Transcripts
Hey mama.
Trish:Welcome to Pregnancy unpacked.
Trish:I'm Trish, a labor nurse of 16 years, mom of seven, and your birth vesting.
Trish:I'm gonna be walking you through not just baby bumps and fruit sizes, but the entire identity shift that pregnancy will be for you.
Trish:Each episode drops every Wednesday, and we're gonna unpack what's happening in your body, what to expect, what to do, what's not.
Trish:Even when it feels extremely weird and how to actually feel supported emotionally and physically, you're gonna hear from me where I'm not gonna sugarcoat it, but I'm gonna be cheering you on along the way.
Trish:You can follow along each Wednesday because pregnancy deserves more than outdated advice and Google anxiety.
Trish:Woo-hoo.
Trish:You made it week 39.
Trish:You're officially full term, but there are three things that are happening right now that nobody's talking about.
Trish:Hey mama.
Trish:Welcome back to Pregnancy Unpacked.
Trish:I'm Trish High Risk, a labor and delivery nurse of 16 years and a mom of seven, and you've hit a truly momentous milestone.
Trish:Your pregnancy is officially full term and your arms are probably aching to hold that little bundle for the very first time.
Trish:So your little one is about 19 to 21 inches long.
Trish:Basically, the length of a jackfruit, which not many of us know what that is, but weighing in at seven to eight pounds, maybe even a little heavier.
Trish:But here's what's still happening that nobody talks about.
Trish:That little brain is still growing at a phenomenal speed and will continue for the first three years of life.
Trish:Their tear ducts are developing, though they won't produce actual tears for several weeks after birth, and you probably wouldn't have noticed that if I hadn't told you so.
Trish:Yes, your baby will scream and cry, but the waterworks won't roll down those chubby cheeks for a while.
Trish:Your baby's been receiving lovely antibodies through your placenta to help them fight infections.
Trish:And if you breastfeed, that continues through your breast milk from 32 to 39 weeks, your amniotic fluid has steadily decreased from about 800 milliliters to about 500 milliliters.
Trish:That is a lot of fluid.
Trish:You are probably feeling mounting pressure down below.
Trish:We've been talking about this for weeks.
Trish:That is just your baby's head being partially or fully engaged in your pelvis, which is a really good thing because labor depends on that.
Trish:So go you, some of you might get your.
Trish:Show or your bloody show, and that just means some bloody mucusy discharge, meaning your mucus plug has come out and your cervix is starting to do its thing.
Trish:You might even have leaky boobs with chorum, that essential first milk.
Trish:And yes, chorum is milk a lot for my patients.
Trish:And students think that it's not milk, but it is.
Trish:And we call it liquid gold because it gives baby all the nutrients needed during those first few days.
Trish:And contrary to popular belief, it's not actually common for your water to break before labor starts.
Trish:So make sure you listen to the podcast or read the blog post all about what to do if your water breaks before labor starts.
Trish:Okay, we are gonna talk about something that nobody tells you about being full term.
Trish:Suddenly everyone thinks you're on a countdown timer.
Trish:Your provider might even start the induction conversation and they may mention the arrive trial that supposedly, notice I said supposedly shows elective induction at 39 weeks reduces c-sections.
Trish:But as a nurse who's been in the delivery room for 16 years, I need you to know only about 5% of women actually deliver on their exact due date.
Trish:Your baby is not ready.
Trish:Your baby should come when your baby is ready.
Trish:Now, I am not against inductions, so.
Trish:Don't think that, but your baby could come today or wait another few weeks, and that is completely normal.
Trish:But I wanna talk about the Arrive trial because it has some problems.
Trish:It was done at an academic medical center and despite the spike in 39 week inductions after this Ding-Dong study, real world C-section rates didn't actually drop.
Trish:So the numbers do not lie.
Trish:You still have choices, mama.
Trish:You do not have to lean into that study, and it was actually a very faulty study.
Trish:Anyway, let's talk about your prenatal visit at 39 weeks.
Trish:Now, you've been going weekly for a while now, so you know the drill.
Trish:At your visit, they'll probably want to also do a cervical check, and we talked about this last week, but let me break this down.
