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The Third Trimester of Pregnancy:Weeks 28-40 (can deliver at 41 or 42 weeks pregnant)
Your third trimester of pregnancy begins from 28 weeks pregnant to your baby's birth. Your due date marks the end of your 40th week but a full term pregnancy can be born between the 38th and 42nd weeks of pregnancy. Your baby grows much larger during this trimester. The body organs mature. Between the 27th and 32nd weeks, the movement of your baby is more frequent. In the last two months of pregnancy, your baby will be too big to move around as easily inside your uterus and may seem to decrease in movement. Usually, the fetus settles in a head-down position at the end of this trimester. Around this time, discomfort may increase the closer you are to deliver. Third trimester of pregnancy symptoms you may experience:- Braxton Hicks contractions - Fatigue - Back pain - hip pain and pelvic ache - Heartburn - Hand pain, numbness, or weakness (carpal tunnel syndrome) - Breathing difficulty: Your uterus is just below your rib cage causing your lungs to have less room to expand. - Mild swelling of your feet and ankles (edema): In pregnancy, more fluid builds up in your body. This, and the extra pressure that your uterus places on your legs, can cause swelling in your feet and ankles. - Difficulty sleeping and finding a comfortable position. The position of lying on your back interferes with blood circulation, and lying on your stomach is out of the question! Try sleeping on your side, using pillows to support your belly and between your knees. (This works for me!) In late pregnancy, it is best to lie on your left side. When you lie on your right side or on your back, the increasing weight of your uterus can partly block the large blood vessel in front of your backbone. - Frequent urination: This is caused by your enlarged uterus and the pressure of the baby's head on your bladder. Return from The Third Trimester of Pregnancy back to Pregnancy-Prep-101 Homepage
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