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Fetal development - week 32

Seeing the light


Posted: 19 May 2005
by ThinkBaby

Image of 32-week fetus courtesy of Babybond
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Your baby now weighs about 1.7kg, or three and three-quarter pounds. Her toenails are completely formed and she continues to grow hair. You may find that your baby is responsive to light and may seem to reach towards a light shone directly on your bump. She’s probably moving around a little less vigorously now as she has less space in the womb to play with, but you should still be able to feel her wriggling about.

If your baby is a boy his testicles will probably be descending from his abdomen, and girls’ labia will be growing.

What’s happening with Mum?
Your uterus is now twelve and a half centimetres, or 5 inches above your belly button, so there’s not much space left for your own stomach! Try eating small meals more frequently to tone down the common problems of indigestion and perineal massage to help stretch and prepare your perineum - have a read of the article to find out how.

NB: All pregnancies are different and fetal growth rates vary, this is meant only as an approximate guide to development. If you have any concerns about your developing pregnancy then speak to your doctor.

Preparing for birth

Perineal massage - If you want to lower your chances of needing an episiotomy diring birth then you can take matters into your own hands, literally, with perineal massage, starting this week.

Massage for labour - It's not just during pregnancy that massage can provide relief from pain, it can also be a huge help during labour and give your birth partner something tangibly helpful to do - find out more here.

Your birth plan - By now you should have a good idea of what you want your birth plan to be, but if you still need some pointers then here's more about writing a birth plan.

Pregnancy experiences

Growing pains - Starting to suffer from the things that are otherwise common in pregnancy – unexpected for me, as I didn’t suffer last time. Had one night of such bad indigestion (possibly as a result of eating 3 chocolate brownies before I went to bed!) that I was up throwing up in the middle of the night. Blogs Isabelle for week 32.

Why not check out the pregnancy blogs to see how other mums-to-be are faring, or update your own blog?

Blog away! If you've been keeping a blog of your pregnancy on TB don't forget to add your birth story to complete it. And then why not start a new parenting blog?

Gearing up - Is there anything I can do now to prepare my body for childbirth? I've got 8 weeks to go! Hoping there's some sort of miracle cream, that will not only get me ready but minimise tearing?! I'm guessing this doesn't exist! Pick up or pass on tips for preparing for birth on the forum.

You can join in the discussions and share birth experiences and advice with other ThinkBaby members in the pregnancy or birth folders.

Other weeks

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