Week 36. Pregnancy week by week

Changes in the pregnant woman: week 36 of pregnancy

If you thought your belly was not going to grow, you were wrong. You will see how in these last weeks it will increase at great speed. At this point it is normal for the 36-month-old pregnant woman to have gained between 9 and 11 kilos: the weight of the baby, the placenta, the amniotic fluid ... in addition to the accumulation of fluid in your extremities (especially in the legs). Think that you will earn half a kilo per week approximately, but of those 500 grams 200 are increase in weight of the fetus. This does not always happen that way and you can identify yourself with other women who do not gain anything in their last month of pregnancy.

Continue the contractions of Braxton Hicks, which you may notice because your abdomen gets hard for a few seconds and painlessly. They will become more manifest when you walk or climb stairs.

After the boxing of the baby you will feel more pressure in the area of ​​your pelvis and therefore, you will continue having difficulty walking and even urinating. Conversely, this placement of the fetus will loosen the pressure on the stomach and diaphragm, so you will notice improvements in breathing and digestion. Finally, in this 36th week of pregnancy monitors the appearance of edema or accumulation of fluids and, of course, blood pressure.

Development of the baby in week 36 of pregnancy

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Your baby already reaches 47-48 cm tall and up to 2,600-2,700 grams of weight.

As we already mentioned, the normal thing is that the baby is already placed face down, in cephalic position, although it may be the case that your head has not yet been fitted in the pelvis. In this case, it is likely that your gynecologist suggests an "external cephalic version", that is, try to rotate the baby by pushing it with one hand from the outside of your belly.

In addition, your 36-week-old baby continues to lose the lanugo and the vernix caseosa (creamy substance) that coated his body. All this, together with the amniotic fluid itself, the baby swallows it and will expel it once it has been born (first deposition) as a thick, sticky mixture of black or very dark green color known as meconium.

Finally, and as the greatest novelty of this 36th week of pregnancy, the baby begins to be immunized against some diseases thanks to the antibodies it receives from its mother through the placenta. Once there is nothing, the baby will be able to create antibodies on its own thanks to vaccines and breast milk.

The health of the pregnant woman at week 36 of pregnancy

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If something is going to characterize this week is for the swelling produced for fluid retention. The advice fundamental for this 36th week of pregnancy, contrary to what it might seem, it's drinking a lot of water, at least two liters a day: you will contribute to the function of the kidneys of elimination of waste, and when urinating more, you will also favor your intestinal movement. But also:

1. If you still suffer from heartburn or constipation remember to make small, frequent meals with few fatty foods, spicy or difficult to digest. Decreasing your salt intake will also help you with fluid retention.

2. Procure rest a few minutes with the feet on their side or lying on the left side, with what you will help the circulation blood

3. In case of stress or anxiety due to fear of childbirth or the unknown is about relax by practicing yoga, tai chi, pilates ... or with simple breathing exercises that you probably learn in the course of childbirth preparation.

Control of pregnancy at week 36 of pregnancy

Remember that between week 35 and 37 of pregnancy you must perform the third quarter analytical and the vagina culturel to rule out the presence of the bacterium streptococcus agalactiae that we talked about the previous week.

In these last weeks of pregnancy you are likely to have to go to your gynecologist every week for better delivery. You can specify how you will act and how you will contact him in case of labor: if you break water, if you think that a little amniotic fluid is dripping, if you notice that the baby is not so active or if you have vaginal bleeding , fever, very strong headaches, abdominal pain or changes in vision.

Before concluding this week, have you already thought about the name of your baby? The big day is coming.

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Pregnancy calendar week to week

Click on each petal or circle to see the content of your week or trimester of pregnancy respectively.