory input are now forming.
Mother
Your oestrogen levels drop after the seventh month of pregnancy. The oestrogen is responsible for swollen and bleeding gums so if you have been suffering from bleeding gums, they should start to get better from now on.
If you are suffering from backache try switching to low-heeled shoes if you haven't already and avoid heavy lifting, which puts a strain on your softened ligaments. If your backache is really bad then your midwife can supply a maternity corset which supports your back and holds you in place. A lot of women experience hip pain in the later stages of pregnancy. Some women find that the ligaments supporting the pelvis loosen so much that the joint that holds the pelvic bones together doesn't work properly. This condition is called symphysis pubis dysfunction (SPD) and is very painful.
Health
Water retention (also known as oedema) is very common about now and you may notice that your legs and ankles are puffy, particularly at the end of the day. This is because your body is having to pump more blood around than usual and combined with the fact that the walls of your veins are more relaxed from the increased level of the hormone progesterone, means that fluid is more likely to pool in the areas further away from your heart. You can minimise fluid retention by not standing up for too long and, when sitting, putting your feet up at every opportunity. Drinking plenty of water, wearing support stockings and avoiding salty foods may all help too.
My Experience at 31 weeks
Not much change from last week. I did feel like I was becoming pretty clumsy around this time, I seemed to be endlessly breaking glasses and plates. My energy levels were also feeling pretty depleted by the time evening came and I could barely stay awake past 11pm, which was early for me as normally we would go to bed at around 2am.
By 30 weeks your baby has the ability to produce tears. Your baby can also recognise your voice. Research has shown that the baby's heart rate slows down when the mother speaks, suggesting that your baby not only hears and recognises your voice, but is also calmed by your voice.
By Mummy
Your baby
Your baby weighs approximately 3 pounds and measures around 17 inches from head to toe. The growth rate in length will slow down but he/she will continue to gain weight.
Your baby can probably see what's going on in utero as he continues to open and shut his eyes. He can, distinguish light from dark and even track a light source.
You now have about a litre of amniotic fluid surrounding your baby but that volume decreases as he/she gets bigger and has less room in your uterus.
As the baby continues to grow, you may fee breathless, this is just your uterus pressing against the diaphragm. At about 34 weeks (or just before birth) your baby's head will move down into your pelvis as the baby gets into the right position for birth. That will make breathing and eating a lot easier.
Your baby's bone marrow takes over production of red blood cells meaning she'll be better able to cope on her own when she's born.
Your baby can also recognise your voice. Research has shown that the baby's heart rate slows down when the mother speaks, suggesting that your baby not only hears and recognises your voice, but is also calmed by your voice.
Mother
You have probably gained quite a bit on the scales this month usually about 1.4-1.8 kg (3-4 lb). To gain about 450g (1 pound) a week is quite normal during the last three months of pregnancy.
Getting a good night's sleep can become more difficult again in the third trimester. As you grow in size, getting and staying comfortable is harder and you may find pressure on your bladder causing you to make several trips to the loo in the night. Vivid dreams can also affect the quality of your sleep leaving you feeling disturbed or inspired. These are quite normal in the last trimester of pregnancy.
You are now fully into the third trimester. It is important that you are paying attention to your baby's movements each and every day from pregnancy week 29. In general you will notice patterns of rest and wakefulness in your baby.
By Mummy
Your baby
Your baby weighs approximately 2.5 pounds and measures around 16 inches from head to toe. Your baby is gaining around 25g in weight every day.
Your baby is increasingly sensitive to changes in light, sound, taste and smell. He/She may indicate preferences for particular tastes or odours. Whatever you are eating will flavour your amniotic fluid and it can smell strongly of curry, garlic, onion etc. Researchers have found your baby will drink it faster the sweeter it tastes.
Your baby's nutritional needs reach their peak during the third trimester. You'll need plenty of protein, vitamin C, folic acid, iron, and calcium . The baby's intake of calcium from you into it's skeleton is approximately 200 milligrams every day. The skeleton hardens even more and the brain, muscles, and lungs continue to mature.
Mother
Your breasts may increase by up to a third of their usual size over the next few weeks. You may be getting cramp in your calves at night . This is due to the extra weight that you are carrying about. If you do get cramp try to force your heel right down to stretch the muscle.
From week 29 until the end of pregnancy you will experience among other things rapid weight gain.
You are probably constantly enduring heartburn, as your tummy grows more and more each day.
