Week 26
Your baby is now about 34.6 cm (13.6 in) from crown to heel and weighs about 660 g (1 lb 7 oz), roughly the length of a small loaf of bread. Babies vary, so your own baby may be a little bigger or smaller. The lungs are building the branching airways and tiny air sacs they will need after birth, and the nervous system is wiring itself to sense touch, sound and light. For you, the growing uterus is pressing up toward your ribs, and you may notice you get out of breath more easily. This week is about tuning in: learning your baby's own pattern of movement, understanding why breathing feels different, and finding out when the whooping cough vaccine is offered where you live.
Day 176 · 25 weeks 0 days
Your baby's lungs are getting ready, slowly and steadily
As you read in week 24, your baby's lungs are still branching and have only just begun to make surfactant. Over the next ten weeks or so, that work speeds up. It is one of the main reasons each extra week in the uterus makes such a difference to a baby born early.
If your care team thinks your baby is likely to be born before about 34 weeks, they will usually offer you a corticosteroid medicine, given as a short course of injections. It crosses the placenta and speeds up the lungs' development, including surfactant production. It works best when birth happens more than a day after the first injection and within about a week, which is one more reason to call quickly if you notice the signs of early labour from week 23.
Babies born early can also be given surfactant directly into the lungs, along with breathing support. Most babies will never need any of this. For now, all the oxygen your baby needs still comes through the placenta and umbilical cord, and the lungs are simply getting ready, slowly and steadily. Try this: Write your care provider's and birth unit's numbers on a card for your wallet or bag too, in case your phone is flat when you need them.
Day 177 · 25 weeks 1 day
Your baby has a rhythm, and you can learn it
By now most people feel their baby move every day. What matters most from here is not a magic number of kicks but your baby's own pattern. Some babies are busiest in the evening, some after you eat, some when you lie down. Many are quieter while you are on the move, because your walking rocks them.
Getting to know this pattern takes a little attention over a few weeks. Notice when your baby tends to be active and what the movements feel like: rolls, swishes, jabs, flutters. Some people jot it down in a notebook or app; others simply keep it in mind. Either is fine.
This knowledge is useful because a change in your baby's usual pattern can be an early sign that your baby needs checking. You will read more about what to do if movements slow down in week 28. For today, the job is simple: get curious about how your baby moves and when.
Your care provider may ask you about movement at each visit. It helps to have an answer ready.
Try this: Tonight, lie on your side for 20 minutes after dinner and notice how, when and how often your baby moves.
Day 178 · 25 weeks 2 days
Feeling short of breath is common, and there's a reason
If climbing stairs now leaves you puffing, you are not imagining it. Many pregnant people feel breathless in the second half of pregnancy, sometimes even when sitting still. There are two reasons for this.
First, the hormone progesterone makes you breathe more deeply, so you move more air with each breath. This is good for your baby, who needs a steady supply of oxygen, but your brain can read it as "I can't get enough air". Second, your growing uterus pushes up against your diaphragm, leaving your lungs less room. This often eases a little near the end, when the baby moves down into the pelvis.
Slow down on stairs and hills, and give yourself permission to pause mid-sentence. Sitting or standing tall gives your lungs more space than slumping. Propping yourself up with pillows can help at night. Get help right away if breathlessness comes on suddenly or is severe, or comes with chest pain, a racing heartbeat, coughing up blood, or pain and swelling in one leg. These can signal a blood clot or a heart or lung problem. Call your care provider if you also feel dizzy, very tired or pale, which can point to anemia.
Try this: Practise "tall sitting" today: feet flat, hips back in the chair, shoulders relaxed, and notice how much easier a deep breath feels.
Day 179 · 25 weeks 3 days
One vaccine in pregnancy protects your newborn for months
Whooping cough (pertussis) is a bacterial infection that causes long, violent coughing fits. In older children and adults it is miserable. In young babies it can be dangerous, because they may stop breathing, and most of the serious cases are in babies too young to be vaccinated themselves. Getting the pertussis vaccine during pregnancy is one of the best ways to protect your baby. Your body makes antibodies against the infection, and these cross the placenta. Your baby is born with protection that lasts until they can start their own vaccines a couple of months later.
