The pregnancy test was positive...
when can you expect that little baby to arrive? Doctors use a little gestational wheel to calculate pregnancy due dates.
The little wheels are faster methods of finding the same date you can get by doing a simple calculation.
This is called Naegle's Rule, after the doctor who decided the average pregnancy lasted 40 weeks after the last menstrual period.
It is really easy to calculate your due date using this little math problem.
If math was the bane of your existence in school, you'll still be able to master this one.
And you may find out that you just enjoyed a story problem for the first time in your life! Start with the date of the first day of your last period.
Add seven days.
Now subtract three months.
Finally, adjust the year as needed.
For example, if your last period began on August 23, 2008, you add 7 days and come up with August 30, 2008.
Now you subtract three months and get May 30, 2008.
Now adjust the year (since May, 2008 is already passed, you want to bump it to 2009) and you get an estimated due date of May 30, 2009.
Another example: if the first day of your last period was January 9, 2008, you add 7 days to get January 16, 2008.
Now subtract three months to get October 16, 2008.
Since October hadn't passed before you got pregnant, your due date is within the same year.
An important thing to remember about due dates is your baby can't read a calendar or a schedule yet.
The average baby is born sometimes within two weeks before and two weeks after the estimated due date.
So, if you were due on October 16, and baby wasn't born until October 23...
they are still on time.
They're not late yet.
In fact, if left alone, most first babies arrive sometime between 41 and 42 weeks.
Labor begins through a complex communication between your baby and your body.
This is why many times inducing labor is not effective, and leads to cesarean section.
If your body isn't ready, induction does not work well in most cases.
So, when you are calculating your due date, keep in mind that this is just giving you a ball park date.
Only about 5% of babies are actually born on their due date when they are allowed to trigger labor on their own.
Keep your due date in mind for planning your maternity wardrobe, your baby shower, and what baby clothes to begin with.
But it is also important to keep your calendar cleared during that four week period that surrounds your due date.
You never know when baby will decide it is time to join the family, and that's part of the fun! If you decide not to try the math problem outlined above, a simple online search will provide you with many sites that will do the calculating for you.
All you need to do is put in the date of your last menstrual period, and you'll be given the due date automatically.