Week 33: The final stretch begins

Your baby’s skull is soft and flexible, with gaps called fontanelles that let it move gently during birth. They’re drinking about half a litre of amniotic fluid a day and have settled into newborn-like sleep cycles — short bursts of awake and asleep. About the size of a full-grown pineapple now.

You may feel increasing pelvic pressure as the head engages, and possibly “lightening” — the baby dropping lower, which can ease your breathing. Braxton Hicks can feel quite intense around now.

A good week to finalise your birth preferences and share them with your midwife or OB. It’s worth remembering the simple “5-1-1” guide for when to head in: contractions five minutes apart, each lasting about a minute, for an hour. When in doubt, call your maternity ward — they would always rather you rang.

This is a good week to make sure everyone’s on the same page about your wishes — share your birth preferences with your midwife or OB, and talk your support person through the plan and the practical logistics (who drives, who to call, the route to hospital). It’s also worth re-reading the difference between false alarms and the real thing: Braxton Hicks are irregular and ease off, while true labour contractions become regular, longer and stronger.

Physically, take your foot off the gas where you can — rest is productive now, banking energy for labour and the newborn weeks. Keep up gentle movement and your pelvic floor exercises, stay hydrated, and don’t be a hero with the heavy jobs; this is exactly the time to accept help and delegate.

From around weeks 34–35, some people do perineal massage to help prepare the area for birth, which may reduce the chance of tearing — your midwife can show you how.