Your baby should now start to settle down into head position ready for birth. If born now and your baby is healthy then it should stand a 95% chance of survival although it would still need help with it's breathing as the lungs are not yet fully developed.
Your baby
Your baby weighs approximately 2.3 pounds and measures around 14.8 inches (38cm) from head to toe.
Your baby can now open it's eyes and turn his/her head if he notices a continuous, bright light shining from the outside.
The irises don't have any pigment as yet and are a slate grey, but the pupils will react to different levels of light by contracting and dilating.
The respiratory system is still very immature, if your baby were to be born now he/she would still need very intensive care and lots of intervention and help with breathing), but the respiratory system has developed to the stage where gas exchange is possible. Apart from the lungs, all your baby's major organs are functioning. The lungs are still full of amniotic fluid and the air-exchange sacs (alveoli) will not be formed for several more weeks.
The baby is now taking on a more normal flesh colour and a less wrinkled appearance. Your baby's bones will be hardening and the lanugo will start to disappear, though some patches may remain after birth.
Your baby's brain has a fatty protective sheath around it that covers the nerve fibres. This allows the impulses to the brain to travel faster.
Your placenta will now be busy transferring antibodies from you to the baby so the baby is born with immunity to some diseases.
Mother
Your baby will gradually settle into the head down position for birth, it is quite common for the head to rest on the sciatic nerve in the lower part of your spine. This causes a sharp, shooting pain or tingling and numbness in your buttocks and backs of your legs. It's nothing to worry about but may be uncomfortable.
Colostrum will be forming in your breasts in preparation for breastfeeding this could leak out at times. If you find this a problem then start to use breast pads. As your bump increases this will put pressure on your abdomen and could cause back pain, discomfort when sleeping, an increased need to urinate.
Health
Urinary tract infections (UTIs) are more common in pregnancy. This is due to the changes in the urinary tract caused by the pressure of your growing uterus. If you notice your urine is cloudy, strong-smelling or if it burns when you go to the toilet you should see your doctor as there could be an infection. Untreated UTI's can lead to kidney infections which can be dangerous for you and your baby.
Remember to start doing your pelvic floor exercises. These can be done anywhere all you need to do is get yourself into a routine as to when in the day to do them. See our article on
Pelvic Floor Exercises to learn more about them.
My Experience at 28 weeks
At 28 weeks I had a urinary tract infection. It was not pleasant and I felt like I needed the toilet constantly. I went to the doctors and was prescribed some antibiotics. I was not keen on taking them as I had taken no painkillers at all during my pregnancy not even paracetamol. The pro's outweighed the con's for taking the antibiotics. I was also told that the antibiotics that were prescribed to me were strong enough to treat the infection but mild enough to not harm the baby.
29 Weeks
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