Pregnancy Week 36 – Great Fluctuations In Your Energy Levels

Posted on Dec 19, 2008 | Comments 0

Pregnancy week 36 does not have much of the excitement to offer.

The most important tasks that you need to do at this time are registering with an institute for the delivery, decorating your baby nursery, buying the necessary needs for your child and collecting the list of baby names.

What are the physical changes that occur in your body during pregnancy week 36?

Welcome to the last month of your pregnancy. By this time, you will find yourself very hard to get a comfortable position. Sleeping on side by placing a pillow between the legs and one at your back may be comfortable [pregnancy pillow].

Still if you find difficulty in sleeping, then drink a glass of milk, or sleepy time tea. Taking a warm bath will also ease your discomfort.

This month, you will notice great fluctuations in your energy levels. Most of you will experience fatigue, but in this month, you will find that fatigue alternates with periods of extra energy [fatigue during pregnancy].

Till now, you will gain the weight of 25-30 pounds and you need to consume about 2400 calories per day.

In this last month of pregnancy, you will have your initial internal exam to observe whether your cervix has softened, dilated, thinned or if your baby’s head is falling into your pelvis.

Remember that most of the women go to full term instead of total effacement, one or two centimeters of dilation and totally engaged fetal head.

You and your partner can enjoy by making love till the end of pregnancy. Feel free to enjoy provided that you do not have any bleeding, placenta is high and the membranes are intact. Studies showed that prostaglandin in the semen helps to evolve your cervix and start the contractions, when the baby is ready.

If you are first time pregnant, it is essential for you to know about the signs of false and real labor.

Symptoms of false labor include:

Briefly intensifying the fetal movements with contractions
Contractions disappear if you walk or change your position
Experiencing pain in the lower abdomen instead of lower back
Irregularity of contractions

Symptoms of real labor:

Intensifying the contractions instead of subsiding with the activity
Experiencing the pain in your lower back and gradually spreading to the lower abdomen
Experiencing diarrhea
Frequent and more painful contractions
Rupturing of the membranes

What are the changes that occur in the fetus during pregnancy week 36?

By this week, your baby is about the size of 20.5 inches long and weighs up to 6 pounds.
This week, your baby tries to learn how to live in the outside world. He/she tries to practice breathing, sucking, and swallowing.
By this week, the baby’s bones are completely hardened and acquire a solid structure through which he can now make a grand entry into the new world.
The muscle tone of your baby is also improved by this week.
When comes to the genital development, if the baby is a girl, then her labia is now completely developed.
By this time, your baby is ready to swallow and digest the milk.
The baby’s arms and legs will start to dimple at the elbows and knees and the creases will form around the neck and wrists because of the deposition of fat.
The baby’s gums will become very rigid.

Fact for pregnancy week 36:

Do you know about non- stress test? This can be performed at the hospital or birth center in order to know about your baby’s wellbeing by using an external fetal monitor. Generally, this test lasts for 20 min to one hour. This test is to know about the baby’s heart rate and movements.

You need to undergo the non-stress test if you have any of the following conditions such as: