I'm 34 weeks, cramping, and want to clean my house. Does this mean my baby is coming?

You mentioned that you're 34 weeks along, you've experienced some cramping, you've also had the urge to clean your entire house, and you're wondering if this means that the baby will come soon, and when do you start preparing? And really, there's no way to predict when your baby is going to come. Any woman who's had a baby before will tell you that you have this huge urge to clean your house from top to bottom, and to go grocery shopping, and to pack your bags, and do all the million things that you need to do before a baby comes. And I just think that's nature's way of helping you to be prepared. The time at which you start preparing, and the ability to do so, will be dependent on your circumstances. For example, some women have issues with preterm labor and they're put on bed rest, and so they physically can't get prepared, and they need someone else to do that for them. And it should be done sooner rather than later since the baby may come early.

If you've had an uncomplicated pregnancy, you might find it less stressful emotionally and financially to start preparing in the beginning and to slowly check one task off your list at a time over time. For sure, start to pack your hospital bag around 35 to 36 weeks if you've had an uncomplicated pregnancy. And you can just put a whole bunch of things in the bag that you don't have to think about until you go to the hospital. Of course there will be a few things that you can't gather until right before you go, so make a list that's easily accessible for you or for anyone else who might have to pack in a hurry so you can grab all those items and go when it's time.

As for the cramping you're having, because you're only 34 weeks along, that could be associated with preterm labor. Symptoms of preterm labor include lower abdominal cramping, lower backache, abdominal tightening and pressure, an increase in discharge associated with pain, leaking of fluid, and vaginal bleeding. If you've experienced any of these symptoms, get checked out. There's really no way to know if what you're experiencing is concerning or not unless a nurse at the hospital or your doctor in the office sees you, performs an exam, and then they can decide if anything else needs to be done about it. Once you're 37 weeks though, you're considered full-term, and it's an entirely different story. If you're contracting every 4 to 5 minutes, you should go to the hospital and get checked out. We're not worried about you delivering your baby prematurely, so it's going to take regular and intense contractions in order for your cervix to change.

Also go in if you feel like your water broke, you're bleeding vaginally, or you don't feel your baby move as much as usual. Those are all reasons independent of each other. For example, a lot of moms think that if their water broke, they don't need to go to the hospital yet if they're not contracting, but your water breaking in and of itself is an admit ticket, so you should still go and get checked out, because the clock starts ticking and the risk for infection goes up the longer your water is broken. Also don't hesitate to call your doctor if you have any other concerns or questions, any other symptoms that are concerning to you. They'll ask you more specific questions about what you've been experiencing, and decide if further investigation or treatment is necessary. Good luck with everything, congratulations ahead of time on the delivery of your baby, and if you have more questions for me in the future, feel free to ask them on our Facebook page at http://www.facebook.com/IntermountainMoms, and recommend us to your friends and family too.

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