Ok I know this pregnancy stuff, well, doesn’t follow the regular laws of mathematics… whoever invented it must have been a man trying to trick the rest of womankind into believing that it only lasts nine months. But why do I get a deer-in-my-headlights (haha, that one was for you, Aunt Diane) look whenever someone asks me how far along I am??
And it’s NOT just that sometimes I can’t remember how many weeks (although I will admit that I have to check WebMD every once in a while to verify)… it’s that I’m past the point of the weekly count making any sense to anyone, and people want their answer in the largest common denominator, months.
I am currently 28 weeks pregnant. Let me break out the calculator here… 28 divided by 4 is 7. So I’m 7 months pregnant, right?
BUT, 9-7=2… which would indicate that I only have 2 months left to go. Unfortunately, this is not the case! Two months from now is March 21, which is still a solid three weeks before my due date!!
So let’s work backwards. If pregnancy lasts 40 weeks, I am still looking at another 12 weeks of gestating. Twelve weeks equals 3 months, right? So am I only 6 months? That would be SO DEPRESSING. And I can’t be six months, because I’m 28 weeks!!
So what do you think? Am I six months pregnant? Seven months? Because I have NO IDEA.
P.S. If anyone comments with an answer that’s not at least six months, I cannot be held liable for my actions!
27-30 weeks is the 7th month, 31-35 weeks is 8th month, and 36-Birth is 9th month…that’s the best I can do.
The problem is you used 4 weeks – and each month is actually 4.33 weeks (52 weeks in a year divided by 12 months). Pregnancy is actually a bit more than 9 months too – (40 weeks divided by 4.33) So you are currently about 6.5 months pregnant (the part behind you). And you are in your 7th month.
I’m a math purist, so that is always how I figured my pregnancy timelines.
The problem with 28 weeks divided by 4 is that most months have more than 4 weeks. It’s like 4 with a remainder of 3. All of those “3’s” add up. Maybe now, start telling people how much longer until your due date. Where as “28 weeks along” doesn’t mean anything to them now, “I’m due in 12 weeks” might mean something.
All I ask is that you keep your legs tightly closed right now. You do NOT want to give birth to a 28 weeker.
Hahaha!! I was the same way!! I’d get so frustrated over trying to explain how far along I was. So I ended up just telling poeple when I was due, instead of how far along I was. For myself, I went by weeks…knowing I was “due” at week 40. But even that caused problems, because I said I was 20 weeks when my 20th week started, and Wayne said I was 20 weeks when my 20th week ended. UGH!!!!!
I’m 28 weeks too–and have been trying to figure out how many months that is! My due date is April 12.
Best of luck to you for a healthy pregnancy!
You are right. The pregnancy time line had to be invented by a man. We are pregnant for 10 months!!!!
I know!!! I hate that. It’s because, if you just count 4 week months, we’re pregnant for 10 months. Who knew! I generally tell people “if you assume 4 weeks in a month, then I’m ___ months.” That works for most of the pregnancy, until you get to the last couple of months. Then, I’ve switched and tell them how many week or months I have left. At the point that you have 10 week or less to go, that sounds pretty darn impressive and people GET that. I hate that question!
I agree with Karen,Tiffany, and kel. Just say “I’m due in 12 weeks!” Even though the specifics are VERY important to you….the people who are asking just want to know when that little bambino is going to show up. They just want to jump into your world for a second and be excited with you. Don’t sweat it….They’ll ask again next time they see you anyway.
OMG I just got so excited….I can’t wait to see you again!! You look fawsome, don’t you? I bet you know what I’m going to ask you…
Another thing is, actual pregnancy is around 38 weeks… they count from the first day of your last menstrual cycle, when you actually conceive about 2 weeks after that. But its much easier for a doctor to ask “when did your last period start”? Instead of “when did you conceive?” and expect any accuracy in most cases.
You are actually meant to be pregnant for 266 days (38 weeks). The first 2 weeks were like Sierra said, actually before you were pregnant anyways. A month is never only 4 weeks unless it is Feb. outside a leap year.
I figure this, if your baby is born on April 11th you aren’t going to say they are 1 month old until May 11th and a full month is over with, right?? So don’t say you are seven months until the full 7th month is over with, which would be around the end of the 30th week. Otherwise you are going to hit 36 weeks, which is at the beginning of your 9th month (8 full months) and be saying that you are 9 months along…..thus making that 9th month very very very long. You really aren’t 9 (full) months until that 40th week.
If that just made no sense, try counting backwards. If your due date is April 11th, then March 11th you are 8 mo, Feb. 11th you are 7 mo. and as of Jan. 11 you were 6 mo.
And if you confuse yourself too much you could end up like my dear, sweet (but airhead) SIL and be counting your baby’s age all screwed up too. She was so messed up she was counting his age as every 4 weeks as a month. She never understood what I was trying to explain to her until she was saying her baby was 12 months old but he still had 4 weeks until his 1st birthday! *duh* 🙂
i believe we are technically pregnant for 10 months cuz you start counting from your last period. tricky, huh? so i’d say you are 6 mos. pregnant now. 🙂
The whole week, month pregnancy thing is all too confusing. I won’t say what I think you are, for fear of my life :o} but I think you are way more than halfway done, so that’s pretty awesome!! I just found you through cre8buzz and I’ll be back for more for sure!
I’m feeling the same way as you!! I’m not sure why people are so preoccupied with the months things when the doctor goes by weeks. I just tell people weeks and let them figure it out themselves if its important to them.
Ugh I hated this. I had such a hard time figuring it out at first lol. I would just say, I’m 7 months! Only 3 months to go! Or you could just start saying “Only 3 months to go!” lol 🙂
Oy…we have a similar problem now that Lorelei is 10 months old. If you go by weeks then divide by 4, it’s not the same. And weeks would be more accurate. OR do I go by the 12th of each month? Is she weeks or months (because they are different and calculate different). lol. We just say she’s 9 months old. Ppl seem to be happy with that. 🙂
I so hated doing this when I was pregnant both times. It drove me crazy.. Seriously, I would get cranky. I will agree with whatever you want me to..your the pregnant one.. and those pregnant hormones are NO fun.. I remember..LOL
You sound just like me, I asked a similar question on my blog! It’s so confusing, I just go by the weeks but I want to be precise with months because normal people understand months instead of weeks. The same goes for a child’s age, 11 months draws the line, then it’s time to count in years.
after a alot of research, i will say this that a month has 31 to 30 days right. so it is 4 weeks plus 3 days. then another month is 30 days that is 4 weeks and 2 days. so effectively 13 weeks and one day make 3 months. that means 6 months = 26 weeks and 2 days
9 months = 39 weeks and 3 days
i hope all confusions are laid to rest. ur third trimester starts from week 27th onwards
by theway this reply alo posted by a man! heeheh good luck to all