The Third Trimester Pregnancy Stage
Weeks 26 to 40

Ok, you're into your third trimester pregnancy stage. Towards the end you may start to feel like time is standing still!

You will be getting big, bulky and feeling quite sluggish, getting comfy will be an art in itself!

At this stage the third trimester in your pregnancy, accept that seat on the bus that someone offers, let people hold doors open for you and so on, people are noticing you are pregnant and want to help, enjoy it!

Third trimester pregnancy - Weeks 26 to 30

• The third trimester of pregnancy will bring more trips to the bathroom, as that little bundle of joy gets all of his fun by rolling around on your bladder!

• You might not be sleeping as well as usual, try putting a pillow between your knee's or under your bump. This helped me a great deal in those final few weeks of pregnancy.

• Now that you're in the third trimester, your baby should be giving you some quite hefty kicks, and if he's lying low in your tummy this can feel like little electric shocks.

• You may even notice a pattern to baby's sleeping and waking. Both of my children always seemed to get lively around my bedtime, and my son would regularly have hiccups while I was trying to nod off!

• If you don't notice as much kicking in your third trimester as you did in your second, make a note of how often you do feel movement, if you're at all worried contact your GP or midwife immediately. Do remember though that your baby is running out of space now!

Third trimester pregnancy - Weeks 31 to 35

• The third trimester could be making you feel quite breathless, as you really start to notice the extra weight that you are carrying around with you.Try to rest as much as possible and start conserving your energy for the birth and afterwards.

• If you haven't already then now is a great time to seriously think about birthing options, how do you want your baby to be delivered, are you having a home birth, maybe a water birth. What sort of pain relief might you need, and what is available?

• You may now be able to tell the different limbs of your baby as he pokes and prods his arms and legs into your tummy. My little boy used to stick his elbow out from under my ribs, you could just make out the shape, with a gentle bit of rubbing from my part he would pull it back in, and I would be comfy again :-)

Third trimester pregnancy - Weeks 36 to 40

• If your baby hasn't dropped down into your pelvis then he will do soon (normally 34 weeks pregnant onwards), when he does this your midwife might mention that the head is 'engaged' Don't run around the house partying just yet, this doesn't mean that your baby will arrive within the next 24 hours! Just that he is getting himself ready. When this does happen you should feel a little more comfy, and you should find it easier to breath as your baby is no longer pushing up under your ribs. This can also ease heartburn, although trips to the loo will still be ongoing, maybe even more frequent than before!

• Sleep will be more uncomfortable towards the end of the third trimester(if that's possible!) Just remember to rest as often as you can during the day too.

• Now is a good time to have your hospital bags packed and ready to go. To read a quick list of hospital bag essentials, click here.

• You may be experiencing the 'nesting instinct' where you just feel like you have to clean, this is fine so long as you don't overdo it, no gymnast stretches and no heavy lifting!

• You may find that your moods are swinging from one extreme to another, this is totally normal and due to hormones in your body getting you ready for the impending birth.

This is it, the third trimester is coming to an end, your last few weeks of pregnancy, and they may seem to go on forever! Practice any breathing exercises and try to mentally prepare yourself, take plenty of rest and look forward to the birth of your new baby!

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