41 weeks pregnant: Baby’s development, symptoms and top tips

Your baby is probably approaching 4 kg now and is the size of a small pumpkin. No wonder you’re feeling fed up!

Is your baby hanging upside down inside you wondering what happens next? Probably not, but there’s certainly some instinctive behaviour happening in there as your baby prepares for birth.

Baby’s lungs

Your baby’s lungs are incredible. Having been getting oxygen through the umbilical cord for all this time, their lungs have been preparing for that all-important first breath – all the while ‘practice breathing’ amniotic fluid. From the moment that first breath is taken, those functions that enabled your baby to breathe in liquid will be shut down. The amniotic fluid will be pushed out of their lungs, and the real breath work will begin.

Baby’s heartbeat

When you first heard your baby’s heartbeat at around 16 weeks, it was like a galloping horse – so fast! When your baby is born, their heart rate will still be faster than yours, but slower than it was to begin with. A 0 – 3 month old baby has a heart rate between 107 and 181 beats per minute.

Tiny fingernails

Have you got baby nail clippers among all your new baby things? You’ll need them! Babies are born with fingernails, and sometimes they are sharp enough to scratch their delicate skin. If you’re not up to cutting them just yet, you can always file them – and buy the sleepsuits with sleeves that turn over to double up as mittens. Loose mittens will be instantly removed, but this kind stay on much better.

It’s fair to say the overriding symptoms at 41 weeks will be frustration and discomfort. You’re probably the biggest you’ve ever been, and your body might feel like it’s been entirely taken over by your baby. Nothing works quite like it ought to, and you might spend a lot of the day sighing.

The end is in sight. You’re doing amazingly well. You should be really proud of how far you’ve come.

Labour contractions

How do you know when it’s labour? If you haven’t already Googled that phrase, you’re doing well! Some people describe labour contractions as a tightening, some as a pulling sensation. If you imagine someone taking your uterus in two hands and wringing it out like a wet towel, you’ve got some idea of what real contractions feel like. The key thing about labour contractions is that they come at regular intervals and they increase in frequency and intensity as labour progresses. It’s quite normal to have false alarms, where contractions seem to begin but then tail off. These contractions help the baby’s head engage in the lesser pelvis, ready to go when real labour begins. If at any point you’re worried, call your midwife. They might suggest you go into the maternity unit to see whether the monitor can pick up your contractions.

Cervix softening

Even though it’s your cervix that’s softening, you might not have any sense of what’s going on down there – although you might be experiencing ‘lightning crotch’ and general pelvic pressure, which could be a sign that something is happening.

In preparation for childbirth, your cervix is effacing and dilating. This process might have begun weeks ago, or it might all happen during labour. You probably won’t be able to tell what’s changed until someone performs a vaginal exam.

Difficulty sleeping

One of the most annoying things about pregnancy is how often people tell you to ‘sleep while you can’ – as if sleeping is easy when you have a small pumpkin in your belly that likes to get its little foot right under your ribs. Not to mention you need to wee all the time, your back aches, and your mind is absolutely buzzing as you try to process the huge life change ahead of you. Of course you’re having difficulty sleeping!

Try to make up for the disturbed nights by taking a nap during the day, staying in bed longer in the morning, and not going up to bed too late.

Your due date is based on the first day of your last period. It’s helpful to give everyone an end date to work towards, but it’s a bit of a guess really, which is why full term is considered anytime from 37 weeks. Maybe you can reframe it in your mind – ‘I’m not overdue; my due date was misleading’!

No one really knows why some babies are born earlier than others. There’s nothing you’re doing wrong. Hang tight: your baby will be here soon.

Let’s try and give this a positive spin. Another week of pregnancy means another week to prepare all those freezer meals you’ll be eating for the next few weeks (or months!). It means another week alone with your partner, to treasure your time as a couple instead of a family! And it’s a week in which you can indulge in some serious self-care: binge watch some good TV, give yourself some home spa treatments, and read to your heart’s content.

If at 41 weeks there are no signs of labour, your midwife will probably start talking about induction. Did you know – in the UK, about one in three births are induced. 

