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May 2016 Moms
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Baby has dropped!

sarahjo842sarahjo842 member
in May 2016 Moms
Hi ladies! Just wondering if any other FTMs have noticed the "lightening" yet...I'm 33 weeks and 2 days now, but I'm fairly certain she dropped last Friday. Suddenly I could breath, I can eat without feeling full, and ALL the pressure is on my bladder and pelvic area. I know there is no exact science, but What to Expect says that the baby usually drops 2-4 weeks before labor. Any STMs find this to be the case? Just wondering how much time I have left so that I can make arrangements for coverage at work if she doesn't stay in until my due date!
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Re: Baby has dropped!

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  • wamam027wamam027 member
    I'm 32w4d and my baby has been head down and low for SEVERAL weeks, like, at least 5. I didn't get excited when it initially happened and I'm certainly not getting excited about it anytime soon. Every baby is different and prefers different positions, mine simply likes chilling with his or her head down in my pelvic region and his butt and feet up to the right, he or she has been comfortable there for awhile, I imagine he or she will stay comfortable there for the next 7-9 weeks as well. Enjoy breathing and being able to eat, along with walking wonky, cause I have a feeling you'll be doing all of the above for several more weeks.
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  • mommar13mommar13 member
    As nice as it is to be able to breathe again and everything, it really doesn't mean much for labor ETA. Sorry! DS was engaged for a long time, like 2 and a half months. I still had him at 39+1.
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  • sarahjo842sarahjo842 member
    I was obviously hoping she'd stay in the oven until full term at 37 weeks, but then got excited that she may make her debut a tad earlier than 40 weeks..darn those baby books for giving an estimate they can't back up!
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  • sarahjo842sarahjo842 member

    According to my doctor and the midwife leading my birthing class, 37 weeks is full term. They recently broke up the period between 37 and 41 weeks into different categories, with 37-39 weeks being called "early term" because of the recognition that, for some women, 37 weeks still isn't enough time for full development. However, it also recognizes that everyone is different. The midwife says that every woman has a different "incubator" and for many women, 37 weeks is how long their body is designed to be pregnant. 40 isn't a magic number. There is plenty of room for error given there is no exact science to calculating due dates..if there were, more than just 10% of women would deliver on their set due date.

    My baby is perfectly healthy according to my doctor and could come at 36 weeks and she would not be concerned. Lots of snotty responses to a simple post that I thought was expressing my excitement. So sorry to offend anyone with my eagerness about finally getting to meet my baby in the near future in a safe way.

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  • littlebb22littlebb22 member
    Hmmm. I was also given the information from my clinic that 37 weeks is early term, 38-41 is term, and 42 is late term. While I'm certainly not looking to have my baby come any earlier than he is ready I can definitely relate to being excited to meet him!
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  • sarahjo842sarahjo842 member

    I love how the people who are upset about my excitement are implying that I'm a bad person in some way because I don't see it as an absolute necessity to go to 40, 41, or 42 weeks in order for a baby to be healthy. Also, more importantly, I do not control when she's ready--she and my body do. You are acting as if I'm saying, wow, I can't wait to ask my doctor to induce me at 37 weeks so I can be done with this. Never did I imply I WANT a premature baby. But I won't apologize for being excited that my body is showing signals that she may come sooner rather than later. And, if she does, I have the full confidence that my doctor knows exactly what to do (i.e., allow her to be born or intervene to stop labor if there are concerns that it's too soon).

    For those debating the terminology (old, new, whatever, medical information is constantly changing and probably will again--just like they go back and forth about whether eggs are good for you or terrible for you) about what's full-term, I'll let my doctor know that she is wrong and is spreading misinformation. Just FYI, she explained to me that the rationale for changing the distinction into early, full, or late term was to deter any medically unnecessary inductions that some doctors and women were opting to do. NOT because they discovered that there is a set standard for every single woman and every single baby about what week is required for a fully matured baby. I am quite surprised that the same people who say to other posters "every woman and every pregnancy is different" will say in the same breath that 40 weeks is best for everyone.

    Also, don't put words in my mouth. I never said "I don't want to go full term". I said--"I was hoping to keep her in full term" and because there was a recent change in medical terminology you didn't agree with my 37 week specifier and implied I meant "I want to have a premature baby so I can be more comfortable." Not at all what I said.

    Bottom line--I'm not in control of when I go into labor. I never said I'm hoping for a premature birth and am certainly not planning on asking to be induced so I can be "done with being pregnant". I love being pregnant, but after almost 8 months of doing that, I'm excited about the next step and I don't think that makes me a terrible person. 

