Week 37Week: 37

Waist: 41.5 inches (+ 1 inch)

Feeling: Grumpy

At 37 weeks – that’s technically full term – the trials and tribulations of pregnancy are catching up with me. It’s been another hormonal week thanks to Braxton Hicks making my evenings uncomfortable, hot flushes playing havoc with my sleep and the discovery of a lump on one of my boobs.

I went to the doctor who found not one but three lumps, but because they are all roughly the same size and shape he’s ‘confident’ they’re enlarged milk glands and told me to keep an eye on them and come back if they get bigger, change shape or don’t disappear after breast feeding.

I reported this information to my midwife, who helpfully told me she has a friend who found similar lumps while pregnant which turned out not to be enlarged milk ducts, and she had to have them removed. Why did she tell me this? Why why why?

But all things considered it’s probably not surprising I’m fed up – it occurred to me I’ve spent more than a year of the last 18 months pregnant, which is a long time (although admittedly not as long as an elephant).

Anyway, it turns out I’m now 4/5ths engaged so I’m trying to look on the bright side of things: the end is in sight, Braxton Hicks (which I didn’t have with BB) mean things might actually kick off by themselves and I can therefore avoid the dreaded induction, and really I’ve got off lightly on the whole.

I don’t have many of the usual side effects of pregnancy – stretch marks, varicose veins, piles or swollen feet, I’ve got nice clear skin and my nails are so strong they’re longer than they’ve been since I was expecting BB.

So just trying to keep positive…