31 weeks pregnant
Our guide to your 31st week of pregnancy
Your Baby
It’s getting pretty cramped inside your uterus now. Your baby weighs 1.5kg and is about 41cm long. Length wise, there really isn’t much more scope for your baby to grow inside the womb. However, he or she will continue to put on valuable layers of fat in these final nine weeks.
Just because there isn’t much room to move, doesn’t mean your baby will stop its incessant kicking and punching. In fact, in the final stages of pregnancy your baby will actually move around quite a bit, as it builds muscles and fibres that will help support itself once it doesn’t have the amniotic fluid to rely on.
Your baby’s organs are starting to operate just as they will do once it’s born. Its bone marrow for example has taken over the job of producing red blood cells from the liver.
You
The weight is really going on in this final trimester. This month your weight could have increased by up to 1.8kg. As your baby continues to pile on the fat in the third trimester, you might end up seeing the scales go up by 450 grams a week.
Sleeping is most likely a nightly battle. There are many reasons for this, but your growing bump is probably the biggest problem – pardon the pun. Try sleeping with a pillow between your thighs and remember to lie on your left side whenever possible. This way nutrients flow straight into the womb.
How to Breastfeed
We talked about the creation of breast milk and some practical facts about breastfeeding in week 14, but this week we’ll get down to the nitty-gritty of how to breastfeed, before your baby arrives and begins screaming out for some nourishment.
You can breastfeed exclusively for six months, producing plenty of milk for your baby. The thick, rich breast milk you produce contains millions of antibodies that help fight against infection. Every woman produces this enriching breast milk and you don’t need to eat or drink anything specific in order to breastfeed.
So, first things first, you need to get your baby to breastfeed in the first 12 hours of its life. This is so you can begin to lactate and produce proper breast milk rather than colostrum. It is your baby’s first suck that releases hormones that kick-start your lactation process. After three days, your milk supply will greatly increase.
It is important to follow what your baby wants to do in terms of how it attaches itself to your nipple. However, you should bear the following in mind: support your baby’s neck and shoulders with your hand. Your baby shouldn’t have to twist its body at any point, so hold it facing your breast, with its shoulders and hips in a straight line.
You should support your breast with your hand. Place your fingers underneath on your chest cavity and your thumb on top of your breast.
To get your baby to latch on, brush its lips with your nipple and wait until your baby’s mouth is wide open before making contact. Its bottom lip should be the first to make contact with your areola and when feeding, your nipple should touch the roof on your baby’s mouth. Your baby’s chin should be pressing into your breast and its nose should be clear.
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