Well here I am - officially at 9 months. The best month....and yes, that's dripping with sarcasm. Anyone who is around me on a regular basis can tell you that I'm hating life right now. Yes, I'm excited for the baby. And yes, it's fun putting everything together as we prepare for a new life. But I HURT. I don't remember this magnitude of pain with Carter. Pregnancy amnesia? Quite possibly. But it doesn't lessen my pain this time around. I know my body is preparing for a regular birth, as it doesn't know any better. I just wish I could get some sort of reprieve. Tylenol is a joke. It doesn't even dull the pain. Lying down feels the best, but let's face it, I'm a working mom. Lying down isn't a regular part of my day. Ever. I'm hoping these last few weekends can be filled with rest in preparation for the chaos that is about to be my life.
Here's what babycenter.com says about the pregnancy at 36 weeks:
Your baby is still packing on the pounds — at the rate of about an ounce a day. She now weighs almost 6 pounds (like a crenshaw melon) and is more than 18 1/2 inches long. She's shedding most of the downy covering of hair that covered her body as well as the vernix caseosa, the waxy substance that covered and protected her skin during her nine-month amniotic bath. Your baby swallows both of these substances, along with other secretions, resulting in a blackish mixture, called meconium, will form the contents of her first bowel movement.
At the end of this week, your baby will be considered full-term. (Full-term is 37 to 42 weeks; babies born before 37 weeks are pre-term and those born after 42 are post-term.) Most likely she's in a head-down position. But if she isn't, your practitioner may suggest scheduling an "external cephalic version," which is a fancy way of saying she'll try to coax your baby into a head-down position by manipulating her from the outside of your belly.
Now that your baby is taking up so much room, you may have trouble eating a normal-size meal. Smaller, more frequent meals are often easier to handle at this point. On the other hand, you may have less heartburn and have an easier time breathing when your baby starts to "drop" down into your pelvis. This process — called lightening — often happens a few weeks before labor if this is your first baby. (If you've given birth before, it probably won't happen before labor starts.) If your baby drops, you may also feel increased pressure in your lower abdomen (oh yes), which may make walking increasingly uncomfortable (oooohhhh YES), and you'll probably find that you have to pee even more frequently. If your baby is very low, you may feel lots of vaginal pressure and discomfort as well (check, check, and check). Some women say it feels as though they're carrying a bowling ball between their legs!
You might also notice that your Braxton Hicks contractions are more frequent now. Be sure to review the signs of labor with your practitioner and find out when she wants to hear from you. As a general rule, if you're full-term, your pregnancy is uncomplicated, and your water hasn't broken, she'll probably have you wait to come in until you've been having contractions that last for about a minute each, coming every five minutes for an hour. Of course, you'll want to call right away if you notice a decrease in your baby's activity or think you're leaking amniotic fluid, or if you have any vaginal bleeding, fever, a severe or persistent headache, constant abdominal pain, or vision changes.
Even if you're enjoying an uncomplicated pregnancy, it's best to avoid flying (or any travel far from home) during your final month because you can go into labor at any time. In fact, some airlines won't let women on board who are due to deliver within 30 days of the flight.
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