Week 37

In Week 37, you may have noticed a yellowish fluid coming out of your nipples recently. This is because your breasts are making a "test batch" of colostrum—the first breast milk that your body will produce for your newborn. At this week 37's checkup, your doctor may perform a pelvic exam which will determine the extent to which your body has prepared for labor.

The exam will check on a few things—effacement (how much your cervix has softened and thinned in preparation for labor), dilation (how much the cervix is open), presentation (whether the baby's head, bottom, or legs are coming first), and station (how far down the birth canal the baby's presenting part has descended). This exam will serve as a benchmark in the coming weeks so that your doctor can monitor your progress.
 

My Baby in the 37th Week

At the 37th week mark, your baby is now considered full term. At this stage, he is close to passing the 3-kg mark and measures about 47 cm in length. Although you may notice that your body weight probably won't increase much more at this stage, your baby will keep adding up to 14 g of fat each day. This is because he's preparing to make his exit from the womb—and if he's like most babies, his head is now pointed down into your pelvis.