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It’s Week 33 and that means only 7 weeks to go.
But babies have their own agenda and don’t always arrive on their due date. Most turn up somewhere between 37 and 41 weeks, although you could be in the 4% that pop out on the date you expect.
You’re moving into a challenging part of your pregnancy, desperate to meet your baby and dealing with aches and pains all over your body. It’s normal to struggle with walking now and what feels like constant pain in your back and legs. You’ve probably developed a bit of duck waddle and you might notice your bump feels tender or bruised too. If anything doesn’t feel right or the pain gets worse then call your midwife or GP.
One of the things that affects how comfortable (or not) you feel is how you’re carrying. You might have a really high up bump that drops down as you get closer to labour. Or you’ve carried low all through your pregnancy. Every body is different and how your bump looks and feels is affected by your body shape and the strength of your abdominal muscles. And bumps can be deceptive, a tiny bump can hide a big baby and a big bump doesn’t mean you’re about to give birth to a giant.
What does my baby look like?
Your baby is now almost 2kg and around 43cm long, that’s as big as a pineapple. But a lot less spiky.
Your baby is now much smoother as the fat they’re putting on fills out their body, creating that that lovely silky newborn skin you’ll love to stroke.
Waters or wee?
Movies and television tell us labour goes something like this. Woman grabs her stomach. Water drips from between her legs. She’s rushed to hospital. Except when your waters ‘go’ it’s not usually like this.
Read: What are the signs I'm in labour?
- Your baby develops inside a bag of fluid and when they’re ready to be born, the sac breaks and the fluid comes out through your vagina. It can happen all in one big splosh or come out in trickles.
- It can be hard to tell the difference between waters and wee sometimes but what usually gives it away is you can’t stop them, unlike when you pee. There might be a popping sensation and of course, it won’t smell like wee.
- If your waters go, stick on a sanitary pad and don’t panic if there’s a bit of blood in it. Lots of bleeding does need checking though.
- There is a small risk of infection once your waters go so keep an eye on your temp and if it goes up call your midwife. And give them a call if your baby’s movements change at all.
- Because of the risk of infection, it’s best to skip sex (not that you probably feel like it anyway!).
- Your waters might not go before labour and very occasionally some babies come out in their sac. Sometimes your midwife might pop your waters for you.
Call your midwife or maternity unit if your waters break before 37 weeks or the fluid is green, yellow, or brown or nothing else happens for 24 hours after your waters go.
Need some advice? Head over to our Facebook group, you'll find 70,000 other mums who know where you've been.
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