Week 39

Your baby is now the size of a watermelon and they might have settled lower down in your belly in preparation for birth. It’s normal to feel tired, anxious, and even impatient, but remember, you’re almost at the finish line.

With only a week or so to go until your due date, your baby is now roughly 50-51cm long and gaining around 1oz a day in weight. If this is your first baby, by now it’s likely that their head will have dropped into your pelvis – if not yet, it will do soon. The bones in their skull are not yet joined, which means they can slide over each other and overlap during birth as their head passes through your cervix. Your baby is now starting to shed the vernix caseosa – the greasy, white substance which has kept their skin protected inside your womb.

Lots of mums feel tired, uncomfortable and impatient at this stage. If you can, try to use this time to rest – even if it’s late, your labour will happen when your baby’s ready and when it does, it may be long and tiring. The more rested you are now, the more energy you’ll have for labour and the first few weeks with your new baby.

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Remember; if you have any concerns about anything baby related, give our Careline team a call on 800 6458 6262 (UAE)/ +971 4 420 9489 (Other countries) between the hours of 9am and 6pm Saturday to Thursday. Chances are, they’ll have been through it themselves and will know just how you’re feeling.