How is baby positioned at 32 weeks
Pregnancy at week 32 | Pregnancy Birth and Baby
Pregnancy at week 32 | Pregnancy Birth and Baby beginning of content4-minute read
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Your baby
Although your baby is by now quite squashed inside your womb, they can still move around. Most babies are in the head-down position by 32 weeks, although some babies stay in the breech position (bottom down) until the last month. They are probably asleep most of the time.
Your baby is about 40cm long (from head to toe) and weighs about 1.8 kg since their weight has almost doubled in the past 4 weeks. From now, your baby’s weight will grow faster than their length.
Your baby at 32 weeks
Length: | 28cm (head to bottom) |
Weight: | 1. 8kg |
Your body
There is now more amniotic fluid in your uterus and your bump is growing fast. This can cause pain in your pelvis, which can make it difficult for you to move around. If you have a lot of pain, talk to your doctor about whether seeing a physiotherapist might help. They can give you exercises and therapy to help ease the pain.
Your belly button might be stretched flat or stick out, and it’s a good idea to remove any piercings at this point.
Things to remember
If your baby is born now they would be considered premature, but they would be unlikely to have any long-term problems. Keep a watch out for any signs of premature labour, such as contractions, your waters breaking, bleeding, a ‘show’ of mucus from your vagina or a sudden decrease in your baby’s movements.
If you haven’t had your whooping cough (pertussis) vaccination yet, it’s very important to have it now. Whooping cough can kill newborn babies and they can’t have their own vaccination until they’re older. Having the vaccination now means you will pass on antibodies to protect your baby. Depending on the season, it’s also a good idea to have a flu shot too.
Both vaccinations are free for pregnant women under the National Immunisation Program. You can read more about the whooping cough and flu vaccination on the Department of Health website.
Read next
Your pregnancy at 33 weeks
Learn about your pregnancy journey and what is happening to you and your baby.
Speak to a maternal child health nurse
Call Pregnancy, Birth and Baby to speak to a maternal child health nurse on 1800 882 436 or video call. Available 7am to midnight (AET), 7 days a week.
Sources:
Raising Children Network (Pregnancy week-by-week), Women's and Children's Health Network (The last 3 months of pregnancy - the third trimester), Better Health Channel (Pregnancy - week by week), NHS Choices (UK) (Pelvic pain in pregnancy), Department of Health (Immunisation for pregnancy)Learn more here about the development and quality assurance of healthdirect content.
Last reviewed: August 2020
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32 Weeks Pregnant: Where are Baby's Feet?
“I release tension. My womb has so much space for you, baby.”Welcome to 32 weeks! Today we’re going to dispel some preconceived ideas and be proactive about baby’s positioning.
Maybe you’ve heard from your care provider that baby’s position doesn’t matter until 36 weeks. We’re on a mission to change that notion. By reading this now, you’re able to lovingly make space for baby and get your body ready for easier childbirth.
Baby’s position fits the shape of available space inside the womb. This space is shaped by the abdominal and pelvic muscles, ligaments, and connective tissue (or fascia). If uterine space is not optimally available, then the baby’s body may not line up with the way out. So how do we figure out what needs to be done?
First, learn how to identify your baby’s position with our Belly Mapping® Workbook. This playful, bonding time with baby is also fun and relaxing. Second, add balance to your body. (See our Spinning Babies® Activity of the Week below.) This allows the baby to move in response to the room created by the release of tension or torsion in the soft tissues and joints. And we all have tension, simply from the way we sit in the car or at our computers, or from how we carry heavy bags or children on the same side all the time.
Our goal is to encourage an ideal labor starting position for baby. Once labor begins, the baby almost always changes the position to rotate as they move through the pelvis. Being head-down is a great first step toward optimal positioning.
If the baby is breech or sideways at 32 weeks, get started with turning activities and add professional bodywork. Try our self-directed 6-day program for Helping Your Breech Baby Turn. See Week 31 for more tips about turning a breech or transverse baby.
This Week
- Spinning Babies® Activity of the Week
- Your Baby This Week
- You This Week
1Spinning Babies® Activity of the Week
2Your Baby This Week
3You This Week
Weekly Affirmation
Affirmations are short, powerful statements that can affect your conscious thoughts. Close your eyes, breathe deeply and slowly, and repeat the following to yourself each day throughout the next week. Fill yourself with breath and feel the joy:
“I release tension. My womb has so much space for you, baby.”
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Daily Essentials
Daily Essentials can be practiced daily throughout pregnancy to help bring balance and comfort — and an easier, shorter birth.
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Spinning Babies® Parent Class
Spinning Babies® Parent Class provides clear instructions on how to use Spinning Babies® for a more comfortable and confident pregnancy and labor.
