I'm baffled by the little space babies have in the last month of pregnancy. With four weeks to go, Ava's arms and legs are plumping up nicely which means that she is big enough to take up most of my uterus, and has limited space to move around. She wriggles less because of this constriction, but her movements are stronger and more defined. Justin and I have been having fun taking guesses of baby's body parts from the contours of my belly. The Doctor said she has assumed the head-down position in preparation for birth.
Next week (week 37), she is considered full term, meaning that if labor were to start, no effort would be made to delay it. Interestingly, research suggests that it's actually Ava who will trigger labor by producing hormones as a reaction to her cramped surroundings.
Getting a full night's sleep is virtually impossible these days. I am making bathroom trips about every 45 minutes. The pressure from Ava's weight on my pelvic joints causes some serious hip pain. So about every 2 hours, I have to shift from one side to the other to alleviate some of this pain. And to top it all off, throw in the mix sudden leg cramps and charlie horses that wake me up of a "deep" sleep.
May I suggest next time you see a pregnant woman at your workplace or working hard on her feet, please extend her some much needed grace. Go ahead, hold the door open for her, offer her your seat on the light rail, give her a sympathetic smile. She will be thrilled you did.
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