Chorevia

Day 109 of 280 · 15 weeks + 4 days

Steadier shoes

Last reviewed · 3 min read · 7 sources · Plain-text version

Your balance is starting to change as the bump grows. Today's job is the pair of shoes by the door, and a clear path to the stairs.

Size this week
about the size of an apple
Length this week
around 10.1 cm from head to bottom
A white woman in a loose jumper and leggings sits on the bottom stair of a narrow hallway lacing flat trainers, a partner's hand holding the banister above her, morning light from the front door.

Fifteen weeks and four days. Nothing dramatic today: a pair of shoes, a hallway, and the stairs. Your centre of gravity is starting to move, and the house can move a little with it.

Your baby

A single red apple on a plain pale wooden table, soft window light.

Around 10.1cm from head to bottom, about the size of an apple (NHS). Eyebrows and eyelashes are starting to form around now, over a face that already has a soft layer of hair, called lanugo, across the body (NHS). The eyes are sensitive to light (NHS).

Your body

The NHS's line for this week is short: your balance may become less stable as the bump grows (NHS). By week 21 the same guide explains why: a shifted centre of gravity and looser joints (NHS). The bump is small now, but the feeling of being slightly less sure on your feet can arrive before anyone can see why.

MedlinePlus's advice for travel is good advice for the hallway too: "wear comfortable shoes and clothing that isn't tight" (MedlinePlus). Dizziness is on the NHS's list of common symptoms from this stretch of pregnancy (NHS), and a dizzy moment on a staircase in the wrong shoes is the thing today's note is quietly trying to prevent. If you do fall, the NHS says to stay calm but tell your midwife as soon as possible (NHS).

Try today

  1. The flat-shoe swap

    Time: 10 minutes

    1. Pick the one pair of shoes you trust most: flat, gripping, and comfortable, that doesn't pinch anywhere (MedlinePlus).

    2. Put that pair by the door you actually leave through. Move the heels and the slippery soles to the back of the wardrobe for now.

    3. Walk the route from bed to bathroom to front door and move anything you could catch a foot on: bags, cables, a rug edge that lifts.

    4. Check the stair rail is tight. From now on, a hand on it, every time.

    Make it work:

    Swap loose socks for slippers with grip too, for the half-awake walk to the bathroom at night.

Watch for

  • Normal

    feeling a little less steady as your shape changes (NHS).

    Call your provider

    as soon as possible after any fall, even one that seems minor (NHS).

  • Normal

    an occasional light-headed moment; dizziness is on the common-symptoms list (NHS).

    Call your provider

    or seek care immediately for dizziness or fainting, which the CDC lists among the urgent maternal warning signs (CDC).

  • Normal

    tired legs after a long day on your feet.

    Call your provider right away

    for pain and swelling in one leg but not the other, which can signal a blood clot (MedlinePlus).

  • Normal

    numb or tingling hands, often worse on waking (MedlinePlus).

    Call your provider

    to check any persistent numbness, tingling, or weakness in an arm or leg (MedlinePlus).

For you

If your job keeps you standing, MedlinePlus suggests asking your employer for 15 minutes of sitting for every hour on your feet (MedlinePlus). For lifting, most women are advised to keep to objects under 20 pounds, about 9 kilograms (MedlinePlus). None of that needs an announcement; it only needs a chair.

If you're the partner: the stairs are yours today. Clear the clutter from every step and the landing, tighten the rail if it wobbles, and leave a light on at the top at night. It's the kind of job nobody thanks you for because nothing happens, which is the point.

Sources

This guide is general education that summarizes published research and guidance from groups like the American Academy of Pediatrics, the CDC, and the WHO. It isn’t medical advice, and every child develops on their own timeline. Your pediatrician knows your child; if something feels wrong, call them. In an emergency, call 911.

Get each day’s note the morning it applies

Add your due date to a free Chorevia household, and every morning until the birth the day's note arrives in the app and by email: what's forming, what your body is doing, one thing to try, what to watch for, and a word for you.

Create your household