Pregnancy Week 40

Pregnancy Pillows Sale

Trusted Baby Bedding Stores

Baby Bedding Blogs

Baby Bedding Search

Return to Pregnancy Weeks Articles Index Page		| E-Mail Page To A Friend |

Pregnancy Week 40: Time to Meet Your Baby

What's a tired mom-to-be to do? Buy a Snoozer Pillow

If you haven't already, make sure you talk with your doctor and find out when they want you to come to the birthing center or hospital. Some doctors or healthcare providers may prefer you come sooner than later.

If your water breaks, whether you are in labor or not, you need to report to the hospital. This is a sign that labor is imminent during your final stages of pregnancy, and you don't want to waste time getting to the hospital.

If you find you do go into labor and are alone with no one to drive you to the hospital, it is ok to call for help. Many babies have been delivered in an ambulance or a car. While this isn't ideal, it is important you have someone nearby to help you when delivering your baby.

By the time you hit pregnancy 40 weeks, your baby is likely to be 7 to 9 pounds. Some women deliver even larger babies, although most fall within these limits. Sometimes doctors perform a procedure called an episiotomy as a tool to help women deliver larger than average babies.

There is much controversy over this procedure. The idea is that an episiotomy may help prevent tearing during delivery. Some studies suggest however, that women do not heal any better if they have episiotomies, and may actually experience more complications. Be sure you talk with your doctor about this as you enter your 40th week of pregnancy.

Around this time you should also talk with your doctor about the possibility of induction if you show no signs of pending labor. By pregnancy week 40 your cervix should be a little dilated and ripe for delivery. If it is not, your doctor may recommend one or more techniques to help stimulate labor.

One such procedure is membrane stripping, where a doctor will place his or her finger just inside your cervix and sweep your amniotic membranes, which generally reside near the lower part of the uterus. This can sometimes bring on contractions that start labor. It may also stimulate your body to produce prostaglandins, which may also promote labor.

While early inductions are not always successful, those performed later in pregnancy may be more successful because the odds your baby is ready to deliver are greater. You may be able to help your labor and delivery along by trying some evening primrose oil which some natural health providers believe helps soften and ripen the cervix. Others prefer to have sex, which can stimulate contractions and help ripen the cervix.

Because you have reached pregnancy week 40, the chances are better than average you will meet your baby for the first time during the next few days. Spend these last precious moments alone, comforting your baby, talking to your baby and resting, so you are fully prepared when your baby decides to make his or her entrance into the world we live in.

Read About Pregnancy Week 1