Hey mama, you are somewhere between 38 weeks pregnant and 40 weeks pregnant, and this stage can feel like living beside a door that could open at any moment.
Your baby may be about the size of a pumpkin, mini watermelon, or watermelon now, and your body may feel very aware that you are near the end. Your belly may feel heavy, low, tight, and stretched. Your pelvis may feel full. Your back may ache. Sleep may be broken. Your bladder may feel like it has completely given up. Baby’s movements may feel bigger, slower, stronger, or more like rolls and pressure than quick little kicks.
This is also the stage where your mind may feel just as full as your body.
And then there is the due date.
Your estimated pregnancy due date may feel like a glowing date on the calendar, even though babies do not always follow calendars perfectly. You may feel excited as it gets closer. You may also feel anxious, impatient, restless, or quietly emotional if the day comes and goes without the baby arriving.
Weeks 38–40 are not about perfectly predicting birth. They are about staying supported while you wait, knowing when to call your provider, keeping the important things ready, and trusting that your care team will guide you if the baby needs more time.
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1. This Week at a Glance
Explore Pregnancy Weeks 38–40
At 38 to 40 weeks pregnant, birth may feel close, but the exact timing can still be uncertain. We will walk through due date anxiety, real labour vs false labour, water breaking, mucus plug changes, bloody show, baby movement, backaches, pelvic pain, Braxton Hicks, final hospital bag checks, newborn care basics, postpartum essentials for mom, and what may happen if baby arrives after the estimated pregnancy due date in Canada.
Pregnancy Snapshots
Pumpkin baby
Your baby may be about the size of a pumpkin, mini watermelon, or watermelon during these final weeks.
Due date anxiety
Your estimated due date is helpful, but it is still an estimate. The baby may arrive before, on, or after that date.
Labour signs
Contractions, water breaking, bloody show, mucus plug changes, diarrhea, cramping, and backache may all be on your mind.
Final bag check
Your health card, ID, hospital or birth centre details, phone charger, baby outfit, and postpartum basics should be easy to grab.
Postpartum prep
Postpartum pads, comfortable clothes, easy snacks, hydration, and a small recovery setup can make the first day’s home feel gentler.
2. Baby’s Development
Your baby is continuing to grow, gain strength, and prepare for life outside your body.
At this stage, the baby may feel big and very present. Their movements may feel different because there is less room. You may feel rolls, stretches, slow pushes, rib pressure, pelvic pressure, or a firm little body shifting from side to side. Some movements may feel uncomfortable as the baby is strong and space is tight.
Movement may feel different, but it should not suddenly disappear.
Keep paying attention to your baby’s normal pattern. If movement feels reduced, weaker, different, or worrying, call your midwife, OB, labour and delivery unit, or local nurse line. You do not need to wait until you are certain something is wrong.
Baby may also seem lower, especially if they have dropped. Your breathing may feel a little easier, but your bladder and pelvis may feel more pressure. Some babies settle lower before labour. Some do it closer to labour. Some do it gradually enough that you may not notice a dramatic change.
Your body may be preparing.
But baby dropping does not tell you exactly when labour will start.
Read more: Baby Movement Guide
Your 38–40 Weeks Pregnant Belly
Your belly may feel like it is part of every movement now.
Getting out of bed may take planning. Rolling over may feel dramatic. Bending may feel impossible. Sitting too long may make your back ache. Standing too long may make your feet swell. Walking may feel slower, heavier, or more awkward than before.
This is not you being dramatic.
This is the end of pregnancy.
You may feel pressure to keep doing normal life until labour begins, but your body is not in a normal season. It is carrying a full-term baby and preparing for birth.
You are allowed to move slowly.
You are allowed to need help.
4. Due Date Anxiety Is Real
Due date anxiety can feel surprisingly intense.
Your estimated due date may have been on your mind for months. It may be the date you gave your family, the date your app keeps showing, the date your maternity leave was planned around, or the date you quietly imagined holding your baby.
