This is the finish line. You are here and you’ve made it. It has been a long 38 weeks of a journey, taking you from a woman who has discovered her pregnancy, to someone who is on the verge to be a mother to multiples, looking up to her as their birth-giver. The barrage of emotions that would be coming your way this week would be inexplicable. If you’re lagging behind in any preparations for your hospital visit or taking care of home activities, this is your last chance. But if you’re done with all of it, there’s nothing to do but wait patiently and let your babies do their thing. Any sign of a cramp could get you rushing to the hospital bag and your car, but do take things gradually and safely this week, too.
The 38th week of pregnancy is medically termed to be a full-term pregnancy, and not without good reason. Most babies have reached their peak of growth and are ready to start living the real life soon enough.
If the body hair has shed away by now, the hair on their head would be pretty thick at this stage. The hair colour might differ from yours in some cases but can revert back when the actual hair begins to grow when they are outside. Since this development is genetic, if the parents have light and thin hair, there is a good chance your baby would have similar hair, too. The vernix covering the bodies of the babies would no longer be present on them. Despite that, some babies are born with a little vernix present on them. Again, there’s no reason to worry about it and the doctors will take care of that for you.
Since the babies are already at full term, their growth would have reached a pretty good stage. However, in some scenarios, the babies might not even emerge in this week and continue to stay within for a few more days. Even during that period, their growth continues to take place with layers of fat being deposited regularly. Furthermore, the placenta also continues to grow and provide all the nutrition these large babies require. Bodily growth carries ahead in different forms, not just in the region of hair, but also with the growth of fingernails. When the babies are delivered, you would notice the nails to be pretty sharp and worry that your little one might hurt itself with it. Even if that might be the case, you should not clip the nails of a newborn baby ever. These nails are pretty soft since they have been immersed in the amniotic fluid all this while. Once they harden, you can definitely clip them.
While the babies will continue to put on layers of fat under their skin to support themselves, the size of twins or triplets by the 38th week of the pregnancy has already reached a maximum level. This is the biggest they need to be in order to properly survive outside the womb.
In such conditions, most babies weight roughly between 2.7 kilograms to 3 kilograms, depending on their number and the growth. Their height can also be as much as approximately 50 centimetres when measured from head to toe.
The 38th week of pregnancy is going to be the time when your triplets will pop out of your body and say hi to you. Therefore, your body is focused on changing itself in ways that would support the delivery and be conducive for the children in all respects.
The final week of your pregnancy is not just tough for you. It is making things difficult for the babies inside you as well, causing them to struggle around for more space and making you quite aware of it via numerous symptoms.
Even though you might be observing your stomach on a daily basis, this week might make it seem to be larger than usual. While it might be true, it could also be the result of expecting your babies to have reached their peak growth by now. The movement would be restricted and your little navel would be jutting out, making your belly resemble like a purse with a button. All of it will return back to normalcy once the little ones are out.
Doctors continue to conduct ultrasound scans if they feel the need to have them. Most of the times, these are only usual checkups that monitor how far the babies have progressed, whether they are still in the ideal position for birth. Your doctor might also conduct a quick examination of the cervix to check for the proportion of dilation and predict your delivery date.
Your diet should continue to be just the way it is. Certain adjustments might be made in order to help you with weight control, as well as include food items that can make the entire experience of delivery easier for a woman. Fibrous food items and drinking lots of fluids should continue without fail.
Your delivery is all that would matter at this stage. So it is best to have some tips that would help you through that stage.
This would be a good time to purchase any items you would need following your delivery, such as:
This is the final stage where you would be 38 weeks pregnant with twins or multiple babies and pretty much on the verge of delivering them. Congratulate yourself on a job well done and know that you will be a great mother to them through their lives.