News Moms Need

Your baby:

By the end of the eighth month, your baby is about 18 to 19 inches long and weighs about 4 to 5 pounds. He can kick strongly and roll around. You may see the shape of his elbow or heel against your belly. (Tell your provider if you notice any change in how often your baby moves.) Your baby’s fingernails have grown to the tips of his fingers. Your baby’s brain and lungs are still growing.

Your body:

You may feel stronger contractions this month. Colostrum may leak from your breasts. This is the fluid that comes out of your breasts before your breastmilk comes in. (Wear breast pads in your bra to help with leaking.) You may have trouble breathing as the baby pushes on your lungs. (Slow down and try to sit and stand up straight.) Your baby may crowd your stomach. (Try eating 4 or 5 smaller meals during the day.) You gain about one pound a week this month.

Your baby:

By the end of the seventh  month, your baby is about 15 to 16 inches long and weighs about 2 ½ to 3 pounds. Your baby can open or close her eyes and suck her thumb. She kicks and stretches. Your baby responds to light and sound.

Your body:

You should feel your baby move. As he gets bigger, it may feel like he’s rolling around. (Tell your provider if you notice any change in how often your baby moves.) Your ankles and feet may swell. Try lying down and putting your feet up. (If your hands and face swell suddenly, call your provider.) You may get stretch marks on your belly or breasts as they get bigger. You may have “practice contractions.”   (This is OK, but call your provider if you have more than five contractions in 1 hour.) As your belly gets bigger, it may be harder to keep your balance. This makes it easier to fall. Be careful! You may have trouble sleeping. (Try sleeping on your left side or with extra pillows.) You also may sweat more than usual.

In your early 3rd trimester, you may notice your uterus suddenly feeling tight and hard.  This can be caused by “practice contractions” or Braxton-Hicks contractions.  They’re usually painless but sometimes can be fairly uncomfortable (not wickedly painful) and they may kick up more when you’re active and then calm down when you rest.  They also can appear more often in the evening, especially if you’re dehydrated – so keep chugging that water.

How can you tell if these contractions are false labor or the real thing? Here are some general guidelines.  In false labor, Braxton-Hicks contractions occur irregularly, they don’t get closer over time.  The contractions may stop when you walk, change position or rest.  In false labor, the contractions are relatively weak and stay that way, or there may be a few strong ones followed by weak ones.  In false labor, pain usually is felt in the lower abdomen and groin.

In true labor, the contractions will start forming a pattern, coming at regular intervals, getting closer together and lasting 30-90 seconds.  Be sure to time any contractions you have if they persist. True labor contractions won’t go away, no matter what you do.  The contractions will get steadily stronger.  The pain from these contractions usually starts in the back and wraps around to the front.

OK, all that being said, there are lots of us who don’t follow these generalizations.  With both of my labors, I never felt any pain in my back – for Anne, that’s all she felt!  Painful contractions don’t always signal true labor and painless ones aren’t always false.  Oh, and what you experienced in your first pregnancy may not be at all what you experience with a second one.  So, if you’re having some kind of contractions and think you might be in labor at any time during your pregnancy, call your doc or midwife.  Call especially if your water breaks, you have vaginal bleeding, you’re in constant pain with no relief, you have fever or chills, or the baby seems to be moving less.