The weeks pass, and I will get to know you soon. Already at 33 weeks! Wow! Since the 20-week ultrasound, time is flying. Your room is ready, and I am relieved because I want to focus on you and your mother when you arrive.

I am so proud of your mother! She says she’s fine, but I can see how the pregnancy has been physically demanding on her. She has difficulty bending over, she walks funny, legs spread apart, and she rolls over in bed to get out! You might laugh, but you didn’t see her get out of the car, she’s hilarious! I try to help her, but boy is it fun to watch! Last weekend we prepared some meals that we put in the freezer to make sure that the return home goes smoothly after your birth.

I must say that after our last appointment, the doctor scared me when he said labour had started in your mother’s cervix. I really didn’t know what to say, but I understood better when he said her cervix was soft, 50% effaced and not really open. I then realised that the doctor was saying that she wasn’t in active labour and that her cervix was changing to get ready for childbirth. Yes! Even if there are no contractions, your weight can change the cervix without noticing it. I remember I learned that in prenatal classes. Right now, given how many weeks of the pregnancy we have gone through, everything is going well. When your mom feels stretching at the bottom of her tummy at night, I run her a warm/hot bath to soothe her and help stop the increasingly frequent contractions she feels after having been on her feet for long periods during the day. A maternity nurse told me to do this last week when I called in. She suggested the bath before going to the hospital, since the contractions weren’t regular, and her water hadn’t broken. You must think I was stressed, but I really don’t want you to arrive too early. That would mean that we’d have to leave you in the neonatology ward under supervised care! Stay in your oasis for now! I’ll be there when you come, don’t worry. You now weigh 2-3.4 kg and measure 40-51 cm.

Practical Advice :

• Mom, prepare your suitcase for your stay in the hospital. Don’t wait until the last minute! You’ll be even more stressed. To help avoid forgetting things, you can read a list of things you should bring.
  
• For your next appointment, you can expect the caregiver to take a sample from the side of the vagina and anus to check for the presence of strep-B. This preventative procedure started around 1990, and it helps avoid complications and infections for the new mother and baby. The presence of strep-B is likely due to strep-B found in the mother’s gastrointestinal tract.
• The routine preventative sample is taken between 35 and 37 weeks of pregnancy. Between 20-30% of mothers carry it, meaning the test will be positive. If it’s your case, you will probably take antibiotics during labour in the hospital to limit the contamination risk for your baby during delivery. This applies for mothers who tested positive during a previous pregnancy, or who had a baby who had a neonatal infection.

Here are some suggestions to learn more about what’s happening to you and to help you prepare for what’s coming.

Videos:

• Support during delivery
• Returning home after childbirth
• Childbirth in a birthing center
• Natural childbirth in a hospital

Articles:

• Infant formulas
• Caesarean section or not?
• Relaxation and labour
• Induction
• Ultrasounds and breastfeeding

Marie
The Baby Expert

Please share your experiences in the comments section.

Come back soon read: My 35-36 weeks of pregnancy to learn more.