It is important that you are paying attention to your baby's movements each and every day from pregnancy week 29. In general you will notice patterns of rest and wakefulness in your baby. If you notice any abnormal movement patterns or a substantial reduction in movement be sure to contact your doctor or midwife immediately.
Health
It may be a good idea to start doing some form of light activities to help your body to stretch and open up ready for the birth. You could try to find a pregnancy yoga class. This will help you to learn to breathe deeply and the instructor will show you stretches which may help you get into and maintain comfortable positions in labour.
My Experience at 29 weeks
At around 29 weeks with my first pregnancy I noticed my baby moving a lot. She was extremely active and we would lie in bed at night and watch my bump.
I am naturally slim so I did not gain much excess weight during my pregnancy so it was interesting to watch my baby move about as we could distinguish at times a hand or a foot prodding my side.
We would have great fun sitting at night watching her wriggle about.
With my second pregnancy my little boy was extremely quiet and did not move about a lot. I never saw his little hand or foot as he was not as active as our little girl.
Your baby should now start to settle down into head position ready for birth. If born now and your baby is healthy then it should stand a 95% chance of survival although it would still need help with it's breathing as the lungs are not yet fully developed.
By Mummy
Your baby
Your baby weighs approximately 2.3 pounds and measures around 14.8 inches (38cm) from head to toe.
Your baby can now open it's eyes and turn his/her head if he notices a continuous, bright light shining from the outside.
The irises don't have any pigment as yet and are a slate grey, but the pupils will react to different levels of light by contracting and dilating.
The respiratory system is still very immature, if your baby were to be born now he/she would still need very intensive care and lots of intervention and help with breathing), but the respiratory system has developed to the stage where gas exchange is possible. Apart from the lungs, all your baby's major organs are functioning. The lungs are still full of amniotic fluid and the air-exchange sacs (alveoli) will not be formed for several more weeks.
The baby is now taking on a more normal flesh colour and a less wrinkled appearance. Your baby's bones will be hardening and the lanugo will start to disappear, though some patches may remain after birth.
Your baby's brain has a fatty protective sheath around it that covers the nerve fibres. This allows the impulses to the brain to travel faster.
Your placenta will now be busy transferring antibodies from you to the baby so the baby is born with immunity to some diseases.
Mother
Your baby will gradually settle into the head down position for birth, it is quite common for the head to rest on the sciatic nerve in the lower part of your spine. This causes a sharp, shooting pain or tingling and numbness in your buttocks and backs of your legs. It's nothing to worry about but may be uncomfortable.
Colostrum will be forming in your breasts in preparation for breastfeeding this could leak out at times. If you find this a problem then start to use breast pads. As your bump increases this will put pressure on your abdomen and could cause back pain, discomfort when sleeping, an increased need to urinate.
By week 27 you have officially started your third trimester. Just 10 weeks to go until your baby reaches 37 weeks which is classed as full term.
By Mummy
Your baby
Your baby weighs approximately 2 pounds and measures around 14.5 inches from head to toe.
Some experts believe that babies begin to dream by the 28th week. No one knows for certain what they dream about. The characteristic grooves on the brain's surface start to appear and more brain tissue develops.
You may notice your baby having the hiccups, which are common this week and throughout the pregnancy. Your baby has them but is breathing
Your baby is developing immunity to infection from antibodies which cross the placenta from you.
From now until about week 30, he goes through a very active phase %u2013 his muscles are increasingly developed and his nervous system is mature enough to control some of his bodily functions. So you can look forward to your baby kicking and moving around a lot.
The rest of the time he will be sleeping. He's settling into a sleep cycle that's similar to what he'll follow as a newborn.
He's practising his sucking reflex a lot now. This is important as it will help him feed effectively once he's born. Meanwhile his muscles, organs and limbs are all formed, and throughout this final trimester he'll be busily building up fat stores and muscle mass
Mother
You may be experiencing some shortness of breath from the pressure of your uterus on your rib cage. As your uterus grows, it places pressure on the rib cage and prevents your lungs from being able to expand completely.
You may find that you spend a lot of time going to the toilet now.%u2019 This is due to the bladder completely being squashed by your-super-sized-baby... all day long.
Breast tenderness is also very common at this phase as milk production is kicking in. Other third-trimester symptoms include more swelling (known as edema)
Health
Many pregnant women develop a mild case of anaemia because of normal changes in the body. Eat lots of iron rich food. The iron supplements often provided by the midwife can cause constipation,
My Experience at 27 weeks
The pain in my rib continued this week causing quite an amount of pain. I also felt extremely tired this week but also found that napping or sleeping at night was becoming quite uncomfortable as my bump continued to grow.
