37 weeks hard belly

If you find your stomach becomes hard at 37 weeks, don't be too nervous. This does not mean that the fetus in your belly has suffered any harm or abnormal reaction. Some pregnant women will find changes in their skin after a certain period of pregnancy. The skin will become rougher than before. This may cause the stomach to become hard, but you still need to have a pregnancy test to make a specific judgment.

1. The abdomen becomes bigger

In the third month of pregnancy, the abdomen becomes noticeably larger, but before pregnancy is confirmed, the abdomen may become larger due to a tumor in the abdomen or a rapid increase in weight. Therefore, further tests must be done at this time to confirm whether pregnancy is present.

2. Feel the shape of the fetus

This is also one of the reliable symptoms of pregnancy, usually around the fourth or fifth month, and you can also feel fetal movement. But remember to be careful not to mistake the abdominal tumor for the shape of a fetus. You still need to ask a doctor to make a more accurate judgment.

3. The cervix softens and the uterus becomes spherical

This must be determined through internal examination by a physician. Occasionally, the uterus will have painless contractions, and you can sense the changes by touching the abdomen with your hands.

4. Pregnancy Test

If your period is more than two weeks late, you can do a urine hCG test, which only takes five minutes to detect whether you are pregnant. However, it is not 100% accurate in defining intrauterine pregnancy, because in addition to human chorionic gonadotropin (hCG) in the urine of the pregnant person, other conditions such as ectopic pregnancy, hydatidiform mole, choriocarcinoma, etc. will also produce a positive reaction when doing this test. Therefore, the hCG test in urine can only be used as a reference for doctors to judge whether there is pregnancy.

5. The fetus’s outline can be seen through ultrasound

The location of the pregnancy and the fetal heartbeat can be determined in the sixth week of pregnancy, and ultrasound can be used to observe the various structures of the fetus after the twelfth week of pregnancy.

6. Hear the fetal heartbeat

The fetal heartbeat can be clearly heard with a fetal heart monitor at 12 weeks of pregnancy. From 18th to 20th week of pregnancy, the fetal heartbeat can be heard with a fetal heart monitor, which is about 120 to 160 beats per minute.

7. Feel the movement of the fetus

During the fifth month of pregnancy, you will feel the fetus moving in the uterus, which is called fetal movement.

8. Liver and Gallbladder

There are not many changes in the liver during pregnancy. The liver does not enlarge or increase in blood flow. Although the morphology and size of liver cells change slightly, there is no heterogeneity. Liver function tests showed slight changes; cholesterol, alkaline phosphatase, and total cholesterol increased. The ratio of plasma white, albumin and globulin decreased.

9. Endocrine changes

Anterior pituitary enlargement

The anterior pituitary gland enlarges 1-2 times, and the eosinophils increase and hypertrophy to become so-called pregnancy cells. Sometimes the enlarged pituitary gland can compress the optic chiasm and cause bilateral temporal hemianopsia. After delivery, the pituitary gland shrinks and recovers in about 10 days. For example, hemorrhagic shock during or after delivery can cause ischemic necrosis of the hypertrophic pituitary gland, leading to Sheehan syndrome.

During pregnancy, the anterior pituitary gland secretes increased levels of prolactin (PRL), thyrotropin (TSH), adrenocorticotropic hormone (ACTH), and melanocyte stimulating hormone (MSH). PRL begins to increase from the 7th week of pregnancy, and the PRL value in serum can rise from 10mg/ml in the non-pregnant period to 200mg/ml in full-term pregnancy. PRL promotes breast development and prepares for postpartum breastfeeding.

In breastfeeding women, the blood pressure drops to non-pregnant levels within 80-100 days or longer after delivery. In those who are not breastfeeding, their blood sugar levels drop to non-pregnant levels within 3 weeks after delivery. TSH and ACTH secretion increases but no symptoms. The increased secretion of MSH causes pigmentation on the cheeks, nipples, linea alba, vulva, etc. The secretion of growth hormone (GH) remains unchanged, while the secretion of gonadotropin (FSH, LH) decreases, so the follicles in the ovaries during pregnancy no longer mature and ovulation does not occur. However, there was no change in the production of oxytocin and vasopressin by the posterior pituitary.

During pregnancy, the sweat glands and sebaceous glands function hyperactively, and the skin folds in the armpits and perineum may become inflamed and cause erosions, which are often difficult to cure and will not subside until after delivery.