Welcome back to my week by week pregnancy guide. If you want to peruse previous weeks, feel free to scroll to the bottom.

If you haven’t been nesting already, you probably will start around now. All that sluggishness you have felt in previous weeks/months/forever, will be replaced with a sudden wave of energy. Slow down. Both times I was pregnant I was decorating, and cleaning, and running out getting every last minute thing imaginable. And then the baby came and I was exhausted. So try to curb your enthusiasm a little. I know, it is hard. Especially since you are super excited. Even if this is not your first, chances are you are still pretty excited. And I know this is hard advice to take. I knew what I was doing the second time around, and still didn’t heed my own advice! So all I can say is try to rest a bit and take it easy. You probably won’t, but that is okay too.

How do you know if you are in labor? They say it is difficult to tell. Well, if you are having contractions that are so powerful you can’t talk through them, chances are it is labor. Usually contractions are fake if getting up and walking around alleviates the pain. If moving around doesn’t make it better, but in fact exacerbates the pain, then you are in labor. If laying down is excruciating, you are in labor. If your lower back has a hollow pain that feels like something is drilling you from the inside, you are in labor. And I know everything I just said sounds scary, but honestly, it is not as bad as it sounds. It happens so fast, you will feel it in the moment, but it is temporary and will end before you know it. With Munchie I was in labor for 36 hours… looking back now, I couldn’t even really describe it… it just happened, and it was done. So don’t start panicking about labor, just accept it will be painful (yes, even with drugs it will still hurt), but it will pass.

Right around now (if not already) your doctor will have you do a Group B strep test. A lot of people have it, so don’t worry if you do. It is simply a common bacteria that likes to living inside people. However, if you do have it, you will want to have antibiotics administered to you in an IV during labor, before the baby is born, to reduce the risk of passing it on. Even though this is a harmless bacteria to you, your newborn baby is not yet strong enough to deal with it, so you want to minimize the chances of transfer.

The worst part about this test is the administration of it. I think I had over a dozen blood work tests done during my first pregnancy (didn’t need as many the second time around since the results from the first were still good). All that pricking, you would think a simple swab test would be a relief. No, this feels like someone is rubbing broken glass inside of you. You are sensitive at this point, so when your doctor starts poking you with sticks it will be painful. But it only lasts about ten seconds. And the pain disappears immediately (you will not be sore afterwards). The results usually take about a week to process.

If you happen to go into labor before your results come back, don’t worry. Your baby will be fine. The antibiotics would have helped, and your doctor may chose to give them to you anyway (better safe than sorry), but seriously, this is the least of your concern at this point. Even if you have it, there is no guarantee that your baby will get it. And even if your baby does contract it, this is not lethal.

Three weeks left!

Week 7