The vaccine is recommended in every pregnancy, even if you had it last time, because antibody levels fade. Timing differs a little from place to place. In many places it is offered between about 27 and 32 weeks, sometimes earlier, so that the antibodies peak in time to pass across to your baby. Your care provider will tell you the timing where you live. It is the same vaccine used for adults, and it has a long safety record in pregnancy. A sore arm for a day or two is the most common side effect.
People who will spend lots of time with your newborn can check whether their own pertussis shot is up to date too.
Try this: Ask at your next appointment, or call your clinic, when you can book your whooping cough vaccine.
Day 180 · 25 weeks 4 days
It's normal for big feelings to arrive now
Somewhere around this point, many people find the pregnancy suddenly feels very real. The bump is obvious to strangers, the baby's kicks are strong, and birth is no longer a far-off idea. That can bring excitement and tenderness. It can also bring worry about labour, about money, or about whether you will be a good parent.
Both sets of feelings can sit side by side. Worry does not mean anything is wrong, and it doesn't mean you are not ready. Many people also notice vivid or strange dreams in later pregnancy, sometimes about the birth or the baby. Dreams like these are common, and they are not predictions. It often helps to name the specific worry rather than carrying a general sense of dread. "I'm scared I won't know when to go in" can be answered with information. "I'm afraid of pain" can be explored with your care provider. Saying a fear out loud to someone you trust often shrinks it. If worry is taking up most of your day, keeps you from sleeping, or comes with low mood that won't lift, that deserves attention in its own right. You will find more about mood in pregnancy in week 30.
Try this: Write down one worry about the coming months, then write one question you could ask that would help with it.
Day 181 · 25 weeks 5 days
Restless legs at night can be eased
You lie down, ready for sleep, and your legs won't settle. There is a creeping, crawling or itchy feeling deep inside, and the only relief is to move them. This is restless legs syndrome, and it is common in the third trimester, affecting as many as one in five pregnant people. It usually fades within weeks of birth.
The cause isn't fully understood. Low iron stores seem to play a part, and so do hormonal changes. If you have restless legs, ask your care provider whether your iron levels, including ferritin (your stored iron), have been checked. As you read earlier, iron needs rise a lot in pregnancy. Some simple habits help many people. Try gentle calf and hamstring stretches before bed, a short evening walk, a warm bath, or massaging your legs. Keep caffeine low, especially later in the day. Getting up and walking around when it starts can break the cycle. Don't take any sleep aid, supplement or medicine for restless legs without checking first. Call your care provider if restless legs are stopping you from sleeping most nights, or if one leg is painful, red, warm or swollen, which is a different problem that needs prompt checking.
Try this: Before bed tonight, do a slow calf stretch against a wall, holding 30 seconds on each side.
Day 182 · 25 weeks 6 days
Smaller, steadier meals suit the weeks ahead
As your baby grows, your stomach has less room. Many people find big meals leave them uncomfortably full or bring on heartburn. Eating smaller amounts more often, about five or six times a day, usually feels better and keeps your energy more even.
Your baby is now putting on weight quickly, and the next three months are a time of fast growth for the brain and bones. Aim to include protein (beans, lentils, eggs, fish low in mercury, poultry, meat, tofu), foods rich in iron, and calcium from dairy or fortified alternatives at most meals. Keep taking your prenatal vitamin. Fibre and plenty of water help with constipation, which often returns in late pregnancy.
You still don't need to "eat for two"; week 31 looks at how much extra food the third trimester calls for.
Keep a few easy snacks where you spend your day: nuts, yogurt, fruit, cheese, crackers, hummus. Having them on hand means you are less likely to go too long without eating.
For your partner: Put together a small snack box for the fridge or bag this week, so food is always within easy reach.