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How To Tell If Baby Is Engaged | When Does Baby Engage?
Every woman experiences labor differently, and therefore, no one can clearly say the exact time that your baby will begin to move into the positions for delivery. Still, if you want to know how to tell if the baby is engaged, then the following article will give you valuable tips to identify this.
How to tell if your baby is engaged?
Generally, babies start to engage between the 34th to 36th weeks of pregnancy. However, it is also true that for some babies engaging is followed by the beginning of labor. Accordingly, some women experience that their babies have not engaged up until the labor starts. In those cases, it is possible that the baby will be pushed down by the power of the contractions. Similarly, you don’t need to panic if you realize that the baby’s head engaged early. This does not mean that you will experience an early delivery, it only shows that the baby is preparing himself for the big day.
Those who have experienced giving birth before may notice that the baby engages a bit later. Furthermore, as the delivery day gets closer, she may have even moved in and away from an engaged position. All you need to know is that this is all normal and the baby may not even start to engage until labor starts.
In addition, if the baby is in a breech position, he won’t even engage completely. Therefore, a c-sections may be the safest choice both for you and your baby if the baby is not head-down when labor begins. It is the responsibility of your midwife or doctor to determine which option is best for you.
Can you tell if baby is engaged by ultrasound?
Likely. According to the experts, ultrasound measurements of the cervix can help your doctor to understand whether the baby is engaged and can reveal if labor is going to happen the next week.
Transvaginal ultrasounds, on the other hand, display the form of the whole cervix, enabling clinicians to determine if the process has started. ‘Oh, you can probably be waiting; you’re likely going to go into labor,’ you may suggest if her cervix is short.
What Is Lightening?
Lightening happens when the womb expands due to your baby’s movement into your pelvis. In lightening, his head (or bottom if the baby is in a breech position) will sit a bit lower than where it previously was. Your breathing will get easier as the baby moves down, as this leaves more room for your lungs.
Why Your Baby Might Engage Later?
Most commonly, the baby would be head down and facing the mother’s back and this is the optimal position for labor. However, when the baby is head down but facing mom’s abdomen, this is called a cephalic posterior position and it makes it difficult for the baby to engage. It can also make labor harder and last longer.
Sometimes, especially if it isn’t the first pregnancy, the baby will have lots of room to move about due to higher levels of amniotic fluid. This might lead to the baby being in a transverse position, or in other words, lying across the abdomen instead of vertically.
Other factors that may make the baby engage later may include the shape of your pelvis, as well as the position of the placenta. Also, in general, expectant mothers carrying bigger babies or twins may experience that the baby will not engage at all until after the contractions start.
How To Tell If Baby Is Engaged In Pelvis?
You may ask your midwife or doctor to determine whether the baby is engaged yet if you are not sure yourself. They will find it out by gently pressing around the lower part of the bump to see whether or not your baby has dropped into your pelvis yet.
Signs Indicating That Labor is Close
As the big day approaches, one of the signs during the last weeks of pregnancy you may notice is that he moved lower in your abdomen. If you are going to be a mother for the first time, you will notice that your baby starts to drop within 2 weeks before delivery. However, the drop may happen as early as 4 weeks before the delivery for some mothers.
You may also need to take frequent bathroom visits since now the baby’s head lies closer to the bladder. You may experience even more aches and pain as the baby gets heavier and starts dropping lower in your abdomen. The main pain is generally felt in the lower back and pelvis area since the drop forces your uterine and pelvic ligaments to stretch even more.
You will also notice that the birth hormones start to act on your intestines as labor gets near. As a result, pregnant women may have abdominal cramps and frequent bowel movements. This is quite normal and emptying the bowels helps to create a wider passage for your baby. These same hormones can also make you feel sick and nauseous.
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