What to expect when you are expecting - The Third Trimester!
More advice from The Insta Midwife - Cara McCarthy
Wow! Where did that go? Two thirds down, one to go! You are probably getting very excited now, and also a little nervous! That is quite natural and normal! The prospect of birth is very daunting, all the unknowns. How will it feel? How will you know what to do? When will it happen? It can be quite overwhelming, but just remember, you were made to do this!
What can you expect in the last 13 or so weeks? At around 28 weeks your third trimester begins and you will be offered some more screening around now to re check your haemoglobin levels (iron level) and screen your blood for transfusion purposes once again looking at cell antibodies. This is a routine part of your screening and this should be discussed at your first midwife appointment and you will be reminded about it and offered it again around now.
If you were told that you were Rhesus Negative (blood type) earlier in your pregnancy, you should be offered an Anti D around now also. Some trusts can tell from screening whether your baby is a Rhesus Negative blood type also, in which case you will not need to have an Anti D. You can find more information on this at www.nhs.uk/conditions/rhesus-disease/
Your baby's movements will develop a pattern by 32 weeks and you will be able to recognise times of day when you feel baby moving around, and these are the times you should take note of and if the pattern changes or baby isn’t moving as much or at all you should contact your maternity unit. You can find more information on this here at www.tommys.org
You may start to feel a little uncomfortable as the weeks go by now, your centre of gravity will change and you can develop back pain or sciatic pain as your posture changes. You can do some simple stretches or light pregnancy yoga to help ease this. It is still advisable to continue any exercises you are already doing for as long as you are comfortable.
Getting comfortable at night can be a big problem as your pregnancy nears the end! Trying to sleep with a bump is no easy feat! It is advised that you sleep on your left side as much as possible, if you wake up on your back just roll on to your side and go back to sleep. You may find pregnancy pillows a big help with supporting you and keeping you on your side. Sleeping with a pillow between your knees will help to keep your pelvis stable and therefore help with preventing you developing pelvic pain.
Some good resources to look at areas follows -
https://www.nhs.uk/start4life/pregnancy/week-by-week/3rd-trimester/week-28/
https://www.nhs.uk/conditions/pregnancy-and-baby/tiredness-sleep-pregnant/
Wishing you all the luck in the world for your new arrival!
Cara The Insta Midwife
Cara McCarthy is a qualified Midwife providing antenatal and postnatal online support and evidence based advice.
We are very pleased that Cara has joined our group of Resident Experts at Style My Kid and hope to bring you lots of advice her and from all our brilliant ladies on our Blog pages.
You can find out more about Cara and follow her on instagram @the_insta_midwife and watch her tutorials on You tube.
