What to expect in pregnancy by THE 3rd TRIMESTER During this trimester you are probably focused on preparing for labour, birth and your new baby so I am going to run through some solutions to common challenges and the things you should know now. #1 Movement; recently I have noticed that a lot of women are confused about normal movement towards the end of pregnancy. So, I wanted to start with informing you on what is normal and ensuring the common old wives tale “babies don’t move much at the end of pregnancy because they don’t have enough room” is disregarded. Your baby’s movement may not be as vigorous due to the lack of room but the frequency of movement should remain unchanged. Monitor the pattern and frequency of your baby’s movement. You should be feeling regular, frequent movement right up until labour. If their regular frequency or the pattern changes, you need to see your midwife to have a Cardio Toco Graph (CTG) monitoring of your baby’s heart rate. #2 Conflicting advice, I have noticed that women often get conflicting advice from friends or family, making it difficult to know who and what is right. Here’s some useful authorising body’s clinical guidelines that have been more than sufficiently researched and developed with maternal and neonatal health at the forefront therefore removing individual opinion. If you aren’t sure and want scientific facts, see below. >National Institute for Health and Clinical Excellence (NICE) >World health organisation (WHO) >Cochrane database (Systematic reviews) >Association of Women’s Health, Obstetrics and Neonatal Nursing and the National Association of Neonatal Nurses >National Centre for Biotechnology Information (NCBI) >Nursing and Midwifery Council (NMC) >Royal College of Obstetrics and Gynaecology (RCOG) #3 Swelling; its common and you may notice significant swelling around your ankles in the 3rd trimester. This is due to gravity, increased blood volume and plasma. Try to elevate your legs with pillows in bed and if you are on the sofa pop your legs up to reduce further swelling and ask for a foot rub! If you are sitting for long periods and can’t elevate your legs then make sure you gently circle your ankles to encourage circulation. Foot wear – if your baby is due in the Summer you may want to invest in some comfortable shoes or sandals to accommodate any swelling. Some women have been known to go up a whole shoe size. Flip flops may seem like an easy option but they’re not supportive and you can also slip in them. Sandals with adjustable straps are good (maybe not as stylish but safety first!) they can still be used after the birth as the swelling gradually goes down. If you notice swelling on your hands, face or neck and have headaches, visual disturbances or epigastric pain (high abdominal pain) then you may need blood pressure checks. #4 Sleeping; as your bump grows, getting to sleep and a full night’s sleep can be difficult. Pregnancy pillows really do help with comfort and are worth investing in. They can also come in handy whilst breastfeeding because they facilitate the weight of your baby’s head and help maintain a good position for feeding. It’s best to sleep on your left side but your right is fine if it’s more comfortable, avoid sleeping on your back unless you are well propped up. If you struggle to get to sleep then remove any electrical light, phones, ipads, laptops etc. and make sure your bedroom is as dark as possible and slightly cool. Feeling hot during the night sometimes wakes women up but if your room is slightly cooler this may help you to sleep through the night. Even if you wake try to rest with your eyes closed and focus on your breathing to conserve energy. #5 If you are still working, make sure that you are getting restful breaks and feel well at work. Numerous studies suggest that women with high stress levels can go into premature labour and grow smaller babies. Although you may have work commitments don’t under estimate the value of taking restful breaks or even days off if you need to. This is one of the most challenging times for your body so look after yourself. #6 Music; prepare a playlist with music that you would like for your birth and to listen to at home. Sit on the end of your bed or your favourite room in the house and take in this feeling of safety and calming atmosphere. Start to associate relaxation with this music and become familiar with it beforehand to create an atmosphere conducive to a relaxing birth. #7 Newborn skin - it’s 5x more permeable than ours and takes newborns 4-6 weeks to build up their natural enzymes and skin barriers. So, no products should really be marketed as ‘safe for newborn’ because the physiology of the skin is extremely complex so rubbing any chemicals, alcohol or perfumes into the skin only disrupts the natural process and increases the risk of eczema (UK rates of childhood eczema are among the highest in the world) and psoriasis and can even be carcinogenic. So, don’t go stocking up on washes, creams or lotions just yet because plain water is the safest option for 4 weeks. #8 Washing your baby’s clothes; baking soda is a natural product and has uses that go beyond the kitchen. If you want to prewash your delicate baby’s clothes with a chemical free, nontoxic and natural product then baking soda is all you need. Not only does it brighten colours and whites, remove odours from clothing, gets rid of stains and cleans away everyday dirt just like regular laundry detergent, it’s a lot cheaper and kinder to newborn skin. I also add a few drops of essential lavender oil for a calming natural scent but there’s plenty of essential oils to choose from. #9 Breastfeeding and expressing, if you are planning on breastfeeding then you can express breastmilk from 36 weeks and your milk can be stored in a freezer for up to 6 months. This can be so handy especially if your baby is born slightly early or has low blood sugars and needs top-ups. Ask you midwife to provide you with the required equipment to do this safely. #10 Preparing to be at home with a newborn, cook some nice hearty healthy meals now you have time to and freeze them in preparation for when you get home. A lot of new mums, especially if breastfeeding, eat whatever is quick and easy which is usually with minimal nutritional value. You probably won’t have the time or energy to prepare healthy meals caring for a newborn. If you have someone around that can cater for you, excellent! Unless that person is going to be with you for a few weeks then do some preparing yourself now. Get a shop in with lots of healthy snacks in that you can grab whilst/between feeds making life a little more convenient and healthy.
