Your Pregnancy: Week 33 for Baby
By: ePregnancy
Over the next few weeks, your little one seems more like a mini sumo-in-training, as he’s going to gain more than half of his total birth weight in that short time. Even though the level of your amniotic fluid is at its maximum, at 18" long, your little guy is seriously running out of room -- especially considering that when he's in the fetal position, he's roughly the size of a soccer ball!.
Due to the cramped space, he’s still in that familiar fetal position, and you are definitely going to feel it every time he decides to stretch those long limbs! His bones are steadily hardening -- except for the skull, which has to remain soft for the journey down the birth canal.
Daily fetal kick counts are still important, and you should be experiencing the same amount of movement, so be sure to track the action and call your doctor if there are any significant changes.
The Straight Poop, and Nothing Butt
You've already learned that motherhood is not for the faint of heart. So, with that in mind, let's get down and dirty. Delivery is going to be the hardest round of cardio you've ever done (unless, of course, you are a super-marathoner or have scaled Everest), and some not-so-pretty things are going to happen during your delivery:
1.
Depending on the size of your frame and the size of your baby, you may experience some tearing in your perineal area (the spot between your anus and vagina). Some doctors prefer to perform an episiotomy when they see that a tear is about to occur, while others think the best course is to let the tear occur naturally. Talk to your physician about how she prefers to handle the situation and how you will be treated following delivery.
2.
You'll probably poop. Don't try eating block after block of cheese to clog the pipes, and absolutely do not take laxatives to clean yourself out before delivery! The nurses, doctors and staff deliver babies all the time, which means they see moms poop all the time. They'll swoop in, clean up and be gone before you even know you went.
3.
Even after the baby comes out, you aren't done. Even though it feels like it, the placenta doesn't come out with the baby, so you still have to deliver it. It can take from 10 minutes to an hour to deliver the placenta, but your doctor and partner will be there to coach you -- and just think, on the other side of it all, a beautiful bouncy baby awaits your loving arms!