You may feel excited one hour and frustrated the next. You may feel peaceful in the morning and then cry at night because nothing has happened. You may feel anxious if the baby has not arrived by the due date. You may feel annoyed when people keep asking for updates. You may wonder if your body knows what to do.
Mama, nothing is wrong with you for feeling this way.
Waiting is hard, but you cannot schedule your body’s exact labour start unless your care team recommends a medical plan.
Your due date is an estimate, not a promise.
If the date passes, it does not mean your body has failed. It means your provider will keep watching you and baby, and they may discuss next steps based on your pregnancy, your health, baby’s wellbeing, and local care practices.
5. Pregnancy Symptoms
At 38 to 40 weeks pregnant, symptoms can feel confusing as normal late-pregnancy discomfort and labour signs can overlap.
Backaches
Backaches can feel stronger near the end of pregnancy.
Your belly is heavier, your posture has shifted, and the baby may be lower in your pelvis. You may feel aching across your lower back, hips, or tailbone. A dull lower backache can also be part of labour for some moms, especially if it comes with regular contractions, cramping, pelvic pressure, or does not settle.
Heartburn
You may feel burning in your chest or throat, sour taste, burping, fullness, bloating, or discomfort after meals. Your growing uterus can make digestion feel crowded, and lying down may make symptoms worse.
Diarrhea
Diarrhea or looser stools can happen near the end of pregnancy.
Sometimes it is just unpredictable digestion, sometimes it may happen as your body gets closer to labour. It does not always mean labour is starting right away, but it can make you wonder.
Braxton Hicks Contractions
Braxton Hicks can feel like your belly tightening, getting firm, and then relaxing.
They are often irregular and may happen after activity, dehydration, stress, a full bladder, or a long day. They may settle when you rest, drink water, empty your bladder, take a warm shower, or change position.
Read more: False Labour vs Real Labour
Pelvic Pain
Pelvic pain can feel sharp, achy, heavy, or pressure-like during the final weeks.
You may feel it when walking, standing, climbing stairs, rolling in bed, getting out of the car, or shifting positions. The baby may be low, your pelvis may feel stretched, and your body may be preparing for birth.
Hemorrhoids
Pressure from your uterus, constipation, and extra strain can all make them worse. Try not to sit on the toilet for long stretches. Drink water, add fibre where you can, and ask your provider or pharmacist what is safe if symptoms are painful.
Change in Fetal Activity
Baby’s movements may feel different because space is tight.
You may feel more rolls, stretches, pushes, and pressure instead of quick kicks. That can be normal near the end.
Loss of Mucus Plug
The mucus plug is thick mucus that helps seal the cervix during pregnancy.
As your cervix begins to soften, thin, or open, some of the mucus plug may come away. It may look thick, sticky, stringy, jelly-like, clear, yellowish, brownish, or pink-tinged.
Read more: Mucus Plug
Bloody Show
Bloody show can look like mucus mixed with pink, red, or brown streaks.It may happen as the cervix changes near labour. It can be one sign your body is getting closer, but it is not always an exact countdown.
Water Breaking
Water breaking can happen as a gush, a trickle, or a slow leak.
It can be hard to tell whether it is amniotic fluid, urine, or discharge. Urine may smell like ammonia and may stop when you tighten your pelvic muscles. Amniotic fluid may continue leaking and may be clear or pale.
6. Contractions vs False Labour
Contractions vs false labour can be one of the most confusing parts of the final weeks.
False labour, often connected with Braxton Hicks, may feel like tightening that comes and goes without a steady pattern. It may show up after activity, dehydration, stress, a full bladder, or a long day. It may settle when you rest, drink water, empty your bladder, take a warm shower, or change position.
Real labour contractions usually become more regular over time. They often grow stronger, longer, and closer together. They may not fade when you rest or change position. Eventually, they may become difficult to talk through because your body is asking for your full attention.