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  • sarahjo842sarahjo842 member
    @tripledaggerWed95976 way to miss the point and to nitpick on language. Excuse me, I'll remove the word "lots" and just say "snotty responses." Because that is what they are. Any rudeness in a community board meant to provide support is unnecessary and unhelpful, so even one snotty response is too many. If you have nothing encouraging to say, why say it? What is the function of ridicule or snippiness on a moms-to-be forum?
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  • sarahjo842sarahjo842 member
    I'd like you to point out where I said "I WANT" to have my baby early. Saying "a tad earlier" than 40 weeks doesn't mean tomorrow. According to everyone on here, 39 weeks is full term, and is that not within the realm of a tad earlier? Also, the responses completely ignored the fact that I was asking in case I needed to make earlier than expected plans for coverage at work. Attempting to be practical in my planning for leave is not the same as saying, I want this to be over with. Unicorns and rainbows? I don't think asking whether the baby dropping is a sign I may have 2-4 weeks left is an anything that requires sugar coating. Just simply asking for the experiences of others. The snottiness comes from implying I want to go early or that I am an idiot not knowing any different about the correct number of weeks for full term. I know what my doctor tells me, and as a FTM, that's what I was going off of. No need to take that to mean that I'm crossing my fingers for an early baby and ESPECIALLY saying am making light of it. If you care to read any of my other posts you'd see that just YESTERDAY I posted for advice about how to support my best friend who just had her baby prematurely. I clearly state that I want to make sure I don't say any wrong things and want to help her as best I can. So don't you DARE suggest I take premature birth lightly or as a joke. Before you say that, why not consider that you don't know anything about me and not jump to the conclusion that I'm some callous, cold human being.
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  • sarahjo842sarahjo842 member

    Or perhaps the response I was looking for, @JessiecaB0627 is "hey, baby dropping early doesn't necessarily mean you'll go into labor" or "maybe have coverage for work just to be sure, but it isn't a sure thing that you'll go into labor during any set time frame". I wasn't asking to start a poll on how many weeks I had left OR ask your opinion on the health of my baby--I simply asked whether it would be prudent to plan with my boss or if I should continue on with working as usual. 


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  • LadySamLadyLadySamLady member
    sarahjo842 said:

    Or perhaps the response I was looking for, @JessiecaB0627 is "hey, baby dropping early doesn't necessarily mean you'll go into labor" or "maybe have coverage for work just to be sure, but it isn't a sure thing that you'll go into labor during any set time frame". I wasn't asking to start a poll on how many weeks I had left OR ask your opinion on the health of my baby--I simply asked whether it would be prudent to plan with my boss or if I should continue on with working as usual. 


    I'd say that no, it would not be prudent to plan for an early arrival because your baby has dropped.
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  • JessicaB0627JessicaB0627 member
    sarahjo842 said:

    Or perhaps the response I was looking for, @JessiecaB0627 is "hey, baby dropping early doesn't necessarily mean you'll go into labor" or "maybe have coverage for work just to be sure, but it isn't a sure thing that you'll go into labor during any set time frame". I wasn't asking to start a poll on how many weeks I had left OR ask your opinion on the health of my baby--I simply asked whether it would be prudent to plan with my boss or if I should continue on with working as usual. 


    And you did get those responses. I was pointing out the fact that 37 weeks is not full-term and you got defensive. 
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  • tgortneytgortney member
    My hospital actually considers babies born at 38 weeks to be term. That's coming from my Lamaze class taught at the hospital and doctors who work there. I'm honestly trying to make it to 38 weeks, then little dude can come at anytime he is ready.

    I get what you mean, OP, but you still have a ways to go. Some of the PPs aren't wrong though, according to March of Dimes, a full term baby is 39 weeks, 0 days to 40 weeks, 6 days. But that is really a generalization. Your doctor would know your progress best of course!
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  • sarahjo8sarahjo8 member
    @JessicaB0627 You're right--I did get defensive and for that I apologize. I freely admit nearly every time I post that I'm a FTM with a lot to learn so usually being corrected doesn't upset me. I suppose this time was different because I've had in my mind for awhile now that if I made it to 37 weeks there'd be every chance that my baby would be safe and healthy so it bothers me to now to hear that even if I make it that long, it won't be enough. Without knowing my full pregnancy story, which you couldn't, you couldn't know that I nearly lost my baby in the first tri due to an SCH so I kept telling myself, If I just make it to the 2nd tri, my risk of miscarriage goes way down. So I focused on that. Then in 2nd tri I told myself, if I can just make it to 27 weeks most doctors consider that "viable" so I focused on getting there. Now, I've had in my mind that 37 weeks was my last "safe" milestone I needed to make it to in order to know for sure I was going to get to have this baby...and maybe my doctor even told me I'd be good to go at 36/37 weeks just so I'd worry less. In any case, bottom line is that I am excited to finally see her because I haven't always felt I'd make it this far. So in my mind, if she comes a little sooner than my due date and is healthy then I can finally let go of the worry that my body is going to fail to do its job. I hope that context helps explain my question and my responses a little better.
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  • missnc77missnc77 member
    You and your boss aren't already planning for coverage at work? I started training the person they hired to cover for me over a month ago. I would think regardless of if you go into labor at 37 weeks or 40 weeks, you should probably go ahead and start planning what happens when you go on maternity leave with your boss.