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32 weeks of pregnancy - fetal development, mother's feelings.
What happens to mom at 32 weeks pregnant?The fundus of the uterus has reached the middle of the distance between the umbilicus and the xiphoid process of the sternum. The placenta is completing its growth, although it has not yet reached full maturity. The chest increases, veins may appear on it. Usually by this week the fetus is head down.
During this week, the baby grew by a centimeter and gained 200 g of weight. The CNS of the fetus is improving: a clear cycle of activity-rest is established. The skin is smoothed, lanugo gradually disappears, but the hair on the head, on the contrary, becomes more.
By the 32nd week of gestation, the child's lungs reach functional maturity, they continue to accumulate the surfactant necessary for spontaneous breathing.
At 32-34 weeks, you will have another scheduled ultrasound, it is performed to clarify the position of the fetus in the uterus, determine the degree of maturity of the placenta and water level, and identify indications for a caesarean section.
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32 weeks pregnant what happens to the fetus
Contents
Signs that the baby will be born soon are already obvious at the 32nd week of pregnancy. At this time, the child takes the position for childbirth, usually head down, but there are other presentations. Mom and baby have most of the journey before birth behind them. A woman during this period feels how strong the connection she has with the baby.
Development and growth of a child
Almost all systems and organs are formed, the further task of a small organism is to grow stronger and continue to grow. At the 32nd week of pregnancy, the fetus weighs 1600 - 1900 g, and its length reaches about 40 - 45 cm. If the mother is expecting twins, their height will be slightly less - about 35 - 38 cm, and the weight is less than one and a half kg for each fetus.
Interesting! The size of each newborn is individual. Their height and weight depend on several factors: the parameters of the parents, the nutrition and diet of the mother throughout the pregnancy.
At this time, the fetus already becomes a real little man, with proportional body parts and facial features. He even has chubby cheeks. The skin brightens, becomes elastic, the number of folds and wrinkles decreases. There are other changes in the development of the baby:
- Since the fatty layer is formed and protects the fetus well, there is no need for vellus hairs, they fall out.
- The volume of the brain is 75% of the brain of an adult. But the size of the head still predominates in relation to the whole body. The child's brain continues to develop. And thanks to its parameters, the baby can move to the position of the head to exit the uterus, preparing for birth.
- The most active work on the 32nd week of the immune system. It produces antibodies that will serve as a reliable protection for a small person immediately after his birth.
- The bones of the whole body are strengthened, but the bones of the skull are more plastic, as the child will have a difficult road through the birth canal.
- The kidneys and liver function at full capacity and are able to remove harmful elements from the body.
The child not only hears the sounds and feels the mother's mood, but also analyzes what is happening, expressing his opinion in jerks. He becomes cramped in such a previously cozy space, so the movements become more tangible for mom. Within an hour, the fetus changes its position about 5-6 times.
Important! If the baby does not turn head down, the doctor will definitely see this on an ultrasound scan and give recommendations. Special exercises that a woman must perform daily will help the child to take the correct position, the most optimal for childbirth.
Feelings and well-being of the mother
The figure of a woman by the 32nd week of pregnancy changes a lot. The protruding belly presses on the diaphragm, so the mother experiences back pain, she often has heartburn and shortness of breath. By this time, a woman can gain about 10 kg, but weight gain depends on BMI.
Important! Keeping track of weight and controlling kilograms is a must. A woman should gain no more than 500 g per week. Therefore, her diet should include all the foods necessary for the growth of the child and her body, but nothing more.
Many mothers suffer from swelling, fatigue and heavy legs. Varicose veins are also not uncommon during this period. It is necessary to control the drinking regime. Special elastic stockings will help to cope with the problem. During the day, a woman should rest with her feet on a raised platform.
There is such a thing as “training bouts”. The stomach at this time becomes stony, and the uterus is in good shape. This phenomenon is short-lived, you should not be afraid of it. Thus, the mother's body prepares for future childbirth. But if there are severe prolonged pain, spasms and / or amniotic fluid comes out, you should immediately call an ambulance. This means that the birth process began ahead of time.
Baby's kicks become more active and sensitive. If the mother is calm, then the child does not disturb her much. When a woman is irritable and nervous, the child feels it and reacts to her mood.
Tests and examinations
Planned ultrasound, the third in a row, falls exactly on the 32nd week of pregnancy. During this period, visits to the doctor should be at least once every 2 weeks. Doctor's examination includes the following actions:
- Determining the baby's heartbeat, his weight;
- Measurement of blood pressure and body weight of the mother;
- Determination of uterine tone;
- Measurement of the volume of the abdomen of a woman;
The doctor uses an ultrasound to determine the position of the child. According to special formulas, he finds out the circumference of the head, abdomen and chest of the baby, the length of the hips.