41 Weeks pregnant: Baby Size, Symptoms, What to Eat, Pregnancy Tips

Highlights

Why newborns look so funny

Your baby’s head may look pointy from squeezing through the birth canal, and her skin may be peeling from her long bath in amniotic fluid.

Don’t try this at home

By the end of this week, you may need to be induced. Note: It’s not safe to try to get your labor going on your own.

Text, tweet, or update your status

How will you announce your baby’s birth? Most use social media or their phone, and others get more creative.

Your Baby’s Development

Week 41
Baby’s Growth

Mother's Changing Body

What to Expect?

Anxiety It's hard not to be anxious when your due date comes and goes and you're still hugely pregnant (especially when well-meaning family and friends keep calling to check on your status!).

But don't fret – you won't be pregnant forever. There's a good chance you'll go into labor on your own this week, and if you don't, you'll be induced by 42 weeks or earlier if you or your baby has any problems.

Kicking Keep paying attention to your baby's movements, and let your doctor or midwife know right away if they seem to decrease. Your baby should remain active right up to delivery, and a noticeable slowdown in activity could be a sign of a problem.

Leaking fluid? Also call if you think your water may have broken. Sometimes there's a big gush of fluid, but sometimes there's only a small gush or a slow leak. (Don't try to make the diagnosis yourself. Call even if you only suspect you have a leak.) If your water breaks but contractions don't start soon, you'll be induced.

Good to know!