Trish:A cervical check is where they're gonna put on a sterile glove.
Trish:They're gonna put their fingers inside your vagina to feel your cervix for dilation.
Trish:And we use our fingers to go inside the cervix if it's open to feel.
Trish:How dilated is it?
Trish:And this is checking for dilation.
Trish:Effacement, and station dilation is measured in centimeters.
Trish:You can be one, two, even three and not be in labor.
Trish:Effacement is how thin your cervix gets measured in percentages.
Trish:Station is how far baby has descended into the pelvis using your pelvic bones as landmarks.
Trish:But here's the thing, cervical checks are a hundred percent optional.
Trish:Don't let your provider tell you otherwise you get to choose.
Trish:This gives you no information about when labor will start or how long it will take.
Trish:So if you don't wanna know, you don't have to do it.
Trish:However, if you want to, I support you making the decisions of what you want to do.
Trish:Real labor signs to watch for regular contractions that become more intense and closer together so they get longer, stronger, and closer together.
Trish:Back pain that doesn't let up bloody show.
Trish:Or maybe your water breaks or just, again, we talked about your gut feeling.
Trish:Maybe your gut feeling is something is different.
Trish:Always learn to listen to your mama instinct.
Trish:If you are feeling contractions, but not sure if it's real labor, pay attention.
Trish:Can you talk through them?
Trish:Are they getting stronger?
Trish:Real labor contractions will declare themselves.
Trish:I'm gonna say this from the top of my hill.
Trish:Real labor contractions will declare themselves.
Trish:So if you're left wondering.
Trish:You don't need to know.
Trish:It doesn't matter if you're wondering if it's real labor.
Trish:It's not time to go in anyway.
Trish:Your provider probably started mentioning membrane sweeps last week.
Trish:We talked about it a little bit, but a membrane sweep is when they use their finger to swipe along your cervix to detach the amniotic sac.
Trish:This releases hormones which go to your brain and tell your brain to trigger contractions, but here's what they don't tell you.
Trish:It is a form of induction.
Trish:I am 100% a fan of a membrane sweep if that's what you want.
Trish:But I prefer that you wait till 40 weeks and usually you have to do more than one for it to work.
Trish:So unless it's a medical necessity, it's probably best to just wait and let labor happen on its own time, and you can ask your provider questions.
Trish:What happens if we wait?
Trish:Is this medically necessary or do you just want to do it out of convenience?
Trish:Inside my courses, I say nothing out of convenience or curiosity unless it's for you.
Trish:Make sure your hospital bags are packed.
Trish:Check your rings if they're feeling slightly tight.
Trish:Just go ahead and take 'em off.
Trish:We do not want to have to cut them off at the hospital if you have to go back to the operating room.
Trish:Now, nowadays, we usually will tape them up, but I just recommend when they start getting tight, go ahead and take them off because it is really not fun.
Trish:Keep practicing self-care.
Trish:Ask your partner for support and keep affirming that you are incredible.
Trish:Tell yourself I'm powerful.
Trish:I am credible.
Trish:You are not just waiting for labor to happen.
Trish:You are preparing to be the queen of the room.
Trish:If you want to walk into that hospital feeling prepared and powerful, instead of pressured and anxious, everything you need is in my calm labor bundle.
Trish:Over 15,000 women have used this to take back control of the birth experience, and you can get information in the show notes.
Trish:We are so happy that you are here.
Trish:If you're listening to the podcast, hit subscribe.
Trish:Leave a review.
Trish:If you're watching this on YouTube, hit subscribe.
Trish:Turn on the notifications and leave us a comment.
Trish:We are so happy you're here.
Trish:Remember, birth Queen.
Trish:Being full term doesn't mean you're overdue.
Trish:You are exactly where you need to be.
Trish:Next week we're gonna talk about 40 weeks and handling everyone's opinions about your timeline.
Trish:I am rooting for you.
Trish:I'm with you, and you're doing an amazing job.
Trish:You're doing it beautifully.
Trish:Until next week, you're magical.
Trish:Don't forget it.
Trish:I'll see you again next week.
Trish:Bye for now.
