31 weeks pregnant

At the 31st week of pregnancy, the fetal weight will be about 1.6 kg, full growth - 38-39 cm. The baby begins to function nerve endings, pain sensitivity appears. Mom may have disturbances in night sleep due to active and strong shocks of the fetus. It is time to study the pain relief during childbirth.

How many months?

The 31st obstetric week is the eighth lunar month of pregnancy. Approximately the 29th week went from conception. Interesting about the timing read here: Pregnancy: obstetric and fetal - how to determine and not get confused in the timing - https://kid.htgetrid.com/en/beremennost/kak-opredelit-srok-beremennosti.html

Fetal development

In the first trimester of pregnancy, each week made enormous changes in the development of the fetus. Now your baby has already formed all the organs and systems. The main direction of further development is the improvement of the brain and nervous system. For example, the fetus develops nerve endings. This means the appearance of general and pain sensitivity. The nerve fibers themselves, each day, are better and better conducting brain signals to the nerve endings and vice versa. This is a very complicated process, which for us goes unnoticed, but in fact controls our entire life.

The baby begins to develop natural protective reactions. For example, if now with a reflex movement of the hand the cam accidentally gets into the eye, the eyelids will spontaneously close to protect the eyeball.

In addition, the child’s body is preparing for the upcoming life outside the mother’s body. The fetus continues to develop subcutaneous fat. Thanks to this substance, the baby's skin gradually loses a bright red color, it becomes slightly paler. However, the baby's skin color will be completely determined only for some time after childbirth. There is a gradual smoothing of the skin, which makes newborns so chubby in appearance.

Facial features of the fetus become more defined, individual. The nails grow to the tips of the fingers, and their growth does not end there. Many mothers are struck by how long their babies' nails are at birth, but in fact this is completely normal.

At this time, many children are already located right. The head is below, the buttocks are under the mother’s chest, the arms and legs are crossed and pressed to the body. Wearing a bandage will help the baby stay in this position and not roll over again.

However, we must not forget that the fetus can be located differently and turn over until the birth.If at a later date the baby still has not taken the necessary position, you will have to refuse the bandage in order to give the child the opportunity to turn as it should.

The movements of your grown baby are now almost constantly felt. Muscle contractions are also training before birth. The strongest tremors can even wake you up at night. Take it patiently and calmly. Later, especially immediately after childbirth, many mothers admit that they miss the feeling of life inside themselves and the movements of their baby in the tummy.

Why do we need conversations?

Many parents do not understand: why talk with a child who has not yet been born? He doesn’t understand anything and will soon begin to understand! Answer: to learn how to do this after the birth of the baby. Of course, there are a huge number of "talking" toys and educational cartoons almost from birth. But your voice and your communication are irreplaceable. Unfortunately, parents often do not understand this and confine themselves to on-duty words like “don't cry,” “quietly,” “sleep,” and “eat.” And then they wonder why the child does not pronounce sounds well, does not obey and cannot normally establish contact with peers. And all these problems begin in the last trimester of pregnancy.

Calm conversations and stroking the abdomen are another practical value. Almost all mothers notice that with such actions, the fetal movements become less sharp. Considering that now the baby is sometimes pushing very painfully, talking and stroking will bring relief to the mother herself.

These are not strictly scientific data, but observations, but they are true: even a child who has not yet been born needs your attention and communication. This also applies to parents and other relatives.

What happens to mom

The gestational age of 31 weeks for most women is the beginning of a vacation. With twin pregnancy, this time comes two weeks earlier. Many women at this time are planning many different things. But it turns out that most of all I want to relax and sleep. This is a completely normal condition.

From the beginning of pregnancy, weight can increase by about 10 kg. This is a very average indicator. Some mothers, even for all 40 weeks, do not gain so much, but they feel great. There are women with more weight gain. This must be treated very carefully for several reasons:

1. Excessive obstruction makes your movements difficult.
2. The load on the heart, already increased, increases even more. This is an unfavorable factor for the health of the fetus and yours.
3. If overweight is the result of abundant nutrition and an unhealthy diet, not only you, but also your baby, can become fat. A large fetus means difficulties in childbirth and the risk of obesity in a child at a later age.
4. Significant weight gain may indirectly indicate internal edema. This is one of the signs of late toxicosis. About this dangerous complication of pregnancy read here.

Psychological preparation for childbirth

You need to devote some time to thoughts about what lies ahead in a few weeks. Childbirth is a complex process. Since the main fear of future mothers is the fear of pain, study the issue of childbirth with anesthesia.

There are several methods to alleviate the suffering of women at different stages of childbirth. For example, antispasmodic therapy will allow you to relax certain muscles and reduce the pain of uterine contractions.

