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Pregnancy Week 38: About to POP! What Happens on the Homestretch

07 September, 2015

It’s getting to be that time!

The time when every one you see asks when baby is coming and tells you that you look like you could pop any day.

And you feel like you could pop any day!

I have been very lucky and have had a relatively comfortable pregnancy up to this point. I have stayed active and have done pretty much everything in my power to keep my body feeling good and healthy, not just through exercise, but through various treatments such as acupuncture, chiropractic work, and massage therapy as well. And I strongly encourage anyone heading into pregnancy to do the same.

For the past 37+ weeks, it has paid off. But I am getting to “that” point… Moms, you know what I am talking about!

It’s the “homestretch”. And this is what REALLY happens!

1. NESTING

The idea that I would one day during my pregnancy become obsessed with cleaning, organizing, cooking, and doing pretty much anything to make sure my house was completely ready to home a child, seemed a bit ridiculous early on.

Now, I sit here, house mostly cleaned, closets, fridges, and freezers organized, and enough meals and healthy baking in the freezer to last over two weeks post-baby, I realize that this really happens! My “nest” is almost ready for baby to arrive.

2. You feel like a BLOWFISH!

I have never been so bloated and puffy in my life! At this point, blood volume in the body has reached its maximum and has increased by 50%, hormones are at an all-time high, and the body hangs on to more fluid than ever.

One thing that I am excited to see again after baby arrives is my poor ankle bones. I think they are still there?!?

3. INSOMNIA

This happens to some women quite early on, so I am not going to complain one bit that this only started around week 36 for me. It is no longer simply getting up to use the washroom frequently in the night, but the sheer inability to sleep, no matter how tired you feel.

Some attribute this to your body getting itself ready to wake up frequently to feed baby, some attribute it to the anxiousness of awaiting their arrival, but whatever the cause may be, I have a feeling that I have a few more restless nights ahead!

4. Goodbye GLOW!

Not only has my face puffed up like I would have never imagined, it is now patched with beautiful acne due to an increase in hormones. For some, this happens quite early on as well, but it seems to reach a high later on in pregnancy to correspond with the peak in hormones.

Boy do I feel attractive! The “glow” is officially gone…

5. Inability to EAT

There sure isn’t a lot of room left in there for much more than the baby at this point as the uterus pretty much fills the entire abdominal cavity, including a stomach.

At a time when it is still crucial that your baby receive the proper nutrition, my doctor advised me to eat smaller meals and snacks throughout the day to ensure that I am getting all of the nutrients that I need and that baby needs, and to keep my energy levels up.

6. Things REALLY slow down!

Sure, there are things you can do to help avoid or prevent the slow down from happening, such as taking probiotics, getting lots of fiber in your diet, and drinking lots of water, but you get to a point where there is just NO room for things to function properly in there, including your bowels! The lack of space and the peak of hormones are to thank for this.

7. Pregnancy Brain?

Yep. It’s real! I truly thought this was a myth until I started to experience it at the end of my second trimester. Again, we have hormones to thank for this foggy forgetfulness, along with the lack of shuteye one may be getting at night.

To fight this off, I have lists upon lists to keep track of things that I need to get done and a planner that I update daily, which seems to be doing the trick. But apparently, I still have “Baby Brain” to look forward to post-partum!

SO WHAT DOES THIS ALL MEAN?!?

Apparently, many of the above are signs that the end is in sight.

Some may be lucky and never experience any of these things. Props to you!

For those that have experienced them throughout your entire pregnancy, I salute you. It’s no walk in the park!

I often say that the greater the sacrifice that you have to make to get something, the greater the satisfaction you will feel in the end. For 40 weeks, we sacrifice our bodies to grow and birth a human being. And I have a feeling that once our baby boy arrives (whenever that may be!), I will feel satisfaction and joy that I could have never imagined possible.

So I will experience all of the above all day long for the next few weeks, because I know that the end result, our baby boy, will be totally worth it and more.

Do you have any stories or comments about the homestretch of your pregnancy? Share them with me on Twitter and Instagram @Mikkelson12 using #HockeyMom or comment below.