36 Weeks Pregnant - What To Expect Your 36Th Week Of Pregnancy - Pregnancy Week By Week - 2023
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36 Weeks Pregnant – What to Expect Your 36th Week of Pregnancy

In week 36 of your pregnancy it’s time to forget your aching back (and everything else!) by trying to focus on your baby who is now about six pounds and 20 inches long.

Growth will experience a slowdown now, both so your baby will be able to fit the narrow passageway to the outside and also so he or she can store up all the energy needed for delivery.

Talk about a growth spurt! Your baby has gone from the size of a sesame seed to a 6-pound 20-incher in about six months time! That incredible rate of growth slows now for two important reasons. First, your little one is storing up the energy reserves he’ll need to get through labour and enter the world. Plus, if his body got much bigger, he’d have a really tough time fitting through the narrow alley of your birth canal, a tight squeeze no matter what.

Speaking of that journey, it’s a good thing for both of you that his bones are still flexible, enabling a gentler ride to the big meet and greet. Leading the way is his nifty noggin, featuring ingenious floating skull plates that overlap to allow the head to compress on the way out. When your little one emerges, you’ll notice a soft rectangular area on the top of his cute little head. This soft spot, or anterior fontanel, is where your baby’s skull’s bones haven’t yet fused. They’ll close by the time he turns 18 months.

Final touches are making your baby ready for prime time. Blood circulation has been fine-tuned and the immune system is set to do battle with germs outside the womb. After birth, your little fighter will continue to reap the benefits of your antibodies thanks to your colostrum and breast milk. And speaking of that breast milk, baby’s digestive system is ready to accept liquid food, theoretically, since your little one still gets all his nutrition – and oxygen – he needs from the placenta.

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  1. I'm 36 weeks and 5 days and I can't wait to have him on the outside. It's been fun lol. I'm just super nervous because they say he's in the 92nd percentile and big babies have a hard time coming out. Also this is my 1st.

  2. My first baby’s trip through the birth canal snapped his collar bone in half! I had no idea that was possible! Turned out okay though. But my second child was fine, guess the alley way was a little wider the second time ! Lol

  3. Currently 36 weeks and a day today. Due Date Aug4th. She hasn’t gave any good sonograms this whole pregnancy now I’m just awaiting to see my beautiful/stubborn LEO Princess 💋🥰

  4. I'm 36 weeks pregnant with twins. I'm having a scheduled c-section in 8 days. I can't wait. I've have been pregnant all year since I got pregnant in January. I'm ready for it to be over.

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Written by Claire

Claire is our Community Manager here at New Moms Forum. A mom of two (almost grown-up babies), Claire has been building and operating community-based websites for almost 20 years. In her downtime, Claire enjoys spending time with her family and drinking copious amounts of red wine!

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