As mentioned above, you may be noticing some changes to your heart. Some other symptoms you may experience during week 33 and in your final stage of pregnancy include:

 

• back pain
• swelling of the ankles and feet
• difficulty sleeping
• heartburn
• shortness of breath
• Braxton-Hicks contractions

Back pain

 

As your baby grows, pressure builds on your sciatic nerve, the largest nerve in your body. This can cause back pain called sciatica. To relieve back pain, you may try:

 

• taking warm baths
• using a heating pad
• switching the side you sleep on to alleviate sciatic pain

 

A study in the Journal of Orthopaedic and Sports Physical Therapy indicates that physical therapy, such as education and exercise therapy, can reduce back and pelvic pain before and after pregnancy.

 

If you are in severe pain, call your doctor.

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Swelling of the ankles and feet

 

You may notice that your ankles and feet are swelling more than they did in previous months. That’s because your growing uterus puts pressure on veins running to your legs and feet. If you’re experiencing swelling of the ankles and feet, prop them up above heart level for 15 to 20 minutes, at least two to three times daily. If you’re experiencing extreme swelling, this could be a sign of preeclampsia, and you need to contact your doctor immediately.

 

Now that you are firmly in the final trimester of pregnancy, you need to know signs of early labor. Though your baby is not considered full term for several more weeks, early labor is possible. Signs of early labor include:

 

• contractions at regular intervals that are getting closer together
• lower back and leg cramping that does not go away
• your water breaking (it can be a large or small amount)
• bloody or brownish vaginal discharge (known as “bloody show”)

 

Even though you may think you are in labor, it could just be Braxton-Hicks contractions. These are infrequent contractions that do not get closer together and more intense. They should go away after a period of time and should not be as strong as the contractions will be when you finally go into labor.

If your contractions are getting longer, stronger, or closer together, get to the delivery hospital. It is still too early for a baby to be born and they will likely try to stop the labor. Early labor can be triggered with dehydration. Often an IV bag of fluid is enough to stop labor.