From week 26 studies have indicated that the foetus can respond to touch now. You may even notice a reaction to a bright light aimed at the uterus. This indicates good optic nerve function.
By Mummy
Your baby
Your baby weighs approximately 1.6 pounds and measures around 14 inches (36cm) from head to toe. During pregnancy week 26 your baby will grow to almost 2 whole pounds.
Your baby is most active between weeks 24 to 28, when small size and ample amniotic fluid allow for freedom of movement. From 26 weeks pregnant you may notice that your baby tends to jump more or startle at the sound of loud noises. This is perfectly normal. Your baby will also start to recognize your voice and that of your partner. You may even notice a reaction to a bright light aimed at the uterus. This indicates good optic nerve function. Studies indicate that the foetus can respond to touch now.
During pregnancy week 26 your baby continues to practice breathing and swallowing amniotic fluid. Many boy babies go through a bit of a growth spurt during 26 weeks of pregnancy, as their testicles start their descent into the scrotum. This process will be complete in approximately two or three days.
The eyelids have finally separated (they were fused closed previously). The eyes are developing the ability to focus, although the newborn will only be able to see objects 15-20cm away at birth.
By 26 to 28 weeks the lungs are more ready to breathe if your baby was to be born early it would have an 80% chance of survival. Your baby's heartbeat has dropped to an average of 150 beats a minute now. Boys tend to have rates below this and girls above.
Mother
At 26 weeks pregnant your uterus should be approximately 2.5 inches above your navel and will continue growing roughly 1 centimetre every week of your pregnancy. Many women will have put on between 15 and 25 pounds by this time.
This is the final week of your second trimester. You may feel a bit constipated around this time this is due to producing higher levels of progesterone, which relaxes muscle issue throughout the whole body.
Health
Common symptoms that women can experience around this time include back pain or pressure and leg cramps. You can help alleviate some of this discomfort by stretching routinely and by eating a nutritious diet to help keep your body charged with the vitamins and minerals it needs to grow properly.
To help combat constipation increase your standard fiber intake with fruits and vegetables, oatmeal, or whole grains (such as millet, rye and wheat), lentils and brown rice. Exercise will also help, try walking or swimming.
My Experience at 26 weeks
I started feeling a really bad pain in my rib, directly under my breastbone. I thought it was indigestion at first and it just seemed to get worse. Some nights it would really keep me awake. My midwife said it was the baby pushing into my ribs. She said that because I was quite small there was not much room for my uterus to expand and this was causing pressure on my ribs. The comfort I did get was that it would go away after the baby was born but that is still a long way off yet!
At 25 weeks the cortex of the baby's brain (the outer layer) is developing into layers in preparation for more sophisticated brain activity like thinking, feeling and planning in the years to come.
By Mummy
Your baby
Your baby weighs approximately 660g and measures around 35cm from head to heel.
The structures that form the spine start to form this week and the blood vessels in the lungs continue to develop this week. The baby's nostrils are taking shape and may open up by the end of this week. The baby's eyes are now fully functional, and the baby may blink as a reflex reaction to a loud or sudden noise. Studies have shown that an unborn baby will turn it's head if a light is shone onto the mothers abdomen, proving that the optic nerve is now working.
The cortex of your baby's brain is developing into layers, preparing for more sophisticated brain activity like thinking, feeling and planning in later years.
Mother
Your uterus is now about the size of a volleyball. As the uterus continues to grow you will notice it places some pressure on your back and pelvis. In some women this cause shooting pains either down the leg or in the lower back. For some women these pains get more and more severe as pregnancy progresses.
A back condition called sciatica can develop during pregnancy. This often happens when the baby's head presses against the pelvic bones. This causes the nerves in the lower back and legs to be compressed. Severe pain often results and can occur in the lower back, leg or legs and even buttocks. Some women will also experience numbness or tingling in the legs.
Health
At around this time you should talk with your midwife to make sure you understand the signs of pre-term labour. There are many warning signs that may indicate your body is going into labour early. Some of the more telling signs include: Continuous cramping in the lower abdomen similar to menstrual cramps. Contractions that come at regular intervals or more than 4 contractions in one hour. Low backache that is constant. Pressure in the pelvis as if your baby were pushing down. Bloody or watery vaginal discharge.
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