Welcome to the 36th Week of pregnancy! In your last month of pregnancy, you can go into labor just about any time now- so be prepared. Now is the time to double check that your hospital bag is packed, and read up on the labor and delivery sections of your favorite pregnancy books. In no time, you will be a mommy!
What you may be experiencing
It may seem even harder to get a good night sleep! As the baby drops into the pelvis, the pressure on your bladder increases making trips to the bathroom more frequent. Luckily, a dropping baby does ease the pressure on your stomach and lungs, so you are hopefully breathing a bit easier these days if nothing else.
Braxton Hicks contractions, which will become a bit more uncomfortable the closer you are to delivery, should be coming more frequent at this point. Some moms don’t even notice them however; it just depends on your activity level and threshold for pain.
Your Baby
Your baby weighs in about around 5 or 5 and half pounds, and will continue to gain about half a pound a week. Your own weight will begin to stabilize at this point; in fact some moms even lose a few pounds in the home stretch. Inside the womb, you may notice that your baby begins to become less active as space is limited. Continue to do your kick counts, paying attention to every roll, squirm, and wiggle.
Concerns or Points of Interest
It is around this time that your doctor will do their first internal exam of your cervix. They will check to see the position of the baby as well as how dilated or effaced you may be. It is important to remember that such an exam isn’t a predictor of when you will go into labor. Some moms walk around for weeks partially dilated, while someone that isn’t dilated at all may give birth tomorrow.