Development of the Baby
Congratulations! You have entered the last 3 months.
By the 28th week of pregnancy, your baby’s eyesight has already developed. They can move their eyes. They can also open and close their eyelids. All babies have blue eyes at birth. And eye color appears 1 month after birth. In some babies, eye color can vary from 6 months to 1 year.
In the 28th week of pregnancy, subcutaneous fat in the baby started to accelerate. Subcutaneous fat will be lubricated until birth and your baby will become very cute. At the same time, the surroundings of their organs are lubricated.
At 28 weeks of pregnancy, the baby’s body systems are working wonderfully. It is almost time for the development of the lungs to be completed in a way that allows them to breathe in the outside world. In a situation such as preterm birth, babies have a chance to survive after this week, albeit with medical help.
Since brain cells will continue to develop until birth, it is advantageous for the baby to be born at or near its due date. Their senses work extremely well as the connection from the brain to the nerve endings is complete. For this reason, their movements are now much more conscious.
At 26 weeks, the baby can now distinguish sounds. Your baby knows your voice and your partner’s voice very well. The sense of taste has also developed a lot. When you eat something sweet like chocolate, they feel it and makes a splash.
At 28 weeks of pregnancy, the placenta continues to grow to provide energy and oxygen to your growing baby. Their weight is about 400 grams on average this week.
28-Week Pregnancy Baby Movements
Your baby has been experiencing the most active days of her journey in the womb for the last 3-4 weeks. However, as they gain weight and grow, their space shrinks. For this reason, this is the last week of this week in that very active period.
In the 28th week of pregnancy, the baby continues to hiccup during breathing exercises, and you feel these hiccups in the form of rhythmic tiny jumps. Since your partner can now feel your baby’s movements easily, you can follow these tiny jumps together.
Ultrasound Image
In the 28-week gestational ultrasound images, it can be seen that the baby’s head starts to take a position to turn down. Their body is well proportioned.
You can still see one of these movements in the 28-week ultrasound image, as one of his biggest pleasures is sucking fingers and holding the umbilical cord.
The cord may be wrapped around the neck. The belief that it is dangerous for babies to wrap the umbilical cord around their neck when they are in the womb is common in our society. However, it is normal for babies to wrap the cord around their necks several times during periods of mobility. This situation cannot be said to be an obstacle to normal birth, and usually does not prevent it. So, have you ever wondered why babies’ cords are so long? In humans, the length of the umbilical cord is long enough that the mother can hold her baby after birth.
Changes in the Mother's Body
How many months is 28 weeks? You are at the beginning of the 7th month of your pregnancy and in the last 3 months. (3rd trimester)
Your belly will grow a lot in the last 3 months. You may also experience some problems due to this growth. Here are the changes in the mother at 28 weeks of pregnancy:
– Feeling tired,
– Leg cramps,
– Mild swelling in hands, feet and wrists,
– Back and low back pain,
– Headache and dizziness,
– Shortness of breath,
– From time to time, milk comes from growing breasts,
– Irregular false contractions (Braxton Hicks Contractions),
– Varicose veins on legs,
– Sleep interruption and difficulty falling asleep.
Points need to be considered
In the last 3 months, your concerns about childbirth may increase. C-section surgery, which should be performed in case of a medical necessity, is considered as a delivery option for some mothers and some doctors, especially in developing countries like ours. Turkey has become the second in the world and the first in Europe among the countries with high cesarean rates. We can list the reasons for this situation as follows:
– The expectant mothers’ fear of childbirth… Negative birth stories they hear from their environment and their own birth stories being conveyed negatively are among the most important reasons for fear of childbirth. Since this situation creates a negative hypnosis effect, the expectant mother and even the expectant father may be afraid of normal birth,
– The fact that expectant mothers do not have information about birth and that there is not enough awareness-raising activities in our society about this issue. In addition, some doctors do not guide expectant mothers correctly,
– Expectant mothers do not make an effort to learn about childbirth and do not participate in childbirth preparation training (in countries with a high normal birth rate, expectant mothers definitely participate in childbirth preparation courses),
– Doctors do not have experience in normal delivery and do not give opportunities to midwives whose profession is to deliver (Women’s Health doctors receive training on what can be done in case of a pathology at birth while doing their specialization, while midwives receive their education on delivery for four years),
– Doctors think that it is unnecessary to force expectant mothers who have not made any preparations for childbirth and who are afraid of childbirth to give birth and therefore turn to cesarean section,
– Birth teams do not know non-drug pain relief methods and therefore resort to medicated methods. Unfortunately, this can disrupt the nature of the birth and cause the result to be cesarean section,
– Doctors have not improved themselves in relation to childbirth. This causes the birth to result in a cesarean section or the expectant mother to experience the birth in a traumatic way, both physically and mentally,
– In recent years, cases related to childbirth have increased in our country as well as all over the world and doctors do not want to put themselves at risk (whereas the risk ratio between cesarean delivery and normal delivery is the same),
Childbirth is a natural action that many women can do without taking medication. Considering all these reasons above, the important thing should be that the expectant mother does not have a traumatic birth experience. Both mothers and doctors and midwives should aim for this the most. For this, the first thing that expectant mothers who want a normal birth should do is to receive childbirth preparation training. Obstetricians and midwives should also direct expectant mothers to these courses. Another important point is that expectant mothers should choose either a doctor who knows natural birth practices and has a high normal birth rate or a doctor who can easily demand and apply all their preferences in childbirth.
What Should Be Considered When Choosing a Childbirth Preparation Course?
Today, childbirth preparation courses are provided in both public and private hospitals. In these courses, information is given covering both the pregnancy process and the birth and postpartum period. However, like the examples in developed countries, only birth-oriented courses have started to increase in our country. Birth-oriented courses prepare the expectant mother and father, both physically and mentally, for the act of childbirth. In such courses, it is aimed that couples overcome the fear of childbirth and feel ready for childbirth.
What Week Should You Attend Childbirth Preparation Courses?
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