But real life is not always neat.
Early labour can present in several ways. Contractions may be irregular at first, back labour may occur, cramping can gradually progress into contractions, or the amniotic sac may rupture before contractions begin.
You are not expected to diagnose labour perfectly at home.
If you are unsure, call.
7. What Happens If Your Water Breaks?
If your water breaks, try to stay calm and call your provider or triage number for instructions.
Notice the time it happened, the colour of the fluid, whether it was a gush or trickle, and whether it keeps leaking. Use a pad so you can see the colour and amount. Do not use tampons.
If the fluid is clear or pale and you feel well, your provider may tell you what to do next based on your pregnancy, GBS result, contractions, baby movement, and local hospital or birth centre process.
If the fluid is green, brown, bloody, foul-smelling, or baby movement feels different, call right away and follow urgent instructions.
If you tested positive for Group B Strep, ask your care team before labour begins what they want you to do if your water breaks. Some providers may want you assessed sooner, they may recommend antibiotics during labour.
Labour Signs, Waiting, and What Happens Next
At 38 to 40 weeks pregnant, labour may still be days away, or it may begin soon, and that waiting can feel emotionally heavy. Your body may show signs of preparation like more pelvic pressure, stronger Braxton Hicks, extra discharge, loss of the mucus plug, mild cramping, lower backache, looser bowel movements, or the feeling that baby has moved lower, but these signs do not always mean active labour has started.
At 40 weeks, it can feel even bigger if your estimated due date arrives and the baby has not come, but your due date is still an estimate, not a deadline. Your care team may discuss movement, blood pressure, fluid levels, non-stress testing, ultrasound, membrane sweep, or induction timing depending on your health, baby’s wellbeing, and local practice.
Through all of this, keep noticing baby’s movement, keep your hospital bag ready, eat and hydrate gently, rest when you can, and call your provider, midwife, OB, nurse practitioner, or labour and delivery unit if contractions become regular and uncomfortable, your water breaks or leaks, you have bleeding, baby movement changes, or something feels wrong. You are allowed to call before you are sure.
What Happens If Baby Arrives After the Due Date?
Many babies arrive after their estimated due date. Your provider may talk with you about how far past the due date you are, how baby is moving, how your blood pressure looks, whether there are any concerns, and whether monitoring or induction should be discussed.
The phrase complications of overdue pregnancy can sound scary, so it needs to be handled carefully. Going past the due date does not automatically mean something is wrong. But as pregnancy continues beyond the due date, providers may watch more closely because the placenta, amniotic fluid levels, baby’s growth, and baby’s wellbeing matter.
Your provider may explain whether your pregnancy is considered post-dates, what monitoring is recommended, and when induction may be offered or advised. In many Canadian care settings, induction conversations may become more serious around 41 to 42 weeks, depending on your situation and local guidance.
If you feel anxious, ask your provider to explain the timeline in plain language. Ask what happens at 40 weeks, 41 weeks, and 42 weeks in your care setting. Ask how baby will be monitored. Ask when they would recommend induction. Ask what symptoms should make you call immediately.
Read more: What Happens After Your Due Date?
Read more: Induction in Canada
Final Thought
Weeks 38–40 can feel like the longest wait.
Your baby may come soon, or your baby may take more time. Your due date may arrive and pass. Your body may send signs one day and feel quiet the next. Your mind may feel calm in one moment and anxious in the next.
That does not mean you are doing anything wrong.
It means you are at the edge of a huge life change.
Take one step at a time. Notice baby’s movement. Learn the labour signs. Keep your hospital bag ready. Prepare the newborn basics. Set up postpartum essentials for mom. Ask what happens if baby goes past the estimated pregnancy due date. Call if something feels wrong. Let yourself be supported while you wait.
Your baby may be the size of a pumpkin or watermelon, but this stage can feel even bigger.
You do not have to carry Weeks 38–40 perfectly.
You only have to carry them gently.
