You are 34 weeks pregnant

Your baby

By this week, your baby may have lost much of her lanugo hair and the layer of vernix on her body is thickening. It will remain almost until delivery - and you may notice a build-up of the whiteish...Read more

Your body

As you waddle around at this stage, you may feel like the baby is about to fall out of your pelvis. (She won’t. Heck, if only delivery were that easy!) You might also feel uncomfortable press...Read more

Your life right now

Every first-time mum worries about how labour and delivery will go. Will you get to the hospital on time? Are you going to be in labour for hours and hours? Is the pain going to be bad? What if you...Read more

Mums like me

On Unmedicated Birth: ‘I always say that every labour is different and every mum is different. You really are the best judge of what coping mechanisms work best for you. My best advice would ...Read more

By this week, your baby may have lost much of her lanugo hair and the layer of vernix on her body is thickening. It will remain almost until delivery - and you may notice a build-up of the whiteish, waxy coating in places like her underarms or behind her ears. Your baby has now grown to a total length of about 19 ¾ inches—pretty unbelievable!

As you waddle around at this stage, you may feel like the baby is about to fall out of your pelvis. (She won’t. Heck, if only delivery were that easy!) You might also feel uncomfortable pressure down there from the baby moving lower into your pelvis. Two happy sides effect of your baby ‘dropping’ in the final weeks of your pregnancy is that you may have less heartburn as a result - and more room to breathe! Not all babies drop, and that’s completely normal. But if yours does, you’ll notice an unmistakable change in the way your bump looks. The belly ‘shelf’ you might have had right under your boobs will move further south. And you’ll be making more frequent loo trips from now on as the baby’s lower position puts more pressure on your bladder. It won’t be long now!

Every first-time mum worries about how labour and delivery will go. Will you get to the hospital on time? Are you going to be in labour for hours and hours? Is the pain going to be bad? What if you need an emergency C-section? But here’s one reason to take a long, deep breath and just chill: You’re not alone - even experienced mums can freak out as labour and delivery approach. Keep in mind that childbirth is a normal life event that has been going on since the beginning of mankind. If you have specific concerns, jot them down and discuss each one with your doctor or midwife well ahead of time. Find out about the types of pain control that will be available to you, and ask how it can be adjusted to minimize its impact on the baby if that’s a concern for you. Talk to other new mums who have reassuring labour and delivery stories to tell, and become as educated as possible about the process.

On Unmedicated Birth: ‘I always say that every labour is different and every mum is different. You really are the best judge of what coping mechanisms work best for you. My best advice would be to read and watch. Read as many books as you can about natural childbirth, the mechanics of what happens to your body during birth, other women's detailed birth stories. Watch videos of other women's births as well. It really helps seeing someone else go through what you are expecting. Some of the stories and videos will give you great ideas - things you’ll want to try (vocalizing, focusing on a photo, swaying from side to side, rolling on a ball, soaking in a bath, using the shower , sitting backwards on the toilet, etc.) Other stories and videos will just give you a mountain of encouragement and strength.’ –louiscam

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