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  • Bluejay3030Bluejay3030 member
    missnc77 said:
    You and your boss aren't already planning for coverage at work? I started training the person they hired to cover for me over a month ago. I would think regardless of if you go into labor at 37 weeks or 40 weeks, you should probably go ahead and start planning what happens when you go on maternity leave with your boss.

    I couldn't seem to get past that either... I thought I was missing something.
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  • sarahjo8sarahjo8 member
    We have been planning but we had planned for me to be there until mid-May. If it's even a week earlier my scheduling will need to be adjusted. I work in health care so in my clinic only 2 other people can step in for me if need be and will have to have more exact notice since they will also have to modify their schedule. If i go to my due date, many of my patients will already be discharged, but if I don't,  people have to be briefed to step in where I leave off. I also need to prepare the patients if they will be seeing a new provider.
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  • saraleigh2saraleigh2 member
    Wow that devolved fast! I'm sure none of it was meant poorly, pregnancy hormones!!! 

    OP I doubt anyone intended to say that you would want anything but what's best for your baby! There is a lot of different information out there and I personally find it intimidating to try and keep up w/it all, like I'm supposed to be an expert about pregnancy now that I'm pregnant!! It can be overwhelming! 

    Try to look at it like this: someone in your community heard something they thought might put you and baby at risk and said something because they were worried about you  ;) perhaps it could have been said differently etc it can be hard to get the full sentiment of your message across on social media!! 

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  • yogahhyogahh member
    Bluejay3030 said:
    missnc77 said:
    You and your boss aren't already planning for coverage at work? I started training the person they hired to cover for me over a month ago. I would think regardless of if you go into labor at 37 weeks or 40 weeks, you should probably go ahead and start planning what happens when you go on maternity leave with your boss.

    I couldn't seem to get past that either... I thought I was missing something.
    My boss waited until a week before another manager on the team was going out on ml to discuss how to handle her duties. She is pretty much doing the same with me too. Not every boss is that smart!

    cat fail animated GIF

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  • doozer1345doozer1345 member
    sarahjo842 said:
    @tripledaggerWed95976 way to miss the point and to nitpick on language. Excuse me, I'll remove the word "lots" and just say "snotty responses." Because that is what they are. Any rudeness in a community board meant to provide support is unnecessary and unhelpful, so even one snotty response is too many. If you have nothing encouraging to say, why say it? What is the function of ridicule or snippiness on a moms-to-be forum?
    I think people were trying to encourage you to be more knowledgeable in what you're talking about and I've yet to see where anyone said you were a bad person. Yikes.
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  • sarahjo8sarahjo8 member
    I explained and apologized for the way I reacted to original posts. I interpreted them as hostile when they weren't because of my own worries and fears. It was an embarrassing and out of character way for me to react. I'm hoping to move past that now...
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  • JessicaB0627JessicaB0627 member
    @lbachran I just want to say good luck with everything! Have you had a chance to speak to a lactation consultant about having a 36 or 37-weeker? (If you plan to BF of course) I was not at all prepared to have issues with BF but I think if I had been able to advocate for myself better then I would've felt better about all of the decisions being made. I was able to talk to a LC a couple weeks ago about all of my worries this time around and I got a really good idea of what to watch for and what questions to ask. I think talking to her before all the craziness of having a newborn has also made me feel more calm. 
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  • lbachranlbachran member
    @JessicaB0627, luckily, I'm delivering at a hospital with a lower delivery tempo than most in the city. It has one of the highest level NICU's and extremely seasoned L&D staff, but the lower frequency has allowed me alot of contact with the staff, including lactation. My insurance approved for me to own a hospital grade pump which is already packed in our hospital bag and I have the cell phone of the lead educator at the hospital ( a retired L&D nurse) who is waiting for my date to finalize so both she and the lactation specialist can plan to visit me immediately op. I've attended every class (breastfeeding, c-section, infant/child cpr, baby care) and feel very supported by my hospital. I was also able to specify formula preference, if necessary. If you have any particular tips, please feel free to pass them on. I will take feedback and advice very happily.

    I also went to a few La Leche League meetings, but I'm not certain I'm quite hardcore enough for them... The hospital lactation specialist made me a bit more comfortable.
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