Pregnancy week by week · trimester 3
🥥 31 weeks pregnant: your baby is about the size of a coconut
At 31 weeks pregnant, your baby is about the size of a coconut, and their senses are busy practising with sound, light and movement.
Your baby this week
Your baby is around 41.1cm long and about 1.5kg, roughly the size of a coconut. All five senses are working, and your baby is practising with them: hearing your voice, sensing light, and feeling their own hands and feet. They are rehearsing breathing, sucking and swallowing, skills they will need for their first feeds. Connections in the brain are multiplying quickly. With less room to spare, you may feel more rolls and pushes than sharp kicks, but movements should carry on as before.
You this week
As your womb rises up under your ribs, breathlessness is common, especially on stairs. Backache, swollen ankles, heartburn and broken sleep may be part of most days. Some mums notice a little leaking of urine when they cough, sneeze or laugh, which pelvic floor exercises can help with. Braxton Hicks may come more often. If you feel a nudge to get organised, go with it gently, and stop for a cup of tea in between.
Kind things to do this week
- Practise a calm breathing technique you might like to use in labour.
- Do your pelvic floor exercises a few times a day; they help now and after the birth.
- Check how your car seat fits in your car before you need it.
Appointments around now
If this is your first pregnancy, you will usually see your midwife at 31 weeks. They will check your blood pressure, urine and bump size, and go through any results from your 28 week tests.
Questions to ask your midwife
- What should I do if I think my waters have broken?
- Were my 28 week blood test results okay?
When to call your midwife or maternity unit
If your baby's movements slow down, stop or feel different to their usual pattern, contact your maternity unit straight away, day or night. Do not wait until the next day. Please also call your midwife or maternity unit if you have bleeding, fluid leaking, a severe headache, changes to your vision, sudden swelling, or itching (especially on the palms of your hands or soles of your feet). If you have regular tightenings or period-like pains before 37 weeks, call your maternity unit too.
OBubba from bump to baby
Follow your pregnancy week by week, free.
OBubba is free through pregnancy, with a weekly update, kick counting and contraction timing. On the day your baby arrives, the same app becomes your baby tracker.
Questions
Why do I leak a little when I sneeze in pregnancy?
Your bump presses on your bladder and pregnancy hormones soften the pelvic floor, so small leaks are common. Regular pelvic floor exercises can make a real difference.
Should movements feel different at 31 weeks?
They may feel more like rolls and stretches as space gets snug, but they should not slow down or stop. If they do, contact your maternity unit straight away.
Not sure how far along you are? Use the due date calculator.
Sources
OBubba gives general information. It is not medical advice and does not diagnose anything. Your midwife and maternity unit are always the right people to ask, any time of day or night.