Bridget's Pregnancy Blog

As a pregnant mom-to-be, I’ve been listening to others talk about their experiences and thoughts about pregnancy as they chat, post on message boards and email lists and just in general make themselves heard in a lot of different ways.

And I’ve started to wonder if I’m the only one who, at 38 weeks, isn’t dying to get the baby out.

It seems like there are a lot of pregnant women who take the 38 week mark as some sign that the baby should come out already and who can’t stomach the thought of another 2-4 weeks of pregnancy.

I’ve even heard about people scheduling inductions and C-sections at 38 weeks, just because they think it’s convenient.

My response to that is – Seriously? Scheduling a C-section or induction at 38 weeks? That seems slightly insane to me. I mean, what if the dates are off and you are actually earlier than that? You could end up with a premature baby, perhaps with lungs that aren’t fully developed or even just who would be better off with a little more weight put on before emerging from the womb. The baby obviously isn’t ready yet! If the babe were ready, he or she would be starting the birth process.

In some ways it feels like a whole different culture of thought to me, and somewhat violent toward the poor babe. I generally think of mine in there as having a relaxing last few weeks floating around in comfort and finishing growing and getting himself ready for life in the real world. I can’t comprehend pulling him out of that before he’s ready. What kind of start to life would that be?

I can understand the need for an induction or scheduled C-section if there is a problem. Preeclampsia, perhaps, could potentially send me to the hospital asking if an early birth might be best for me and the babe. But with no medical reason, why is it so hard to wait for at least the due date, which is generally set at 40 weeks, to have the baby?

Personally, if there are no complications that could potentially endanger the baby or me I’m not really interested in discussing induction until 42 weeks. I’m sure by that point I’ll be more than eager to meet him if he hasn’t come out yet. But I can’t fathom putting him at risk just because I want him born at a convenient time.

I think sometimes it’s best to trust our bodies and our babies and let nature take its course. Yes, it might mean a few more weeks of swollen feet and big belly and all of the other little inconveniences.

But really, being 38 , 39, 40 weeks pregnant is not that bad.