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Day 198 of 280 · 28 weeks + 2 days

On your side from now

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

Twenty-eight weeks and two days. From 28 weeks, sleeping on your side is safest. Tonight you build a pillow setup that keeps you there.

Size this week
about the size of an aubergine
Length this week
around 37.6 cm from head to heel
A woman with a full bump in pyjamas arranging a long pillow along her back on a made bed, another pillow between her knees, warm bedside lamp, dusk at the window.

Twenty-eight weeks and two days. The NHS's advice on sleep changes at this point: early on, any position is fine; after 28 weeks, sleeping on your side is safest (NHS). You may already be most of the way there. Tonight is about making it easy to stay.

Your baby

A single glossy aubergine on a plain pale wooden table, soft window light.

Around 37.6cm from head to heel, about the size of an aubergine (NHS). Your baby's heartbeat is now strong enough to be heard through a stethoscope, and sometimes just by putting an ear against your belly (NHS). Worth a try tonight, once the pillows are in place.

Your body

Why the side: lying on your side keeps the weight of the baby off the large vein that carries blood from your legs back to your heart, and many providers recommend the left side, which improves blood flow to the heart, the fetus, the uterus, and the kidneys (MedlinePlus). The NHS adds that side sleeping helps blood flow to the placenta and reduces backache (NHS). MedlinePlus's summary: "It is best not to sleep flat on your back" (MedlinePlus).

Side with knees bent is probably the most comfortable position too (MedlinePlus). Comfort is the point of tonight's setup: a position you can actually sleep in is one you'll stay in.

Try today

  1. The side-sleep pillow

    Time: 10 minutes at bedtime

    1. Lie on your side, ideally the left, with your knees bent (MedlinePlus).

    2. Put a pillow between your knees, and a second one under your bump to take its weight; the NHS suggests both (NHS).

    3. Wedge a long pillow, or a rolled one, firmly along your back so rolling flat takes effort. MedlinePlus suggests a rolled pillow at the small of the back (MedlinePlus).

    4. Move things around until nothing pinches, then leave the setup made for tomorrow night.

    Make it work:

    No special pillow needed. Ordinary bed pillows, a folded blanket, or a sofa cushion all do the job.

Watch for

  • Normal

    feeling a little short of breath lying down as the baby takes up room.

    Call 911

    or go to an emergency room for severe chest pain or shortness of breath that doesn't go away (MedlinePlus).

  • Normal

    a headache after a bad night; headaches are on the NHS's symptom list for these weeks (NHS).

    Call your provider

    for a headache that won't go away or gets worse over time (CDC).

  • Normal

    nights that are simply hard.

    Call your provider

    before taking any sleep aid, including over-the-counter medicines and herbal products (MedlinePlus).

For you

You will wake up on your back some nights. Everyone does. It isn't a failure and there's nothing to undo: notice it, turn back onto your side, and go back to sleep. The pillow behind you is there to make that rarer, not to make it never happen. If getting to sleep is the hard part, MedlinePlus suggests a 15-minute warm bath or a warm caffeine-free drink such as milk (MedlinePlus).

If you're the partner: a bed with this many pillows has less room in it. Be gracious about it. If you wake and see her flat on her back, a gentle hand on the shoulder and "roll over" is plenty.

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.

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