Welcome to week 36 of pregnancy — officially the start of month 9.
Your soon-to-be infant is eavesdropping more these days, thanks to a newly sharp sense of hearing, and he may also be possibly dropping lower into your pelvis.
This final month may bring extra joint flexibility (and less ideally, pelvic pain) as loosening and softening hormones kick in ahead of labor. If you're 36 weeks pregnant, you're in month 9 of your pregnancy. Only a few weeks left to go! Still have questions? Here's some more information on how weeks, months and trimesters are broken down in pregnancy. Forget your aching back — and everything else! — by trying to focus on your baby, who is now about 6 pounds and 18 to 19 inches long. Growth will slow down in the coming weeks, both so your baby will be able to fit through the narrow passageway to the outside and so she can store up all the energy needed for delivery. When you're 36 weeks pregnant, your baby's skull bones are not fused together yet so the head can easily (well, relatively easily) maneuver through the birth canal. Your baby's skull isn't the only soft structure in her little body. Most of her bones and cartilage are quite soft as well, allowing for an easier journey into the world during delivery. But don't worry — they'll harden over the first few years of her life. By now, many of your baby's systems are pretty mature, at least in baby terms, and just about ready for life on the outside. Blood circulation, for instance, has been perfected and your baby's immune system has developed enough to protect your little one from infections outside the womb. Others, however, still need a few finishing touches. Once such notable example: digestion — which actually won't be fully mature until sometime after birth. Why? Inside her little gestational cocoon, your baby has relied on the umbilical cord for nutrition, meaning that the digestive system, though developed, hasn't been operational. It will take the first year or two to bring it up to speed. Welcome to your last month of pregnancy! It's a good thing your baby's almost done cooking since your body may feel pretty "done" by now too. For one thing, by 36 weeks pregnant, you're doing the penguin waddle many third trimester moms-to-be adopt. That new walk is not in your imagination; it's in your connective tissue, which those hormones are loosening and softening. And that's particularly important now that you're nearing your due date. Your baby — who's grown quite large by this point — needs to fit through your pelvic bones, so it's good that they're more flexible at this stage. It's your body's way of getting ready to squeeze a big baby out of a small space. The downside to all this joint flexibility, besides the resemblance you now bear to your feathered friends, is pelvic pain. Add the pressure from your baby's head burrowing deeper and deeper into your pelvis and your heavier uterus weighing you down, and it's no wonder it's a pain to walk around these days. To relieve the discomfort, relax with your hips elevated, do some pelvic exercises, take warm baths, apply warm compresses, get a prenatal massage from a certified therapist or try some complementary and alternative therapies. A belly sling may be helpful too. There is a happy upshot, believe it or not. As your baby drops into your pelvic cavity — and keep in mind that not all babies drop before labor begins — the upward pressure of the uterus on your diaphragm is relieved. Once this "lightening," as it's known in the pregnancy business, strikes, you'll be able to take bigger and deeper breaths. Your stomach also won't be so squished anymore, making eating a full meal more comfortable. No, not the kind of strep that causes throat infections. During week 36 or 37, your doctor will test you for group B strep (GBS), a type of bacteria that's found in the vagina. GBS bacteria is usually harmless to the many adults who carry it — and an estimated 1 in 4 pregnant women do, according to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) — but it can cause a serious infection in a newborn during childbirth. To test for GBS, your practitioner will take swabs of your vagina and rectum. If the results are positive, you'll be given antibiotics through an IV during labor, so there's little chance of you passing the infection to your baby. Don’t be alarmed if your baby's movements have changed from sharp kicks to larger lurches. After all, your little one isn’t quite so little anymore, and has less room for calisthenics. You should still keep track of your baby's movements every day, though. Look for 10 movements within a two-hour period, or in the normal amount of time it takes to count 10 of your baby’s movements. If you notice a decrease in fetal movement frequency or an unusual change in the pattern of baby's movements, call your doctor or go to the hospital maternity ward. Your provider may want to check your baby with a nonstress test or biophysical profile. Once you lose your mucus plug — the barrier that seals the opening to your cervix, protecting your baby from the outside world — labor will be just around the corner. Though how far around the corner is anyone’s guess. For some women, labor could start in a matter of hours — for others, it’s still weeks away. The mucus plug is usually a thick, yellow discharge tinged with blood, but the amount of mucus varies from woman to woman, and not all moms-to-be will notice they’ve lost it. Even if your due date is still weeks away, know that your baby is still safe, even after you’re unplugged. In fact, your body continues to make cervical mucus to prevent infection, which means baby’s still snugly sealed off. So you can have sex, take a bath and otherwise go about your business as usual. If you feel uncomfortable or concerned about giving birth, it’s always best to call your health care provider and ask any labor questions you may have. Even if you make an unnecessary trip to the hospital or doctor’s office, you’d be far, far from the only person who’s done so. Pre-labor can last for a few hours to a few days, weeks or even a month in some cases, and signs and symptoms can be different for every person (and every person’s pregnancy). There are three phases of labor: early, active and transitional. The first of these stages is usually the longest. Thankfully, it’s also the least intense. It can last from a few hours to several weeks, often without any noticeable or bothersome contractions. The second stage, or active labor, usually lasts a few hours. By this time, you’ll probably be in the hospital or birthing center, and your contractions will become stronger and longer (lasting about 40 to 60 seconds). The third and last stage is called transitional labor, and it tends to be the most intense phase. It’s also the shortest, generally lasting from 15 minutes to an hour. If you’re planning on sending out birth announcements, it’s a good idea to address all the envelopes or compile the email lists now. One less thing to do once baby arrives! Pretty soon, you'll have your beautiful baby in your arms, and a whole lot of new things to remember, like when the last feeding was, when it's time for a diaper change, or how often to pump. Luckily, there's an easy way to keep tabs on all that: an app baby tracker that lets you record breastfeeding, bottle-feeding and pumping sessions, as well as diaper changes, sleep, tummy time, and more so you can stay organized and spot patterns, especially in those early sleep-deprived days of life with a newborn. Thought morning sickness was a thing of the past? For some women, nausea and vomiting can return in the third trimester, or before you go into labor. If you’re feeling queasy, ask your doctor if you should up your intake of vitamin B6. It will likely be in your prenatal supplement, but you can also find B6 in foods like bananas, avocados, wheat germ, brown rice, bran, soybeans, oatmeal, potatoes, tomatoes, spinach, watermelon and meat.Your Baby at Week 36
At a Glance
36 weeks pregnant is how many months?
How big is my baby at 36 weeks?
Fetal skull and bones
Baby’s digestion still needs to catch up
Your Body at Week 36
Pregnancy walk or waddle
Pelvic pain
Baby drops ("lightening")
Pregnancy Symptoms Week 36
Tips for You This Week
Reviewed October 5, 2023 From the What to Expect editorial team and Heidi Murkoff, author of What to Expect When You're Expecting. What to Expect follows strict reporting guidelines and uses only credible sources, such as peer-reviewed studies, academic research institutions and highly respected health organizations. Learn how we keep our content accurate and up-to-date by reading our medical review and editorial policy.
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