With epidural anesthesia, a catheter is inserted into the spine. Drugs reduce pain, but retain sensitivity.

Narcotic analgesia is used when epidural anesthesia is not possible, for example, with intervertebral hernia.

However, it should be remembered that any drug through your blood will reach the child. There are no harmless drugs. Therefore, it is better to tune in to this: if the pain is tolerable, then it is better to refuse anesthesia.It is possible and necessary to use painkillers only with unbearable pain, since it prevents you from focusing on childbirth and hearing the recommendations of doctors and midwives.

Interestingly, many mothers after the birth of the first-born confessed: their pain was much less than expected and did not last so long as to become intolerable.

There are non-drug methods of pain relief in childbirth. These include aromatherapy, acupuncture, acupressure. These methods do not have 100% scientific evidence of their effectiveness and are not available in every maternity hospital. In addition, any effect on biologically active points should be performed only by a professional, otherwise side effects and unpleasant consequences may occur.

Discharge and pain

A grown tummy makes the center of gravity of your body shift very much. Because of this, deflection in the lower back may increase. And while walking and in a standing position, you probably lean back. During pregnancy with twins, this is especially noticeable, since the total weight of babies, uterus and amniotic fluid is higher. This condition leads to the fact that now and then you have a little pain in the lower back or the whole back. This condition is almost inevitable and is considered normal.

Light pains, especially in the lower abdomen and his spontaneous tension indicate training fights. Here you need to pay attention to the frequency and frequency. If contractions are repeated at regular intervals and / or more often four times in an hour, this is a warning sign.

Vaginal discharge should be sparse, transparent or white, without a pungent odor. Quite a lot of colostrum can be released from the chest. This process is individual for each mom.

For any deviations from the norm, be sure to consult a doctor. Severe pain, heavy watery discharge and bleeding mean that you need emergency medical care.

Video: Pain at 31 weeks of gestation:

Premature birth

At the 31st week of pregnancy, your fetus is not yet considered full-term. If the baby is born at this time, he will generally be viable, but in many ways underdeveloped. Such a newborn will survive only with qualified medical care and special equipment.

Doctor's observations

At least once every two weeks you need to attend a antenatal clinic. A day or two before this, be sure to take scheduled blood and urine tests, the directions for which the doctor issues in advance. Such frequent checks are absolutely necessary. Pregnant women may experience various health difficulties. At first, many diseases do not make themselves felt; they are asymptomatic. But in blood and urine tests, unwanted changes in the body will already be visible, so laboratory control is very important.

You may be scheduled for an ultrasound scan (if you have not completed it before). During the study, the doctor will determine the main parameters of the fetus, check the symmetry of the development of the limbs (the arms and legs should be the same length). Plus, checking the location of the placenta, the general condition of the fetus, the presence / absence of any pathologies.

Photo tummies

Ultrasound 31 weeks pregnant (3D)

Ultrasound photo:

Recommendations

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1. Food: meat, fish, cereals, dairy, vegetables, fruits. Be very careful about the expiration date of the products. With food poisoning, many toxins are formed in the body, which will inevitably fall into the blood of the fetus and harm it.
2. Limit salty, sweet and completely eliminate fatty foods and fried foods.
3. If you have low water or, conversely, an excess of amniotic fluid, you should not go on a water diet. The amount of amniotic fluid has nothing to do with how much you drink.
4. There should be plenty of fresh air around you. Ventilate the room where you are, walk more often.
5. Dress strictly for the weather. Subcooling will easily lead to a cold, and overheating can cause lightheadedness and even fainting.
6. Even if your only desire is to sit, lie and sleep, do not forget about physical activity. It is needed to eliminate and prevent periodic edema, dilated veins in the legs and for heart training. But your loads should be moderate, without sudden movements and tension.
7. The best method of physical training is swimming. Water supports you and does not allow you to strain. It is believed that this particular sport helps the baby to take the right position in the uterus.
8. Sexual life can continue as before if it pleases you and the child’s father. Contraindications remain the same: oligohydramnios, the threat of premature birth, multiple pregnancy.
9. To avoid shortness of breath, walk and climb the stairs without rushing. Full breathing will only be restored closer to childbirth, when your stomach drops slightly.
10. Completely refuse to sit “leg over foot” so as not to disturb blood circulation in the pelvic organs.
11. Wear a bandage to ease the strain on your back and lower back.
12. Compression underwear and stockings will help you easier to tolerate discomfort in the lower back and abdomen, reduce the load on the blood vessels of the legs.

During maternity leave, try to carefully prepare to meet your baby.

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Video guide: 31 weeks of pregnancy what is happening, moving, shortness of breath, pain, labor pain relief

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