Before induction: the membrane sweep

Before induction is attempted, you’ll be offered a membrane sweep, where a midwife uses their fingers to try to separate the membrane outside the amniotic sac from your cervix. This separation encourages your body to produce a hormone that might kickstart labour. Sweeps are not guaranteed to be effective, but they’re the least ‘aggressive’ way of getting labour going.

You can have up to three sweeps before induction is attempted, if you like. The process can be uncomfortable, but many women consider it a worthwhile trade for all the other discomfort they face and are already experiencing! Of course, you can refuse a membrane sweep if you don’t want one.

Prostaglandin

Prostaglandin is a hormone-like substance that is inserted into your vagina as a pessary, tablet or gel that encourages your cervix to ripen and will hopefully encourage labour to start. Doctors/midwives usually give prostaglandin up to 24 hours to work before moving on to a different form of induction – if labour hasn’t started, of course. You’ll stay in hospital to be monitored during this time, which is when your hospital bag full of distractions comes into its own!

Balloon catheter

An alternative method of getting labour going, the balloon catheter is inserted into your cervix and gradually inflated – encouraging your cervix to dilate and labour to begin.

Syntocinon

This is a synthetic form of the hormone oxytocin, administered via a drip. Syntocinon will only be offered if prostaglandin or a membrane sweep haven’t worked. It can cause contractions that are more intense than without the drug, so you might be offered an epidural with the syntocinon. Your baby will be monitored throughout, to make sure all is well.

Artificial rupture of membranes

Another form of induction is for the midwife or doctor to burst your amniotic sac – often with a tool that looks a bit like a crochet hook. This can be used to speed up your labour if it’s not progressing, or if you’re having problems with the vaginal prostaglandins.

Things to do while you’re waiting for the baby to arrive

Is there a way to bring on labour?

If you're desperate for labour to start, you've probably heard about one or more of these “surefire” ways to get things going. There’s no hard evidence that any of this really works, but since it can’t do any harm, you may as well give them a go!

What appointments are you expecting next?

Your stream of appointments won’t stop when the baby is born – but you will transfer from the care of your midwife to a health visitor, who will provide you with postnatal support. Find out what appointments you can expect once the baby is born, and make sure you have the number for your health visitor in case you need anything.

Should I induce labour at 41 weeks or wait?

This is a question to talk over with your midwife or doctor. The answer will depend on several factors, such as:

All kinds of labour can feel scary – especially if this is your first baby. Talk things through with your partner and health professionals to make sure you’re making the best decision for you and your baby.

What are the risks of going past 41 weeks?

Studies show that continuing pregnancy past 41 weeks may result in a slightly higher chance of complications in labour, which can result in a C-section or assisted delivery. There is also a slightly higher chance of stillbirth (between 1 and 2 per 1000 births for pregnancies that continue past 41 weeks, compared to 1 in 1000 births for pregnancies induced at 41 weeks). The increased risk is small, so you have to weigh it up against how you feel about induction versus how you feel about continuing with the pregnancy.

As your pregnancy progresses, bear in mind there is some evidence the placenta stops working as well about 10 or 12 days after your due date. For this reason, in most cases induction will be advised before 42 weeks.

Can you give birth naturally at 41 weeks?

Absolutely. Most babies are born between 39 and 41 weeks. There’s no reason to assume that you won’t go into labour this week. It could happen at any time.

What percentage of pregnancies go to 41 weeks?

Unfortunately, the Office of National Statistics doesn’t differentiate between full term births between 37 and 41 weeks, so we don’t have this information.

What is the average weight of a baby when born at 41 weeks?

The average weight of a baby at 41 weeks is between 3 – 4 kg. You can probably expect a birth weight of around 3.6 kg or 8 lb if you go into labour this week, though your baby’s actual weight will of course depend on genetics rather than UK averages!

Got questions? At the HiPPBabyClub, we bring you real-world advice and support from HiPP parents, midwives, nutritionists and more. Join our Baby Club to find out more.